masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgSARASOTA, Fla. – The fine folks at McKechnie Field set off fireworks after tonight’s game, which seemed a bit redundant. The two teams supplied plenty of them – and a lot of errors.

The Orioles outlasted the Pirates, 11-8, with left-hander Troy Patton leaving the Witness Protection Program to strike out two in the ninth and record the save.

I packed up my laptop and drove back to Sarasota – note the dateline of this entry – before passing along manager Buck Showalter’s comments.

“Bergy…SARASOTA, Fla. – The fine folks at McKechnie Field set off fireworks after tonight’s game, which seemed a bit redundant. The two teams supplied plenty of them – and a lot of errors.

The Orioles outlasted the Pirates, 11-8, with left-hander Troy Patton leaving the Witness Protection Program to strike out two in the ninth and record the save.

I packed up my laptop and drove back to Sarasota – note the dateline of this entry – before passing along manager Buck Showalter’s comments.

“Bergy elevated the ball a little bit. His command wasn’t what it needs to be,” Showalter said, referring to Brad Bergesen’s 2 2/3 difficult innings.

“Bergy was really jumpy. He couldn’t stay behind the ball like he’s capable of, but he’s got time. He’s better than that.”

Showalter disputed an observation that Bergesen has strung together two rough starts in a row.

“He’s OK,” Showalter said. “He just got a little ahead of himself and got his arm working underneath him and everything. It’s early, but at the same time, you’d like to see him get to the fourth inning.”

Showalter praised relievers Jeremy Accardo and Josh Rupe. Accardo struck out two in a scoreless inning, and Rupe walked two in two scoreless innings.

Accardo has been very impressive with five scoreless innings this spring. He’s allowed two hits, walked one and struck out four.

Chris George came over from the minor league side to blank the Pirates over 1 2/3 innings, striking out two. He earned the win.

Ryan Adams, batting ninth and starting at second base, went 2-for-4 with a long opposite-field home run and four RBIs.

“You can see why everybody likes him as a hitter,” Showalter said, “and you can see why he needs to work a little bit defensively.”

Craig Tatum raised his average to .300 after going 3-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored.

“He’s off suicide watch there after four or five days,” Showalter said.

One final note: Zach Britton will start Saturday against the Astros in Kissimmee, followed by Chris Tillman. Tillman originally was slated to start, followed by Britton. Showalter will be asked about the switch tomorrow.