O's game blog: Orioles' road success in AL East and a Caleb Joseph scouting report

Let's start with this stat that could get your attention: If the Orioles win one of the next two nights, they will have three road series wins this year in the American League East. They didn't win their third AL East road series in 2013 until Sept. 13-15 at Toronto.

After going 15-23 (.395) in AL East road games last season, the Orioles are 7-4 (.636) so far in 2014, winning two series and tying one.

They are 3-0 this year against the Rays, after losing 11 of the final 13 games to Tampa Bay last season. The Orioles have a 1.33 ERA against Tampa Bay. Rays hitters have hit .194 with a slugging percentage of just .247 in the three contests.

Tonight's pitching matchup features Bud Norris (2-2, 3.94 ERA) against left-hander Cesar Ramos (1-1, 2.91 ERA). Norris is 2-0 with a 3.18 ERA over his past two starts.

The Orioles are 3-2 when Norris starts this year and 10-6 in his 16 career Orioles starts.

Meanwhile, there must be a lot of O's minor league players, fans, coaches and staff that are excited to watch catcher Caleb Joseph make his big league debut tonight after 639 games on the O's farm since they drafted him in round seven in 2008 out of Lipscomb University.

Between 2010-13, Joseph played 428 games at Double-A Bowie. They know him well there. But he proved it's never too late to make improvements and his game took a leap forward on offense and defense last year at Bowie.

When I wrote the O's top 30 prospects for Baseball America this winter, Joseph did not quite make the cut. But it was close, and after talking with scouts about him this winter, here is the scouting report that would have appeared on Joseph had he made his way into the O's top 30 and the Baseball America Prospect Handbook:

Joseph began to use the whole field better in 2013 and showed more than just pull power. He also has improved against the breaking pitch and upgraded his two-strike approach. Unlike earlier in his career, he chased fewer high fastballs.

Joseph's defense has improved, including his receiving and blocking. His release has gotten better, but his arm strength is a notch below average. Still, he can produce 1.9 to 2.0 pop times to second. Joseph can also play first base and outfield, and the expanded defensive resume could help him in his pursuit of a big league roster spot. He should at least finally get a Triple-A shot in 2014.

Speaking of catchers, the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds activated catcher Chance Sisco today off the disabled list.

The Orioles' second-round pick last June, Sisco was out with a strained oblique and last played April 24. Over 13 games with the Shorebirds, Sisco is batting .245 with three doubles, no homers, five RBIs and a .608 OPS. On April 21, he had four hits against Savannah.

Sisco will take the roster spot of catcher Alex Murphy, the O's sixth-round pick last June out of Baltimore's Calvert Hall. Murphy will likely head back to play at extended spring training.