Showalter speaks after 7-5 loss

The Orioles didn't lose more than four games in a row last season while winning the American League East and advancing to the Championship Series. They dropped their fifth straight tonight, the longest streak since September 2013.

"We knew the schedule," said manager Buck Showalter following a 7-5 loss to the Red Sox before 37,359 at Camden Yards. "It's challenging for 162 games. Nothing you'd like to have happen, but we've got some people here and coming. We have to grind through it. Nobody's going to feel sorry for us.

"This is not the type of club that's going to wallow around in self pity. Heck, they lost a tough game last night in Tampa. Everybody's got their challenges. But it's self-inflicted. You don't point fingers. You just look in the mirror like we all do here."

Is there a common thread connecting these losses, which have lowered the Orioles' record to 7-10?

"I don't break them down and say there's one thing all the time," Showalter said. "I don't think that's fair. There are too many phases of the game, too many things that happen over 27 outs, 54. There's a lot of things that goes on in a baseball game.

"I'm not one of those guys that hangs it around one particular phase because something else can break down. It's very hard to do. You can win a game and have some things you've got to do better because you know it will bite you. And you can lose a game and do some things well. We did some things good, just not as many as they did."

Orioles pitchers walked only two batters tonight, a massive improvement, but each came with two outs and nobody on base and led to runs.

"We only walked two guys tonight, and the two really bit us against a good team," Showalter said.

The Orioles also committed two more errors, including one by third baseman Manny Machado before Brock Holt's three-run homer in the eighth.

"Manny's as good a third baseman as you can find. He made a couple plays in that game that a lot of third basemen don't make, one for sure. He's bailed us out a lot of times. I think the walks hurt us. But at least we cut down on them, but they really bit us."

Brian Matusz replaced Tommy Hunter in the eighth and walked Pablo Sandoval, who was 0-for-13 against left-handers. Machado made the error and Holt made them pay.

"We've got him and two left-handers right there and we've got Darren (O'Day) if they want to pinch-hit," Showalter said. "Tommy had thrown enough. He pitched an inning-plus. I think the first pitch Brian threw was a strike that was called a ball, and after that it was just barely missing."

The pitch tracker showed that Matusz's first offering was pretty much down the middle. Plate umpire Dana DeMuth must have ducked out for a latte. His strike zone wasn't venti.

Miguel Gonzalez allowed four runs and eight hits in six innings. No Orioles starter had gone more than 5 1/3 innings in the last eight games.

"I've got to tell you, I didn't think Miguel was carrying his normal stuff and he got through it," Showalter said. "He painted himself in a little bit of a corner there. He's pitched very well to (David) Ortiz. He kind of got backed in a corner there.

"We scored some runs, we did some good things to get back in it. There are good things you can take out of it. (Alexi) Ogando's thrown three out of four days, I think. (Junichi) Tazawa's been three out of four. (Koji) Uehara threw 20-some pitches to get through the inning, so sometimes you can accomplish some things. We'd like to have the W there, but we've got to grind through it."