Orioles shut out in Oakland, have lost three straight to the A's

The Orioles' offensive slump reached a new low on this road trip. They scored two runs on Monday night, one last night and none tonight. They were held to seven hits in a 1-0 loss at Oakland.

Oakland left-hander Ross Detwiler had an ERA of 4.40 this year in Triple-A and 5.79 in April pitching out of the Cleveland Indians bullpen. But he made the start tonight and pitched eight scoreless on six hits, throwing 108 pitches. John Axford pitched the ninth for a save.

The Orioles' Adam Jones led off the game with a single, advanced to second base but was thrown out trying to score on J.J. Hardy's double to right. The original safe called was overturned to out on a replay review. In the fourth, the Orioles hit three liners to the outfield around two singles - all three were caught. More frustration.

The loss drops the Orioles into second place, a game behind Toronto, which beat Tampa Bay 7-0 tonight. The Orioles are 63-50 and have dropped three in a row in this series, four of their last five and are 5-10 the last 15 games.

The Orioles fall to 24-33 on the road and they have lost 12 straight road games versus American League West opponents. They were shut out for the fifth time this season tonight.

Orioles starter Yovani Gallardo deserved more runs, or at least a run. He falls to 4-4 with an ERA of 5.17. Over six innings, he gave up four hits and one run with two walks and six strikeouts. He has thrown six innings or more in four of his past five starts, allowing two runs or fewer in three of his last four.

O's startering pitchers have recorded a season-high six consecutive quality starts, pitching to an ERA of 3.00 in that span.

But the O's have scored just five runs in the four losses on this road trip. They must win on Thursday afternoon or they will be swept four straight games by the A's.

Wednesday's game blog: When the Orioles' series against the Oakland A's began Monday night, the A's had lost eight of their last nine games overall and they had lost seven of their last eight games against the Orioles.

But in holding the Orioles to three runs and 10 hits in this series, Oakland has posted two one-run wins by scores of 3-2 and 2-1.

When the series began, Oakland starting pitchers had gone 0-7 with an ERA of 9.07 the previous nine games, but the last two nights, Kendall Graveman and Zach Neal held down the O's bats. The duo has combined to pitch 12 1/3 innings, allowing eight hits and two runs. The Orioles were held to three hits last night, going 3-for-29 at bat.

The Orioles are 2-3 on this road trip with five games to play at Oakland and San Francisco. In their two wins on this trip, the Orioles hit seven homers and scored 17 runs on 28 hits. In the three losses, they have hit two homers and scored five runs on 16 hits.

The Orioles have now lost 11 straight road games at American League West ballparks. This streak started May 22 when they lost in Anaheim versus the Angels, followed by three losses in Houston. They lost a makeup game on June 20 at Texas and four straight in early July at Seattle. Now they've lost two in a row at Oakland.

Despite all this, the Orioles are 63-49 and tied for first place with Toronto beginning play today. Those two teams begin the day 1 1/2 games ahead of the Red Sox.

On the plus side, O's starting pitchers have recorded a season-high five consecutive quality starts. The Orioles have gotten five straight six-inning outings from Yovani Gallardo, Chris Tillman, Dylan Bundy, Kevin Gausman and Wade Miley. The rotation ERA is 3.30 in those games.

The O's starters have produced seven quality starts the last nine games with an ERA of 3.13. The rotation ERA is 3.76 over the last 27 games. O's starters have given up two earned runs or fewer 13 times in the last 19 games, going 10-9.

Gallardo (4-3, 5.47 ERA) takes the mound tonight for his 15th start with the Orioles against left-hander Ross Detwiler (0-0, 5.79 ERA), who will be making his Oakland debut.

After pitching six or more innings just twice in his first 10 starts, Gallardo has now gone six or more in three of his last four outings. He's allowed three runs or less five times his last six starts. That includes his most recent start Friday at Chicago. He got the win allowing two runs and seven hits over six innings. The Orioles are 9-5 in his 14 starts.

Oakland acquired Detwiler for cash from Cleveland in a minor league deal on July 17. He then went 4-0 with a 3.86 ERA in four games for their Triple-A Nashville team. In April, he pitched in seven games in relief for Cleveland, allowing three hits and three runs in 4 2/3 innings. In seven career games (four starts) versus Baltimore, he is 0-2 with a 5.09 ERA. Detwiler was a first-round pick in 2007 (sixth overall) by the Washington Nationals and pitched with the Nats from 2007-2014.