Gausman goes a solid six and O's rally to tame Tigers 4-2

Gausman goes a solid six and O's rally to tame Tigers 4-2
Kevin Gausman showed Orioles fans some of his vast potential today, allowing just one run over six innings, and the O's rallied for three runs in the seventh to beat Detroit 4-2 and take the series, two wins to one at Camden Yards. Today's attendance was 39,182 and the three-game series drew 124,376. Gausman gave up five hits and just the one run - on a Prince Fielder homer. He didn't walk a batter and fanned four. He threw 96 pitches, 63 for strikes, and lowered his ERA from 11.00 to...
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A rough 10-game run of pitching for the Orioles (Gausman impressive today)

A rough 10-game run of pitching for the Orioles (Gausman impressive today)
Orioles pitching is going through a bit of a tough stretch here. The Tigers have scored 15 runs on 20 hits and and hit seven homers over the last two days. Over the last 10 games - a stretch that began with that four-game series at Toronto - the O's pitching staff has given up 61 runs with a team ERA of 5.95. The Orioles have allowed six runs or more six times in those 10 contests. As for the O's starting pitchers, they have just two quality starts with an ERA of 5.80 in the 10 games,...
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Nick Markakis: Still cranking out the hits

Nick Markakis: Still cranking out the hits
In a lineup that features Manny Machado, Chris Davis and Adam Jones, Nick Markakis can get overlooked. Not by anyone in the Orioles clubhouse, but by the rest of us. While others grab deserved headlines, Markakis just keeps showing up and cranking out hits. And doing that while batting both first and third in the batting order. In 56 games, he is batting .306 with seven homers, 33 RBIs, a .448 slugging percentage and .805 OPS. Over his last 22 games, he is batting .370 with eight doubles,...
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Tough test: Kevin Gausman faces the Tigers today in his third major league start

Tough test: Kevin Gausman faces the Tigers today in his third major league start
The Detroit Tigers have scored 15 runs and hit seven homers this weekend in Baltimore. Kevin Gausman has pitched to an ERA of 11.00 over his first two big league starts. If it is going to get better for the Orioles' 2012 first-round draft pick starting today, the kid will have to go through one of the best lineups in the American League this afternoon at Camden Yards. Gausman remains upbeat and confident in what he can do on a big league mound, even if he's had two rocky outings to start...
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Jason Hammel: "Zero intent there to hit him"

Jason Hammel: "Zero intent there to hit him"
Jason Hammel was ejected from a game for the first time in the big leagues today. He didn't think he should have been tossed after he hit Detroit's Matt Tuiasosopo one pitch after yielding three straight homers in the top of the fourth inning. "I'm not going to make a big deal of - I hit him with a slider. Zero intent there to hit him," Hammel said. "Obviously I gave up the three home runs, but I'm not the guy that answers getting hit around with hitting somebody. That is bush league...
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O's yield four homers in an inning for first time ever as Tigers roll 10-3

O's yield four homers in an inning for first time ever as Tigers roll 10-3
Miguel Cabrera homered again and this time it was a grand slam. Prince Fielder homered. The Tigers scored eight runs in an inning and Jason Hammel was ejected. It could have been a better Saturday for the Orioles, who gave up four homers in one inning for the first time in team history as Detroit pounded the Birds 10-3 behind Justin Verlander. After giving up three consecutive homers to Victor Martinez, Jhonny Peralta and Alex Avila during the Tigers' eight-run fourth, Hammel was ejected...
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O's hitting coach Jim Presley on the matchup with Justin Verlander (O's down big early)

O's hitting coach Jim Presley on the matchup with Justin Verlander (O's down big early)
Is Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander in a slump? After pitching to an ERA of 2.40 when he won the 2011 American League Cy Young Award and a 2.64 ERA when he finished second in 2012, he is 6-4 now with an ERA of 3.68 over 11 starts. That almost qualifies as an off year for him. And over his last three starts, Verlander has pitched to an ERA of 9.82 with a batting average against of .354. What is going on here? Observers of the Tigers feel Verlander's fastball command has not been at its usual...
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Chris Davis talks about keeping pace with Miguel Cabrera

Chris Davis talks about keeping pace with Miguel Cabrera
If the season ended today, Detroit's Miguel Cabrera would not win the Triple Crown and neither would Chris Davis. That is because they are standing in the way of each other right now. Cabrera leads the American League in batting and RBIs, but Davis has a 19 to 16 edge in homers. In many other years, Davis' .356 average and RBI total of 50 might be leading the league at this point, but Cabrera is at .372 and 61. They rank first and second in the AL right now in batting average, homers, RBIs,...
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McLouth talks stolen bases and a look at Verlander's recent outings

McLouth talks stolen bases and a look at Verlander's recent outings
He didn't get any stolen bases last night, but Nate McLouth ranks second in the American League with 17, four behind Boston's Jacoby Ellsbury. At his current pace, he would end the season with 50 steals, something done just three times in Orioles history. 57 - Luis Aparicio, 1964 53 - Brady Anderson, 1992 50 - Brian Roberts, 2007 The Orioles have gone from worst to almost first in the AL in stolen bases. After swiping just 58 bags total in 2012, they now have stolen 41 bases, one behind...
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Chris Dickerson: "I knew I'd hit my first career walk-off. Pretty cool" (updated)

Chris Dickerson: "I knew I'd hit my first career walk-off. Pretty cool" (updated)
Not long after he had provided the Orioles with their fourth walk-off win of the year, Chris Dickerson said he had a simple approach in his at-bat in the ninth inning tonight. He also knew his game-winning three-run homer was gone right after he drove a 2-1 pitch from Jose Valverde toward the right-center field seats. "Just told myself to be a little shorter and just hit it," Dickerson said. "I knew I'd hit my first career walk-off. Pretty cool. "Down two runs with this team? That is...
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Chris Dickerson hits a walk-off, three run homer as O's stun Detroit

Chris Dickerson hits a walk-off, three run homer as O's stun Detroit
Maybe it was just Orioles magic. Chris Dickerson hit a three-run walk-off homer on a 2-1 pitch from Jose Valverde as the Orioles scored four in the last of the ninth to stun the Tigers 7-5 tonight. Max Scherzer had retired 16 straight Orioles through the last of the eighth, but he exited after a season-high 119 pitches. Nick Markakis started the ninth with a solo homer off Valverde and it was a 5-4 game. Singles by Adam Jones and Chris Davis put runners on the corners with none out. But two...
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Will the Yard be rocking with runs this weekend? (updated)

Will the Yard be rocking with runs this weekend? (updated)
So is this going to be a high scoring series? It features the Orioles, who rank second in the American League in runs scored, and the Detroit Tigers, who rank third. They are the only teams in MLB scoring over five runs per game with Detroit at 5.15 and the Orioles at 5.05. Ranking the Tigers and Orioles in some AL stat categories: Batting Average - Detroit first at .279, O's second at .276 Homers - O's first with 75, Detroit is 11th with 54 Slugging - O's first at .464 and Detroit fifth...
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Troy Patton goes to videotape looking for better command

Troy Patton goes to videotape looking for better command
As he tries to reverse a slide, in which he has been scored on in four straight and five of his last six outings, Orioles lefty Troy Patton is going to the video. He is looking to see what he might be doing differently after a successful 2012 season out of the O's bullpen. Over his last four games, Patton has pitched 5 2/3, allowing nine hits, seven runs and two homers. He walked 12 batters in 55 2/3 innings last season and has already walked 12 this year in 22 2/3. "I'm not happy with my...
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Chris Davis talks to kids at Catonsville High and a Davis-Miguel Cabrera comparison

Chris Davis talks to kids at Catonsville High and a Davis-Miguel Cabrera comparison
Several times in recent weeks when talking about the great season Chris Davis is having, manager Buck Showalter has mentioned that he is proud of how Davis has handled the added attention of his success this year. The latest example of Davis making his skipper proud came off the field yesterday. Davis did an appearance at Catonsville High School on behalf of AT&T to educate students and faculty on the dangers of texting while driving and generate awareness for AT&T's "It Can Wait" campaign....
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Orioles offense has been outstanding, but can rotation join in the fun?

Orioles offense has been outstanding, but can rotation join in the fun?
Before Freddy Garcia pitched eight shutout innings last night, Orioles starting pitchers had pitched to an ERA of 4.90 on the year. That ranked 12th in the American League, ahead of only Toronto, Houston and Minnesota. Those three clubs are a combined 33 games under .500 and two of the three reside in last place. That is not the company the Orioles want to be keeping. But here is a stat to keep in mind: The Orioles' starting pitcher ERA was 4.77 last year at the All-Star break. The starting...
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Freddy Garcia talks about his outing against the Nationals (plus other quotes and notes)

Freddy Garcia talks about his outing against the Nationals (plus other quotes and notes)
Freddy Garcia last tossed at least eight shutout innings on Sept. 19, 2006 for the Chicago White Sox at Detroit. Tonight he matched that, blanking the Nationals on three hits over eight in the Orioles' 2-0 win. So what was working for him tonight? "Everything, man," Garcia said after his 113-pitch outing. "Good to go out there and perform the way I did and throw a lot of strikes. Don't walk anybody, the guys were making good plays and we scored when we needed it. "They've been hitting...
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Freddy Garcia pitches eight shutout innings as the O's beat the Nats, 2-0

Freddy Garcia pitches eight shutout innings as the O's beat the Nats, 2-0
One night after the Orioles and Nationals combined to hit eight homers at Camden Yards, Freddy Garcia and Dan Haren hooked up in a pitcher's duel. Garcia was outstanding, and a little bit better, pitching the Orioles to a 2-0 win. Garcia pitched eight innings of three-hit, shutout ball, allowing just three singles. He pitched out of a two on, none out jam in the top of the second and then retired 21 of the last 22 batters he faced. Jim Johnson pitched for the second night in a row and...
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Will the offense keep rolling tonight for the Orioles? (updated)

Will the offense keep rolling tonight for the Orioles? (updated)
As a team, the Orioles are leading the American League in runs scored (271), hits (515), doubles (118), home runs (75), slugging (.464), extra-base hits (197), stolen bases (41) and OPS (.796). The Birds are also second in average (.276) and stolen base percentage (83.7 percent). The Orioles are on pace to hit 230 homers, which would be second-most in franchise history behind the 1996 club that blasted 257 homers. They would score the fourth-most runs (828) in club history, behind the 949 in...
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It's Davis and Cabrera one-two right now in several MLB offensive stats

It's Davis and Cabrera one-two right now in several MLB offensive stats
Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers won a Triple Crown and an American League MVP award last season. But right now, in several key categories in the majors, he is a distant second to the Orioles Chris Davis. Davis leads MLB with 19 homers with Cabrera second with 15. He has the slugging percentage lead over the Tigers star by .766 to .656 and the OPS edge by 1.214 to 1.099. Pretty impressive stuff for the O's first sacker. You hear hitting coaches say batters are hitting well sometimes...
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Jim Johnson on his outing last night, the crowd reception and more

Jim Johnson on his outing last night, the crowd reception and more
When Jim Johnson took the mound Sunday in Toronto, he was trying to protect a three-run lead, but he couldn't do it, giving up four runs as the Orioles lost 6-5. In his first game since that outing at Camden Yards last night, he got the Nationals out 1-2-3 in the ninth and he came in to protect another three-run lead. This time he got a line out and two strikeouts on 11 pitches, throwing nine strikes to get his 16th save. Even after going 1-for-5 in his previous five save chances and with an...
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