Tying one on

By Roch Kubatko

Orioles

April 18, 2010, 12:44pm

Comments

Who are these guys and what have they done with the Orioles? A three-run third inning? Clutch two-out hits? Taking the extra base on a throwing error? Did the Orioles and Athletics switch uniforms? Oakland lefty Brett Anderson hadn't allowed a run in his first 14 innings, but Ty Wigginton drove in two with a double to right field and he raced home on Nick Markakis' single up the middle. Orioles 3, Oakland 0. Wigginton wasn't happy when the Orioles signed Miguel Tejada and Garrett Atkins over the winter, but he didn't pout or make a huge issue of it. He just grinned and waited for the next question at FanFest when reporters asked him about the moves and how they impacted him. Wigginton knew that starting jobs would open on the corners and hoped to fill one of them, but the Orioles preferred having him come off the bench. He's been invaluable so far, replacing Brian Roberts at second base and Tejada at third. He's also totaled eight RBIs in his last six games, and has hit safely in six of his last eight games. Wigginton was a career .172 hitter in 64 at-bats against Oakland before today. He had nine RBIs. Make it 11.