Jimmy Paredes trying to break out of his slump (O's win 8-5)

KANSAS CITY - Orioles manager Buck Showalter said he wanted to put Jimmy Paredes in the lineup the day after a costly fielding error in the 12th inning allowed the Twins to score the tiebreaking run and complete a four-game sweep. He prefers to get a player back on the field rather than have him sit on the bench and dwell on the mistake, wondering whether the club has lost confidence in him.

Paredes didn't make it into Monday's lineup in Kansas City, but he's returned to it tonight, serving as the designated hitter against right-hander Johnny Cueto while Steve Clevenger remains on paternity leave.

Clevenger is batting .391/.417/.543 (18-46) with four doubles, a home run and seven RBIs in 13 games with the Orioles this season, including an active eight-game hitting streak that's the longest of his career. He's 13-for-32 (.406) during the streak, which has pushed Paredes further down the bench.

Paredes hasn't started since Aug. 12 in Seattle. He's received four at-bats and stroked a double on Aug. 16 in an 18-2 win over the Athletics at Camden Yards.

Could this be the night that Paredes busts out of his slump? He's way past due, collecting only four hits in 34 at-bats this month and totaling 15 strikeouts.

Paredes batted .385/.400/.769 with three home runs in nine games in April, .291/.328/.427 with three home runs and 16 RBIs in 29 games in May, and .319/.342/.493 with three home runs in 20 games in June.

This is where his season took a downward turn. It headed south faster than a group of spring breakers.

Paredes batted .216/.266/.270 with one home run and three RBIs in 20 games in July. He's batting .118/.143/.206 with no home runs and two RBIs in 13 games this month, and the strikeouts are piling up.

Being out of options worked in Paredes' favor. The Orioles didn't want to risk losing him on waivers and kept him on the 25-man roster.

"Jimmy did so good for so long for us and we keep thinking with another opportunity it's going to happen again," Showalter said. "We're going to go down that road."

Paredes is 2-for-3 lifetime against Cueto, an extremely small sample size. Showalter said it "doesn't mean a whole lot."

"We'll take a shot at it and see if he can help us offensively a little bit," Showalter said.

Steve Pearce remains in the lineup after collecting two hits last night. Henry Urrutia had been starting in left field against right-handers.

"We want to keep Steve out there," Showalter said. "We all know Steve can get hot for a month. Had a couple good at-bats. We'll see how that goes. We'll ride it.

"He's got his work cut out for him today and tomorrow, provided he plays tomorrow. He's a better option for us defensively, too."

The Rangers are starting three left-handers over the weekend, which further increases Pearce's chances of remaining in the lineup.

Update: The Orioles trailed 2-0 tonight before Manny Machado hit a two-run homer in the third and Jonathan Schoop delivered a two-run shot in the fourth.

The Orioles hadn't scored more than three runs in six consecutive games and seven of their last eight.

Chris Davis doubled in the second to break an 0-for-16 slump, but he held at third base on Matt Wieters' single and Johnny Cueto retired the next three batters without allowing a run.

Paredes remains in his slump, going 0-for-2 with a strikeout.

The Orioles caught a break in the second after the Royals scored twice. Alcides Escobar flied to deep center field, and Omar Infante passed Paulo Orlando on the basepaths for a double play.

Update II: Davis hit a two-run homer to left field in the fifth to increase the lead to 6-2.

Davis has 35 home runs and 91 RBIs this season.

Update III: Kendrys Morales had an RBI double in the sixth to reduce the lead to 6-3. Chen gave up three hits and two line drive outs in the inning. He's thrown 75 pitches in six innings.

Update IV: Steve Pearce homered in the eighth, his first since July 11, to increase the lead to 7-3.

The Orioles have four home runs tonight.

Chen allowed three runs and 10 hits in 6 2/3 innings, with one walk and four strikeouts. He threw 89 pitches, 64 for strikes.

Update V: Brad Brach walked Morales with two outs and Mike Moustakas homered off Brian Matusz to cut the lead to 7-5.

That's the third home run allowed by Matusz this season, the most recent on May 10.

Update VI: Make it five home runs for the Orioles, with Ryan Flaherty clearing the center field fence in the ninth inning for his fifth this season. His last home run came on July 22.

Former Oriole Jeremy Guthrie isn't faring any better as a reliever.

Update VII: The Orioles are back at .500 with tonight's 8-5 win over the Royals.

Zach Britton earned his 30th save.

The losing streak ends at six games.