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On a night when the Orioles got a very solid outing from struggling starter Brad Bergesen, they lost to Kansas City on another late home run. Billy Butler's two-run shot in the eighth on a 98 mile per hour David Hernandez fastball, gave the Royals a 4-3 win on Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium. Jim Hunter and Mike Boddicker talk with Juan Samuel following the
Matt Hobgood, last year's O's first-round draft pick, left his start for Delmarva tonight after just nine pitches at Lexington. A club official informs me that Hobgood left due to lower back spasms. It's too early to know if he will miss his next start and of course he'll get examined further over the next few days. I understand the trainer came out along with
It is not a role change for the right-hander, but the Orioles will now have Ryan Berry, their ninth-round pick last year out of Rice, pitch out of the Frederick bullpen. He has thrown 104 1/3 innings this season between Delmarva and Frederick and Berry will now come out of the pen as they limit his innings the rest of the way. Berry went 0-3,
There's a headline you probably thought you would not see this season. Don't look now but the pitcher some O's fans seem to be most critical of, has put together a real good stretch of pitching. Matt Albers has pitched to an ERA of 1.93 in 10 games this month with a batting average against of .185 in 18 2/3 innings in July. "I think,
During a season where he has recorded 15 saves, several have been of the shaky variety for O's closer Alfredo Simon. He appeared on his way to one Friday. A save. A shaky one. But it turned into a loss and blown save. Alex Gordon hit a two-out, three-run homer in the last of the ninth as KC stunned the O's 7-5 at Kauffman Stadium.
When the Orioles officially added new pitcher Wynn Pelzer, acquired in trade yesterday, to the Bowie Baysox roster tonight, he took the spot vacated by right-hander Chorye Spoone, who went on the disabled list. Spoone, who is on the O's 40-man roster, is dealing with some shoulder fatigue. The 24-year-old underwent shoulder surgery in September of 2008 but this setback is not considered major at
It is not an official coaching position, but former Oriole B.J. Surhoff has recently been seen at Frederick and Bowie. He's lending a hand with some Orioles minor leaguers and was also recently seen observing the Orioles from a press box suite at Camden Yards. "B.J. has been kind enough to do some consulting on some player development issues," O's director of player development, John
Some notes from around the O's minors: *Triple-A Norfolk (50-57) plays at Scranton tonight with Chris George (5-4, 4.00) on the mound. He has allowed two runs over 12 innings in his past two starts. Robert Andino has hit .356-2-8 during a ten-game batting streak. Corey Patterson and Rhyne Hughes each hit in 11 in a row earlier for the Tides, a Norfolk season best.
The Orioles have now agreed to terms with 31 of their 49 draft picks from last month. Thursday they came to terms with 10th-round pick, right-handed pitcher Clayton Schrader, from San Jacinto Junior College in Texas. He was the 298th overall selection. Today, the O's have come to terms with 8th-round pick Wynston Sawyer, a catcher from Scripps Ranch high school in San Diego. He
I interviewed O's president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail for tonight's Orioles radio network pre-game show. Click below to listen to the entire interview. He talked about the hiring of Buck Showalter, what it means for the current coaches, how he and Showalter will work together and the trade of Miguel Tejada. Audio: If you didn't have time to hear the entire interview here is
The Orioles will get 24-year-old right-handed pitcher Wynn Pelzer from the San Diego Padres in exchange for Miguel Tejada. The Orioles are expected to eat some of Tejada's remaining salary. The move opens up third base where the O's will take a good, long look at Josh Bell for the rest of this season. Pelzer is a 6'1", 205-pounder that was rated as the Padres
ESPN's Tim Kurkjian knows Buck Showalter probably as well as just about any reporter after working with him at ESPN. During a live interview on that network a few moments ago, here is what Kurkjian said about Showalter coming to Baltimore to manage the Orioles. "It's a great fit for the Orioles, that's for sure. They get as prepared a manager as I've ever met
ESPN's report that Buck Showalter will take over next Tuesday as Orioles manager comes as good news on many fronts. I like the fact that the new man will be in place for part of this season. The time to change the losing culture and the clubhouse dynamic is now. It's due. It's past due. If Showalter can start that process now, there is no
If you had to pick a player to be named Orioles minor league player of the year for 2010 today, many might pick first baseman Joe Mahoney. The sixth-round pick out of the University of Richmond from 2007 is having a breakout season and making quite an impression. It started at Frederick where Mahoney put up solid power numbers. Since July 9 it has continued
This time, the Orioles got good starting pitching. In fact, they got excellent starting pitching. Yet, they still lost to Toronto. The Jays posted a 5-0 win over the Orioles Wednesday to sweep this three-game series and improve to 12-0 vs. the O's on the season. Gary and Mike talk with Juan Samuel after the O's 5-0 loss to the Blue Jays Toronto got just
Tonight is the first time the O's hitters have ever seen Toronto lefty Brad Mills. Despite that, once again, they are not seeing many pitches at the plate. The O's trail 1-0 after three innings and Mills has thrown just 23 pitches to get nine outs. He has faced ten hitters, so that is just 2.3 pitches seen per hitter so far. He threw just
O's president Andy MacPhail comfirmed in an e-mail last night that the Orioles are considering calling up their top pitching prospect Zach Britton later this summer, although it likely won't happen this weekend. This brings us to the great debate - should the O's call-up Britton to the Majors this year or just let him finish the season at Triple-A? A Britton call-up would be
The Orioles futility vs. Toronto continued tonight in a 8-2 loss to the Blue Jays. The Orioles are now 0-11 on the year vs. Toronto and have been outscored in the season series 65-23 and out-homered 23 to 4. The Orioles fall to 2-10 since the All-Star break and are now 31-69 after 100 games. They have lost 10 in a row and 19 of
Can you believe there are people, some considered very astute in the baseball industry, that we're picking the Orioles to finish ahead of Toronto this year. It now looks like the O's are on their way to 0-11 vs. the Jays as they trail 6-0 after the fourth. It is like Ground Hog day. An O's starter gives up early runs, meanwhile the opponent starter
In a brief e-mail exchange with O's president Andy MacPhail, he said Zach Britton is "not" being considered to join the Orioles to start this weekend. So we can rule out any talk of Britton starting in Brad Bergesen's spot on Saturday. But Britton is being considered to join the Orioles later in the season, MacPhail said. Britton, who is scheduled to start for Norfolk
While there has been a lot of focus on the O's struggling starting pitching lately - as there should be - the offense has not been pulling its weight either as the club is 2-9 since the All-Star break. The O's have scored three runs or less in seven of those 11 games and they are 3-51 this year when scoring three runs or less.
Since their first season in 2002, the Aberdeen IronBirds have been a successful minor league franchise. I said a successful, not winning franchise. The IronBirds are an amazing business success. They sellout Ripken Stadium every night, have a top-notch staff and have a respected and well-known name within minor league baseball circles. They put on a great show for the fans that pour into Ripken
Matt Wieters came up with his first career two-homer game, but the Orioles fell behind 8-0 after five innings and lost 9-5 to Toronto tonight. The Orioles are now 0-10 on the year vs. the Blue Jays and have been outscored 57 to 21. Gary and Mike talk with Juan Samuel following the O's 9-5 loss to Toronto The Orioles, who have lost nine games
Nate Moreau, who pitched a no-hitter for Frederick on June 30th at Salem, in his first start with the Keys, tonight struggled vs. Lynchburg at Harry Grove Stadium. He entered this start with an ERA of 1.89 in his first three Frederick starts, but gave up seven runs and seven hits over 3 2/3 innings. He allowed five runs in the first inning and has
I checked to see if Brad Bergesen was getting as many ground ball outs this year as last year and he is. Last year he averaged 1.57 ground outs for every fly out and this year he is at 1.59, actually a little better. But Bergesen clearly is not getting the great sink on the ball he was last June and July when he was
If you are squeamish, you may want to skip these stats. Yes, the O's are 0-9 this season vs. Toronto, 0-6 in Baltimore and 0-3 in Toronto. The Orioles have lost eight in a row at Rogers Centre and 17 of their last 19 there. They have been out-scored by Toronto this year 48-16, out-homered by them 18 to 1 and Toronto has produced 45
There is news to report today on two players that have been among the best this year in the Orioles farm system: L.J. Hoes and Joe Mahoney. Mahoney has been named the latest Player of the Week in the Eastern League. The 23-year-old lefty hitter went 3 for 3 in his first game at Bowie on July 9 and has been hitting ever since. He
Some opinions for a Monday morning: *Jake Arrieta's post-game interview after Sunday's loss to Minnesota should play well with fans who have been wondering about accountability on this O's team. Arrieta took the fall for the loss and should have. But I think it was a good sign to hear him say "I really won't accept outings like this and this is not acceptable." I
He may have pitched poorly on Sunday vs. Minnesota, but if you are looking for an Oriole to step up and take the blame for a loss, Jake Arrieta did just that in the O's clubhouse minutes after a 10-4 defeat vs. the Twins. "Honestly it's pretty embarrassing to go out there and not be able to give your team a quality start. I prepare
After sweeping four from Texas heading into the All-Star break, the O's lost 10-4 to Minnesota Sunday afternoon to conclude a 2-8 homestand coming out of the break. The homestand was marked by poor starting pitching and the fact the O's scored two runs or less six times vs. the Blue Jays, Rays and Twins. Juan Samuel talks with the media after the Oriole's loss
Checking on some notes, quotes and stats while watching the Twins whip the O's today at the Yard as clouds roll in beyond the outfield fences. *Did you see where the Delmarva Shorebirds played an 18-inning game Saturday night that actually ended just after midnight this morning. Lakewood won 8-7 and it was the Shorebirds first 18-inning game since May 20, 2005. The losing pitcher
When last seen on the field, Matt Wieters played on July 9th at Texas. But he injured his right hamstring that night and has been on the DL since. That stint ends today as Wieters returns to the O's lineup batting seventh and catching. "It's been hard these past couple of weeks sitting and watching. It will be good to be back on the field
O's president Andy MacPhail made the decision this morning to option Craig Tatum to Triple-A to make roster room for Matt Wieters, who comes off the DL today. A few minutes ago, outside the manager's office, MacPhail talked about the decision to send Tatum out and also had some comments on the current trade market in baseball. "All the time I've been in baseball, sometimes
Brian Matusz hates questions about his previous starts. But he had to know someone would ask how he dealt with giving up 10 ER over 4 2/3 coming into this start tonight. Was it a test for him mentally as he took the mound tonight vs. Minnesota, coming off those two outings? "For me, I take one game at a time. If I have a
Well, this was a better outing for lefty Brian Matusz. Not good, but better. After giving up 10 ER in just 4 2/3 over his past two starts, tonight he gave up six hits and three runs over five innings. Matusz's velocity seemed to be up over his last outing and he hit 91 and 92 on the gun, more Matusz- like. But his control
In his first outing in a game since June 20 for Norfolk vs. Toledo, right-hander Brandon Erbe allowed two runs in the third inning at Ripken Stadium tonight for Aberdeen vs. Hudson Valley. Erbe, who has been out since then with right shoulder soreness, pitched scoreless ball in the first and second innings. He gave up just one hit and the two runs over three
Since Brian Matusz shut down the Boston Red Sox on just two hits over seven scoreless innings on the fourth of July, he has made back-to-back starts where he lasted just three and 1 2/3 innings. He has given up 10 ER over 4 2/3 in those two starts as his ERA jumped from 4.56 to 5.21. I'm still firmly on the Matusz bandwagon, in
Norfolk Tides pitcher Brandon Erbe, who made four injury rehab starts for the Aberdeen IronBirds last year, will be back at Ripken Stadium tonight, beginning another injury rehab assignment. He'll be joined by Norfolk and former O's reliever Kam Mickolio. Erbe has been on the DL since June 25 and has not pitched since June 20 due to right shoulder soreness. He is 0-10, 5.73
After a recent hitting tear, Delmarva Shorebirds first baseman Tyler Townsend has moved to Frederick. He will join the Keys for their game tonight vs. Myrtle Beach. In 30 games for the Shorebirds, Townsend, last year's third-round draft pick, hit .342 (40-117) with three home runs and 26 RBIs. Townsend's bat, like the weather, heated up this month. In 21 games, he batted .354 with
Did you ever notice that Luke Scott seldom hits what some might call a "cheap homer." One of those balls where the outfielder leaps at the wall and it just goes over his glove. No, he usually hits the kind where the outfielder doesn't need to bother running out near the wall, because the ball is sailing well over it. Like his two-run blast off
Brian Roberts is back and the Orioles won. Jeremy Guthrie's pitching and Luke Scott's clutch homer had a lot to do with that, but Roberts was back on the field for the O's for the first time since April 9th in their 3-2 win over Minnesota. He went 0 for 4 with two ground outs, a strikeout and a line out to the outfield. He
Jeremy Guthrie, who was the first AL pitcher to suffer 10 losses this year, ended a nine-start winless drought, as the Orioles beat Minnesota 3-2 Friday night. Guthrie gave up six hits and two runs over seven innings, throwing 99 pitches as he gained his fourth win of the year and first since May 25 vs. Oakland. In four career starts vs. Minnesota, Guthrie is
The Orioles entered the sixth inning leading by a run and exited it the same way. Just with a different score. After Joe Mauer's two-run homer in the top of the sixth off Jeremy Guthrie gave Minnesota a 2-1 lead, Luke Scott crushed a pitch for a two-run homer in the last of the sixth for a 3-2 O's lead. Scott hit a 1-1 pitch
Brandon Snyder was activated off the DL by the Triple-A Norfolk Tides today and is batting seventh and playing first base at Lehigh Valley tonight. Snyder, who last played for the Tides on June 17, went 3 for 13 with a double and homer in three games on an injury rehab assignment with Aberdeen. Snyder resumes his play with the Tides with a five-game batting
It was Friday afternoon, April 9 and the Orioles were playing Toronto in their home opener. It was 55 degrees at game time and 48,891 filled the Camden Yards stands. And Brian Roberts was in the O's lineup. He re-injured his back that day sliding into second base on a successful steal in the bottom of the first. He later scored, but soon after came
Ty Wigginton had a two-word response when asked today about getting a three-game suspension and fine for allegedly bumping umpire Gary Darling in last night's game. "Shock. Surprised," he said. Wigginton got the news just before reporters were allowed in the clubhouse. He said he was told the suspension was handed down because it was ruled that he did bump Darling. "Yep, yep (that is
O's scouting director Joe Jordan confirmed this afternoon that the Orioles have begun contract negotiations with top draft pick, shortstop Manny Machado. "We've gotten that one opened up. It's a long way from being complete, but there is some dialogue going on which is good. Like I said before, I just don't have a real timeline on that one." Jordan said dollar figures have been
For some fans, even in a 5-0 loss to Minnesota last night, maybe there was something to be pleased about. They saw passion, emotion and a little anger from Juan Samuel and Ty Wigginton. They both got ejected but also got some of their loudest ovations of the year. You could almost sense the crowd saying "Right on, it's about time you guys showed you
After a volatile night with three O's ejected from tonight's 5-0 loss to Minnesota, pitching coach Rick Kranitz and Ty Wigginton talked about their ejections. (Roch has posted comments from Juan Samuel, who was also tossed). Kranitz was ejected after Wigginton's ejection for arguing a safe call at first base. Kranitz was tossed by home plate ump Bill Hohn. "I didn't say anything," Kranitz said.
Tonight, I served as the pool reporter for the reporters covering the game and asked some post-game questions to crew chief Gary Darling about the ejections of Ty Wigginton and pitching coach Rick Kranitz from tonight's game. Darling admitted that he got the call at first base wrong on the tag play and safe call in the top of the seventh that led to Wigginton's
If fans were looking for someone to show fire and passion on this team, they just saw it. Ty Wigginton was ejected by first base umpire Gary Darling for arguing a play in the top of the seventh. J.J. Hardy broke for second on a steal then turned around and retreated to first. When Wigginton took the throw and applied the tag on Hardy he
Too bad he gave up three runs in the first inning tonight. Since then, Kevin Millwood has had a strong outing that should be somewhat encouraging for fans and O's brass alike. Millwood has allowed just one run and three hits from innings two through six. He gave up a bomb to Michael Cuddyer for a solo homer in the fourth. It went 434 feet
The O's hitters watched their 35-year-old right-hander Kevin Millwood throw 34 pitches in the top of the first tonight and then their hitters went down 1-2-3 in the last of the first on just five pitches. Three batters, five pitches. Minnesota's hitter leading off the top of the second, Nick Punto, saw as many pitches (five) as the three O's hitters did combined. I just
Matt Wieters continues to make progress and today ran the bases earlier here at Camden Yards to test his right hamstring strain. "It went well. It was no (bad) feeling at all. The only difference is you've got to get used to getting the stride right to where you're not going to hit the base. But other than that, everything felt really good. "Yeah, barring
After spending a few minutes behind closed doors today in the manager's office, Brian Roberts emerged and said he is taking today off and is still not sure when he will rejoin the Orioles roster. Some here are guessing it could come as early as tomorrow but no one is saying that just yet. Roberts said he was just joking around with Juan Samuel and
The early reviews are quite good for the Orioles fourth-round draft pick, outfielder Trent Mummey from Auburn. He is batting leadoff and playing center field for Aberdeen of the New York-Penn League. He is batting over .300 and has produced 15 extra-base hits in just 23 games. All this while playing with a quad injury that first surfaced in late May during his college season
Here are some comments from the clubhouse after Wednesday's 5-4 loss to Tampa. Brad Bergesen talked about his outing, after he gave up five runs and nine hits over 5 1/3 innings: "It was a tough outing, just one of those where I battled and tried to keep the team in it. The (seven) strikeouts were irrelevant. Compared to the hits today, it was kind
A day after becoming the only team in the Majors this year to win when trailing in the ninth inning and in extra innings in the same game, the O's lost the third and deciding game of their series with Tampa, 5-4, on Wednesday afternoon at the Yard. The O's fell behind 4-0 in the third, rallied to tie it at 4-4 by the fifth,
Brad Bergesen allows five runs, all earned, over 5 1/3 innings today here at Camden Yards. Bergesen has now allowed 4 ER or more in 11 of his 15 Major League starts on the season. He has allowed 4 ER or more in seven of his last eight starts. Last year he allowed 4 ER or more in just five of his 19 starts all
This did not add up to a winning combination for the Orioles. A struggling starting pitcher, Brad Bergesen, vs. a good team a little ticked off about blowing a lead last night. And Tampa comes out with a 4-0 lead in the third vs. the O's and Bergesen. Evan Longoria has already homered and doubled. He is 12 for 35 vs. the O's this year
Josh Bell had to figure it could come to this. Today he was optioned back to Triple-A Norfolk. As he packed his bag to head out of Camden Yards, he was nice enough to take a few minutes to reflect on his first few days at the big league level. "Just being here, I don't take it for granted at all. I enjoyed being at
Two right-handers that have been pitching with the Norfolk Tides this season will join the Aberdeen IronBirds this weekend on injury-rehab assignments. Brandon Erbe and Kam Mickolio are expected to pitch for Aberdeen this Saturday at Ripken Stadium. It's been a busy week in the O's minors on the injury rehab front with Brian Roberts at Bowie and Brandon Snyder joining Aberdeen yesterday. Erbe has
Kipp Schutz, who began tonight as the second leading hitter in the New York-Penn League, batting .379, hit a walk-off Grand Slam in the last of the 11th this evening as the Aberdeen IronBirds beat Tri-City 9-5 at Ripken Stadium. Schutz's bomb to right field was his third homer of the season and gave Aberdeen its fifth win in a row. Schutz went 3 for
It's extra innings here at Ripken Stadium. In his fifth at bat, with a chance to win the game in the last of the ninth, Brandon Snyder flew out to center on a 2-1 pitch with runners on second and third and two out. The game is tied 5-5 heading to the top of the 10th. Snyder's solo homer in the last of the 8th
In his fourth at bat tonight at Aberdeen, Brandon Snyder homered to left field to tie this game 5-5 in the last of the eighth. Leading off the inning, Snyder ripped a 1-1 pitch from Tri-City reliever Brandt Walker over the fence near the visiting team clubhouse to knot the contest. It's his sixth homer of the year counting five earlier at Triple-A Norfolk. Snyder
Brandon Snyder grounded into a 5-4-3 double play on a 2-2 pitch in his third at bat for Aberdeen tonight. That ended the fifth inning with the IronBirds leading 4-2 vs. Tri-City, a Houston affiliate. Earlier in this game, Snyder doubled to deep center in the first and he had an RBI groundout to short in the third inning. This is Snyder's first game with
In his second at bat tonight in Aberdeen, Brandon Snyder drove in a run with an RBI groundout to short. He came up with Austin Knight on third and one out in the last of the third. Snyder's hard hit ball to short, with the infield playing back, plated the run for a 3-1 Aberdeen lead. Micheal Rooney led off the frame with an infield
In his first at bat tonight with the IronBirds, Brandon Snyder hit a booming double to deep center field. Batting against Tri-City right-hander Bobby Doran, Houston's fourth-round pick last month, Snyder ripped a 2-1 pitch out near the warning track in center for an easy double. It was his first game at bat since June 17 while with Norfolk. Snyder, batting third and playing at
It has been a tough year for Brandon Snyder. The O's 2005 first-round pick has struggled at Triple-A Norfolk for the second year in a row and also has had to deal with an injury that has kept him off the field since June 17. But tonight he is here in Aberdeen, at Ripken Stadium on an injury-rehab assignment with the IronBirds. He is expected
Orioles 2005 first-round draft pick Brandon Snyder returns to Aberdeen tonight. Snyder, who played for the IronBirds in parts of 2005 and 2006, will play the next three games with Aberdeen on an injury-rehab assignment. Snyder is coming back from an upper back injury and has not played for Triple-A Norfolk since June 17. He is batting .255-5-28 in 64 games and was hitting .327
For any O's fan it was a positive sight. Seeing Brian Roberts take the field in Bowie last night. Even though he had on a Baysox uniform, the mannerisms and actions out at second base looked quite familiar. After watching Roberts play and talking with him before and after the game, this thought came to mind: This time Roberts may actually make it back on
After playing five games in the day time in the Gulf Coast League, Brian Roberts' comeback took another step tonight as he played for the Double-A Bowie Baysox. "There is nobody in the stands (in the GCL) and you're playing at Noon, you are just trying to wake up at that point," Roberts said. "Nice to play a night game and get back into the
Brian Roberts may have just batted for the last time in his first game with Bowie since May of 2006. Getting to bat right-handed (vs. a lefty) for the first time on the night, Roberts was called out on strikes on an 0-2 pitch vs. Roy Merritt. He got ahead 0-2, Roberts then fouled one off before Merritt threw a backdoor curve ball that broke
Brian Roberts has flied out deep to right with two men on in the last of the sixth. He drove the right fielder to the warning track for the catch. So Roberts is 2 for 4 now in this game with two runs scored, a double and an RBI single. Roberts has had a quiet night in the field, although he finally had a ball
Brian Roberts grounded out, first baseman to pitcher covering, to lead off the last of the fourth. So he is 2 for 3 tonight with two runs scored and an RBI. He is now 10 for 18 (.556) on his injury-rehab assignment. Roberts has not had any balls hit to him yet at second base. He handled the back end of a 6-4 fielders choice
Brian Roberts came up in the last of the second with two on and two out after walks to Brandon Waring and Greg Miclat. The pitcher, before throwing a single pitch to Roberts, twice made pickoff throws to first base. On the second one, he threw wildly past first, scoring Waring and sending Miclat to third, so Roberts then batted with a man on third.
After going 8 for 15 in five games with the Gulf Coast League Orioles, Brian Roberts led off the last of the first here tonight at Bowie and Roberts hit a ground ball double down the third-base line on a 1-0 pitch from right-hander Chris Schwinden. He slid safely into second ahead of the throw from the left fielder. That was Roberts first at bat
Brian Roberts play with the Bowie Baysox will be delayed a bit. A brief, but intense shower passed through Prince George's Stadium and the tarp was on the field for a while. As we approach, 7:10, the tarp is off the field and I'm told the game should start here around 7:30. Here is tonight's Baysox lineup: 2B - Brian Roberts 3B - Ryan Adams
Here is more from today's lengthy pre-game interview with Brian Roberts and reporters here in Bowie at Prince George's Stadium. Roberts continues his injury-rehab assignment tonight here playing for the Double-A Bowie Baysox. Is there something that will serve as the final test to show you are ready to return to the O's? "I haven't slid yet. Well, I've slid feet first. I haven't tried
Brian Roberts will play second base and bat leadoff tonight for the Bowie Baysox, as his injury rehab assignment continues in the Eastern League and he looks to soon re-join the Orioles. Roberts will play nine innings here tonight, DH tomorrow, then play second base and all nine innings again on Wednesday. He could stay with the Baysox longer, but his schedule is not certain
Brian Roberts will play at Bowie tonight for the first time since he played two games there on an injury-rehab assignment in 2006. I will be there to cover his play and get some pre and post-game quotes. Roberts was officially added to the Bowie roster today and is expected to play the whole game tonight. He is also expected to meet with reporters before
O's right-hander Chris Tillman will take the mound at Camden Yards tonight vs. Tampa. We'll see if he can follow up on his excellent outing before the break at Texas where he beat the Rangers and out-dueled Cliff Lee. He took a no-hitter in the seventh and gave up just two hits and a run over 7 1/3. It was his first start after going
The Orioles are still looking for their first win of the year vs. the Toronto Blue Jays. Yunel Escobar's first homer of the year was a second-inning Grand Slam off Brian Matusz, as the Jays whipped the O's 10-1 Sunday afternoon to complete a three-game sweep. Juan Samuel talks with the media following the Oriole's 10-1 loss to the Blue Jays The Jays are now
Josh Bell is excited today. Not only is he making his fifth Major League start for the Orioles, but someone special gets to watch him play in person. "I get excited every time you get to play. My mom will be here today. She's been waiting to see me play in the big leagues since 2005 when I signed." Bell's mom made the trip to
O's president Andy MacPhail had his latest "state of the Orioles" address for the club's season ticket holders at the ballpark on Saturday afternoon. Here is an excerpt of some of the questions he got, topics that were addressed and his answers. MacPhail was asked about the plan to rebuild with youth. Is he staying the course with that or does he now have to
The Toronto Blue Jays did two things Saturday night that they have been doing a lot this season. They hit two more home runs and once again, they beat the Orioles, as their pitching staff, as usual this season, held the O's hitters in check. Toronto is now 8-0 vs. the Orioles on the year after their 3-2 win in front of 28,518 at the
Surely, I will jinx them by writing this once again, but the Delmarva Shorebirds are getting good starting pitching again tonight, so far. Righty Bobby Bundy has put up four scoreless this evening vs. West Virginia. Delmarva starting pitchers have now allowed just 3 ER over 63 2/3 innings over the last 11 games. In his last start, Bundy gave up just two hits and
Kevin Millwood has been on the disabled list since July 6th with a right forearm strain. He has not pitched since lasting just one inning July 5 at Detroit. But he says he is making progress and expects he could come off the DL when he is eligible to. He was encouraged by the bullpen session he had at Camden Yards on Friday. "Everything is
The Orioles are still looking for their first win this year vs. Toronto and are now 0-7 after Friday's 4-2 loss to the Jays. The O's lost 7-6 to Toronto in the first game this year between the clubs. They have scored just seven runs in their past six games with the Jays and have been out-homered this year 15 to 1 in the season
Maybe the next crop of young guns in the Orioles farm system calls Perdue Stadium home. In case you haven't noticed, the current six-man starting rotation at Delmarva is putting up some remarkable numbers lately for the Shorebirds. The Delmarva starting pitching has combined to allow just three earned runs over its last ten starts dating back to July 6th. That is 3 ER over
This time there was not a well pitched game by an O's starter and this time there was not a comeback win. The O's opened their longest home stand of the season, a ten gamer, with a 4-2 loss to Toronto on Friday night at the Yard. Losing pitcher Brad Bergesen, now 3-7, 6.37, gave up single runs over the first three frames and gave
The Delmarva Shorebirds are at home tonight vs. West Virginia and the score is 0-0 after five innings. That is not the impressive stat, but here it is. Counting five scoreless innings pitched tonight by Pat Kantakevich, Delmarva starting pitchers have now allowed just three earned runs over their last ten games. That's in 59 2/3 innings. That works out to an ERA of 0.45
No, that is not a wrestling move. But Ricky Romero has retired the first nine O's in order tonight on just 31 pitches. Shouldn't the O's have been swinging and not taking pitches like this during the last game before the break and not the first one after. Romero, who held the O's to just one run in a complete-game win on May 30th, threw
He did get to take part in his first Major League All-Star game, even if his appearance was brief. Ty Wigginton of the Orioles entered the game at third base, but never got to bat for the American League on Tuesday night at Anaheim. That did not diminish his experience at all, he said. "It was fun. It's a hectic couple days, but I tried
Chris Tillman and Jake Arrieta provided something very important for the O's fans when they pitched so well over the final two games of the first half. No not wins, though those were nice, as was seeing the O's sweep four from a first-place team on the road. What they really provided was hope. Hope that the O's big three young pitchers, to include Brian
Among those that think Buck Showalter is the right man to become the next manager of the Orioles is ESPN's Tim Kurkjian. Kurkjian was on the Scott Garceau show Thursday that airs on MASN and O's flagship station, 105.7 the Fan. He told co-hosts Jeremy Conn and Pete Medhurst that Showalter is the right guy to lead the Orioles. "I think he will manage the
So how important is winning at the minor league level? You will likely get a similar answer from most people on this question. They say winning is nice, but not if it gets in the way of developing Major League players. Here is Andy MacPhail's take on this topic: "It's preferable but not at the expense of developing players. In other words, you are not
As we continue our series of stories on the O's minor leagues today we look at the Orioles farm through the eyes and thoughts of an insider - Someone who has managed in that farm system since 2007 - current O's interim third base coach Gary Allenson. Until he took that position last month, Allenson had managed at Triple-A Norfolk since 2007, seeing most of
One of the biggest decisions teams make for their minor leaguers is when to promote players to higher levels. When is the time right? What if the player doesn't succeed at that level? How fast should prospects move through the system? O's president Andy MacPhail worked with David Stockstill when he headed up the O's farm system and now works with his brother, John, who
John Stockstill has been with the Orioles for five years. He joined the club in December of 2005 to oversee the O's Major League and pro scouting. He has also served as the club's director of international scouting. Since early April of this year he has worked in his latest role with the club as director of player development. In that role he oversees the
Earlier today, I presented comments from Baseball America's Will Lingo on the O's farm system. Lingo and Baseball America ranked the O's farm in the top third of baseball earlier this year. "We rated them ninth coming into the season in our Prospect Handbook. For our midseason update, I wouldn't say they are one of the top organizations right now, but I would say they
Yesterday, we began our series of stories around this All-Star break on the Orioles minor league system and how well - or not - it is performing. After getting Andy MacPhail's take, today we solicit an outside and independent, but very well informed, opinion. I interviewed Baseball America's Will Lingo, who has followed the O's minors closely for years and who puts together the publication's
As we continue our series on the O's minors, how about scouting and the number of scouting positions a club uses? Fans have pointed out that, according to the Baseball America directory, the Orioles rank last in the AL East in the number of scouting positions. Here is what Baseball America reported: Baltimore: Director, International Scouting - 1 Director, Professional Scouting - 1 Major League
When it comes to how the Orioles are doing in the minor leagues these days, the general consensus seems to be good - not great, but better than in some past years. The O's farm system has sent several players to the Majors over the past few years, including some like Brian Matusz and Matt Wieters, who were high draft picks that are projected to
The Orioles beat the Texas Rangers 4-1 this afternoon, to complete their first four-game sweep at Texas since June of 1976. Jake Arrieta followed up Chris Tillman's stellar outing Saturday with one of his own today. Arrieta allowed six hits and one run over 6 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out three, throwing 90 pitches. He improved to 3-2, 4.38. Arrieta has allowed
It appears that Robbie Widlansky of the Double-A Bowie Baysox will be out for the rest of this season. He suffered what is believed to be a fractured right ankle on Thursday during a game at Erie and is expected to miss at least six weeks, meaning the soonest he would be back is at the very end of the minor league season. Widlansky, who
I wanted to pass along another reminder about what you will be reading in this space beginning Monday. I'll present a series of blogs on the Orioles minor league system. We'll take a look at how the O's are doing on the farm, how they develop players, how scouting and player development work together and how the O's make decisions like deciding when to promote
The Orioles have hit three homers off Cliff Lee tonight at Texas. Lee had allowed just five homers all year over 103 2/3 innings and 13 starts. This is the most homers he has allowed in a single game on the season. Nick Markakis hit a solo shot in the fourth, his sixth of the season and third over his last nine games and second
Juan Samuel wasn't kidding, apparently, when he said earlier today that his team needed to be aggressive tonight vs. Cliff Lee. Lee has a rep for getting ahead of hitters and the O's are sure swinging early in the count tonight vs. the 2008 AL Cy Young winner. It worked when Corey Patterson led off the game with a double and then, on the very
Don't look now, but the offensively-challenged Orioles have scored 35 runs over their past six games with a team average of .316 during the stretch. They have scored 13 runs on 25 hits with four homers in the first two games of the series at Texas. Let's see if they can keep that going, or some semblance of it, tonight vs. Cliff Lee. It's been
It was scheduled to start at 8:05 Eastern Time on Friday night, but after a rain delay of two hours and 29 minutes, it started around 10:30 and when it was over it was closing in on 2:30 a.m on Saturday. Corey Patterson's Grand Slam with two outs on a 2-2 pitch in the top of the ninth tied the game and the Orioles got
Orioles director of international operations, David Stockstill, confirmed in an interview tonight that the Orioles have reached agreement on a deal with 16-year-old Dominican third baseman Hector Veloz. "I can confirm we have agreed to terms," Stockstill said. "He's a third baseman with a lot of tools and some good power. He has a good arm and quick feet. "I'm really proud of our organization
There were a few roster moves today in the O's farm system. Right-hander Josh Perrault went on the disabled list at Bowie. The 28-year-old Perrault is 0-2, 9.24 over seven games after going 1-4, 2.13 last year between Bowie and Norfolk. Also, lefty Chris George has been transferred from Bowie to Norfolk. Aberdeen lefty Brandon Holloway has been placed on the disabled list. He is
The O's have finally made a splash of sorts on the international signings front. Here is an article from Baseball America on the possible signing of Hector Veloz. It is very unlikely that any O's club official will comment for the record on Veloz. His signing will need to be cleared through Major League Baseball's Dominican office and that could take weeks or months. The
Norfolk Tides first baseman Brandon Snyder, who has been out since June 17th, will likely begin a minor league injury rehab assignment sometime next week. Snyder is on Norfolk's disabled list and his injury was listed as a right shoulder strain, but he has also been dealing with an upper back injury. As a player with a full-season minor league team, he must play his
In a season where they are on a pace to lose over 100 games, tonight, for one night at least, the Orioles posted an impressive victory. They spotted the first-place Texas Rangers a 4-0 lead in the third inning, yet rallied to win 6-4 in the opener of a four-game series. Texas began the night with a 50-34 record and leading the AL West by
The O's began their four-game series at Texas tonight and it isn't going well so far. They trail 4-0 after three innings. Like last night, the opposing starter is picking up a lot of early strikeouts. Righty Tommy Hunter, who pitched to an ERA of 4.05 at Triple-A, but is 5-0, 1.98 in six Major League starts, has fanned six in three shutout innings. He
After today's afternoon game in Frederick, the Orioles promoted Keys first baseman Joe Mahoney and closer Jose Diaz to Double-A Bowie. Mahoney, in 72 games, is batting .299-9-49 with 18 doubles and an OPS of .823. He is batting .341 with runners in scoring position. The 26-year-old Diaz is 3-0, 1.69 and went 12 for 12 in save chances for the Keys. Over 26 2/3
There has been some really good relief pitching on the farm this year for the Orioles. Near or at the top of that list would be right-hander Brandon Cooney, who has excelled at Frederick and now is pitching very well at Bowie. Between the two clubs this year, the 24-year-old, a 30th-round draft pick in 2007, is 4-0 with six saves and an ERA of
The Orioles fourth-round draft pick, Auburn outfielder Trent Mummey, has gotten off to a solid start in his pro career. The 21-year lefty hitter and Aberdeen center fielder is the IronBirds' leadoff batter. He is hitting .306-1-4 in his first 11 pro games with four doubles, four walks and five strikeouts in 49 at bats. He has eight hits over his last four games. "It's
Right-hander Max Scherzer, who had allowed just 2 ER over his previous three starts, continued his recent stellar pitching vs. the Orioles on Wednesday night. Scherzer improved to 6-6, 4.61, as he gave up just six hits and one run over seven innings as the Tigers beat the Orioles, 4-2. Detroit completed a three-game sweep as the O's fell to 1-5 on their current road
Tigers right-hander Max Scherzer has thrown some overpowering fastballs in the mid to high 90's early in tonight's game with the Orioles. He fanned four of the first six batters tonight and six of the first ten he faced. He has thrown just 50 pitches through four innings and has given up just one hit, a Nick Markakis infield single in the fourth. How can
Brian Roberts has certainly not given up hope that he will be on the field for the Orioles before this season ends. In fact he hopes to return to the club long before the season is over. "I'll definitely be back before the end of the year, if we don't have any setbacks. Well way before the end of the year," Roberts said today on
Kipp Schutz didn't get his chance to make his mark with the Delmarva Shorebirds this season. But he seems to be making up for lost time now with the Aberdeen IronBirds. Schutz went into last night's game batting .403 to start the year and the O's 19th-round pick from the 2009 draft was the leading hitter in the New York-Penn League. His average dropped a
O's lefty Michael Gonzalez pitched a 1-2-3, top of the sixth tonight here at Aberdeen, getting a strikeout and two groundouts. He threw 13 pitches, eight for strikes, in his seventh injury rehab performance. Gonzalez, whose fastball was clocked between 89 and 91 on the Ripken Stadium radar gun, felt quite good about his one-inning stint against the Lowell Spinners. Another gun reading had Gonzalez
Michael Gonzalez just retired the Lowell Spinners 1-2-3 in a quick top of the sixth. He threw 13 pitches, eight for strikes. Gonzalez struck out number three hitter, Boston's first-round draft pick, Kolbrin Vitek on a 2-2 pitch. Then he got Bryce Brentz, batting fourth on a high chopper to short and then got the number five batter to ground out to short as well.
Michael Gonzalez is now warming up and will pitch for Aberdeen in the top of the sixth. The IronBirds still lead 3-0 and starter Justin Anderson gave up just three hits in five shutout innings.
Aberdeen scored a first-inning run tonight and leads Lowell 1-0 through two innings here at Ripken Stadium. The IronBirds Austin Knight, who went to high school at Baltimore's Boys Latin, singled with one out. Kipp Schutz then hit a ground single to right and Knight went to third on a misplay by the right fielder. He scored on a passed ball for a 1-0 edge.
Lefty Michael Gonzalez, who will pitch here tonight at Aberdeen, will likely come into this game during the 6th or 7th inning. He is scheduled to follow starter Justin Anderson to the mound, unless Anderson gets knocked out early in the contest. Gonzalez could come in during an inning and will not necessarily enter for a clean inning at the start. This will be his
Be sure to check out O's XTRA tonight at 6:30 on MASN before the O's-Tigers game. L.J. Hoes and Xavier Avery of the Frederick Keys will be interviewed live on set by Jim and Rick. These are two young and up and coming prospects in the O's system. Avery is batting .286-3-39 with 20 steals. Hoes, who missed some time with an illness, is back
I am looking forward to a trip to Ripken Stadium tonight to check in on the IronBirds and also to watch Michael Gonzalez make his 7th injury rehab appearance. Gonzalez is expected to pitch in relief tonight vs. the Lowell Spinners, a Red Sox affiliate. Gonzalez has pitched to an ERA of 4.27 in six games with the GCL O's, Aberdeen and Bowie. Over 6
Ty Wigginton is headed to the All-Star game and I have absolutely no problem with that. To me, it came to three or four O's with a chance to make it. Jason Berken, Nick Markakis, Adam Jones and Wigginton. Berken may have been most deserving of all, but they just don't pick relievers that are not closers, so that just about eliminated him. For all
When Kevin Millwood got off to a solid start this year pitching for the Orioles, that was good to see. It meant he was helping the club, but also boosting his trade value for the trade deadline. A lot has changed since then. Millwood is now struggling badly in the first inning of his starts and that's not the only inning that has been an
One of the hottest bats right now in the O's minors belongs to Frederick Keys right fielder Ronnie Welty. He is batting .429-0-10 during an 11-game batting streak which has featured nine games of two hits or more. Welty has raised his average on the year from .247 to .279 with the hot streak. On the season, the O's 20th-round pick from 2008 is batting
Some fans were critical when I wrote last week that Brian Matusz was doing just fine this year and that he was making progress. I wrote that he was holding up well as a young pitcher on the team with the worst record in baseball, especially given his lack of run support and his winless streak dating to April. Don't worry, I won't gloat after
Brian Matusz continued his stellar pitching vs. the AL East today and provided the Orioles with a big lift as he pitched the Birds past Boston 6-1 in the series finale at Fenway Park. Matusz also ended a 13-start winless drought and won for the first time since April 18 vs. Oakland. Matusz allowed just two hits over seven innings. He walked three and tied
Watching Brian Matusz pitch out of that second and third, one-out jam in the fourth reminded me that Matusz has held his own this year when pitching versus AL East opponents. He has better numbers within the division than he has overall. Those are the teams he will need to pitch well against moving forward - those Beasts of the East. Coming into this start,
If there is one thing the O's fans like to see out of their team, manager, and players - besides say, wins - it's fire and passion. They got it last night from manager Juan Samuel, during and after the game. Samuel was ejected by home plate ump Mike Everitt in the last of the eighth of Boston's 9-3 win on Saturday. He seemed to
For the Orioles, spotting Jon Lester a 4-0 lead in the first inning on Saturday made it look like it would be a long night. This time, looks were not deceiving. They got whipped 9-3 by Boston which has taken the first two games in this series and now leads the season series, 6 to 5. Lester gave up just five hits and one run
Maybe the Orioles have taken this come-from-behind to win thing too far. They spotted Jon Lester a 4-0 lead after one inning and now trail by that margin in the fourth inning at Fenway Park. Even the most loyal fan must be feeling like this one is lost already. The O's have not beaten Lester, who is 11-0, 2.06 in 14 career starts against them
*I am pretty sure this is not necessarily true, but the impression out there seems to be that Adam Jones is running the show and not the other way around. We read and hear things like "the O's met with Adam and asked him to play deeper in the field. They asked him to charge the ball more often." First of all you would hope
The Orioles have had minor league no-hitters pitched this year by Norfolk's Chris Tillman in April and on Wednesday night by Nate Moreau in his Frederick Keys debut. Friday night, the Aberdeen IronBirds took a no-hitter into the last of the eighth of their game at Hudson Valley, but settled for a one-hitter and 5-0 win over the Renegades. Aberdeen starter Justin Moore, a 20-year-old
What was it Brad Bergesen said in that article I posted earlier today. Something about Rick Kranitz saying he really liked his arm angle during his last start. Tonight Bergesen had a good arm angle and good results. But moments after he left the game he and the O's suffered a tough break. Bergesen gave up a two-out double to Marco Scutaro in a 2-2
I hate to even invoke that name in any discussion, ever. But what happened in Boston in the bottom of the second tonight did remind one of that kid who played almost as big a role as Derek Jeter or any Yankee in helping New York beat the O's in the ALCS in 1996. When J.D. Drew homered to left center in the second, a
Despite last night's dismal O's performance and blowout loss, the club has won five of its last seven games. But that was against the Marlins, Nats and A's. Tonight they begin a ten-game road trip vs. Boston (47-32), Detroit (41-36) and Texas (47-31). Let's see how the O's fare vs. these winning teams. Play anything like they did last night and they will get smoked
This time last year, O's pitcher Brad Bergesen was 5-2 with an ERA of 3.53. He was a rookie pitcher on a roll. Now he is 3-4, 6.83 and struggling to find consistent mechanics and solid results. Twice this year he has been sent back to Triple-A to try to find his sinker and iron out his mechanics. Riding the Norfolk-to-Baltimore-and-back shuttle is not what
The game was without too much drama, but it was an eventful night for Josh Bell. The 23-year-old third baseman made his Major League debut which included his first hit and his first error in the field during Oakland's 8-1 win over the Orioles on Thursday night. "Amped up a little bit. I didn't think I put that much on it. But, just getting out
The O's wanted to cap off a good homestand with a win and they also had a chance to win back-to-back series for the first time all year. But Trevor Cahill had other thoughts. He shut down the Birds over seven innings as Oakland beat the Orioles 8-1, in front of 15,712 at Camden Yards on Thursday night. The O's went 5-4 on the homestand
The O's offense, one night after scoring nine runs, has a tall order tonight in taking on Trevor Cahill. The A's right-hander is 7-2, 2.88 on the season and over his last eight starts is 6-0, 2.24. So it's a hot pitcher vs. a team that has scored 48 runs during the eight games on this homestand. Cahill's winning percentage of .778 is 4th best
Last year's Orioles first-round draft pick, right-hander Matt Hobgood, will make his next start this coming Monday for the Delmarva Shorebirds. Hobgood has been out since June 11 with shoulder soreness. The injury is not serious but since he has missed some time, Hobgood will be on a pitch count and his innings will be limited in that first start back. The 19-year-old is 3-6,
One reason Josh Bell did join the Orioles today is because the club feels Felix Pie, out since April 15 with a back injury, is just not ready to return yet. Pie has played seven games in the minors with Bowie, Frederick and the Gulf Coast League O's. Pie was in the O's clubhouse today, but not to be activated as he will play at
Josh Bell found out last night that he would be heading for Baltimore to make his Major League debut with the Orioles. He told reporters in the O's clubhouse a few moments ago he was not expecting to get this call so soon. "Not at all. It's a blessing, I guess. I'm ready. I found out last night when we got back in from Charlotte.
Here are some stats on Josh Bell, who was recalled from the minors today. He is batting .266-10-44 on the season and has 24 doubles. Bell vs. lefty pitching: .233-0-6, .652 OPS Bell vs. righy pitching: .277-10-38, .804 OPS Bell by month: April: .238-3-10, .661 OPS May: .282-3-15, .780 OPS June: .272-4-19, .840 OPS Bell is hitting .314 with runners in scoring position. On Tuesday
When he takes the mound tonight at home vs. Oakland, Jake Arrieta will look to return to the form he showed in his first two outings as he makes his fifth Major League start. After going 2-0, 2.77 in his first two starts vs. the Yankees and San Francisco, Arrieta went 0-1, 12.27 over his past two vs. San Diego and Washington. Arrieta said he
Checking in with more notes and quotes after the Orioles latest comeback win, 9-6 on Wednesday night over Oakland. Nice change: The Orioles had lost 16 of the last 19 games with the A's before rallying to win the second game of the series. After falling behind 6-4 after four, they scored the game's final five runs. Kevin Millwood, who gave up 5 ER over
