masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgDo you want the good or the bad first?

Let’s start with the good, which would be Manny Machado going 2-for-4 with a triple and run scored in his first major league game.

“I thought Manny did well,” manager Buck Showalter said following an 8-2 loss to the Royals that halted the Orioles’ winning streak at five games. “Presented himself well tonight. I’m proud of him. There was a nice calmness about him and a good start. He handled the situation well, all things considered.

“He’s up…Do you want the good or the bad first?

Let’s start with the good, which would be Manny Machado going 2-for-4 with a triple and run scored in his first major league game.

“I thought Manny did well,” manager Buck Showalter said following an 8-2 loss to the Royals that halted the Orioles’ winning streak at five games. “Presented himself well tonight. I’m proud of him. There was a nice calmness about him and a good start. He handled the situation well, all things considered.

“He’s up here trying to help us win and we’re not going to put any… I’ve been through this with young players many times and the paper tomorrow will have him with a couple hits and we got beat. And if I know Manny like I think I do, he’s probably a little more on the side that we didn’t win in the first game he played in, so that’s good. But you do step back and realize it is a special time for him.

“I like his calmness and the way that he approached the competition. I talked to J.J. (Hardy) about him in the sixth or seventh inning, about how everything was going out there, and he said, ‘Fine.'”

Now for the bad, which would be Wei-Yin Chen allowing a major league-high seven runs, including two homers, in 4 2/3 innings.

“That’s one of, if not the best young hitting teams in the league and they were really aggressive and didn’t let any mistakes pass,” Showalter said. “He got ambushed early and fought his way through some innings. Kept us from going in there (bullpen) real early. But he’s human. He’s performed at a very high level for us and I think it’s more them than it was him.

“I know his competitive nature and he doesn’t like getting hit around. I’m not saying it’s good for him because he doesn’t assume anything and we don’t assume how hard it is to do what he’s been doing for us, and he’ll get back on the horse again.”

Chen was hit on the upper left calf by a Salvador Perez comebacker in the first inning, but he stayed in the game after a few warmup tosses.

“It’s something I’m reminded of every night, being the guy I was,” Showalter said. “I threw in some games in blowouts and the balls that these guys hit, it’s a wonder that it doesn’t happen more. We were fortunate tonight. You know how close you are. But Wei-Yin’s in good fielding position, one of those pitchers who is. I was impressed with his toughness there to keep going. He got a pretty good shot there.”

Billy Butler came within a single of hitting for the cycle, raising his average against the Orioles this season to .458 (11-for-24) with three home runs and five RBIs.

“Butler’s one of the top five right-handed hitters in baseball,” Showalter said. “This guy is solid. You look at his track record. I try not to feel like he’s picking on us. We made some good pitches on him the last couple at-bats, but we made some mistakes on him and good hitters are going to pounce on those.”