ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - No need to check with Elias. The Orioles' streak of going hitless with runners in scoring position came to a peaceful end tonight.
Matt Wieters lined a single into right field with two outs in the top of the first inning to score Nick Markakis and give the Orioles a 1-0 lead.
The Orioles had been 0-for-22 with RISP heading into the game, and it didn't take long for the next opportunity to come along. Markakis led off with a walk and took second on Adam Jones' two-out...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette is trying to trade outfielder Endy Chavez, who was designated for assignment today to make room for outfielder Nate McLouth on the 25- and 40-man rosters.
"Endy will end up on his feet shortly. I know Dan's going to explore some things with him and we'll go from there," said manager Buck Showalter.
"There are still some things that could happen for Endy that would benefit both of us. We'll see."
McLouth would have...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles have designated outfielder Endy Chavez for assignment and selected the contract of Nate McLouth from Triple-A Norfolk.
McLouth, the Pirates' All-Star representative and a Gold Glove winner in 2008, is starting in left field. The 30-year-old was batting .244/.325/.461 with 10 homers and 33 RBIs in 47 games with the Tides.
Chavez batted .190 in 47 games with the Orioles.
McLouth, who's wearing No. 48, found out yesterday that the Orioles were selecting his...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles have been held hitless with runners in scoring position in 10 of their last 24 games. They've been limited to one hit in six other games.
That's not easy to do, even if you're trying.
The current streak is 0-for-22. I don't know if records have been kept, though I'm guessing Elias has them. It will be worth checking if the Orioles take another 0-fer tonight against the Rays.
Matt Wieters went 2-for-4 last night and is batting .335 lifetime against the...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles first baseman Mark Reynolds played a guessing game tonight with Rays catcher Jose Lobaton and didn't get the desired results.
Reynolds struck out three times and stranded six runners as part of an 0-for-4 night on his 29th birthday that lowered his average to .207.
"I know we've got to get better. I've got to get better in those situations," said Reynolds, referring to the Orioles going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
"I think tonight I was...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Manager Buck Showalter suffered his 1,000th career loss tonight on the two-year anniversary of his first game with the Orioles.
The result might have been different if the Orioles hadn't gone 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10. And if Tommy Hunter hadn't allowed two more home runs, though the lack of offensive support didn't leave any margin for error.
"We did a lot of good things to get people out there, but there's two sides to that coin....
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Tommy Hunter outlasted Tampa Bay left-hander Matt Moore tonight, but he allowed two homers and received no run support.
In some ways, it's been a typical night for Hunter.
Solo shots by B.J. Upton leading off the fourth inning and Desmond Jennings leading off the sixth have given the Rays a 2-0 lead at Tropicana Field. Hunter has surrendered 26 homers this season, most in the majors.
Carlos Pena thought he tagged Hunter with No. 27 in the sixth, but Adam Jones made a...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Robert Andino is starting at third base against a left-hander tonight, and he could return to the hot corner under similar circumstances in future games.
Wilson Betemit is batting .146 against left-handers, compared to .307 against right-handers. That's one reason.
Omar Quintanila is swinging a pretty hot bat these days and manager Buck Showalter would like to keep him at second base. That's another reason.
It looks like the Orioles could platoon at third...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles haven't announced any roster moves today.
Nate McLouth isn't here, and I'm told the club won't find out today whether he exercised the opt-out clause in his contract. Lew Ford is starting in left field.
Robert Andino has returned to the lineup. He's starting at third base against Rays left-hander Matt Moore.
The Orioles did make one deal yesterday that flew under the radar. They sent Triple-A reliever Pat Neshek to the Athletics. I don't have any...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Buck Showalter officially took the helm of the Orioles on Aug. 2, 2010, two years and one day ago today. We couldn't celebrate his anniversary on an off-day.
He's got the Orioles five games above .500 and only 1 1/2 back in the wild card chase, which may come as a surprise to the folks who predicted his club would lose 100 this year. And there were lots and lots of them, both locally and nationally. The clock was supposed to be turned back to 1988.
I've fielded the...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Jake Arrieta allowed one run tonight for Triple-A Norfolk. That's a good thing.
Arrieta failed to complete six innings again because of his high pitch count. That's a bad thing.
Greg Burke replaced Arrieta with the bases loaded and two outs, and he walked Columbus' Matt Pagnozzi to force in a run. Arrieta is charged with two runs and five hits in 5 2/3 innings, with four walks, five strikeouts, a wild pitch and a hit batter. He threw 116 pitches, 64 for strikes.
The...
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - It's time for the next leg of this two-city road trip.
I'm grateful to have made it out of LaGuardia Airport. I had reached a point where I intended to find a comfortable place in the security line to blog and tweet for the next four days.
Outfielder Nate McLouth isn't in Triple-A Norfolk's lineup tonight. He can opt out of his contract tomorrow and the Orioles want to keep him.
Could he be joining them in St. Pete?
While we've been kicking around ideas for...
NEW YORK - Just when it appears that the Orioles' rotation and roster are settled, at least for the short term, more rumblings can be heard from miles away.
Sort of like Sidney Ponson with an empty stomach.
We don't know whether left-hander Zach Britton will make his next start. We don't know whether Tommy Hunter will start on Friday, though he's scheduled to open the three-game series against the Rays.
The entire rotation will be working on an extra days rest because of today's open...
NEW YORK - Left-hander Zach Britton didn't make excuses for today's poor showing and he didn't pretend that he's a fixture in the Orioles' rotation. He admitted to reporters that he's concerned about being on a "short leash," as the question was phrased, and that he needs to produce better results if he wants to avoid a return trip to the minors.
"Yeah, you try not to think about it, but we're in the hunt and I understand what I have to do to be at this level, and I'm not getting it...
NEW YORK - So much for the rotation being settled after the Orioles failed to make a trade for a starter.
Zach Britton allowed seven runs and seven hits in 2 2/3 innings today, with three walks and three strikeouts. He sat at his locker after the game, his head bowed, his next start in doubt.
Manager Buck Showalter didn't offer Britton a vote of confidence. He was noncommittal when asked whether the left-hander would get another start.
Showalter also raised questions about Tommy Hunter's...
Here we go again.
Kevin Gregg has a bad inning and the venom flows like Dick Vermeil's tears. Fans demand that the Orioles trade or release him. They say he only pitches effectively if inactive for long periods. They say he never should enter a game with runners on base. They blame him for the economy and Arsenio Hall's return to late-night television.
OK, let's start with the reason he's pitching today: Zach Britton lasted 2 2/3 innings and - stop me if you've heard this one before -...
NEW YORK - The Orioles are going for their first sweep of a three-game series in the Bronx since June 6-8, 1986. If it happens today, it would mark the first time that the Orioles have swept the Yankees and Red Sox on the road in the same season since 1980, according to Elias.
The Orioles have won four straight games in the Bronx, their longest winning streak since taking six in a row from Sept. 16, 1996-Sept. 6, 1997.
The Orioles are 5-5 when going for a sweep this year, including 2-4 on...
NEW YORK - So much for my theory that Taylor Teagarden would catch an early game today.
Matt Wieters is behind the plate. His rest will come tomorrow with an open date on the schedule.
For the Orioles:
Nick Markakis RF
J.J. Hardy SS
Chris Davis DH
Adam Jones CF
Matt Wieters C
Wilson Betemit 3B
Mark Reynolds 1B
Endy Chavez LF
Omar Quintanilla 2B
Zach Britton LHP
For the Yankees:
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Nick Swisher DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Andruw Jones RF
Russell Martin...
NEW YORK - For whatever reason, the Orioles are playing a 1:05 p.m. game in the middle of the week. Had I planned it better, I would have taken the train back home tonight, spent the off day there and flown to Tampa on Friday.
But enough about me. How about those Orioles?
They've won three games in a row, and this is the first time they've won consecutive series in the Bronx in the same season since 2007.
Today, they go for the sweep.
"Any game you play that's with a division rival,...
NEW YORK - Chris Tillman looks like a guy who should be wrapped in a blanket and fed chicken soup, not a major league pitcher who should be standing on the mound in front of a hostile crowd at Yankee Stadium.
It hurts to watch Tillman try to speak, to think, to stand up straight while waiting for reporters to approach him. But he gutted out five innings tonight to win his third consecutive start and snap a three-game losing streak to the Yankees, defeating them for the first time since Sept....