Unraveled early (w/update)

The Marlins sent nine batters to the plate and scored four runs in the second inning to take a 4-0 lead. Pretty much everything went wrong. Jeremy Guthrie gave up four hits, including Hanley Ramirez's two-run double. He hit his second batter of the game, Jorge Cantu, who followed Ramirez to the plate, and umpire Doug Eddings warned both benches. Guthrie also walked leadoff hitter Cody Ross to start the rally, and second baseman Scott Moore failed to glove Chris Coghlan's liner up the...
Nolan Reimold is starting at first base tonight for Triple-A Norfolk. Reimold is carrying a five-game hitting streak that's raised his average to .221. He's hitting .450 in that span, with two doubles, three RBIs and three runs scored. Reimold has hit safely in 13 of 17 games in June, batting .297 with a home run and seven RBIs. Left-hander Michael Gonzalez is scheduled to throw another inning Friday night for the Gulf Coast League Orioles. He could pitch Monday for one of the in-state...
Interim manager Juan Samuel joked that you "add a little headache" when trying to find at-bats for Garrett Atkins, who survived today's roster moves. "We've got some lefties coming up, and now that we're in our league, the DH spot is always open to get somebody in," Samuel said. "If you need to give Luke (Scott) an off-day or give Corey Patterson an off-day, we might face some lefties where Atkins needs to be in there. We've got a righty tomorrow, lefty next day, so we'll see what we...
"It was really cool...a grand slam." Those were the words of a ten year old patient at Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children who unexpectedly met Matt Capps and Ryan Zimmerman on Tuesday. Noah recently had his appendix removed but he's eager to get back out on the baseball field. The young first baseman, who tries to emulate both Albert Pujols and Ryan Zimmerman, wanted to know what it took to become a major league ballplayer. "You just tell them to have fun and work hard," said...
Yes, the Orioles did trade a Wolf for a Fox. Pitcher Ross Wolf goes to Oakland and a few moments ago Jake Fox completed his first interview with Baltimore reporters. Fox found out yesterday morning he would be an Oriole and today settled into his locker in the Camden Yards clubhouse. "I'm excited about it. It's always good to have a change and go someplace where hopefully you fit in. Where I came from, it just wasn't the right fit for anybody. I didn't fit into their style and it's...
Michael Gonzalez threw 19 pitches in the first inning for the Gulf Coast League Orioles, and his fastball was clocked in the 90-91 mph range. He had trouble hitting the mid-80s a month ago. Felix Pie went 1-for-4 with a run scored and two strikeouts as the designated hitter. "Those guys are going to continue to do their rehab down there," interim manager Juan Samuel said. Pie is expected to join an in-state affiliate later this week, perhaps by Thursday. Single-A Frederick will be...
For the Orioles: Corey Patterson LF Miguel Tejada 3B Nick Markakis RF Ty Wigginton 1B Luke Scott DH Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Scott Moore 2B Cesar Izturis SS Jeremy Guthrie RHP For the Marlins: Coghlan LF Sanchez 1B Ramirez SS Cantu DH Uggla 2B Ross CF Stanton RF Helms 3B Paulino C Sanchez RHP Jake Fox's name is listed among the Orioles reserves. He's wearing No. 47. Cla Meredith, designated for assignment to clear room on the 40-man roster, was 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in 21 games with...
Michael Gonzalez began his injury rehab assignment today with the Gulf Coast League Orioles, throwing a scoreless first inning before Aaron Swenson replaced him. Gonzalez allowed a two-out single and struck out two. He retired the other batter on a pop up to first baseman Tyler Townsend. Felix Pie is serving as the designated hitter again and batting third. He's 0-for-2 with a strikeout and fly ball. Update: The Orioles optioned Chris Tillman to Triple-A Norfolk to make room for newly...
Bryce Harper's college coach, Tim Chambers, the new baseball coach at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, told me today he does not think the negotiations between Scott Boras and the Washington Nationals to sign Bryce will take all summer. Chambers told me it is his opinion that the talks "won't drag out all summer" and that Harper wants to get started with his professional career sooner rather than later. He feels talks will heat up in the next few weeks or so. Bryce is taking a few...
It's only been a week since the Orioles played a game at Camden Yards, but it feels much longer to me. I'll have to remind myself to put down the boxes and head to the ballpark this afternoon. The Orioles begin a three-game interleague series against the Marlins, and they aren't real familiar with right-hander Anibal Sanchez. Cesar Izturis is 2-for-3 with a double against him. Garrett Atkins and Julio Lugo are 0-for-3, and Luke Scott is 0-for-2 with a walk. That's it. Will another...
Over the next few weeks and months fans and reporters will be tracking the Orioles for a couple of reasons. One, the constant watch to see just how historically bad this team turns out to be. Two, to see who might become the next manager. For me, this season has turned out so badly, I don't care if they lose 100, 110, 120 or 130 games. At this point, what difference does it make? Here is what I am most interested in the rest of this season: Will the core group of young players that...