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That is just called being a class act on Brad's part. Not putting your manager under the bus or second guessing him in front of everyone. But at the same time he said in his demeanor and tone that he could have gone out there in the ninth. I mean, for goodness sake it took one more pitch after Trembley went out there for him to finish the inning. What is telling you as a manager your guy is done? I love this team, I really do, but I can't take the way Trembley is emulating Sam Perlozzo.

Let's see. Four run lead, you can give up 3 runs in an inning and still win. That is a ERA of 27.00. Should be within the realms of possibility. Walks, walks, walks. What was the difference between innings 1-8 and inning 9? Zero walks and 4 walks. If you don't throw strikes you don't win consistently (R Hill?).

At least it puts the Orioles back in their place. DT seemed a little too excited about one comeback win. It is still a team that is 13 games behind the Red Sox and the season isn't half over.

In this case I can see DT's moves but obviously the guys didn't come close to performing.

JJ and Sherrill have been solid. We just had an complete failure like the Red Sox had a complete failure. It was just our luck that our failure had to come after the Red Sox one.

And it had to fall on Canada Day so now those stupid Sox fans can refer to this as the Canada Day Massacre. Ugh!

It's kind of freaky how similar the two are really when you think about it. Guthrie was removed after pitching 8 strong innings on the holiday that shall not be named and the Red Sox came back. Bergesen is removed after 8 strong innings and the Sux come back again.

So there should now be an official rule. On a holiday or observed day, no Orioles starter that has a lead doing into the ninth should be pulled from the game after 8 innings of dominating baseball against the Red Sox.

Brad's being very diplomatic. When he said that Trembley made the right decision, I'm sure he had quotation marks around it in his mind. Notice that he contradicts himself, first hesitating to say he had anything left and then saying he thought he did.

Bottom line between the lines read: Yes, I could have gone out there and wanted to, but it wasn't my call.

The only doubts about his ability to finish the game were the seeds planted in his mind from Trembley. I find that potentially very poisonous to the maturation process of someone who could be an important part of the staff for years to come. There aren't too many pitchers who can be counted on to throw complete games, and so to have someone who can do that more than once is really special. That kind of talent needs to be cultivated, not stiffled.

(Dave, please quit overthinking this; if you're starter is dominating the other team, let him dominate as long as he can. This isn't rocket science. (I guarantee the Sox to a man were relieved to see Brad out of the game. It's like, "Hey, this guy was killing us. Johnson's tough, but maybe he'll be off his game today.")

I would pull Bergy,after a well pitched game and left it to the pen.But this is where the O's need to improve.Great pitching from your starter, you could take 2outof3 from 1 of the best teams in the Majors and you can't seal the deal! We all Know they need ligitimate starters.What happened?You had the Mojo and poof gone.The nite before you do the impossible and than this.It is a long season,there are growing pains.If We are to improve you must seal the deal!I bleed Orange and Black, love Dave Trembley, And shall forever support the O's!Let' get to .500 .Let's get over the Allstar fallof and hang in there.Do not let this Demise your Progress forward.Tomorrow is a new Day, Please You have the Talent now put it to good use on the field!

Had to take a walk across Tower bridge to deal with this loss.

This one really hurts and it could send the team into a talespin. I guess we'll have to wait and see, but it's going to be a loooonnnnggggg plane ride out to LA tonight.

I still think Baez should have been yanked earlier in the 11th and Pie should have been on the bench in the bottom of the 11th.

Would have been nice to stay in that state of bliss for one more day. And really feel upbeat about the ball club.

Dave likes plans and seeing them through, i.e.,his statement that if we had been told before the game that Brad would go 8 innings and only given up one run we would have gladly taken that. The point is Bergensen was clicking.

And sure I understand the point that your best relief pitchers should be able to protect a 4-run lead. Fine, bring them in if Bergensen gets in trouble in the 9th.

Being a good manager takes instincts, the ability to improvise off the plan.

Last night it was "Ain't the beer cold!"

Today? "Ain't the beer WARM...and FLAT!"

Considering Bergesen had thrown only 103 pitches he should have been given the chance to throw a complete game. The way he was pitching there was no reason for taking him out unless he said he didn't have it anymore. What is also disturbing when Pie was thrown out at 2nd (and he should have slid more towards the pitching mound than straight in, which shows a lack of sliding skills) but i guess it was Pedroia who tagged him with his glove and the ball was clearly in his bare hand which was nowhere near his glove hand. Trembley said on the M.A.S.N. telecast he saw thE Play but felt it was a waste of time to go out and argue. What a putz! At least go out ask the ump to confer with the other umpires. Maybe one of them saw what really happened. But no. Mister Meek doesn't fight for his team when they are clearly wronged and he sees it. That's sad....and unacceptable.

Johnson and Sherrill should have been able to hold a four-run lead and Sherrill shouldn't walk three batters after striking out the first two batters he faced in the 9th. The 9th inning wasn't about Trembley...it was a horrible effort by Johnson & Sherrill that cost Bergesen a win and cost the series for the O's.

In professional baseball...if the manager asks somebody to a job that they are paid to do and it is appropriate..he ahs done his job.

Sherrill and Johnson are paid to get batters out in this situation and they did not do their job.

End of story in my mind.

I don’t question DT’s decision to pull Bergy after the eighth, I question why he allowed Sherrill to face anyone after he lost it and allowed two runners in the ninth. A blind man could see that Sherrill was done, and leaving him in there to give up the tying runs was irresponsible.

Sherrill had a tough outing last night and I wouldn’t have asked to face more than four batters today. Baez was the fresh arm and should have been warming as Sherrill took the mound. Bringing Baez in with two runners on and a two run lead is not a guarantee of success but it’s a far sight better than the score tied.

These are grown men. Just because you throw 100 pitches doesn't mean your arm is going to fall off. Bergensen is a class act by not putting his manager down but I could tell he wanted the ball and should have been left in there to pitch. We'd have another win on our side but Trembley thinks every game that his pitcher can only throw 100- 110 pitches and he is finished. Bull crap!

I think that replacing JJ was a mistake, because Sherrill threw about 25 tough pitches last night in an emotional win, and it was a day game after a night game. Also, Baez could have been brought-in earlier once it was clear that Sherrill was struggling.

It also negated a thoughtful lineup put-up by Mr. Trembley today. He had earlier, against another power pitcher Verlander, shied away from fielding three left-handed-hitters back-to-back. On that occasion Mr. T had put Mora behind Huff and not played a high-fast-ball hitting Wigginton at all. So it was a nice adjustment in that respect.

I've seen it happen too often.....this need to put in your closer when it isn't necessary. Bergesen had only given up 1 run on 4 hits and didn't look like he was out of gas in the 8th. Why not let him start the 9th and then, if he gets in trouble, get your closer in? Sure Johnson and Sherill have been awesome this year, but that doesn't mean they are perfect. Why take a chance that this isn't their day, when you don't have to? What a shame, after the great win last night, that we have to give one back....very frustrating!

I know it is just a game.

I know almost two hours have passed.

Why does it hurt so much then?

Time for an update on MCFAIL.

After 78 games last year the O's had six more wins and had allowed 59 LESS runs.

There is no plan! There is no progress. Andrew is a corporate budget man first and foremost. He did it in Chicago and he is doing it again here.

Enjoy your tee time(s) at Pebble Beach Andrew!

Second guessing...blah, blah, blah.

I'm a big fan of the "one more batter" strategy...I would have let Triple E face the first batter in the 9th. But I certainly don't think bringing in Jim Johnson was the wrong move. Guy's been reliable all year. He just didn't have it today.

It happens. Trembley didn't make the wrong call here. Move along, we were beaten by a better team. They don't have the best record in the AL for nothing.

Hey ANDREW, if you hadn't WASTED two months of seasoning for Bergeson by trotting out EATON and HENDRICKSON and SIMON and UEHARA than BERGESON would have been prepared to go for one more inning.

Good job ANDREW.

Right? Right?

I just saw that Berken had the highest ERA of any AL starter this past month at 8.61. I wouldn't mind swapping him for Tillman about now.

I am really continuing to hate the way Trembley is coddling Bergesen. He (Bergy) obviously has that 'killer instinct' that a pitcher like, oh say, Bedard, lacks. It's obvious to me that he goes out there with the mentality to finish games. At least from what I've observed so far. He should have had two complete games to this point. Possibly a third if he had gotten out of that runners on 1st and 3rd jam in his first attempt. I gave Trembley the benefit of the doubt that first time he pulled him. But the last couple of times have just irked me.

Yes, Sherrill and J. J. have been stellar, but they're going to have off days. Plus Sherrill had just pitched late the night before, so why not spare the bullpen? Not only that, but you're trying to build the confidence of these young players. Bergesen has shown several times that he deserves the chance to finish games, but only has one complete game to show for it.

I wasn't on the fire Trembley bandwagen before, but I'm tetering ever so close to the line now. The things I'm seeing are becoming harder to overlook.

Any objective opinion on Varitek's at bat in the 9th? Listening on the radio, they actually called it a swinging strikeout, then paused, then said it was called ball four. Johnson remarked it was obvious that Varitek went around. I know you can't argue ball/strike calls, but I was a lot more upset that Trembley wasn't out there getting tossed from the game after that call than I was with the decision to pull Bergesen. So - home announcers or was it really that bad of a call?

This is why I can't be a major league pitcher (OK, complete lack of talent would be the top reason, but...). After his phantom hit by a pitch and strike out swinging no-wait-take-first-base, I'd have drilled him his next time up. The umpires would probably give him first base regardless of what you do, so you may as well make it worth your while and plant a fastball in his butt.

All the great 2nd guessers here should think back just a few weeks ago when Bergesen came out for the 7th inning in Philadelphia after pitching 6 fabulous innings and got knocked around. I'm sure if the same thing would have happened in the 9th today the manager would be raked over the coals for leaving him in.

Trembley made the correct decision today. It backfired. Every manager in the major leagues (except maybe Dusty Baker, but if he was the O's manager the whole rotation would be on the DL) would have done the same thing today.

We've got a fun, exciting team right now, but here's a revelation for all the haters out there. The O's are not going to win the AL East or the AL Wild Card in 2009. That's why we should keep running Rich Hill out there. That's why we should give Felix Pie a chance to play. That's why we should at least listen to trade offers for players like Huff and Sherrill. But this is a lot better than watching Kevin Millar & Jay Payton last year.

The biggest problem I have with Trembley's managing style is how he treats his players like fragile objects. He takes them out before they can get themselves out of a jam, takes them out when he believes they should be tired, takes them out if they have a 6 pitch inning late in the game even though the count is getting up there.

I really hate to compare Bergesen in anyway to Maddux, but i see a lot of similarities. They both attack the hitter, have a ton of movement on EVERY pitch, won't overpower anyone, and are confident enough to throw anything at anytime. Also, they both throw so easily, that pitch counts with them should be handled differently than another kid who throws 96 across his body. Bergesen shut down a Red Sox lineup that thrives on waiting for the right pitch, hitting in certain counts, drawing walks and turning the lineup over. Today, all the swings they took looked like 2 strike swings even when the count was in their favor. He was totally dominating them and i don't doubt he could've finished the 9th and still managed to throw around 115 pitches. I just don't get Trembley. If you constantly take guys out before their pitch counts get up, they will NEVER build stamina and won't develop the ability to throw a few extra pitches. Why can a Guthrie throw 110 pitches in 5 or 6 innings, but Bergesen can't throw 110 through 9? I know he's a rookie, but he's the perfect candidate to be a big time innings eater. He deserved better. Why can't Trembley just once say "OK, i screwed up. I should've left him in to finish it." He always sounds like these pitchers are crumpled up in the corner of the dugout after their last inning, begging and pleading to come out of the game.

Also, Johnson clearly had command issues starting the 9th, but with 2 run lead after that HR, i would've liked to see if he could turn it around.

When DT took out Brad, I was heart broken. Shades of Perlozzo and you know where he is. I wish I could understand the current day philosophy behind these moves. Why don't we leave a pitcher in until he gets in trouble as JJ did and then yank him out? Doing so on some weak supposition that he threw 103 pitches and he might be tired is total BS. These kind of moves probably will get him fired and he will deserve it.

No offense Jon, but Canada Day is not a real holiday... it's like the tooth fairy, Santa Claus or Eskimos!

OK enough with today's game. I'm going to re-watch last nights game and have happy thoughts. Starting from the point the Sux made fools of themselves in the 6th inning with 2 OUTS. hahahahahaha

I have a great idea: From now on, anyone who disagrees with a pitching move has to register their complaint here, prior to the next batter. That way all you armchair managers have the same chance (more, I say) of looking like an idiot as our tirelessly and tiresomely second-guessed manager.

Asking the two best relievers in his bullpen to preserve a 4-run lead in the ninth?! What a ridiculous move!! Fire the bastard!!!

I've got news for the whiners (and I'm surprised to see Ken among them): Sometimes you make a good move and still lose. The Sox made about five of them last night, for instance. Hey, it happens. In baseball and in life.

I agree with Gary. Bergesen was being diplomatic, as he had to be. And Bergesen won't be inclined to say he was toast because it implies he may not be a gamer. Trembley will likely say Bergesen was out of gas in order to protect his decision.

Maybe DT and Kranitz agreed in advance that Bergesen was losing his stuff in the eighth. A trained eye can see it from the dugout. You can't see it watching a game on TV, or even at the ballpark if you are too far away.

On one hand, you'd think a big league starter still has some gas left in the tank after 103 pitches. On the other hand, the Orioles top two relievers should have been able to protect a four run lead in the ninth. In the final analysis, that's the most shocking aspect of this loss.

Roch,

Can you get us an official update on Chorye Spoone? Heard he is throwing in Sarasota. What a bonus it would be to get him healthy and pitching again in the 2nd half. Thanks.
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I'll check on him. Got a chance to talk to him in spring training and he's a great kid. And I know of at least one scout in organization who thought Spoone was better than some of the big-time prospects, but that was before the injury. - Roch

OCJ: Thanks for being the voice of reason. I agree completely.

Yeah, you can second guess DT all you want but OCJesus is right. They are our two best relievers and both have been pitching really well of late. It stinks that they lost but there is still a lot of positive stuff to take out of this series. We had two very competitive games agains Boston for once. Usually they destroy the O's.

And, by 'water' you mean, 'vodka.'
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If you see a slice of lemon in it, it's water. If you see a lime... - Roch

orange crayon jesus--In the fourth inning against Figgins in tomorrow night's game, with 2 men on and 2 out, I want to see a change up from Guthrie.

Is that early enough for you?

Good teams find a way to win.
With the O's...they find a way to lose. As I mentioned,
what they do with last nights win says a lot about them as a team. And just as I suspected, they floundered the opportunity to take this team to an area they have never been. And that area is one where the mentality is that we are winners. This team is not made up of winners. I know Sherril has a decent era, but he is not a reliable reliever. He is so streaky he reminds you of a lot like Huff. Please trade him at the deadline. Even if it is for one of Andrews PTBNL.

Bergy deserved better then this....the fans do too!
Thanks Andrew!

sheets

Your last post was good tonic.

Roch- Seems to me that Brad is a CLASS ACT ALL THE WAY. He is not going to throw his coach under the bus. No matter how much some of us wish we could.
Trembley takes the starting performance for granted.
When you play the Sox and Yankees as much as we have, and we know nothing is over until it is over YOU DON'T MESS WITH WHATS WORKING!!! He took that outing for granted and we lost because he pulled him too soon.
That is 2 outings that Bergy should have won, Philly and Today, and Bergy would be 7-2 and amongst the top pitchers in ALL OF BASEBALL. Welcome to O's country. Those fruits are gonna continue to invade our park until we spank their ass's a couple seasons in a row.
We are a long way away.

Roch said to Ken Francis--

I can't and won't criticize Dave Trembley? Really? I expect more from you than regurgitating that crap. You disappoint me. I can, have and will criticize when warranted. But I'll also try to collect all the facts first. - Roch

Roch--Ok, what are all the facts you collected? You intimated that Dave was hedging and we saw the quotes about him seeing something "from the fifth." What, Bergesen was not feeling well? He certainly looked pretty lights-out good.

Here's what Steve Melewski wrote in response to Ken Francis' comments:

I think Bergesen should have at least come out to start the 9th. If he gives up something there, then go get Johnson or Sherrill. Bergy was rolling and had retired 15 of the last 17 hitters and one reached on an error. He looked very strong at the end to me. I think if he starts the 9th, he gets three outs and the O's win. Sherrill threw 25 tough pitches last night and it was no suprise to me it caught up to him today. This was one bitter loss especially after Tuesday's win.

Steve

Die-hard Oriole fans who watch every game closely and care about the team will express themselves in this blog forum. As you know, by it's nature, linked to the visual accessibility of every game--and every pitch--the blog format will invite us to write our thoughts.

You may not like them, but as orange crayon jesus surely can attest there are many crayolas in the box and many things--some quite beautiful--that you can do with them.
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So what exactly is your point, Barry, because you clearly missed mine? It's not about liking or disliking other's opinions, it's me wanting to retire that ridiculous argument that I can't criticize anyone in this organization. Are you new to this blog that you don't know that's a sore spot with me? When I say gather the facts, I mean how about waiting until after the game to find out whether Bergesen was gassed after the eighth. You can't pounce on Trembley the minute he makes a pitching change without hearing the reason why, and checking on Bergesen. THAT'S what I mean about gathering the facts. Then you can pounce. But how about waiting until after the final out and the post-game interviews are done. - Roch

Roch- Here is the thing....You do not pull a pitcher doing that well against a team like that, until he gets into trouble. He had them off balance, as he does everyone, and that game kills the whole momentum from the 10 run comeback.
I agree with Schmuck whole heartedly, that the O's need to bring in a manager that has experience in the bigs with winning.
There are guys out there.
I personally think that Eddie Murray deserves a shot.
I like Bobby Valentine. I like Art Howe.
You can't say that Howe can't win with young talent.

Come on Jack,
Decent? Coming into the game Sherill had a 1.99 ERA. Even now his ERA is still only 2.51 which goes beyond decent in my books. Give the man some credit. He may not have got the job done tonight but he does it almost every other night.

Barry,
I'd actually like to see Guthrie work against another batter and see if we can give our bullpen a rest.

This game could have been a watershed moment fot the orioles, instead it becomes yet another fustration. Winning this game at the very least shows that there is progress in this organization and that the orioles are not a complete doormat for the other four teams in th AL east. Now, with this loss, tuesdays comeback win is proven to be an aberration.
To DT: four times out of five I say this is sound strategy, but with the only starter on the team who has shown he can go a complete game this year, you leave him in, at least to START the 9th. Give him a chance to finish his great outing. You could just imagine the Sox players relief at seeing someone besides Berg coming out in the 9th. Also, DT, when you stick JJ out there with no backup plan, meaning that Sherill had thrown 25+ pitches the night before and was tired, it reeks of poor strategy.
Also, what is with the friggin' umps, the mistakes were not only too numerous to count, but COSTLY.

Just finished reading the day's comments. It's easy to second guess and Dave often seems to provide ample opportunity for O's fans to do that. I'll give you credit Roch for stirring the pot. A little investigative reporting never hurt anyone. Bergy's comments are all about protecting his manager and for a rookie he did a great job of it. Trembley's comments were all about CYA. I hate when he does that and it has become the expected response.

Why did Dave come out with two outs in the eighth? Call me cynical, but I don't think he had any intention of taking Bergy out. That was a show and he recieved the expected applause when he returned to the dugout. Bergy's response, "I can get this guy", is exactly what you would expect from him. One pitch - inning over. As Ken Francis said, this kind of talent needs to be cultivated, not stifled.

What at this point led the manager to believe that he was done? His pitches were not up! He should know by now that when Bergy starts elevating his pitches, it's time to get him out. That's no different from most pitchers, but most pitchers on this team don't make it to the 7th, 8th, or God forbid the 9th inning. The truth is Dave never asked Bergy if he could go another inning. That was obvious by the post-game comments.

I also can't believe that Dave, in his post game comments said, "You could see from the fifth inning on . . . . ". See what? What?? What could you see Dave? He never finished it. That was a total BS comment. Complete and utter BS. Didn't the Red Sox score in the third, his most troublesome inning of the day. How many baserunners did they have from the fifth inning on against Bergy? More CYA.

I would have left him in until the Sox had two baserunners. As it was, bringing JJ in seemed like a good move, except that it's been a while since he has pitched. He was wild and then the homerun. I was very surprised that he was removed, especially since George had a tough inning less that 16 hours before. Give him one more batter to right the ship.

Yes, we should all expect JJ and George to finish off the inning, but it didn't happen. Handling a pitching staff sometimes can be about instinct. It's something Dave lacks.

The bad news for him is today the media crossed the second-guessing threshold. Instead of giving Dave a pass, they asked follow up questions to find out what really transpired. That's never good for a manager!

fkterp - You were exactly right, Dave Trembley's comments about the tag of Felix Pie in the second inning were sad and unnacceptable. He saw what happened plain as day, yet didn't have the energy, or motivation, or fire to go out and clarify it. So the umpire gets a pass on what was a horribly blown call. I couldn't believe he actually said "that was so bad it wasn't even worth going out for". I'm sure Joe torre or Terry Francona would have just sat there having seen the same thing happen to their team. Show some fire, Man!

Could he just maybe question the check swing by Varitek which should have ended the game?

No one has commented on this, but I would love to see a slow-mo replay of Ellsbury's leadoff double to start the ninth. Pretty sure it was a foul ball!

I am still in complete shock from this loss to the part where I am almost speechless. Sherril retired the first 2 batters he faced quickly but I was really surprised to see him fall apart after that. Bergy deserves better, and the fans do too. I feel really bad for him. When Bergy pitches, he pitches with his heart and he shows you that he loves to play. Bergy is a true ace and might be the best pitcher in baseball right now. I think that Dave should have let Bergy try for a CG, or let Baez pitch immediatly after Sherril loaded the bases. Baez has had experience closing, so he knows how to do it. But, it's time to move on and hope that the Orioles can win tomorrow. I still have great confidence in this team and always will. I have been an O's fan for as long as I remember.(A very long time)

P.S. I still blame the umpires who looked like they were on a totally different planet. Sherril should have gotten that strikeout which would have won the game for the orioles. Incompetent umpiring.

Roch - A poster asked if you would have pinch hit in the 10th inning with Zaun and Andino leading off the inning. You answered with one word. No. Care to support your reasoning?

I disagree. The Red Sox had all the momentum at the time. Their pitchers had retired 18 straight Oriole hitters. Do something to change that momentum. We had Melvin, Oscar, and Matt Wieters available to pinch hit. Oscar Salazar is 4-8 as a pinch-hitter. I lead off the inning with Oscar for Zaun(he gets on - I pinch-run Guthrie) and then bat Wieters for Andino.

It's really unbelievable to me that we have a guy like Oscar who is so hot and has been so good as a pinch-hitter, yet we don't find a way to get him at least one at bat in an eleven inning game.

Dave's phobia of using Wieters at all when he has an off day, has to end as well. His excuse is, what if he gets hurt, we'll be out of catchers. How many times does that ever happen. It doesn't. Did he not pinch run for Wieters last night and use Zaun in the ninth. Come on Dave live on the edge a little!
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Actually, I said "nope." So we've just been talking about how hot Zaun's been lately, and now we're debating whether to pinch-hit for him. People are freaking out that Wieters isn't hitting the way he was in the minors, and now we're debating whether he should be used as a pinch-hitter. You can go back over every inning of every game and second-guess what happens. And then you can make yourself crazy. The game wasn't lost because Zaun and Andino batted. - Roch

Ray--As I've come to expect, your observations are incredibly sharp.

Roch--Considering that I've been contributing since your days at the Sun, I guess I can't really be considered "new to this blog." If you feel sensitive to criticism that you are reticent to criticize in your blogs, well why not simply solve that by giving a few examples. I read every day and I can't remember any analysis by you that questioned Dave's predictable hit-and-run patterns, his handling of pitchers, his rigid approach to in-game dynamics, his responses to post-game questions. I do remember you questioning the value of Felix Pie on the team, after his early season struggles. In that, you joined the chorus of many respondents who found him an easy scapegoat. And what disturbed me in that is that some of those contributors treated him like dirt--as they did Payton and Bynum-- calling him "Gumby" for example, but because they acted friendly with you, sharing chit-chat about Anita, Amber, and acting like they were somehow real ballplayers because they played in an unlimited age hard ball league.

I like you and believe I share with you many passions about Baltimore Oriole baseball. But, you don't seem to acknowledge that your role at MASN is different than that at a newspaper, the Baltimore Sun. The former is contractually affiliated with the ball club. Your role with MASN, running a blog, is a privatised version of public relations. With the Sun, you were a journalist.

There is nothing wrong about your role now. I think you have a great job. But, when Ken Francis says what he says about this, I believe he is referring to your role now.

If I have gotten this wrong, please let me know.

Thanks.
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You got this wrong, Barry. I don't work in PR. And I can gather plenty of players, executives, coaches and assorted other personnel in this organization who will laugh at your suggestion that I do. They aren't always thrilled with me and I've had to put out a few fires. And if you question me as a "journalist," I invite you to go back and check how many stories I've broken. - Roch

live and learn.
the future is bright!
this kid is really special...
keep up the great work, Roch; most of us really appreciate it!

I'm seeing people trying to defend Trembley by saying he went to the team's two best relievers, and so he did. But the whole issue really should be whether going to the 'pen was the right move at all, regardless of who he could bring in, given the way Bergesen was dominating.

Right now Brad Bergesen is the best pitcher on the Orioles, not Jim Johnson or George Sherrill, no matter how good we know they are. And in that situation a manager must go with his best option.

Bergy had something left and basically acknowledged that without saying it in so many words. His 103 pitches were nine fewer than he threw in his complete game against the Braves and nine-pitch innings aren't that uncommon when he's out there.

Leaving Bergy in was clearly the right thing to do. I watched Trembley's press conference and he had no decent answer for why he pulled Bergesen. It was pathetic as he sputtered for something that made sense, then gave up trying. I wish he would have manned up and said he didn't make the best move for the club, that Brad should have gone out to start the ninth.

Dave, you blew it, why don't you admit it.

Hey Roch,

Is everything ok with Ernie Tyler. I havent seen him much or at all this year
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He's at the ballpark every day. Working more in umpires room. - Roch