Jones' hand, an inconsistent strike zone and a 6-2 loss

SAN FRANCISCO - Adam Jones said his right hand is fine and he's playing on Sunday. Kevin Gausman said the strike zone was flawed tonight and he's not happy about it.

Manager Buck Showalter expressed his initial concerns over Jones, knowing the club can't afford to lose its center fielder, and backed Gausman's assertion that the six walks were deceiving in the Orioles' 6-2 loss to the Giants at AT&T Park.

Jones was nailed on the fingers by a Madison Bumgarner pitch as he tried to bunt in the sixth inning. Umpires ruled that Jones was out as the ball rolled to Bumgarner, who threw to first base, and the play can't be reviewed. The long delay occurred due to a rules check.

Meanwhile, Jones was doubled-over in pain as head athletic trainer Richie Bancells raced out of the dugout. Jones remained in the game. He also remained puzzled by the ruling, since the ball clearly deflected off his leg after smashing into his fingers.

"I know it hit my finger and it hit my knee. Those are two things I know for certain," Jones said. "The ruling and the language? I don't necessarily know the rules and the language. But we'll get them tomorrow."

In typical Jones fashion, he had no interest in talking about his health. Only the body parts change.

"I'm fine, playing tomorrow," he said. "How's your hand? You guys are up there writing a lot, filling in box scores. I'm surprised you don't have carpal tunnel by now."

The Orioles had no runs off Bumgarner, who shut them out on three hits over seven innings. They avoided a sixth shutout when Ryan Flaherty stroked a two-out, two-run single off Javier Lopez in the ninth.

Jones grounded into a force out to end the game after going 0-for-3 against Bumgarner.

"I faced him in the All-Star Game a couple times and he is as advertised," Jones said. "He's not one of the game's best pitchers for the last few years for no reason, so tip your cap. He threw a hell of a game."

Gausman had one heck of a time getting strike calls from plate umpire Brian O'Nora, which led to the career-high six walks. He did, however, tie his career high with nine strikeouts.

"I thought I threw a lot of strikes tonight," Gausman said. "I thought the most frustrating thing is knowing that the guy on the other side of the rubber is getting those pitches. So when you see that, that's when it can kind of piss you off a little bit. But there's nothing you can really do about it. You just try to battle. I only gave up two hits, but obviously six walks in four innings isn't going to do it.

"I thought I had really good command tonight and that's what's frustrating. You get a couple pitches to go your way and that might be a completely different outing and a completely different game. But I think for their hitters, knowing I was throwing down in the zone and once they saw the ball down, they were just going to take it. It kind of put you in some tough situations and I got some big strikeouts when I needed them, but the base hit to (Denard) Span obviously with guys on base was a difference-maker."

Span had two-out, two-run singles off Gausman in the second inning and Vance Worley in the sixth, as the Orioles fell to 65-51 and into second place in the American League East.

Gausman walked the leadoff hitters in the second, third and fourth innings. He was burned only once by it.

"It seemed like every inning you put guys on base, (and) Span's been around a long time," Gausman said. "And then I get in a 2-0 count against him and trying to throw a fastball up and in and it kind of leaked back and it actually kind of jammed him, but he was able to put it through up the middle and that was kind of the difference-maker."

Gausman had a stretch where eight of his nine outs were strikeouts, but he was climbing uphill with the walks.

"Really from the first inning on it was just, you can't really give in," said Gausman, who's 3-10 with a 4.04 ERA and still doesn't have a road win as a starter since Aug. 17, 2014.

"I'm not going to just throw the ball right down the middle because I'm not getting pitches down. That's something Dave Wallace told me when I came in. He was like, 'Hey, no matter what, you've just got to keep pitching.' He's like, 'I don't care if you walk 10 guys. You've just got to keep pitching.' That's what you try to do.

"I think it was evident that I had good stuff because I don't think you get nine strikeouts and six walks without good stuff. But you just put yourself in some (bad) situations. It seemed like every hitter was 2-0, 3-1, 3-2, and then you've got to make a pitch, and even if you make the pitch, you might not get the call."

Showalter noted how the borderline pitches can go either way, Sometimes strikes, sometimes balls. That's the gamble.

Orioles pitchers issued nine walks.

"Just worked a lot down in the zone, wasn't getting a lot in the bottom of the zone, so had a lot of walk totals," Showalter said. "Anytime you walk nine, there's a lot more to it than just missing, and he wasn't the only one."

Showalter tried to offer an explanation for the confusion over Jones' bunt and the delay that had fans booing.

"First, it was a challenge. They had to go there," he said. "The ball hits his finger and he doesn't make an attempt at it, it's a dead ball, OK? They say it's non-reviewable once he made an attempt at it, so there was no challenge and we were told it was non-reviewable.

"I think as soon as Brian ruled that he had made an attempt, everything was off. You could get into why and what is deemed reviewable, but would have liked to have gotten it right. But if he thinks he offered at it ... I haven't looked at it. I don't really know.

"Brian's a good umpire. I wish he'd given a little bit more of the bottom of the zone tonight because Gaus wasn't that wild."

Jones must not be that injured if he's playing Sunday, though it depends whether there's any swelling in the hand. Reliever Darren O'Day went on the disabled list today with a strained right rotator cuff. Losing Jones, as well, would have been a dagger.

"Without Joey (Rickard) here and without ... we're pretty thin in center field," Showalter said. "It's Adam or Adam."