Wrapping up a 5-2 loss

MIAMI - The Orioles return home tonight after dropping two of three games to the Marlins, including today's 5-2 loss. They're now 2-13 when the series shifts to Miami.

The roof stayed closed. So did the offense, which went 19 consecutive innings without scoring a run.

"Hitting is contagious," said center fielder Adam Jones. "The only person who is really hitting the ball is (Jimmy) Paredes. So I think everybody needs to go hover around him, grab his bats and rub his bats against everybody else's bats. We're going to grind it out. But it hasn't been pretty. It hasn't looked pretty this series, (19) innings without a run. That's an eternity, especially last night.

"You've got to take the good with the bad. This is the adversity stage. How do you respond to this? That's what makes and separates the big league guys and the good teams. How do you come back from struggles? How do you combat that? How do you make the adjustments?

"We have a great team. I love these guys and I know we are going to come back tomorrow, when we get home, and grind it back out. We're not going to give up, we're not going to give in, so we just need to get back on the saddle and get back our focus and get some good at-bats. If we just have a couple line drives, it will fed through the entire lineup."

The Marlins had lost eight in a row before taking the last two games.

"We're big into the series," Jones said. "You get the series, two out of three is always a good thing. You always want to sweep, but two out of three is always the goal. I know we came here and they were struggling a little bit, but a win will boost confidence for anybody, especially in this game. It's a frustrating game. And they had confidence.

"They swung the bats good the entire series. You tip your cap to them. They beat us on all the facets of the game this series."

The Orioles were shut out over 13 innings last night and scored twice today.

"Offense has been a challenge for us," said manager Buck Showalter. "First thing you do is tip your hat to their pitching. It's one of those times of the year where you have to challenge yourself as a manager and as a teammate and as a staff to trust the track record of your people. We know we're capable of better, but we haven't put much together offensively. It's something we're going to have to do better and give our pitchers some breathing room."

The Marlins remain in last place in the National League East, but they came to life this weekend.

"They're a good team," Showalter said. "Everybody knows they're capable of better. It's the major leagues. Look at their lineup. My gosh. They used three guys three days in a row in the bullpen. See how that works out down the road.

"No, it's a talented club that was picked to win their division by a lot of people. Sooner or later, they're all going to reach their level and we'll see how it shakes out at the end of the year.

"They pitched well. I'll give them that credit. You talk about them pitching well and us not swinging well, and you got what you got. Stevie (Pearce) hit a ball right on the button with the bases loaded. If it goes anywhere but right at third base, we might get back in there."

The Orioles reloaded the bases in the eighth after scoring once, but Ryan Lavarnway grounded out. Showalter didn't send up Caleb Joseph as a pinch-hitter until the ninth. J.J. Hardy never left the bench.

"I wanted to give J as much of the day as I could," Showalter said. "There's a situation where I also know we only had two guys left on the bench, and only one versatile player and Ryan's got as much pop as anybody, and J.J. hasn't been swinging the ball real well. I also thought he could benefit from a day off the field.

"He's fine. And now we're trying to keep him that way. He'll be in the lineup tomorrow."

Lavarnway is hitless this month and 3-for-28 this season.

"It's a little frustrating, but you've got to stay confident," he said. "I've been having good at-bats, swinging at good pitches and making good contact. They've just got to start dropping for me."

Lavarnway isn't using sporadic playing time as an excuse.

"I'm happy with every opportunity I'm given," he said. "I'm grateful."

Miguel Gonzalez couldn't record an out in the fifth inning and gave up five runs and a career-high 10 hits.

"Fastball command wasn't there for him," Showalter said. "That's something that's been really solid for him, and usually the pitch counts and sequences that he has in his favor weren't there.

"We got another great outing out of a call-up from Norfolk, Chaz (Roe). That was really impressive. And Brian (Matusz) gave us two needed innings. We're just trying to get back on our feet because we know that there's a chance we'll be playing with a six-man bullpen shortly."

That's because of Matusz's pending suspension, which didn't distract him today while he retired six of seven batters.

Roe, whose contract was selected today, retired all six batters he faced with two strikeouts.

"We really liked him in the spring," Showalter said. "He was another good addition to our depth. I'm happy for him. It's been a long road back for him, too."

Gonzalez said his fastball was moving too much today.

"My four-seam was cutting," he said. "Didn't really have that good feel for it. But it was a tough one. I gave up four hard hits and all the rest they were finding the hole. It wasn't a good day for us, but we'll come back tomorrow and try to win a ballgame.

"Obviously, we know this team is very aggressive. First pitch, second pitch, they're not going to give in. My off-speed wasn't really where I want it. That's why they put the ball in play and things worked their way and didn't work our way."

Lavarnway thought Gonzalez was better than the final numbers indicated.

"I think the biggest issue was we ran into a team feeling superbly confident after a short turnaround from last night. I don't think Miguel threw too terribly. It was a little bit of a lack of command, but I think they were just feeling real confident today," Lavarnway said.

"You always want to take advantage of a team when you come across them and they're struggling, but kudos to them. They played well, they won the game last night, short turnaround. This is a little hiccup. We'll get back on track."

Said Gonzalez: "We know that yesterday's game we went 13 innings and we lost 1-0. It was a really good game. Mike Wright threw the ball really well. We always want to go home with a win, especially try to get two out of three, but we didn't. We've just got to keep grinding it out and working hard, and I think things will go our way."