Wrapping up another Orioles one-run loss in Houston

HOUSTON - The Orioles only lost by one run tonight. They were in the game from the first pitch to the last. But how they lost could not have sit well with them.

A night after striking out 19 times over 13 innings, tonight they struck out 18 times in the regulation nine innings. They made four errors. They went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring positon and left 12 men on base.

The good news: It only counts as one loss. The better news: They can start a winning streak here Thursday night. But tonight, Houston won it 4-3. The Astros went ahead when Luis Valbuena homered off Tyler Wilson in the last of the sixth to break a 3-3 tie.

Houston tied a team record for most strikeouts in a two-game span. Astros hurlers have 37 in this series. They also had 37 May 30-31, 2003 against the Chicago Cubs.

Manager Buck Showalter was asked an obvious question: Are the Orioles hitters simply chasing too many pitches right now?

"Yeah. They're good. They are good pitchers, they have a good pitching staff," he said. "It's something where you've got to make sure they are getting us out. You've got a lot of want-to, but it's tough. They are pressing a little bit, trying to do too much.

"But I'm not going to start throwing our guys under the bus when we were talking a bunch of superlatives about them a very short time ago. I can't live in that world and they know that. They are working hard at it. They get here at one o'clock. It will happen."

Outfielder Mark Trumbo agreed that the hitters have simply been chasing way too many pitches in recent games.

"To say the least, probably, yea," he said. "It's been a struggle, but that's kind of part of the deal. It's not going to go your way all the time and it's just one of those little ruts that we're in. We battle. We gave ourselves a chance to win, but it wasn't quite enough. We've lost two ballgames, you know? So what? Not a big deal. Just keep grinding away.

"It's bound to happen. We're going to struggle. We're going to struggle again. You'd like it not to happen, but I think this shows kind of a lot of what the team's all about in times like this, and I think I like what I see. Nobody's getting down on themselves. We're just going to keep this thing moving, and if we have to wear it for a little while longer, so be it. Eventually, everybody's going to come out of it and play to their potential."

Trumbo had an interesting answer when asked if guys are pressing right now.

"It's a challenge here. It's unique," he said. "It's kind of interesting. I know this stadium, in particular, it's a bit of a challenge right now to see the baseball. I'm not quite sure why. I think it's fair for both teams, I think both teams are experiencing it. But it's unique because I've played here quite a bit in the past and it seems this year in particular has been a bit more challenging."

He didn't really elaborate on exactly what he was referring to there.

The Orioles made four errors tonight. One directly cost them a run when starting pitcher Wilson could not cleanly field a bunt to start the last of the fourth. Evan Gattis, batting next, ripped a two-run homer to left.

"He's one of our better fielding pitchers," Showalter said. "We had a tough cover on the bunt, he had a play at second, too. That's the one Manny (Machado) was worried about covering third, little late getting there. We had some things that were uncharacteristic of our club and that's why they stick out. Tyler is one of our better fielding pitchers. I know the double-play ball and the bunt are normally plays he would make pretty easily."

Wilson, who always points the finger at himself for his mistakes, did again tonight.

"There are a lot of things you can say as the difference in the game," he said. "But you look back at it, that is definitely one of them. You know, I make that out right there, it's a tie ballgame if everything else goes according to plan. That's frustrating. And I know we all take a lot of pride in our PFPs (pitchers fielding practice) and making sure we can field our own position. That is paramount with the Orioles organization. That is really inexcusable and just a matter of not making a play. There is no excuse for it. I'm going to do everything in my power to not let it happen again. Bottom line, it was very frustrating."

On a brighter note, Hyun Soo Kim went 3-for-3 with a walk tonight and a pair of doubles. He had one extra-base hit (a double) in his first 29 at-bats and doubled that total in this game and raised his average to .438 (14-for-32).

Showalter was asked if Kim has put himself in a position to get more starts.

"He has all along. We play everybody," Showalter said. "I planned on playing him two out of three when we got here. He's doing well. I think watching some games, kind of getting acclimated to some things have worked in his favor. We'll see. He had a good game tonight. Was a good matchup for him, I thought."

The Orioles have lost two one-run games deep in the heart of Texas. They'll need fewer strikeouts and more runs here Thursday night to avoid a three-game sweep.