Roberts' slump continues

The first 10,000 fans 15 and over who attend tonight's game will receive a Vladimir Guerrero T-shirt. Just be careful when wearing it in a bar. It'll chase anything. The Orioles have scored 11 runs in the last two games, which seems like an embarrassment of riches. Every starter had a hit last night except for Brian Roberts and Robert Andino - and Mariners second baseman Adam Kennedy robbed Andino by gloving his scorching ground ball while falling backward and starting a double play. Roberts went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, dropping his average to .209. He's hitless in his last 26 at-bats and is 1-for-34. He swung at the first pitch he saw from Felix Hernandez and flied to center. He walked in the third inning, struck out in the fifth and grounded to short in the sixth. "Brian's frustrated," manager Buck Showalter said yesterday afternoon. "He wants to make a contribution every at-bat and I think that there's some ebb and flow there and he's just fighting through some things, fighting himself a little bit. "We all know at the end of the year where Robby will be. He wants to stop this from snowballing and get this straightened out because we need him." In other words, Roberts has a track record and should snap out of this funk, but when will it happen? And should Showalter give him a night off like he did with Mark Reynolds last night, perhaps moving J.J. Hardy atop the order? Hardy has five hits and two walks in two games since coming off the disabled list. He batted eighth last night, ahead of Andino. Roberts is 1-for-6 with a double lifetime against Thursday's Mariners starter, Jason Vargas, the latest lefty to face the Orioles. Vargas is 1-1 with a 2.35 ERA in four career starts against the Orioles. Guerrero is 4-for-10 with two doubles against Vargas. Matt Wieters is 3-for-7 with a double. Luke Scott is 2-for-9 with a home run. Adam Jones is 2-for-12. Nick Markakis is 1-for-10. He'll be in the lineup, no matter his numbers, as long as he isn't sick. Hitting can be contagious. Markakis can't be or he won't leave his house.