O's game blog: Kevin Gausman on mound in L.A. series finale

LOS ANGELES - Back in late May, the Orioles had a three-city road trip with two series on the West Coast. They went 4-5 on that excursion to Anaheim, Houston and Cleveland. A win today at Dodger Stadium would make the Orioles 4-5 on this trip to San Diego, Seattle and Los Angeles.

That would not be a winning trip, of course, but a respectable mark to finish 4-5. Of course, the trip got off to a 2-0 start at San Diego before five consecutive losses followed that.

After Chris Tillman gave his team a big lift, throwing seven innings of one-run ball last night, right-hander Kevin Gausman (1-6, 3.97 ERA) will try to match that this afternoon. Former Oriole right-hander Bud Norris (4-7, 3.89) gets the start for the Dodgers.

Norris was a key in the rotation for the 2014 American League East champion Orioles, going 15-8 with a 3.65 ERA. However, he struggled badly last year, going 2-9 with a 7.06 ERA. The Orioles released him in August.

The righty pitched very well for Atlanta, and last Thursday the Braves traded him to the Dodgers. Over his last two starts - one for each team - he has thrown 13 scoreless innings while allowing just six hits and one walk. Norris has 16 strikeouts in his last two appearances.

Norris went 2-1 with a 2.08 ERA in June, good for eighth best in the National League. In his Los Angeles debut Friday, he tossed six scoreless frames, striking out eight while allowing just two hits and one walk.

Gausman has given up three runs in 13 2/3 innings over his past two starts against Tampa Bay and Seattle. He did not walk a batter in either game and fanned 14. He has three starts this year without a walk.

While Gausman is 1-1 with a 2.79 ERA this year in six home starts, he is 0-5 with a 5.02 ERA in eight road starts. The Orioles are 5-9 in his 14 starts, and have lost four of five. Gausman is 1-4 with a 4.93 ERA in seven career interleague games.

Minor league award winners: The Orioles player development today named Triple-A Norfolk first baseman Trey Mancini as the club's minor league Player of the Month for June. Single-A Delmarva pitcher Cristian Alvarado was named Pitcher of the Month.

Over 28 games in June, Mancini hit .349 with five homers, 14 RBIs and a .948 OPS. Alvarado, a 21-year-old right-hander from Venezuela, went 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA over six starts. In 35 innings, he allowed 26 hits with four walks and 39 strikeouts.