O's game blog: Wade Miley pitches Oakland series opener

O's game blog: Wade Miley pitches Oakland series opener
After they lost two of three to the Los Angeles Angels, losing the last two games of that series, the Orioles host the Oakland Athletics tonight to start a three-game series. At 60-64, the Orioles have lost four of their last five and eight of last 12 games. They are 0-3-1 in the last four series, even after winning the opening game of all four sets. For the season, the Orioles are 21-20 in series-opening games and 13-7 in such games at home. They are 36-25 at Oriole Park and 12-6-2 in 20 home...
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Manny Machado on his AL Player of the Week award

Manny Machado on his AL Player of the Week award
After a week that included not one but two grand slams, Orioles third baseman Manny Machado today was named the latest American League Player of the Week. "It is always an honor," Machado said this afternoon. "At this point of the season, all we are trying to do is play for the team. Trying to get some Ws, which is the most important part. This is all that matters from now on. It's a great accomplishment and I'm honored, but I've got to keep swinging the bat and keep playing...
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Tillman's struggles, falling four games under and farm notes

Tillman's struggles, falling four games under and farm notes
In 2013, Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman was an American League All-Star. In the 2014 through 2016 seasons, he was the Orioles' opening day starter. From 2012 through 2016, his ERA was under 4.00, but now he sports an ERA of 7.75. Tillman's continuous struggles is one of the biggest mysteries of the 2017 season. He has contended several times he is not hurt. If he is not, why is he pitching so badly this late into the season? If Tillman or the Orioles had that answer, they would have fixed...
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Chris Tillman on his outing, Chris Davis on missed chances

Chris Tillman on his outing, Chris Davis on missed chances
On a day that first baseman Chris Davis returned to the Orioles lineup today and hit a solo home run, he also struck out in the sixth and ninth innings with men on base. It was a day where Orioles pitchers walked nine and the bats didn't do quite enough. The Los Angeles Angels beat the Orioles 5-4 at Camden Yards. With eight losses in the last 12 games, the Orioles have gone from 56-56 to 60-64 and they are starting to drift back in the chase for an American League wild card spot. They have...
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Angels push across go-ahead run in eighth for 5-4 win

Angels push across go-ahead run in eighth for 5-4 win
On a day that Orioles pitchers walked nine, two free passes in the top of the eighth proved very costly. They led to the game-winning run as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Orioles 5-4 at Oriole Park. The Angels win the series, two games to one. The Orioles have now won the opening game of four straight series without winning any of the series. They fall to 60-64 and have lost eight of their past 12 games. The Orioles are four games under .500 for the first time since July 30. The O's put two...
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O's game blog: Tillman faces Bridwell in series finale

O's game blog: Tillman faces Bridwell in series finale
The Orioles have split two games this weekend with the Los Angeles Angels and they host the third and deciding game this afternoon. After they scored nine runs and won on Manny Machado's walk-off grand slam Friday, they scored one run and lost on Saturday with seven hits and a 1-for-10 performacne with runners in scoring position. Right-hander Chris Tillman (1-7, 7.83 ERA) makes a return to the rotation today for the first time since Aug. 3. On that date he allowed seven runs (five earned)...
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O's stay in win-one, lose-one mode, and Brady Anderson on HR Derby

O's stay in win-one, lose-one mode, and Brady Anderson on HR Derby
The Orioles are still taking one step forward followed by one step back. They can't seem to build on any momentum they gather. The latest example was the walk-off grand slam hit by Manny Machado that provided an uplifting win on Friday night. It was followed by a 5-1 loss last night to the Los Angeles Angels. Over the last 12 games the Orioles have gone win, loss, loss, win, loss, win, loss, win, loss, loss, win and loss. That is a 5-7 record in that span. The Orioles scored 12 runs last...
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Angels use early homers to beat O's, even series (quotes added)

Angels use early homers to beat O's, even series (quotes added)
For the second night in a row, the Los Angeles Angels used an early homer barrage to build a lead. This time they held it. The Angels homered in each of the first four innings off right-hander Kevin Gausman and beat the Orioles 5-1 in front of 43,929 at Oriole Park. Baltimore falls to 60-63 with its seventh loss in 11 games. Mike Trout and Luis Valbuena each homered in their first two at-bats for Los Angeles. Trout hit solo homers in the first and third innings. Valbuena hit a solo homer in the...
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O's game blog: Tonight's game and Brady Anderson wins Home Run Derby

O's game blog: Tonight's game and Brady Anderson wins Home Run Derby
The Orioles have had a few solid wins recently with a chance to build some positive momentum, only to follow up those victories with more losing. They will try to reverse that trend tonight. The Orioles (60-62) host the Los Angeles Angels (62-60) in the second game of a three-game series. They won 9-7 on Manny Machado's walk-off grand slam in the ninth last night. Over his last 12 games, Machado is batting .370 (20-for-54) with seven home runs (including three grand slams) and 25 RBIs....
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Notes on Tim Beckham, Anthony Santander and the 1992 Orioles

Notes on Tim Beckham, Anthony Santander and the 1992 Orioles
With their win last night over the Los Angeles Angels on Manny Machado's walk-off grand slam in the ninth, the Orioles now have five wins this year when trailing after eight innings. That is tied for the American League lead. Such wins are rare. The Orioles are 5-57 when trailing after eight, while the New York Yankees are 5-52 and Tampa Bay is 5-56. Division-leading Boston is 3-48 and seven American League teams have two or fewer such wins. Machado's slam was his third homer of the night and...
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Notes and quotes from Manny Machado's remarkable night

Notes and quotes from Manny Machado's remarkable night
It was a remarkable performance by Orioles' third baseman Manny Machado. He hit a two-run homer in the third inning, a solo homer in the fifth and a walk-off grand slam in the ninth. The Orioles hit four homers before Machado batted in the ninth and yet they were on their way to a homestand-opening 7-5 loss to the Los Angeles Angels. But Machado's blast to center won the game and turned the night into a stunning 9-7 win. Here is a list of the 10 players that have hit three grand slams in...
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Manny Machado on his walk-off grand slam against the Angels

Manny Machado on his walk-off grand slam against the Angels
Tonight Manny Machado became the first player to hit three homers in a game for the Orioles since ... Manny Machado. He became the first Oriole to hit a walk-off grand slam since Matt Wieters did it on April 18, 2013 against Tampa Bay. With the Orioles down 5-1 after two innings and 7-5 heading to the last of the ninth, the homestand seemed to be getting off to a poor start. Opponent batters had hit five homers and it appeared likely that the Birds would lose to the Los Angeles Angels. Except...
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Manny Machado hits walk-off grand slam in last of ninth

Manny Machado hits walk-off grand slam in last of ninth
Orioles third baseman Manny Machado had a night to remember. He hit three homers tonight, the last of which was a walk-off grand slam in the last of the ninth. That turned a potential 7-5 loss into a stunning 9-7 win over the Los Angeles Angels in the series opener. Machado produced his fourth career walk-off hit and third via a homer. It was Machado's seventh career grand slam and the Orioles' sixth of the year. Anthony Santander started the O's ninth with his first big league hit, a single...
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O's game blog: Tonight's game and hearing from the 1992 Orioles

O's game blog: Tonight's game and hearing from the 1992 Orioles
After some heavy rain at Camden Yards earlier this afternoon, the Orioles and Los Angeles Angels will try to get this game in tonight. It is the start of a three-game series, a six-game homestand and a stretch of 16 home games in 19 contests for the Orioles. However, the tarp was still on the field as 7 p.m. approached, and tonight's game will not start on time. But the Orioles announced an approximate start time of 7:40 p.m. The Orioles are 35-23 at home and 24-39 on the road. They are 12-5-2...
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Anthony Santander on making his major league debut

Anthony Santander on making his major league debut
Anthony Santander, a 22-year-old Orioles outfielder from Venezuela, will make his major league debut tonight, weather permitting. He is batting seventh in right field against Angels left-hander Andrew Heaney. Santander's path to Camden Yards came via Single-A Lynchburg of the Carolina League last season. Then the Orioles selected him in the Rule 5 draft in December from Cleveland. He was on the disabled list all this year with a strained right forearm. He ended a 20-day rehab assignment...
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During big year, outfielder Austin Hays may be underrated

During big year, outfielder Austin Hays may be underrated
Outfielder Austin Hays of the Double-A Bowie Baysox continues to rake. He was promoted in the middle of June from Single-A Frederick to Bowie and his stats have gotten better at the higher level. A case can be made that Hays is having as good of a season as any player on any team in the minor leagues in 2017. He ranks among the top 10 among all minor league players at all levels in several key stats. He is second in all of the minors in Weighted Runs Created plus, topping obviously all but one...
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O's head home after disappointing road trip

O's head home after disappointing road trip
It was a disappointing road trip, Captain Obvious called and told me. He added it was a real chance for the Orioles to beat teams they are directly competing with for a wild card spot and that they went 2-4 against the Angels and Mariners, losing both series. This is no way to start a strong late-season charge. It ended in the most disappointing fashion with Chris Davis taking a called third strike with the bases loaded in the ninth inning of Wednesday's 7-6 loss at Seattle. Yep,...
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O's game blog: O's play series, road trip finale at Seattle

O's game blog: O's play series, road trip finale at Seattle
The Orioles have a chance to do something today they haven't done yet on this long West Coast trip ending today - win a series. They went 1-2 at Anaheim against the Angels and 2-2 in Oakland versus the A's. The O's and Mariners have split the first two games of this series with the Orioles winning 11-3 Monday night and losing 3-1 last night. Right-hander Ubaldo Jiménez (5-7, 6.25 ERA) makes his 25th appearance, 20th as a starter, this afternoon. Jiménez has pitched better lately and is...
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O's stay in win-one, lose-one mode and some Britton talk

O's stay in win-one, lose-one mode and some Britton talk
The Orioles are in win-one, lose-one mode and they can't seem to get out of this cycle. It is probably not going to be good enough if they can't begin to improve on it - even in a mediocre group of teams competing for the second American League wild card. The Orioles got a homer from Jonathan Schoop in the first inning last night and scored nothing after that. They scored 12 runs last Saturday and three Sunday. They scored 11 runs Monday and one last night. The last 20 Orioles were retired...
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O's game blog: Orioles lead majors in runs scored since All-Star break

O's game blog: Orioles lead majors in runs scored since All-Star break
After scoring 26 runs on 50 hits in four games at Oakland, the Orioles began their series in Seattle last night winning 11-3, with four homers among 16 hits. When added to the 12 runs the Orioles scored on Saturday night, the team has scored 26 runs on 46 hits the past three games. The team batting average for the year has increased from .260 to .263 in three days. The Orioles scored 10-plus runs for the 14th time this season and that is tied for second-most games in the American League with...
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