Chen vs. Cobb at The Trop (with Pearce update)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Over his last 20 starts, Orioles left-hander Wei-Yin Chen has lost a grand total of two games. This is going back to May 3. Twenty starts, two defeats. Chen takes the mound tonight in the series opener against the Rays at Tropicana Field, where it's always 72 degrees. Good thing the roof doesn't open here. It's 400 degrees outside and we don't need anyone with the Rays to become tempted. Chen is 7-2 with a 3.88 ERA in 12 starts on the road. He's registered a 3.05 ERA in his last seven starts away from Camden Yards since June 1, allowing 15 earned runs in 44 1/3 innings and lowering his road ERA from 5.33 to 3.88. Chen is 3-4 with a 3.53 ERA in 12 career starts against the Rays, including 1-2 with a 3.25 ERA in six starts at The Trop. He's faced the Rays in four games this season and gone 1-1 with a 4.71 ERA. The lefty allowed three earned runs over 6 2/3 innings in his only appearance in St. Petersburg on June 16. Ben Zobrist is 12-for-32 (.375) with two doubles and a home run against Chen, and James Loney is 4-for-10 (.400) with two doubles. Sean Rodriguez is 4-for-21 (.190) with a double and home run, Yunel Escobar is 2-for-17 (.118) with a double and home run. Rays starter Alex Cobb is 4-1 with a 2.17 ERA in seven career starts against the Orioles. Nick Markakis is 5-for-15 (.333) with a double against Cobb, and J.J. Hardy is 5-for-16 (.313). Adam Jones is 4-for-21 (.190) with seven strikeouts, and Chris Davis is 2-for-13 (.154) with a triple and five strikeouts. The Orioles named Triple-A Norfolk right-hander Mike Wright and outfielder Dariel Alvarez as the organization's minor league Pitcher and Player of the Month for August. Wright came within a strike and then two outs of throwing no-hitters in consecutive starts against Durham. Mikie Mahtook ruined both bids. Note: Steve Pearce took early batting practice this afternoon, hitting a few balls into the empty seats, and now he's running sprints in the outfield. Head athletic trainer Richie Bancells is keeping tabs on him. Pearce is a career .329/.418/.620 hitter vs. the Rays, with five doubles, six home runs and 12 RBIs in 24 games. Five of his home runs have come this season. At Tropicana Field, Pearce is a career .382/.462/.735 hitter with three doubles, three homers and six RBIs in 11 games.