The Orioles are in a race to finish the season with more wins than reset buttons.
First baseman Chris Davis sat out eight games while trying to work through his offensive issues, taking early batting practice and advice from hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh and vice president of baseball operations Brady Anderson. Yesterday's lineup didn't include second baseman Jonathan Schoop, whose average dipped to .197, its lowest point since April 2.
Manager Buck Showalter suggested that Schoop also could be on the bench this afternoon, which would provide a three-day break with Monday's open date on the schedule.
"A shorter version, kind of what we did with Chris," Showalter said. "I'd like to see (Steve) Wilkerson play a little bit, especially at second base.
"I've thought about this a lot. He's been struggling for quite a while with very few exceptions and he hasn't been able to put together that consistency that he did last year. He's not the only one."
Davis grabs more of the attention because of his $161 million contract, strikeout totals and struggles in the two previous seasons. Schoop was named Most Valuable Oriole last summer, but he's been tossed into the pile of hitters with low averages. It's like finding a Space Needle in a haystack.
Schoop is 2-for-27 in his last seven games and 4-for-38 in his last nine. Baseball won't allow for mulligans, but there's nothing to prevent Showalter from breaking out the reset button.
The Orioles have scored two runs or fewer in 35 games and their team average is the lowest in the majors at .226. Two guys aren't responsible. It's been a group effort.
Deck McGuire starts today for the Angels and he brings a 6.08 ERA to Camden Yards in six relief appearances - four with the Blue Jays and two with the artists formerly known as Anaheim. He also carries one of the coolest names in sports.
McGuire has allowed three earned runs (four total), including three home runs, in five innings with the Angels.
A former 11th overall pick in the 2010 draft, McGuire is with his seventh organization and twice wound up with the Blue Jays. He made two starts with the Reds last season.
The Orioles lost to Felix Peña in the series opener. Maybe a team with the worst record in baseball can't look down on anyway, but having McGuire complete the sweep should make it petition Major League Baseball to extend the off-day through August.
Left-handers own a .154 average against McGuire in his 12 major league appearances and right-handers are batting .278, putting him in the reverse-splits pile.
None of the current Orioles have faced McGuire, but they'll probably hear a few jokes about "rearranging the deck chairs." Because it never gets old.
Kevin Gausman is 1-3 with a 5.97 ERA and 1.605 WHIP in five career starts against the Angels over 28 2/3 innings.
Mike Trout is 7-for-13 (.538) with three home runs against Gausman. Ian Kinsler is 8-for-17 (.471) with two doubles and a home run. Luis Valbuena is 5-for-9 with four home runs.
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