O's game blog: Josh Rogers faces Jays in his MLB debut

After recording their sixth shutout of the year behind right-hander David Hess last night and ending an eight-game losing streak, the Orioles host the Toronto Blue Jays again tonight. It's the second game of a three-game series and sixth of a seven-game homestand.

Hess went six scoreless on four hits and 99 pitches as the Orioles (34-98) snapped a 10-game losing streak to Toronto. He improved to 3-8 with a 5.08 ERA and picked up his first win since May 25. Hess has a 2.19 ERA over his last four starts.

Tonight left-hander Josh Rogers will start for the Orioles and make his major league debut. Rogers was acquired with pitchers Dillon Tate and Cody Carroll from the Yankees on July 24 in the deal that sent Zach Britton to New York. Rogers was originally drafted by the Yankees in round 11 in 2015 and signed to a bonus of $485,000.

Between two teams in the International League this year (Scranton and Norfolk), he is 8-9 with a 3.54 ERA. He ranks ninth in the IL in ERA, and fourth in innings with 139 2/3.

He has allowed one run or none in three of his five Norfolk starts, going 2-1 with a 2.08 ERA for the Tides only. In 30 1/3 innings, Rogers allowed 26 hits, including three homers, with seven walks to 18 strikeouts and with a .226 batting average against.

Scouting reports indicate his fastball ranges from 89 to 93 mph and that his curveball is his best secondary pitch, but he also throws a changeup. Rogers was a 2017 Florida State League midseason All-Star. As a senior in high school in Indiana in 2013 he had Tommy John surgery. He went on to pitch at the University of Louisville.

For his minor league career, he is 30-20 with a 3.07 ERA in 381 innings. He has averaged 1.82 walks per nine innings with 7.37 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.15.

Rogers will become the first left-handed pitcher to start a game for the Orioles this season, in Game 133. According to STATS, LLC., the last team to go an entire season without using a left-handed starting pitcher was the 2017 Philadelphia Phillies. The Cleveland Indians are the only other team yet to start a left-handed pitcher this season. The last and only time in Orioles history that the club went an entire season without using a left-handed starter was the 2002 season. Wade Miley, on Sept. 29, 2017 at Tampa Bay, was the last to start for the Orioles, 134 games ago.

His mound opponent tonight is left-hander Thomas Pannone (1-0, 1.59 ERA). He made his first major league start last Wednesday, and it was against the Orioles. He took a no-hitter to the seventh and pitched seven scoreless on one hit to get his first big league win that afternoon.

The Orioles scored seven runs last night, going 4-for-10 with runners in scoring position. They had scored 17 total runs during an eight-game losing streak, and five runs total when they were swept three straight in Toronto last week.

Trey Mancini, who drove in five last night to tie his career-high for RBIs, is hitting .327 (48-for-147) with seven home runs when leading off an inning. In 35 games since the All-Star break, he is hitting .292 (40-for-137) with seven home runs and seven RBIs. Mancini's .292 average ranks second on the club since the break, behind Cedric Mullins (.305) and just ahead of Adam Jones (.290).