O's game blog: Orioles and Marlins begin series at Camden Yards

When we last saw the Orioles, they lost to Boston on Wednesday afternoon and were swept in three straight games. The Orioles (19-48) have lost seven in a row, four at Toronto and those three home games versus Boston. They have now lost nine straight home games since beating Tampa Bay 17-1 at Oriole Park on May 13.

The Birds have been swept in four of their last five series. They lost three at home to Washington and two at home to the Yankees. After they swept two games on the road from the New York Mets, they lost four in a row at Toronto and three at Camden Yards to the Red Sox.

The Orioles were held to five runs in the Boston series and have scored three runs or fewer in 19 of the last 23 games. They have failed to homer in 10 of the last 15 games and are 3-24 this season when they do not hit a home run.

Miami (26-43) is in last place in the National League East, 14 ½ games back of division-leading Atlanta. Managed by Don Mattingly, Miami began the year going 4-12 and 5-17. Most recently Miami has won three of four and six of its past 10 games. The Marlins are 12-22 on the road.

Miami is 20-7 all-time verus the Orioles. The teams have played nine series since 1997, with Miami winning eight of them. Miami took two of three when these clubs last met in 2015. Miami took two of three when they last met at Camden Yards in 2010.

The Orioles are 2-4 in interleague play in 2018 and their next nine games will be versus NL East teams. Since interleague play began in 1997, the Orioles are 185-204 and went 8-12 against the NL last season. Baltimore's 14 interleague victories in 2016 were the most in club history and the Orioles recorded 12 interleague wins in 2014 and 2015.

Right-hander Kevin Gausman (3-5, 4.58) gets his 14th start for Baltimore. On June 9 at Toronto he gave up three runs and nine hits over 6 2/3. In his two previous games he allowed 13 runs over eight innings.

Gausman is 3-3 with a 4.71 ERA and has allowed eight homers over 36 1/3 in his six starts at Oriole Park. Tonight he faces Miami for the first time. In 15 career interleague starts, he is 3-8 with a 6.64 ERA.

José Ureña (1-8, 4.59 ERA) makes his 15th start for the Marlins. The 26-year-old right-hander from the Dominican had an ERA of 5.58 through his first five starts of the year but has reduced it to 3.98 his last nine. Ureña throws his fastball 56 percent of the time and he averages 96 mph on the pitch.

On June 5 he got his first win at St. Louis. That ended a stretch where Miami lost his previous 14 starts since Sept. 26, 2017 to set a team record. Ureña, who has never faced the Orioles, is 2-1 with a 7.31 ERA in three career starts in AL ballparks. In five interleague games, he is 4-0 with a 4.82 ERA.

DSL is underway: The Orioles team in the Dominican Summer League is off to an 8-4 start and tied for first place in its division. There are 44 teams in this league. Yep, that's 44. The O's team ERA of 3.28 ranks seventh-best among that large group of clubs.

Moises Nolasco, a 21-year-old right-hander, is 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA over two starts. In nine innings he has allowed one walk with 14 strikeouts. Jose Gomez, a 21-year-old righty from Venezuela, is 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA. The DSL O's second baseman, Edidson Rojas is batting .324 with a .997 OPS with one homer and six RBIs. Outfielder Marcos Estevez is batting .304 with an OPS of 1.182 with one homer and seven RBIs.

Another Joseph in town: Congrat to Caleb's brother Corban Joseph on his call to the big leagues. He is batting leadoff and playing first base tonight. Joseph was batting .336/.394/.550 in 59 games with Bowie. He previously played in two major league games as part of a doubleheader with the New York Yankees on May 13, 2013. So a return to the majors was a long time coming for Corban and this is a player that has played in 991 career games on the farm.

.336 batting avg (leads team)
8 HR (leads team)
35 runs scored (leads team)
34 RBI (leads team)
74 hits (leads team)
22 walks drawn (leads team)
.394 OBP (leads team)
.550 Slugging % (leads team)

Congratulations, @joseph_corban, for making it to Camden Yards! #PlayedAtTheBay pic.twitter.com/2VsluylHWb

-- Bowie Baysox (@BowieBaysox) June 15, 2018

Major Congrats to my little brother @joseph_corban for his hard work and perseverance for 5 years since his last MLB appearance! You fought the good fight, you kept the faith. Now finish the race! Love you very much Bro!

-- Caleb Joseph (@EutawBackstop) June 15, 2018