Wrapping up a 2-0 loss

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles haven't scored since the second inning of last night's game against the Rays. They won't score on Thursday, either, since there's only a light workout scheduled at Camden Yards.

Time to pack up and get out of Florida.

The Orioles totaled 12 runs and 13 hits in the first 11 innings of the series and had no runs and four hits in the last 16 innings.

Rule 5 pick Jason Garcia made his major league debut and tossed a scoreless seventh inning, walking one batter and touching 96 mph with his fastball.

"It was a big rush being out there for the first time," Garcia said. "Some of the guys tried to give me a heads-up what it would be like, but I don't think you can really explain what that felt like."

Was he nervous? Garcia smiled and said, "A little."

"Being in the bullpen when you get that call, you always get that thrill. But it's a good thrill, it's exciting," he said. "I think it was initially that jog in is when it kind of hits you."

Garcia is from Land O'Lakes, Fla., about 45 minutes away from Tropicana Field. He wasn't smooth as butter tonight, throwing only eight of 20 pitches for strikes, but he showed remarkable composure for a kid who split last season between the low Single-A and short-season Single-A levels.

Garcia estimated that 10 family members were at the game.

"It's pretty cool to have that first debut here," he said. "Family gets to see, so it's pretty cool."

The final out came when catcher Ryan Lavarnway threw out Steven Souza Jr. attempting to steal, a play that the umpires reviewed before confirming the call. What ran through Garcia's mind during the delay?

"To be honest, I can't remember," he said. "I was still amped up."

Garcia figures to keep a memento from his debut.

"I've never been much of a souvenir guy," he said, "but I think I'll try to grab that ball or lineup card."

Lavarnway got to be part of Garcia's big night.

"Man, that was really cool," he said. "I'm glad I got to be a part of that with him. Showed a lot of poise, a lot of character going out there. We had the walk, but he overcame it and threw the ball really well."

Starter Miguel Gonzalez issued five walks in 5 2/3 innings and threw 32 pitches in the first.

"I wish it would have been a little easier for us, but they put a lot of good at-bats together," Lavarnway said. "A lot of credit to their lineup and a lot of credit to Miguel for fighting through it and battling. He did a good job. I'm really pleased with how it went.

"The biggest thing is we don't want to be in a hole right out of the gate, so we're trying to find ways to get two outs with one pitch. We ended up getting the double play. That was huge for us. Our middle infield turned that and it was huge. Really, just try to get out of there with as little damage as possible."

Gonzalez said he was "a little off" with his fastball tonight.

"I was able to command my off-speed (pitches) early, which was good. And that double play we got, it was phenomenal. It was fun to watch. That got me going and I felt pretty good after that," Gonzalez said.

"If I would have minimized those walks, I probably could have gone a little bit deeper in the game, but like I said, I was just a little off with my fastball, especially in the stretch. I think those nice plays we made throughout the whole game really kept us in the game. It was really fun to watch."

After throwing 32 pitches in the first, Gonzalez had a little talk with himself on the bench to make certain that it didn't happen again.

"Just throw the ball down the middle, man. Let them get themselves out," he said.

"These guys foul off a lot of pitches and really that's what got me in the first inning. After that, I settled down and made good pitches after. And we kept the game close, obviously we didn't win. It was a close one, but keep going."

Manager Buck Showalter found a few positives to sprinkle over the loss.

"Best thing that happened for us, one of the best, is we got all our pitchers on the hill and got them out there and got their feet wet," he said. "Miguel was good, a lot of good pitches. We've seen him even better command-wise. I thought Lavarnway presented himself real well. You got to see a real good reason why we liked him and took him. He caught a heck of a game, threw well. Got some pop in his bat, too. He probably had the best at-bats of anybody tonight."

Asked about Garcia's debut, Showalter said, "There was a lot of emotion flying there. There were a lot of hamsters running around backward in that cage.

"It's an honor as you get older to have a seat to watch something like that. I know what a big moment it was for him and his family. There is no perfect spot. If you're going to carry a pitcher in the American League East, he's going to have to pitch. You're not going to hide anybody out. It makes us a little short on the bench right now, but we also would like to figure out a way to keep good potential pitchers, and he has that potential."

Like everyone else, Showalter marveled at third baseman Manny Machado's lunging backhanded stop and throw from foul territory to retire Logan Forsythe.

"It actually took a little of the shine off it because of the review and all of a sudden in the dugout, I said, 'That was a remarkable play by Manny,'" Showalter said. "The arm strength on that. Nobody makes that play, just from the arm strength alone. There's a lot of really good third basemen. That's the separator. That's amazing."

Showalter had enough of the Tropicana Field experience.

"It's strange," he said. "It is what it is. The phones didn't work again tonight. We had to buy a walkie talkie. It's a challenge. I'm going to turn it in on expenses, though. That walkie talkie is expensive."

It's definitely time to go home.

"Oh God, I don't care if it's snowing, raining or sleeting, I'm in," he said. "I feel like we've been gone for a long time. We have."