The search for rotation help (O's trail 6-1)

CHICAGO - With a rotation ERA that has now ballooned to 5.27 to rank last in the American League, the Orioles have some improving to do there.

Coming into tonight's second game of this series against the White Sox, Orioles starters have pitched to a 15.56 ERA the past six games, and a 6.70 ERA while the team has gone 9-21 since its 22-10 start.

Will the club look for reinforcement outside the organization? Manger Buck Showalter, not surprisingly, would not bite on that one today.

"That's not my....I hope not," he said. "I hope we solve it from within. We'll continue to try and do that. You know, our job is to make the guys we have better. We have some guys with a better track record than they are pitching right now.

"We've got to get them back pitching like they were the first month of the season. It's there. Just have to get to it. I don't covet other people's players. I try not to covet the minor leaguers. The players in there don't want to hear about that. They don't want to hear you talk about the draft."

Showalter was asked if the pitchers are trying to be too fine at times and make a perfect pitch.

"Roger (McDowell) has talked to them. I don't know if I've ever had pitching coaches work harder than Roger and Alan (Mills). Sometimes you pitch too much to a scouting report and not to your strengths. That is an emphasis Roger has had lately. You have to stay with what your strengths are. That is one of the areas we want to get better at.

With a loss tonight, the Orioles would tie the second-longest road losing streak in club history. The 1954 Orioles lost 11 in a row on the road. The club record is 13 in a row, set in 1988.

O's get early lead: The Orioles took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first tonight. Joey Rickard led off with a double to left off Derek Holland, advanced to third on an Adam Jones' sac bunt and scored on Manny Machado's RBI single. That hit made Machado 3-for-5 since returning to the lineup last night after missing four games.

O's starter Alec Asher blanked Chicago over the first three innings as the O's took the 1-0 lead to the fourth. Asher retired the first six batters on just 27 pitches and pitched around a one-out walk in the third. He's at 43 pitches through three.

Now they trail: A two-run double to left center in the White Sox fourth by Avisaíl García provided Chicago a 2-1 lead. He hit an 0-2 fastball to score Melky Cabrera and José Abreu who had singled. The O's had runners on first and third and no outs in the fifth, but the rally quickly fizzled. Machado popped out and Mark Trumbo hit into a double play. More frustration in the windy city.

Now they trail big: One swing and Chicago turned a close 2-1 lead into a comfortable edge of 6-1 tonight. Matt Davidson hit his first career grand slam in the Chisox sixth. With bases loaded and no outs, the O's were trying to get innings out of a starter who was in trouble after their rotation had thrown 19 2/3 total innings the past six games. It bit them and now they need a big comeback.

Over the last four games, the quartet of Chris Tillman, Kevin Gausman, Wade Miley and Asher have combined to allow 28 runs over 12 innings.