Hammel streak ends, Davis and Hardy with opposite results (O's down 13-1)

Hammel streak ends, Davis and Hardy with opposite results (O's down 13-1)
Jason Hammel's streak of consecutive scoreless innings ended at 19 tonight when the Angels' Torii Hunter belted a home run in the top of the first inning. Hammel struck out Mike Trout on a 94 mph fastball and Kendrys Morales on a 93 mph fastball, but Hunter jumped on a hanging curveball. Trout got his revenge in the bottom of the first with an incredible leaping catch at the center field fence to rob J.J. Hardy of a home run. Hardy is in a 3-for-41 slump, but he lined out to shortstop last...
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Tolleson, Lindstrom, Hammel and other assorted pregame notes (updated)

Tolleson, Lindstrom, Hammel and other assorted pregame notes (updated)
Steve Tolleson, optioned earlier today to make room for reliever Matt Lindstrom, will report to Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday. Manager Buck Showalter explained to reporters that the club wants Tolleson to get consistent at-bats in the minors. "He's done a good job for us against left-handed pitching," Showalter said. "If they stay on schedule, that'll be seven to nine straight right-handed pitchers against us. But that's a moving target. "We obviously had to make room for Lindstrom...
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Tolleson optioned, Orioles lineup

Tolleson optioned, Orioles lineup
The Orioles have optioned Steve Tolleson to Triple-A Norfolk to make room for reliever Matt Lindstrom, who's coming off the disabled list. Dana Eveland also has rejoined the team after flying to California for the birth of his son, Asher Perry. Tolleson was called into manager Buck Showalter's office shortly before the lineup was posted. He's not listed among the reserves, and he later confirmed the roster move, which leaves the team with a three-man bench. "It was a lot shorter meeting...
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Berken and Socolovich honored (corrected)

Berken and Socolovich honored (corrected)
Norfolk pitchers Jason Berken and Miguel Socolovich have been chosen to participate in the 2012 Triple-A All-Star Game in Buffalo. Berken, 28, is 1-1 with a 2.32 ERA in 14 starts. I'm not sure how he's managed only two decisions in 14 games, but I digress. Berken's ERA ranks third in the league. He's allowed three earned runs or fewer in each of his starts while holding opponents to a .248 average. Berken had a shot at breaking camp with the Orioles as a long reliever, but a hamstring...
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Leftovers for breakfast

Leftovers for breakfast
You won't find many Orioles swinging hot bats right now, and shortstop J.J. Hardy definitely needs to knock the frost off the ol' lumber. Hardy is in a 3-for-40 slump that's lowered his average to .239. He went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts last night. The Orioles have played 73 games and Hardy has started 71 of them. The obvious move is to rest him for a night, perhaps giving the start to Robert Andino. Hardy is 0-for-9 lifetime against Jered Weaver, who starts tonight for the Angels. A...
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Matusz on his outing, Jones and Pearce on all the outs with RISP

Matusz on his outing, Jones and Pearce on all the outs with RISP
Brian Matusz hasn't gone more than 5 2/3 innings in his last four starts, and tonight he failed to retire a batter in the sixth before exiting. "It's a great hitting team, one through nine," he said. "I made some good pitches to get out of some innings, but when it came down to it, I left some fastballs over the plate." Matusz was allowed to come back out for the sixth, but Peter Bourjos' two-run homer ended his night. "I was fighting all the way through to stay in that game, and...
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Showalter speaks after 7-3 loss

Showalter speaks after 7-3 loss
It wasn't difficult to figure out the reason why left-hander Brian Matusz struggled again tonight. "He was up just about the whole outing," manager Buck Showalter said following a 7-3 loss to the Angels before 24,296 at Camden Yards. "Was fortunate to still be the game with those hits. They hit a lot of balls hard that found holes. We hit a lot less hard, but didn't find holes. We made a lot of mistakes and Brian wasn't very crisp tonight." Showalter allowed Matusz to come back out...
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Matusz done, Hunter in, Orioles losing 7-3

Matusz done, Hunter in, Orioles losing 7-3
Brian Matusz gave up a career-high 13 hits tonight and is staring at his fourth consecutive loss unless the Orioles rally from a 5-1 deficit. Maicer Izturis singled leading off the top of the sixth and Peter Bourjos slugged a two-run homer - the 21st and 22nd runs allowed by Matusz in the sixth this season, most in the majors. Tommy Hunter replaced him. Matusz is charged with five runs on 13 hits, with no walks and one strikeout, in five-plus innings. He threw 82 pitches, 59 for...
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Matusz littering the bases but limiting the damage (O's down 3-1)

Matusz littering the bases but limiting the damage (O's down 3-1)
Orioles left-hander Brian Matusz has faced 14 batters in the first three innings tonight. The Angels have six hits. How is the score 1-0? Well, the Angels stranded Albert Pujols at second base in the first inning after his two-out double in his Camden Yards debut. They stranded Howie Kendrick and Maicer Izturis in the second inning after they singled. And they managed only one run in the third despite a leadoff double by Mike Trout and RBI single by Torii Hunter. Matusz threw eight pitches...
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More random notes before first pitch

More random notes before first pitch
The Orioles' PR staff has provided the following information in today's game notes: With two more wins in the first half, the Orioles will be assured of posting a winning record at the All-Star break for only the second time since 1998. They were 47-40 at the break in 2005. Brian Matusz, who's starting tonight against the Angels, has allowed 20 of his 49 runs in the sixth inning. According to Elias, that's the most runs allowed in one inning in the majors. Left-hander Troy Patton has a...
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Lindstrom will be activated tomorrow

Lindstrom will be activated tomorrow
Reliever Matt Lindstrom is in the clubhouse, but he's not on the 25-man roster. The Orioles have decided to activate Lindstrom from the disabled list tomorrow. They want him to do some long-tossing today. Left-hander Dana Eveland is expected to rejoin the team later tonight, but the Orioles aren't short-handed in the bullpen because Tommy Hunter is available in relief. Eveland's wife gave birth to a boy, Asher Perry, late Saturday night. Adding Eveland and Lindstrom to the 'pen will...
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Reynolds the DH tonight, Andino at third base (Markakis update)

Reynolds the DH tonight, Andino at third base (Markakis update)
Mark Reynolds will serve as the designated hitter tonight against Angels left-hander C.J. Wilson. Robert Andino gets another start at third base, with Wilson Betemit moving across the diamond to first. For the Orioles: Brian Roberts 2B J.J. Hardy SS Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Mark Reynolds DH Wilson Betemit 1B Steve Pearce RF Steve Tolleson LF Robert Andino 3B Brian Matusz LHP The Orioles reached agreement today with outfielder Lucas Herbst, chosen in the 26th round of the First-Year...
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This, that and the other (and one more)

This, that and the other (and one more)
Once again, I failed to grasp the concept of a quiet off-day. Nolan Reimold undergoes surgery for a herniated disc (and I'm going with "disc" instead of "disk" after numerous Internet searches), the latest All-Star vote totals are released and Miguel Tejada is released upon his request. Otherwise, nothing happened. When I think about how much time and energy were spent writing about Tejada and asking team officials about Tejada and checking the Triple-A Norfolk box scores each day for...
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Reimold undergoes successful surgery, Tejada released

Reimold undergoes successful surgery, Tejada released
The Orioles just provided an update on outfielder Nolan Reimold, and the news is good. Reimold underwent a successful discectomy today at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He's resting comfortably. The procedure was performed by Dr. Ziya Gokaslan, Professor of Neurosurgery, Orthopedic Surgery and Oncology at Hopkins. Dr. Gokaslan removed a herniated disc from Reimold's cervical spine that was pressing on a nerve, and he fused the vertebrae. Reimold is hoping to play again toward the end of the...
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Jones slips to fifth in All-Star voting

Jones slips to fifth in All-Star voting
Adam Jones has dropped from fourth to fifth place among outfielders in voting for the American League's All-Star team. The Rangers' Nelson Cruz has passed him. The Blue Jays' Jose Bautista is third with 2,773,422 votes, followed by Cruz with 2,681,019 and Jones with 2,633,259. This is the final update provided by Major League Baseball before Sunday's selection show, which will air at 1 p.m. on TBS. Matt Wieters ranks third among catchers with 1,623,459 votes. The Rangers' Mike Napoli is...
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Showalter talks about slumps and a Hall of Fame manager

Showalter talks about slumps and a Hall of Fame manager
Major League Baseball announced today via Twitter that the American League posted a 142-110 (.563) record in interleague play, winning the season series for the ninth consecutive year and 12th time in 16 years. The Orioles may want to switch leagues to avoid facing the Angels' C.J. Wilson and Jered Weaver the next two nights. A team with 17 runs in its last nine games will be severely challenged to get hot against those two arms. "They're trying to get it all back in one at-bat. It's...
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Plenty of issues, plenty of wins

Plenty of issues, plenty of wins
I love how Orioles fans have raised the bar. There's utter panic in the streets because the Orioles' 63 errors are the most in the majors and their bats come with a frost warning. But I just checked the standings this morning and they're still in second place in the American League East. They trail the Yankees by 2 1/2 games. They're 10 games above .500. They're talking about being buyers at the non-waiver trade deadline. If you had told me back in March that I'd be typing the above...
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Showalter speaks after 2-1 win

Showalter speaks after 2-1 win
Manager Buck Showalter almost kept Matt Wieters on the bench today before giving him another start behind the plate. Wieters could have rested for two straight days with an open date on the schedule tomorrow. And the Orioles could have lost today instead of rallying for a 2-1 victory on Wieters' two-run shot off left-hander Sean Burnett. Wieters was batting .400 against left-handers and .199 against right-handers. He singled off Nationals southpaw Ross Detwiler in the fourth inning and...
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No support for Arrieta (O's win 2-1)

No support for Arrieta (O's win 2-1)
Jake Arrieta held the Nationals to one run over six innings today, and he stands to be the loser unless the Orioles' offense finally wakes up. Arrieta stranded two runners in the sixth by retiring Ian Desmond on a pop up on his 103rd pitch of the afternoon. Troy Patton has replaced him. Arrieta allowed five hits, walked one, struck out five and hit a batter. He's permitted only one run in two of his last three starts, and he took a shutout into the sixth inning Monday at Citi Field before...
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Showalter talks about Chavez and Reimold (O's trail 1-0)

Showalter talks about Chavez and Reimold (O's trail 1-0)
Endy Chavez wanted to avoid going on the disabled list June 14, and he insisted that his sore hamstring would be fully healed before his 15 days were up. Ten days later, the reports on him out of Sarasota aren't encouraging. "Endy's about the same," manager Buck Showalter said. "It's been a real slow process with his hamstring." Nolan Reimold will undergo surgery tomorrow morning at The Johns Hopkins Hospital to remove a herniated disk from his cervical spine and fuse the vertebrae....
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