O's game blog: A look at the club's strong play in the AL East

When the Orioles made the 2012 playoffs, they had an excellent record within the American League East. The Orioles went 43-29 (.597), posting their best winning percentage in division games since 1980. The Orioles finished at .500 or better against each AL East team that year. The 2014 Orioles are doing even better against their own division. These Orioles are 40-23 (.635) in games versus the AL East, going 11-4 against New York, 10-6 versus Boston, 12-7 against Tampa Bay and 7-6 versus Toronto. The Orioles have played 20 AL East series this year, losing just four of them. They've dropped series against Boston and Toronto and lost two against the Rays. The Orioles' series record against the AL East: * O's are 14-4-2 * O's are 6-3-1 at home * O's are 8-1-1 on the road The Orioles have won seven of their last eight division series and have lost just two of their last 17, going 13-2-2. The Orioles' current .635 winning percentage against the AL East ranks fourth in club history, just behind their third-best mark of .644 (58-32) in 1969. The club record is .678 (61-29) in 1970. Tonight, Wei-Yin Chen (15-4, 3.59 ERA) faces Toronto right-hander Marcus Stroman (10-5, 3.61 ERA). Stroman pitched a three-hit shutout on just 93 pitches last Monday against the Cubs. The Blue Jays' No. 2 ranked prospect by Baseball America before this season, Stroman is 3-0 with a 1.59 ERA his past three starts. Chen is 6-1 with a 2.67 ERA in 10 starts since the All-Star break. He is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and a .156 average against in his last two starts. Earlier today, Adam Jones threw some praise Chen's way. "Numbers tell a story, but they also speak on how he got those numbers," Jones said. "He goes out there and gives us everything he has and he competes. He uses his defense and gives us all he's got. "It's fun to see him compete. It's cool to see his maturation through the lineups. He's faced the East a lot. But to see his maturation through the lineups and adjustments he's made from his first year to third year, that is why I feel he's one of our top starters." The Orioles are a major league-best 27-8 (.771) at home since June 30 and have not lost consecutive home games since June 28-29. They take a magic number of three into this series. If they take two of three from Toronto, the AL East race is over and the division championship returns to Baltimore.