Minor league notes on Hunter Harvey, Mychal Givens and Gary Kendall

Minor league notes on Hunter Harvey, Mychal Givens and Gary Kendall
It was just one outing but it was a dominating outing, one that gets your attention. Hunter Harvey, the Orioles 2013 first-round pick simply overmatched the first-place Gulf Coast League Red Sox last Thursday in his third pro outing. Over three hitless and shutout innings, Harvey walked one and fanned eight batters. He struck out the side in the first and third innings. The 22nd overall pick in June out of a North Carolina high school, Harvey threw 44 pitches and blew fastballs between 92...
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Chen, Markakis and Jones comment after Mariners' win over the Orioles

Chen, Markakis and Jones comment after Mariners' win over the Orioles
Maybe a few things were lost in translation today, but Wei-Yin Chen, in talking about Henry Blanco's homer this afternoon, said he threw the ball where he wanted on that 0-2 pitch, but later said he threw it in a dangerous spot. Either way, Blanco - the Mariners' No. 9 hitter - put a key swing on that pitch in the seventh for a two-run homer in Seattle's 3-2 win over the Orioles. "Blanco swung the bat really well," Chen said through interpreter Tim Lin. "That is the spot I wanted to...
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Batting ninth, Blanco delivers key two-run shot as Mariners beats O's

Batting ninth, Blanco delivers key two-run shot as Mariners beats O's
Sometimes one pitch is the difference. It was today for the Mariners, as No. 9 hitter Henry Blanco hit a two-run homer in the seventh on an 0-2 pitch to give Seattle a 3-2 win over the Orioles in front of 30,759 sun-splashed fans at Camden Yards. After getting swept in a three-game series in Boston, the Mariners took the last two of this series in Baltimore. Seattle is 4-2 against the O's on the year. Danny Valencia's two-run homer in the last of the sixth had ended several innings of...
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From Pawtucket to Norfolk to Baltimore, Valencia rejoins O's today

From Pawtucket to Norfolk to Baltimore, Valencia rejoins O's today
It has been a few crazy days for Danny Valencia, who played third base last night in Norfolk - going 2-for-4 - and was called up after the game. He is here now and in today's starting lineup for the Orioles against Joe Saunders, batting seventh as the DH. He has had a few days of long travels as he explained a few moments ago. "Been a rough couple of days," he said, laughing. "Friday night, we played a 15-inning game at Pawtucket that ended at midnight and then bused back to Norfolk. Got...
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The pitching staff hits another bump in the road

The pitching staff hits another bump in the road
Miguel Gonzalez gave up nine runs Wednesday, Chris Tillman allowed six runs Friday and Scott Feldman gave up five last night. What is going on here? Playing the role of Captain Obvious this morning, O's pitchers are giving up too many home runs. They have allowed seven in this series to Seattle and 12 over the last four games. The Orioles lead the majors in giving up homers with 143 on the year. Now some of that is playing at Camden Yards, and the O's have given up many more homers at...
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Feldman and Wieters talk after Seattle's win over the Orioles (S. Johnson optioned)

Feldman and Wieters talk after Seattle's win over the Orioles (S. Johnson optioned)
It was not a mystery to Scott Feldman why he struggled tonight in the O's 8-4 loss to Seattle. "It was pretty basic. Just falling behind on everybody, walking guys," Feldman said after he gave up five runs over 4 2/3 innings. "Just no command of the baseball. Got a few days to get that ironed out for my next one and just go from there. When you are pitching from behind and not hitting your spots, that makes pitching a lot tougher. "Fortunately, for the first four innings, I was able to...
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Feldman struggles, Mariners hit three homers to beat O's

Feldman struggles, Mariners hit three homers to beat O's
The first two batters of the game reached tonight against Scott Feldman. That trend would continue as the Mariners beat the Orioles 8-4 at Camden Yards to even the series at a win each. Feldman weaved his way through a few jams over the first four innings, limiting damage along the way, but Seattle broke through with a four-run fifth inning. Feldman gave up seven hits and five runs over 4 2/3 innings to fall to 2-3 with an ERA of 5.70 in six O's starts. He is 1-3 with an ERA of 7.66 in four...
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Francisco Rodriguez talks about giving up two homers last night

Francisco Rodriguez talks about giving up two homers last night
In his first 710 career major league appearances, new Orioles reliever Francisco Rodriguez allowed more than one homer in a game just once. Last night was the second time. Brought in to pitch the eighth with the O's leading Seattle 11-6, Rodriguez allowed two solo homers while also recording three strikeouts in the inning. Rodriguez gave up just two homers in 25 games with Milwaukee, but now has now allowed four in four games over four innings as an Oriole. "Was trying to be aggressive,"...
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Chris Davis talks about the latest PED-related suspensions coming in MLB

Chris Davis talks about the latest PED-related suspensions coming in MLB
With more suspensions expected to come in Major League Baseball over the next few days for players' use of performance-enhancing drugs, the Orioles' Chris Davis was asked yet again today to talk on the subject. Davis has been an open book on this topic this year, repeatedly saying he has not used performance enhancing drugs and has never even thought about using them. He was asked today if the upcoming suspensions serve as a deterrent in the future. "I don't know. Guys have obviously...
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O's gain some ground after a homer-happy night

O's gain some ground after a homer-happy night
I guess it should have been no big surprise that the Orioles and Mariners combined for seven homers last night as the O's won 11-8 to take the series opener. Seattle gets 47 percent of its runs this year via the home run to rank first in the majors. The Orioles are second, scoring 44 percent of their runs with a homer in 2013. Of the game's 19 runs last night, 11 came off a longball. Nate McLouth talked about the O's reliance on homers to produce a lot of their runs. "I think some of...
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Chris Davis talks about joining the O's 40-homer club (plus more clubhouse quotes)

Chris Davis talks about joining the O's 40-homer club (plus more clubhouse quotes)
Chris Davis said he had seen the list of players that have hit 40 homers as an Oriole. He joined Brady Anderson, Frank Robinson, Jim Gentile and Rafael Palmeiro on that list tonight in the win over Seattle. "That's pretty good company to be in," Davis said. "I'm proud of the way things have gone this year, but we still have a lot more work to do. It's nice to be a big part of a winning team." After he hit 33 last season, did he think 40 would be in reach in 2013? "Maybe, you never...
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Davis hits No. 40, McLouth adds slam as O's top Seattle

Davis hits No. 40, McLouth adds slam as O's top Seattle
The Orioles scored four runs in the first inning tonight and they were just getting started. Nate McLouth hit his first career grand slam and Chris Davis became the fifth Oriole to hit 40 homers as the O's beat Seattle 11-8 in a series-opening slugfest. The O's put up so much offense tonight that Chris Tillman matched his season high with six earned runs, but still got his 14th win, one off the major league lead. Davis crushed a pitch from Aaron Harang 442 feet onto Eutaw Street in the...
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Roberto Alomar talks about being inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame

Roberto Alomar talks about being inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame
When he took the field tonight at Camden Yards, Roberto Alomar got another nice ovation in Baltimore as he was officially inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame in a pregame ceremony. "It was special playing for the Orioles organization and my teammates," he said at a press conference after the ceremony. "We had great ballclubs with some great chemistry. The fans were great with sold-out crowds almost every game. It was fun to play here. This is a day I will remember for the rest of my...
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Facing his former team, Chris Tillman looks for his 14th win tonight

Facing his former team, Chris Tillman looks for his 14th win tonight
Orioles pitchers have recorded 13 quality starts over their last 18 games. The O's starters are 11-6 with a 3.78 ERA in that stretch. Chris Tillman, who has recorded eight quality starts over his last 10 games and 14 in 21 outings on the year, takes the mound tonight against his former team. Seattle drafted Tillman in the second round in 2006 and then sent him to Baltimore along with Adam Jones and three others for Erik Bedard on Feb. 8, 2008. In four starts for the O's against Seattle,...
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Showalter not scoreboard-watching yet

Showalter not scoreboard-watching yet
The calender has turned to August and last season, that turned out to be good news for the Orioles. They went 18-9 in August 2012 and 20-11 in September to finish 38-20 down the stretch to make the playoffs for the first time since 1997. With 53 games left in the 2013 regular season, the Orioles are 5 1/2 games out in the AL East and they are a half-game behind Cleveland for the American League's second wild card spot right now. There are five teams within 4 1/2 games of that spot with...
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Is the O's offense ready to heat up again? (Hunter Harvey fans eight)

Is the O's offense ready to heat up again? (Hunter Harvey fans eight)
Going into the fifth inning last night, the Orioles had been shutout in two of their last three games and had been shutout over the previous 15 innings by Houston pitching. They finally broke out a bit on offense and posted a 6-3 win. The Orioles had scored just 19 runs in their previous eight games and had just 15 hits in their last three. Will the offense now get back on track after scoring six runs with 11 hits last night? We probably need much more evidence than that one night. A look...
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Bud Norris and Chris Davis comment after the O's win over Houston

Bud Norris and Chris Davis comment after the O's win over Houston
Bud Norris got what he wanted tonight - the chance to compete in a pennant race - and he got the win for his new team against his former one as the O's beat Houston. "Been working a long time in my career to be in a pennant race," he said. "To be thrown into the fire and to go out there and control my emotions was pretty special. Very happy with the win. "A tough group over there. They knew me pretty well but I worked well with Matt (Wieters), guys made some plays behind me and that was...
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Norris gets first win, Davis gets 100th RBI as O's top Houston

Norris gets first win, Davis gets 100th RBI as O's top Houston
For the Orioles, the offense finally came. And it came in time for Bud Norris to get the win in his Orioles debut. The O's scored three in the fifth, twice in the sixth and once in the seventh tonight to beat Houston 6-3 and take the series, two wins to one. The game also featured another Chris Davis homer. His solo shot off Travis Blackley in the seventh was his 39th homer and RBI No. 100. Davis recorded the 39th 100-RBI season in Orioles history and first since Nick Markakis drove in 101...
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Some Norris numbers and hearing from his former catcher

Some Norris numbers and hearing from his former catcher
It's probably going to feel very strange for Bud Norris when he takes the mound for the first time as an Oriole tonight. Not only will he be trying to make a strong first impression for his new team, but he'll try to do it against his old team. The 28-year-old Norris was drafted by Houston in round six of 2006. Since 2009, he has made 118 starts for the Astros. Tonight he tries to beat them. Norris has allowed 16 runs and 21 hits in 17 innings over his last three starts. Maybe the constant...
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LJ Hoes starts to settle in with Houston and talks about his phone call with Dan Duquette

LJ Hoes starts to settle in with Houston and talks about his phone call with Dan Duquette
It's been a crazy few days for LJ Hoes. He was recalled by the Orioles from Triple-A Sunday and started that day against Jon Lester. Yesterday he was scheduled to start for the Orioles, then was traded and wound up switching clubhouses and starting for Houston. He is still catching his breath a bit after the whirlwind of activity and emotions from yesterday. He said today he has begun to settle in with his new team. After he and Dan Duquette didn't connect on the phone yesterday, Hoes said...
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