J.J. Hardy on walking with a "limp" and a look at tonight's matchup

ARLINGTON, Texas - As he headed back to the dugout during Thursday night's game against the Rangers, Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy must have been walking with a slight limp or appeared to be in some discomfort. He wasn't aware of it until I told him that numerous fans on Twitter and the blog wondered whether he was hurting again.

Hardy missed two games with stiffness in his left calf, but the leg feels fine. He offered up confirmation yesterday at his locker, and an amusing smile when told why I was asking.

"No," he said. "I'm wearing these neoprene sleeves to keep it warm, but I don't feel it any more. For a while it was just kind of a sore calf. I wasn't worried about it, but I think that's even gone and it's in the past."

So why the uneven gait?

"I have some blisters on the back of my heel and that's kind of why I was limping," he said. "Yeah, I was definitely limping because of the blisters."

The blisters, Hardy added, won't affect his status for games. Heck, they may not be sole reason why he limped.

"If you always watched me, I always kind of limp," he said. "I think even now if nothing's hurting it's kind of habit. But, yeah, people are watching awfully close. I'm always limping and usually something hurts a little bit, but not enough to keep me out.

"These people are observant, aren't they?"

So is Hardy, who's always in the right place defensively at the right time.

It happened in Boston when he covered third base for an unorthodox 5-4-6 double play, and it happened again last night when Manny Machado charged a slow roller, had no play and first, spun and fired to Hardy covering third for the out.

Hardy made the catch and applied the tag in one silky smooth motion.

"I tell you, the play J.J. made at third and Manny, I didn't think I'd ever see something like that again after Boston," said manager Buck Showalter. "The play they made there covering third. He's the only guy I think in the game who would have been there. I do. That's amazing. Manny said, 'I wouldn't have been there.' "

Hardy waves off the plaudits from his play at Fenway Park.

"I think I was up second that inning," Hardy said, "so I think I might have heard (Showalter) say, 'You're the only shortstop that would have been there,' or something like that. But I don't know. You've got to be somewhere, I guess."

The Orioles keep depositing baseballs where the grass doesn't grow, as Showalter says. Of course, there's a hill beyond the center field fence at Globe Life Park that ruins his expression, but the point's the same.

Everyone knew the Orioles would hit home runs this season, but last night's display was astounding.

"It's a long year," said Nolan Reimold, who broke a 5-5 tie in the seventh inning with a shot to left field. "It's still really early, but we know we can hit some home runs and put up some runs, so I guess that's what we did and we'll take it into (tonight) and see what happens."

Yovani Gallardo is back where he pitched last season, going 13-11 with a 3.42 ERA in 33 starts with the Rangers before signing a two-year deal with the Orioles that also includes an option for 2018. He's 8-6 with a 3.52 ERA in 16 starts at Globe Life Park.

Gallardo has faced the Rangers once in his career, allowing four runs and six hits with 10 strikeouts over six innings on April 13, 2010 while pitching for the Brewers. Ian Desmond is 5-for-18 with two doubles against him.

Right-hander Colby Lewis has made two starts this year and allowed four runs and 10 hits in 12 innings. He's 2-4 with a 6.11 ERA in nine games (seven starts) against the Orioles.

Hardy is 6-for-18 with two doubles and two home runs against Lewis. Chris Davis is 4-for-8 with two home runs, Machado is 2-for-5 with a home run, Adam Jones is 5-for-18 with a double and home run, and Mark Trumbo is 4-for-16 with a double and home run.

Trumbo has hit five home runs in the last five games. I guess his flirtation with being a singles hitter is over.

Let's see what the boys have in store for us tonight.