No. 46

Nothing that happened on Target Field tonight seems important after the news that former Orioles pitcher, coach, executive and broadcaster Mike Flanagan died at age 59, but I wanted to post the final score while desperately trying to grasp the slightest feeling of normalcy on a night of tragedy and heartache. The Orioles defeated the Twins 6-1 to gain their first series win since June 24-26 and their first road series win in three months. Jeremy Guthrie held the Twins to one run and five hits over seven innings. And he did so while wearing the No. 46 that Flanagan passed along to him. Guthrie tweeted the following after tonight's game: "From day I was given #46 as Oriole,the fans always reminded me of the legacy Mike Flanagan left behind.This is a sad day for #Orioles family. "Mike Flanagan was an important person to me & touched the lives of countless people in the baseball family & especially in Baltimore." Adam Jones tweeted the following: "O's family, fans, supporters lost a great man today in Mike Flanagan. Learned a lot from Flanny in my 3+ years in Bmore. Ur missed ALOT #46." Jake Arrieta shared this tweet: "Deeply saddened by the loss of Mike Flanagan, devastating time for the entire Oriole family." J.J. Hardy, Matt Wieters, Jake Fox, Nolan Reimold and Ryan Adams each had two hits. Reynolds hit his 28th home run. Wieters doubled twice and drove in two runs. Michael Gonzalez fanned all three batters he faced, giving him seven consecutive strikeouts over two games. The games will matter again. We'll be consumed by the stats and the streaks. But on this night, none of it seems important. Grasping for anything normal only leaves us empty.