There was an interesting discussion the other day on MLB Network about rookies in Major League Baseball. They were basically wondering whether it is tougher for young players to have instant success these days.
Long-time writer and reporter Peter Gammons concluded it might be for two main reasons. One is that these kids are hyped more than ever and that puts some pressure on them right away. Another is that all the advanced scouting in the game provides more in-depth reports on how to get these...
They did not get no-hit, but they did get swept. And for the first time since late May, the Orioles have a three-game losing streak.
Former Orioles farmhand Tsuyoshi Wada took a no-hitter into the seventh today as the Chicago Cubs beat the Orioles 2-1 to complete a three-game sweep.
The Orioles get swept for just the second time this season and are 73-55. Their American League East lead has decreased from nine games to six as the Yankees completed a sweep of the Chicago White Sox today.
The...
The Orioles have not had a losing road trip all year. They need a win today to keep that mark intact. They are 4-4 on this trip, which ends this afternoon at Wrigley Field.
The Orioles also are trying to avoid their first three-game losing streak since they dropped four in a row from May 27-30. They have gone 74 games since May 31 without a three-game streak. That is the longest run by any major league team this year without three consecutive losses.
They have also been swept just once this...
The Orioles have had a decent year on the farm at the plate. Several players and a few of their minor league teams have had success on offense this season.
Jeff Manto is nearing the end of his first season as the Orioles coordinator of minor league hitting. A former Oriole and former big league hitting coach with Pittsburgh and the Chicago White Sox, Manto was hired Nov. 5.
In this question and answer session he talked about his first year in his new role.
Q: What has your first year been...
Well, that took a while.
The Orioles fell behind by two runs much earlier today, then waited out a rain delay of 3 hours, 9 minutes at Wrigley Field. They could not come back after the delay and lost 7-2 in a game that began during the afternoon and ended at night.
The Orioles have lost the first two games of the series and it is just their second series loss in the last 11. They are 73-54 and their American League East lead is seven games over the New York Yankees, who won this...
The Orioles try to get back in the win column today at Wrigley Field in Game 2 of their series against the Chicago Cubs.
A win in one of the next two games will give the Orioles a winning road trip with at least a 5-4 record. A win in the next two games will give the Orioles another series victory, which would be their 10th in the last 11 series.
On the mound today, Bud Norris (11-7, 3.69 ERA) faces Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks (5-1, 1.48 ERA).
Hendricks is having a sensational rookie...
We are getting ahead of ourselves here since we have not heard yet from the Orioles on the latest news about Manny Machado. How long will he be out if he indeed does have right knee surgery? What will the recovery time period be?
But this development has potential ramifications beyond just what this means for Machado. For instance, what does this mean for J.J. Hardy's future as an Oriole?
All along, Machado has been there to possibly move to shortstop if Hardy were not re-signed and leaves...
Here are some stats to keep in mind: The Orioles are playing .573 ball (47-35) this season when Manny Machado starts at third base and they are playing .591 ball (26-18) when someone else has started there this year.
The news today that Machado is headed for another knee surgery and his season is likely over does not mean the Orioles cannot win, and does not mean they cannot do well in the postseason.
The Orioles can overcome this injury. In fact they have no choice.
Yahoo! Sports reported...
Right-hander Jake Arrieta provided his former team an in-person example of how well he has pitched this season today. Arrieta pitched a strong seven innings as the Chicago Cubs beat the Orioles 4-1 in the series opener at Wrigley Field.
The Orioles' four-game winning streak ended and they fall to 4-3 on this road trip and to 73-53 for the season.
Arrieta gave up just four hits and the one run with one walk and five strikeouts. He threw 99 pitches and is now 7-4 with an ERA of 2.53.
Arrieta...
For just the second time ever, the Orioles play at historic Wrigley Field today as they begin a three-game series against the Cubs.
In the 2008 season, the Orioles went 2-1 at Wrigley, outscoring Chicago 22-16. The Orioles are 9-5 this season in interleague games, going 5-1 at home and 4-4 on the road.
Kevin Gausman (7-4, 3.70 ERA) pitches against former Oriole Jake Arrieta (6-4, 2.61 ERA) this afternoon. Gausman is 3-1 with a 2.91 ERA in six road starts.
The Orioles drafted Arrieta in the...
The Orioles have two teams in the Dominican Summer League and their DSL No. 1 team is headed to the playoffs.
That club is 47-23 with two regular season games remaining, having clinched its division championship. This is also the best record ever by an O's team in the DSL. The DSL Orioles won 10 in a row to wrap up the division. The team leads the league with a team ERA of 2.31.
Six teams make the DSL playoffs and the clubs with the two top records get first-round byes. The O's will play...
For Triple-A Norfolk pitcher Mike Wright, this year started slow but sure is finishing strong.
That strong finish put him on the verge of history last night when he lost a no-hitter with two outs in the last of the ninth at Durham. Wright went a career-high 8 2/3 innings, allowing one hit and two unearned runs with three walks and a career-high 11 strikeouts as the Tides won 5-2. He threw 121 pitches, 78 for strikes.
"Honestly, I had pretty much everything working tonight," Wright said by...
Jeff Manto is in his first season as the Orioles' coordinator of minor league hitting. He was hired Nov. 5 and brings a lot of experience to this job. That includes time as a big league player and also as the major league hitting coach with Pittsburgh from 2006-07 and with the Chicago White Sox from 2012-13.
This week, I had the chance to talk at length with Manto about his first year in this job and also get his opinion on some of the hitters in the O's minors.
We'll run several blogs in...
Some nights the Orioles get a high percentage of their runs from home runs. Some nights they get all their runs from home runs. It often seems to work out well for them.
The O's bashed three more homers, producing all their runs tonight in a 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox as they swept the three-game series at U.S. Cellular Field.
The Orioles improved to 73-52 to go a season-high 21 games over the .500 mark.
The Orioles completed their third sweep of the season of three or more games....
Tonight the Orioles are looking for their third sweep of three games or more in 2014. The Orioles swept three games at Tampa Bay on May 6-8 and four games at home against Texas on June 30-July 3. They are 2-5 in seven opportunities to sweep three-or-more game series in 2014, going 1-2 at home and 1-3 on the road.
With a win, the Orioles would complete their first sweep of the White Sox in Chicago since taking all four games on July 6-9, 1995.
Meanwhile, the Orioles have moved up to fifth in...
Double-A Bowie left-hander Tim Berry has been placed on the disabled list retroactive to Aug. 18 with shoulder tendinitis.
But the Orioles are convinced this is very minor and are hopeful Berry can start again for the Baysox this season. Berry was examined by Orioles orthopedist Dr. Michael Jacobs.
The Orioles' No. 6 prospect according to Baseball America, the 23-year-old Berry was added to the 40-man roster last November. Earlier this year, he actually spent time with the Orioles. When they...
The Orioles and their fans could get used to pitching like this. Here are some updated O's pitching stats:
* The Orioles have a 1.33 ERA over their last three games, allowing just eight hits in 27 innings. The O's have allowed three or fewer hits for three consecutive games for the first time since July 17-19, 1992. The team record is four straight games set Sept. 2-6, 1974.
* The team's ERA is 2.57 over the last 27 games and the Orioles have allowed two runs or fewer 14 times in that...
Chris Tillman is pretty much cranking out strong outing after strong outing these days. His latest stellar effort came tonight as he pitched the Orioles past the Chicago White Sox 5-1 at U.S. Cellular Field.
Tillman went eight innings and Tommy Hunter pitched the ninth. The duo combined to hold Chicago to three hits. It's the third straight game where Orioles pitching has allowed three or fewer hits. The last time the O's had done that was July 17-19, 1992.
The team record is four games in a...
Fresh off a win over ace Chris Sale, the Orioles look for a second straight win in Chicago tonight. A win in one of the next two games will give the Orioles their ninth series victory in their last 10 series.
Nick Markakis went 2-for-3 against Sale last night. He joined Josh Hamilton (June 7), Gregor Blanco (June 18) and Alex Gordon (July 21) as the only left-handed hitters with multiple hits off Sale in a single game in 2014. For the season, the Orioles are 19-for-51 (.373) against Sale in two...
Baseball can be a funny game. A hitter can go from struggling badly to hot in just a few games and with just a few swings.
That seems to be happening right now to Steve Pearce. In the last two games his bat looks like it is heating up.
He has gone 5-for-10 with three doubles, a homer and two RBIs. Before that he went 5-for-44 (.114) during a 14-game stretch. He went 19 games without an RBI until he homered Sunday at Cleveland and then he added two doubles during a three-hit game last...