masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgSARASOTA, Fla. – Chris Tillman threw 103 pitches in 5 2/3 innings today, leaving with two Boston runners on base after he got ahead of Paul Hoover, 0-2, and walked him.

Tillman allowed three runs and six hits, with four walks and three strikeouts. He hit David Ortiz to lead off the sixth.

That’s a lot of pitches in fewer than six complete innings, and the walks remain a concern. However, Tillman’s 3.93 ERA makes him look like a staff ace, not someone trying to earn a spot in the…SARASOTA, Fla. – Chris Tillman threw 103 pitches in 5 2/3 innings today, leaving with two Boston runners on base after he got ahead of Paul Hoover, 0-2, and walked him.

Tillman allowed three runs and six hits, with four walks and three strikeouts. He hit David Ortiz to lead off the sixth.

That’s a lot of pitches in fewer than six complete innings, and the walks remain a concern. However, Tillman’s 3.93 ERA makes him look like a staff ace, not someone trying to earn a spot in the rotation.

Tillman has allowed 20 hits, walked nine batters, struck out 10 and hit two batters in 18 1/3 official innings. I’m not counting the minor league game he pitched in his last outing.

Is that good enough to break camp as the No. 3 starter? Or as the guy who gets the call on April 10, when the Orioles need a fifth starter?

In Dunedin, Jeremy Guthrie allowed four runs and 12 hits in five innings. He walked one, struck out three, hit a batter and threw a wild pitch. He’ll leave behind a 6.43 spring ERA.

Nick Green’s two-run homer off Ricky Romero in the sixth has given the Orioles a 5-4 lead over the Blue Jays.

Update: Koji Uehara retired all three batters he faced in the seventh on two fly balls and a grounder to first. He threw 15 pitches, nine for strikes. This is Uehara’s first game against major league competition since Feb. 28.

Today’s attendance: 8,495. That’s nine sellouts in 14 games at Ed Smith Stadium this spring.