Bud Norris on pitching out of jams and getting the Game 1 win

Bud Norris didn't have a 1-2-3 inning and he allowed 10 baserunners in fewer than six innings, but he made some key pitches when he needed to and got the win in Game 1 of today's doubleheader. Norris gave up seven hits and one run over 5 1/3 innings in the 5-1 win over Pittsburgh and is now 2-2 with a 3.94 ERA. Pittsburgh batters went just 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position against him (and 1-for-14 for the game). Was Norris going to one key pitch when he got into jams? "It was a variety," he said. "I've seen plenty of that lineup with my days in the NL Central. (Steve) Clevenger knows that lineup as well, playing in Chicago," Norris said. "I didn't necessarily have all my pitches working, but at times I did when I needed it. Made some really good pitches and they hit some balls right at guys, which is part of the game. It was kind of one of those weird days but was a big win for us and let's hopefully get another one right now. "There were a few at-bats that felt like 10-plus pitches. Foul balls here and there. Had to stay with the grind to make a pitch when you need to." Norris, who threw 105 pitches, 72 for strikes, gave up a triple to Jose Tabata in the third and a two-out RBI single to Pedro Alvarez, but Pittsburgh didn't cross the plate any more after that. There was also a 21-minute rain delay to be dealt with after the bottom of the fourth inning. "I knew I wanted to go back out there," Norris said. "Hoped it stopped quick enough. Just envisioned it as a long half-inning where we scored a lot of runs. Grounds crew did a great job fixing the home plate area and I felt OK." He was also pitching on six days rest and this was his first start since last Thursday at Toronto. "I knew today was going to be tough after the last two days with the rain," he said. "Tilly (Chris Tillman) and I had to mentally prepare for that. Even with the rain delay, you have to go out there and stay strong. "It was a little different. It messed up the throwing program for the last couple of days. Talked to Tillman, too, to take your time in the warmups. Got some cobwebs in there almost. But when you get on the mound, you have to execute and hit the glove." Norris was asked about Steve Pearce and his three-hit, two-RBI game back with the Orioles. "He knows he wants to be here, as we all can see. Just really good to see him having three hits and RBIs. Sure he's smiling right now," he said. Norris made his 10th career interleague start today and he is 3-2 with a 4.82 ERA in those games. Norris is 1-0 with an ERA of 0.73 in two home starts. Opposing batters are now hitting just .138 against him (4-for-29) when batting with runners in scoring position.