O's game blog: Orioles look to break losing streak tonight at Houston

On Friday night, the Orioles posted a 2-1, walk-off win over Tampa Bay to improve their record to 23-24. They had won four of six games and were 8-5 over the last 13 to move within one game of first place in the American League East.

Were the Orioles starting to make their move?

Since then, they have lost four in a row and three games in the standings. Tonight, as they play the third game of a four-game series at Houston, they are 23-28, 4 1/2 games out of first place and now just 1/2-game out of last place.

They have allowed 20 runs the past three games and been outscored 23-11 during the losing streak. This is already the O's third losing streak of four games or more.

Let's just say they could use a few wins and a few games without a mental mistake, as well.

Right-hander Miguel Gonzalez (5-3, 3.48 ERA) makes his 11th start tonight, coming off an excellent outing. On Friday night at home, he went eight innings against Tampa Bay, allowing just three hits and one run with no walks and six strikeouts on 96 pitches.

Gonzalez has allowed one earned run or less in five starts and has pitched seven innings or more five times after doing so last year just six times in 26 starts. The Orioles are 6-4 when he starts.

Gonzalez is 2-3 with a 4.78 ERA in five road starts with a .270 average against. At home, he has an ERA of 2.52 with a .180 average against.

For Houston, 21-year-old right-hander Lance McCullers (1-0, 2.40 ERA) makes his fourth major league start tonight. He began the season in Double-A and went 3-1 with a 0.62 ERA in six games, giving up just two earned runs in 29 innings.

How the Orioles rank in the AL in OPS by each position. They rate lowest in left field and at shortstop:

C - 7th
1B - 5th
2B - 6th
SS - 15th
3B - 5th
LF - 13th
CF - 3rd
RF - 5th
DH - 4th

In coming from a 4-0 deficit to a 6-4 win last night, the Astros posted their major league-leading 17th comeback win. They lead the majors with 71 homers and are unbeaten when they hit more than one homer, going 20-0 in multi-homer games.

B.J. Surhoff and Tripp Norton, the Orioles director of baseball operations, will represent the club at next week's First-Year Player Draft. Surhoff was the overall No. 1 pick in the 1985 draft by the Milwaukee Brewers. He continues to work with the Orioles in the minor leagues, and I've seen him at Double-A Bowie several times this season.

Speaking of the Baysox, they lost 1-0 this afternoon at New Hampshire as they were held to three singles. Baysox right-hander Elih Villanueva lost a complete-game five-hitter and is 4-4 with a 2.77 ERA. He walked one and fanned six, throwing 98 pitches in a game that took one hour, 58 minutes to play.

Earlier this afternoon, former Orioles prospect Eduardo Rodriguez gave up just two hits and one run over seven innings as the Red Sox beat Minnesota 6-3. He is 2-0 with an ERA of 0.61 in two starts.

Masahiro Tanaka returned to the Yankees this afternoon and pitched them to a 3-1 win at Seattle. He went seven innings and gave up three hits and one run to improved to 3-1 with a 2.76 ERA.

New York is now 29-25, and an O's loss tonight would drop the Orioles five games out.