Notes on Hardy and Flaherty, and game update (O's lose 4-3)

Orioles manager Buck Showalter made some adjustments to tonight's lineup with the Twins starting left-hander Tommy Milone. Nolan Reimold replaced Henry Urrutia in left field and Matt Wieters replaced Steve Clevenger as the designated hitter.

J.J. Hardy remains a constant at shortstop, no matter how much he's laboring at the plate.

Hardy flied out to the warning track in right-center field in his first at-bat and is stuck in a 4-for-44 slump with only one RBI in his last 13 games, lowering his season average to .223. He's gone 74 at-bats without a home run, the last one coming on July 29 against the Braves.

Asked whether Hardy appears to be having better at-bats, Showalter replied, "Not necessarily."

"A lot of those things, it's kind of like 'Who's pitching?'" Showalter said. "Guys on top of their game, it's tough. But he's had probably as much as anybody we have, it seems like every time he squares one up they make a great play on him. It hits a pitcher's foot and sticks on the mound. The center fielder who's well above average runs it down and dives for it."

Ryan Flaherty is on the bench again tonight, but at least he's not sitting on a long hitless streak. He singled in the eighth inning last night after replacing Hardy at shortstop to end an 0-for-34 drought - the third-longest in Orioles history among position players.

"They get it," said manager Buck Showalter, "and Ryan will be the first to tell you it's self-inflicted."

Showalter made four defensive replacements with the Twins holding a big lead. Not all of the changes were straight-up in the batting order - Reimold took over the leadoff spot from Manny Machado and Jimmy Paredes hit in Adam Jones' place - but Showalter made certain that Flaherty batted for Hardy because it increased the chances that he'd get an extra plate appearance.

Flaherty followed his single, his first hit in 27 days, with a walk in the ninth.

"You talk about managing in a 15-something game," Showalter said. "We were putting those guys in and John (Russell) was saying 'Straight up?' And I said, 'No, I want Ryan to hit as far up as he can to get as many possible at-bats.'

"It's such a mental and emotional game as it is physical. They may not get him out for a month. Who knows?

"It's something you take out of it. I always try to come back when you think about some negative things you need to not lose site of, and when you have a game like last night, some positive things. And that was one of them I took."

Left-hander Wei-Yin Chen allowed two singles tonight with one out in the top of the first inning, but he got a called third strike on Miguel Sano and retired Trevor Plouffe on a fly ball to right.

Chen got ahead 0-2 on the last four batters after falling behind leadoff hitter Byron Buxton 3-0 and working the count full. Buxton grounded out.

Chen retired the Twins in order with two strikeouts in the second inning. He's thrown 32 pitches.

Jones singled with two outs in the bottom of the first inning. He's 14-for-40 in his last 11 games. Chris Davis drew a nine-pitch walk, but Wieters grounded out on a 2-2 changeup to end the rally.

The Orioles worked Milone for 29 pitches in the first, but he retired the side in order in the second on only 11.

Davis is batting .309/.353/.577 in 123 at-bats against left-handers this season.

Update: The Twins loaded the bases with two outs in the fourth inning after Kurt Suzuki's infield hit, and Eduardo Nunez walked to force in a run and break a scoreless tie.

Chen thought he struck out Nunez with a 2-2 pitch and was visibly upset.

Milone has retired 10 in a row since Davis' walk.

Update II: Milone retired 13 in a row before Nolan Reimold led off the sixth with a single, Manny Machado singled and Gerardo Parra hit a three-run homer to give the Orioles a 3-1 lead.

Parra is 14-for-34 with four home runs and nine RBIs during an eight-game hitting streak.

Parra was 4-for-24 vs. left-handers since joining the Orioles before the home run.

Chen allowed one run and seven hits in six innings, with two walks and three strikeouts. He threw 106 pitches, 73 for strikes.

Update III: Darren O'Day gave up three runs in the eighth, and the Orioles are behind 4-3. They began the night 51-1 when leading after the seventh.

O'Day walked leadoff hitter Miguel Sano and he hit Torii Hunter to load the bases with no outs. Gerardo Parra missed the cutoff man on Eduardo Rosario's sacrifice fly, allowing both runners to move up, and Kurt Suzuki blooped a two-run single into shallow right-center field.

Adam Jones failed to make a barehanded pickup in an attempt to throw home. Earlier in the inning, Jonathan Schoop failed to run down Trevor Plouffe's fly ball that fell in for a single.

Not a good inning for O'Day due to the leadoff walk and the hit batter, but the bloops and mistakes were out of his hands.

Update IV: The Orioles lose 4-3 to the Twins and are 0-5 against them this season.

The Orioles are 17-20 in one-run games and 51-2 when leading after the seventh.