Schoop still sizzling in 9-3 win

If it makes sense to keep Manny Machado at the top of the order rather than risk cooling off his bat, it also seems right to keep Jonathan Schoop near the bottom.

It ain't broke.

Schoop is on a serious tear since coming off the disabled list, and the Orioles are fortunate that he didn't sustain a serious tear in his right knee. He went 2-for-4 today with a home run and three RBIs in the Orioles' 9-3 win over the Tigers at Comerica Park and is 11-for-32 (.344) with three homers and seven RBis since July 5.

Schoop has hit safely in seven of nine games since returning to the active roster, and he has four multi-hit games in that span. His season average is up to .305.

The return of Schoop will go down as one of the most important additions for the Orioles in 2015 - an in-house remedy. Ryan Flaherty did a nice job filling in, but he's more valuable as a utility infielder who can play every position without hurting you. Schoop can be a presence near the bottom of the lineup - hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh worked with him this spring on improving his on-base percentage and not trying to hit the ball 400 feet with every swing - and he's something special at second base.

Showalter believed that Schoop was on the verge of a breakout season before the knee injury in Boston. There are still plenty of games remaining to make it happen.

It may have been easy to overlook Schoop's trip to the disabled list with the lineup missing shortstop J.J. Hardy and catcher Matt Wieters, but his loss was huge.

Schoop batted eighth today and hasn't hit higher than seventh this season. In his major league career, he's batted second and sixth once as a starter.

Looking ahead to the Yankees series, Schoop is 2-for-6 with two home runs and five RBIs lifetime against Thursday starter Masahiro Tanaka.

The Orioles won their first series this month, but they remain four games behind the Yankees in the American League East. However, they moved into second place and are above .500 again at 46-45.

The Orioles won back-to-back road games for the first time since June 20-21 in Toronto.