Notes on the offense, Aberdeen's All-Stars and more with the Hall of Famers

Will the real Orioles offense stand up? Is it the group that scored just three runs on six hits in the last two games of the Toronto series? Or is it the group that scored 22 runs on 31 hits with nine homers the last two games against St. Louis? Chris Tillman and Ubaldo Jimenez probably don't want to analyze it. They are happy to get that run support, and the Orioles look for the sweep this afternoon at Camden Yards. After scoring nine or more runs in just five of their first 111 games, the O's have now done that three times in five games. Their homer-happy offense will get a real test today against right-hander Lance Lynn (11-8, 2.98 ERA). He has pitched to an ERA of 1.63 his last six starts, allowing just one homer in 38 2/3 innings. He has given up just seven homers in 140 innings this season. The first two starters for St. Louis this weekend gave up five homers in seven innings. In news from the minors, the short-season Single-A Aberdeen IronBirds are sending three players to the New-York Penn League All-Star Game on Aug. 19 at Brooklyn. Right-hander David Hess makes the squad along with third baseman Austin Anderson and outfielder Jay Gonzalez. A fifth-round pick this year out of Tennessee Tech, Hess is 2-1 with a 1.21 ERA in seven games. Over 22 1/3 innings, he has walked five and struck out 22 batters. Anderson was drafted in the ninth round in June out of the University of Mississippi. He is batting .319 in 32 games with nine doubles, a triple, no homers and 10 RBIs. He had a 10-game hitting streak from July 7-17. Gonzalez was drafted in the 10th round in June out of Mt. Olive (N.C.) College. In 42 IronBirds games, he is batting .267 with six doubles, a triple, no homers, seven RBIs, 20 runs and 13 steals. He is batting .320 in seven games this month. The IronBirds have had 33 players named All-Stars in team history, a list that includes Mike Yastrzemski last year and O's catcher Caleb Joseph in 2008. Hearing more from the O's Hall of Famers: Dennis Martinez won 245 games for five teams in a very long major league career. But at a press conference Friday before the Orioles' 60th anniversary celebration, he said this team is the one he most identifies with. "I always think of myself as an Oriole," Martinez said. "This is the organization that brought me to the United States. Even when I got traded, my heart was still with the Orioles. To this day, I'm an Oriole. I was brought up by the best organization in baseball." In a touching moment, Martinez got emotional when he talked about his former manager. "To play for Earl Weaver was the best thing that happened to me. He was unbelievable. That man made me the player that I was. Real grateful to play for that man," he said as his voice cracked. Ken Singleton reflected on his time as an Oriole. "When I joined the Orioles back in the mid-70s, they were already a good team, one of the best in baseball," Singleton said. "Stayed here for 10 years and enjoyed every single minute of it. We had a winning record every year and during those 10 years, won more games than any other team in the regular season. Went to two World Series. It means a lot to be an Oriole. Can't do much better than that." Scott McGregor pitched for the Orioles and works on the club's minor league staff now. Last weekend, he served as the Orioles' interim pitching coach when Dave Wallace was away from the team for a few days. McGregor said he liked what he saw then, as he observed was a real chemistry and togetherness on the O's pitching staff. "What I see now in the pitching staff is unbelievable, something we used to do," McGregor said. "(Wei-Yin) Chen had a bullpen and the whole starting staff comes out and watches every bullpen. They sit there and are vocal about it. They say, 'Hey, what are you doing?' "I leaned over to Tillman and I tapped him on the shoulder and said, 'You guys are finally a team.' That is what we used to do. We used to be out there all the time for each other. They have really bought into it together as a team and it's really nice to see." Here is the video you have been asking for. Click here to see Friday's entire 60th anniversary ceremony on MASNSports.com.