O's game blog: O's host the A's to start 10-game homestand

The Orioles have 49 games remaining, 26 at home, where they are 32-20 (.615). They start a 10-game homestand tonight hosting the Oakland Athletics for a four-game series.

The A's lost to Toronto on Thursday and got swept in a three-game series by a combined 18-7 score. Oakland is 51-65 for the season and 10-15 since the All-Star break.

The A's have made the most errors in the American League with 96, 10 more than the next closest team. The Orioles have made the fewest errors with 45, 11 less than the next closest team.

On the mound tonight, right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez (9-7, 3.79 ERA) faces left-hander Brad Mills (4-11, 4.45 ERA at Triple-A Nashville).

After starting the second half with a 1-3 record and 10.61 ERA in four starts, Jimenez provided a much-needed bounce-back performance on Saturday against the Angels. He pitched eight scoreless innings, giving up just two hits with one walk and six strikeouts over 118 pitches.

After pitching five or fewer innings in just three of his first 17 starts, Jimenez has gone five or fewer in three of his past five starts.

In nine home starts this year, he is 6-2 with a 2.87 ERA and .215 batting average against. He has allowed just four homers in 59 2/3 at Camden Yards. Jimenez is 3-1 with a 4.91 ERA in five career starts versus Oakland.

Orioles starting pitchers have an ERA of 5.80 the last 13 games. In that span, they have pitched less than six innings eight times with just five quality starts.

Mills gave up 13 runs in his last 8 1/3 innings his past two starts in the minors. In seven starts with Nashville since July 1, he is 1-3 with a 6.46 ERA. But in three career starts versus the Orioles, he is 3-0 with a 1.56 ERA, allowing three runs in 17 1/3.

Over his last 21 games, Chris Davis is batting .320 (24-for-75) with 12 homers and 30 RBIs. He has hit three homers his last four games and six in his last 10 contests.

The Orioles were no-hit by Seattle's Hisashi Iwakuma on Wednesday. They have gone 0-for-33 at bat since their last hit, a homer by Davis in the eighth inning at Seattle on Tuesday night.