masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgPORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. – Orioles left-hander Brian Matusz will undergo an MRI on his lower back this afternoon, leaving his status in doubt as the club proceeds through its Grapefruit League schedule.
Matusz told manager Buck Showalter that he felt tightness in his back during yesterday’s game against the Braves in Sarasota. Matusz served up a home run to Mallex Smith and a double to Jeff Francoeur in the fifth inning. He also walked a batter.
Showalter said the discomfort is in the lower left…

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. – Orioles left-hander Brian Matusz will undergo an MRI on his lower back this afternoon, leaving his status in doubt as the club proceeds through its Grapefruit League schedule.

Matusz told manager Buck Showalter that he felt tightness in his back during yesterday’s game against the Braves in Sarasota. Matusz served up a home run to Mallex Smith and a double to Jeff Francoeur in the fifth inning. He also walked a batter.

matusz-head-down-black-alcs-sidebar.jpgShowalter said the discomfort is in the lower left side of Matusz’s back. It’s apparently been an issue for at least a couple of days and worsened during an 11-4 loss to the Braves.

“He just felt it during the game,” Showalter said. “It was pretty sore, kind of in the lower back, on the side, the way I understand it.

“He initially requested the MRI and they thought it would be a good idea. We just want to know what we’re dealing with here. He said it’s just been kind of sore. Yesterday was a little bit more than that.”

Matusz, 29, is in his final year before becoming eligible for free agency. The fourth overall pick in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft, Matusz is 27-41 with a 4.76 ERA in seven major league seasons. He went 1-4 with a 2.94 ERA and 1.184 WHIP in 58 appearances over 49 innings last summer.

The Orioles avoided arbitration with Matusz this winter by agreeing to terms on a $3.9 million contract.