Game update and Chen on Chen (O's lose 5-2)

ORIOLES QUICK WRAP

Score: Blue Jays 5, Orioles 2

Recap: Wei-Yin Chen joined Ubaldo Jimenez as the only Orioles to go five innings in a Grapefruit League game. He threw 62 pitches, 39 for strikes. Chen allowed two runs (one earned) and four hits, with no walks and one strikeout. Former Oriole Steve Tolleson hit a solo homer off Chen in the third. Caleb Joseph had an RBI double in the second after Blue Jays starter Daniel Norris hit Nolan Reimold with a pitch. Delmon Young homered in the seventh. Ryan Webb worked the sixth and gave up a two-run homer to Kevin Pillar after Munenori Kawasaki's leadoff triple. Brian Matusz retired the Jays in order with two strikeouts in seventh, but Darren O'Day allowed a run in the eighth on a triple and sacrifice fly. Jason Garcia left the bases loaded in the ninth.

Need to know: Chen threw 18 pitches in the first, 14 in the second, 12 in the third, eight in the fourth and 10 in the fifth. Chen has walked one batter in 13 1/3 Grapefruit League innings. Matusz has worked 11 1/3 innings and allowed one run and seven hits, with no walks and 12 strikeouts. Machado leads the team with four errors. Reimold scored from first on Joseph's double to left field and had two infield hits. As manager Buck Showalter noted, Reimold is running better than ever. Attendance: 7,283 at Ed Smith Stadium.

On deck: Thursday, at Tigers in Lakeland, 1:05 p.m.
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SARASOTA, Fla. - Delmon Young led off the bottom of the seventh inning today with a home run off right-hander Steve Delabar to reduce the Blue Jays' lead to 4-2.

Maybe the local media brought Young some luck today after a morning interview, though he collected three hits yesterday without us.

Darren O'Day surrendered a run in the eighth on Roemen Fields' triple and Ezequil Carrera's sacrifice fly.

Nolan Reimold has two infield hits today and scored from first on a Caleb Joseph double to left field.

On the second hit, Reimold sent a sharp ground ball to third base. The throw was high, but the official scorer ruled that Reimold would have beat it anyway.

Brian Matusz retired the Blue Jays in order in the seventh with two strikeouts. In 11 1/3 Grapefruit League innings, Matusz has allowed one run and seven hits, walked none and struck out 12.

Anyone need a lefty? Do the Orioles?

Matusz had gone three and four innings in his last two outings, both starts, but was limited to one inning today.

Starter Wei-Yin Chen needed only 62 pitches by my count to complete five innings.

"I think that's mainly because most of the time I got the first strike," Chen said through his interpreter. "I got ahead in the count so the hitters became more aggressive in the following pitches. So I can get through innings with fewer pitches."

Chen obviously could have continued if allowed to come back out for the sixth.

"Of course I can, but five innings is what we had (as a goal) before the game and I got there," Chen said. "And we're still in spring training and there's a lot more things I need to work on, so it's not about how many innings as pitches."

Chen, who didn't throw more pitches in the bullpen after coming out of the game, continues to use a new grip on his changeup.

"I would say it is much better, but still sometimes I think about the grips or how I'm going to throw the pitches," Chen said. "I am still going to keep tinkering in the bullpen, but hopefully by the start if the season I don't have to think about it and I can just throw it naturally."

Chen said he isn't working faster to stay in step with Major League Baseball's rules about speeding up the games.

"I try not to think about it, because the most important thing for a player is my performance and I try to do my best out there without thinking about this extra stuff," he said. "Of course, if I can get the game going faster, I'll be happy to, but I have to keep my performance (strong)."

What's left for Chen to do before the season-opening series at Tropicana Field?

"Mainly, I'm going to keep working some on my breaking ball and changeup," he said. "It's gotten a lot better, but I need to make it more accurate so in the season I can use it more easily."