Orioles shortstop Robert Andino had words with Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira after Teixeira slid into second base with a double ahead of Andino's tag in the first inning of Saturday's game.
Andino was asked what happened and what was said on the field.
"He came up with like a little shoulder and I told him, 'Relax, I'm just putting down a tag on you.' We talked when I got to first base (in the sixth inning), but everything's cool. He just came up with a shoulder and I just said...
Minutes after tonight's game, Orioles pitcher Josh Rupe said it was not his intention to hit Yankees catcher Russell Martin with a pitch when he did just that in the top of the ninth inning tonight.
Martin had homered in each of his two previous at bats.
"Trust me, that's the last thing I want to do is go out there and make that situation look how it looked," Rupe told reporters in the Orioles clubhouse. "I pitch in. I am already out there and had given up a home run and, yeah, I'm a...
Alex Rodriguez hit his 22nd career grand slam and had a six-RBI night as the New York Yankees pounded the Orioles 15-3 in the first game of a rain-shortened, two-game series at Camden Yards.
His slam, which came on a 2-0 pitch in the eighth off Josh Rupe, was New York's fifth homer of the night and third of that inning. Rodriguez also had a two-run double in the first when New York took a 3-0 lead against Brad Bergesen.
Rodriguez moved past Manny Ramirez on the all-time grand slam list and...
After the Yankees' early offense, this game has settled into a pitchers' duel.
Brad Bergesen gave up four hits to the first five hitters he faced tonight and has allowed just two to the last 17 batters he has faced. Bergesen has really settled in and, after needing 26 pitches to get through New York's three-run first, has needed just 52 pitches from the second through fifth innings.
But the way C.C. Sabathia has pitched, those three runs in the first may be more than enough tonight.
He...
Brad Bergesen will make his fourth appearance and third start of the new season tonight versus the New York Yankees here at Camden Yards.
Bergesen said this week he continues to work on his sinking fastball and perfecting the pitch that was a key reason he went 7-5 with a 3.43 ERA over 19 starts in 2009.
He said that last year he struggled so much with the sinker that he turned more to his four-seam fastball as the year went on. Now he wants to get back to being more of a sinkerball pitcher...
Orioles manager Buck Showalter pointed out today how hard players like Derrek Lee and Nick Markakis are working behind the scenes to get out of batting slumps. He knows fans are wondering when his No. 2 and No. 3 hitters will get it going.
Markakis is batting .203 over 18 games with two homers, two doubles, six RBIs and a .327 slugging percentage.
So how is Markakis feeling about his swing right now?
"I've got mixed emotions about it," he said. "I'm definitely not where I want to be,...
Outfielder Matt Angle, who is on the Orioles' 40-man roster, will return to the Triple-A Norfolk Tides' lineup tonight.
Angle has not played since April 13. He tweaked his hamstring earlier against Gwinnett, but will be back in the lineup tonight. I know this because I just asked him on his live chat at NorfolkTides.com.
Angle is batting .167 at 4-for-24 through the first seven Triple-A games. Last year with Norfolk, he hit .260 in 87 games.
During the chat, Angle was asked by one fan when...
Some fans are already asking if the Orioles should consider dropping Derrek Lee in the batting order. He has had every at-bat this year at the third spot in the lineup and is batting just .209 with one homer, two doubles and two RBI over 18 games.
Lee has certainly not been productive in that third spot. He has gone 13 consecutive games without an RBI and is 0-for-12 on the year batting with runners in scoring position with eight strikeouts. His double in the eighth inning on Thursday ended a...
Checking in on a few Orioles and Yankees stats and notes as they begin a three-game series tonight at Camden Yards.
* CC Sabathia is 14-2 with an ERA of 2.86 in 20 career starts versus the Orioles. He went 5-1, 3.56 ERA against Baltimore last year. He is 8-1 with an ERA of 2.97 in 10 career Camden Yards starts, with his only loss coming in the 2009 season opener. The Yankees are 16-4 in his 20 career starts against the Orioles.
* The Birds' third and fourth hitters, Derrek Lee and Vladimir...
If Orioles fans want to get on new first baseman Derrek Lee for his lack of production right now, get in line. Behind Lee himself. Several times this year he has already said he takes responsibility for his lack of hits and RBIs.
Batting just .209 in 18 games with one homer and two RBIs, Lee readily acknowledges he has to get his bat going. He has now gone 13 games without an RBI since he drove in two on April 6.
"Obviously I'm not swinging the bat like I would expect to. So yeah, hopefully...
As the Orioles begin another series versus the New York Yankees tonight, O's fans are probably quite aware of the Birds' struggles against this club.
The Orioles are 0-2 this year and went 5-13 last season versus New York. They have lost 26 of the last 33 in this series and the Yankees are 16-6 in their last 22 games against the O's at Camden Yards.
The Yankees' winning percentage all-time at Camden Yards of .644 is the best by any visiting team.
If the Orioles are indeed improved this...
So we are now 18 games into the season and Nick Markakis is batting .203 with two homers and six RBIs. He has a slugging percentage of .319 and OPS of .592.
Last night he went 0-for-4 and twice failed to come up with the clutch hit when batting with two men on base. He has just three hits over his last 28 at-bats for an average of .107 and just eight hits over his last 55 at-bats for a mark of .145 since April 6.
Last night, reader Gerry O. left this comment about Markakis and his struggles...
It's a little early in the season to call any single game that big or important, but this would be a nice night for an Orioles' victory.
They are playing the Twins who still are without some key players like Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer. Also, the Twins have scored the fewest runs in the majors this year and have a major league low six homers.
Get 'em while you can.
Also, the O's could use a series victory and a win tonight would give them the series win here, three to one. The Birds won...
It's been an interesting few weeks for O's pitcher Brad Bergesen.
Late in spring training, he took a line drive off his right forearm and he had to battle back from that. For four days, he was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk even if he never actually physically was with that team.
Now Bergesen is trying to regain the form that made him the best Orioles starter in 2009 when he went 7-5 with a 3.43 ERA. He is trying to recapture the form that allowed him to crank out quality sinker after quality...
In recent days the Orioles have seen Matt Wieters' bat come to life, Vladimir Guerrero homer in back-to-back games and Brian Roberts and Adam Jones extend hitting streaks.
Who is next to break out on offense?
Not just because I wrote about his defense earlier today, but I predict we will soon see hits coming from Derrek Lee's bat. I've been thinking that for a few days now and Buck Showalter said today he feels like Lee "is close."
Lee is 2-for-11 in this series against Minnesota and...
There is a lot more to the game of baseball than offense and Derrek Lee is an example of that right now with the Orioles.
They don't keep a stat for "runs saved" or "errors saved" but if they did, Lee would rank high in that category. He seems to have an amazing ability to scoop low throws out of the dirt and he has done it multiple times already for several O's infielders.
The Orioles, of course, have had some good fielding first baseman over the years like Boog Powell and Eddie...
The Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds play their 15th game of the new season tonight at Augusta trying to snap a four-game losing streak that has dropped their record to 5-9. The Birds have given up 41 runs over those four games.
The Shorebirds lost a wild one, 11-10 at Augusta in 10 innings last night in a game that featured 21 runs, 28 hits and nine errors. During this losing streak, the Delmarva bullpen has allowed 17 earned runs and 27 hits over 14 innings.
Tonight, Scott Copeland (1-0, 4.50)...
While Kevin Gregg may have already fallen out of favor with some fans, I'm sure Orioles manager Buck Showalter looks at the situation differently,
He knows Gregg will be an important piece in his bullpen and that he has to get him right. Showalter has to help him to start pitching well.
Maybe last night was a start. Despite a loud out that ended the game, Gregg did pitch a 1-2-3 ninth inning to pick up his second O's save in three chances. He got the job done, even if the fans' hearts...
Checking in with some notes after the Orioles' 5-4 win over Minnesota.
Matt at bat: Matt Wieters drove in one run in the first game of the series Monday, then had four RBIs Tuesday and two more last night. Over the three games of this series, he is 4-for-9 with a double, two homers and seven RBIs. Wieters' six RBIs over his last two games is more than he had in his first 13 games, when he drove in a total of five runs.
Wieters has a four-game hitting streak and has homered three times on...
The Orioles didn't get any runs after the third inning tonight, but they got just enough by then to win and they've now posted back-to-back victories after an eight-game losing streak.
Matt Wieters hit a two-run homer and Zach Britton picked up his third win as the Orioles edged Minnesota, 5-4, to improve to 8-9 on the year. It was just the second one-run game the Orioles have played this season and their first win.
Kevin Gregg, who had allowed three runs in his last two games, picked up...