Tonight's game and upcoming roster moves (updated)

Tonight's game and upcoming roster moves (updated)
NEW YORK - Chris Tillman is hoping to break a pattern tonight. Tillman has made five starts this season and allowed one, seven, one, seven and two earned runs for a 6.23 ERA. Both of his quality starts have come against the Rays, including his most recent outing on May 1, when he allowed two runs and three hits over seven innings. Tillman will try to begin a new quality start streak after Ubaldo Jimenez lasted only four innings last night. Jimenez would have returned for the fifth with his...

Wrapping up a 5-1 loss

Wrapping up a 5-1 loss
NEW YORK - Shortstop J.J. Hardy and second baseman Ryan Flaherty played nine innings tonight at Double-A Bowie, and Orioles manager Buck Showalter is eager to write their names into the lineup at Yankee Stadium. Hardy went 1-for-4 and Flaherty went 2-for-5. Hardy is expected to be activated from the disabled list on Thursday, with Flaherty joining him the following day. "We have to talk to J.J. and Ryan in another form, so we've got an idea of what we're going to do," Showalter said after...

Streak of quality starts ends at seven (O's lose 5-1)

Streak of quality starts ends at seven (O's lose 5-1)
NEW YORK - Ubaldo Jimenez lasted only four innings tonight against the Mets, ending the rotation's streak of quality starts at seven in a row. Starters had worked at least six innings in eight consecutive games before Jimenez's early exit. Jimenez allowed three runs and six hits in four innings, with two walks, one strikeout and a home run. He threw 85 pitches, 49 for strikes. Jimenez moved to the on-deck circle with one out in the fifth, but he was called back after Mets starter Jacob deGrom...

More notes before tonight's game (O's down 2-0)

More notes before tonight's game (O's down 2-0)
NEW YORK - The Orioles were interested in catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, released by the Marlins this week, but I'm told that he's not signing with the club. It's believed that Saltalamacchia's clearest path to a starting job is with the Diamondbacks. Caleb Joseph is making the bulk of the starts for the Orioles while Matt Wieters remains on the disabled list. Ryan Lavarnway has started five of the first 25 games. Orioles manager Buck Showalter is hoping to get Steve Pearce back into the...

J.J. Hardy and Ryan Flaherty nearing return

J.J. Hardy and Ryan Flaherty nearing return
NEW YORK - Orioles manager Buck Showalter said it's possible that shortstop J.J. Hardy and infielder Ryan Flaherty could join the team Thursday at Yankee Stadium. Flaherty isn't eligible to come off the disabled list until Friday, but he could travel with Hardy following tonight's game at Double-A Bowie. Hardy can be activated at any time after beginning the season on the DL with a left shoulder strain. The Orioles will need to clear roster space for both players, and Showalter didn't...

Orioles and Mets lineups

Orioles and Mets lineups
NEW YORK - Steve Pearce remains out of the Orioles lineup tonight due to a stomach virus. Jimmy Paredes gets another start at second base.Alejandro De Aza is leading off and playing right field, and Manny Machado drops down to fifth in the order.For the OriolesAlejandro De Aza RFJimmy Paredes 2BAdam Jones CFChris Davis 1BManny Machado 3BDavid Lough LFCaleb Joseph CEverth Cabrera SSUbaldo Jimenez RHP For the Mets Curtis Granderson RF Juan Lagares CF Lucas Duda 1B Michael Cuddyer LF Daniel Murphy...

Britton on batting

Britton on batting
NEW YORK - Ubaldo Jimenez gets his turn at batting tonight in the finale of a two-game interleague series between the Orioles at Mets at Citi Field. Jimenez is a career .113 hitter in 10 major league seasons, going 31-for-274 with nine RBIs, 17 walks and 94 strikeouts. He batted .045 (3-for-67) in 2008, .220 (13-for-59) in 2009 and .104 (8-for-77) in 2010. He'll try to recapture that 2009 magic tonight. He'll also try to produce the rotation's eighth consecutive quality start. Jimenez is 2-3...

Wrapping up a 3-2 loss

Wrapping up a 3-2 loss
NEW YORK - Bud Norris gave the Orioles a chance to win tonight, as manager Buck Showalter pointed out following tonight's 3-2 loss to the Mets at Citi Field. He just couldn't match veteran right-hander Bartolo Colon, who became the first pitcher to beat a team with seven different organizations. Colon carried a shutout into the eighth inning before Manny Machado homered. He struck out nine batters and didn't issue a walk, leaving his total at one in 40 1/3 innings. "Just what he's been...

Jimmy Paredes shining in field but O's down 3-0 (O's lose 3-2)

Jimmy Paredes shining in field but O's down 3-0 (O's lose 3-2)
NEW YORK - With Steve Pearce unable to play tonight in the Orioles' first interleague game of 2015, Jimmy Paredes is getting the start at second base and making the most of his opportunity. Paredes, considered below-average in the field, made a leaping catch of a line drive from the Mets' Wilmer Flores with runners on first and second and no outs in the second inning. The next batter, Kevin Plawecki, grounded to third baseman Manny Machado, who started a 5-4-3 double play. For those of you...

Orioles honoring slain NYPD officer

Orioles honoring slain NYPD officer
NEW YORK - As the Orioles prepared for their first interleague series tonight at Citi Field, they also made certain to honor slain New York City police officer Brian Moore, an avid fan of the team who died yesterday. Moore, 25, was shot in the head Saturday night while trying to question a man in Queens. He was the son, nephew and cousin of police officers and earned service medals in less than five years on the job. The Mets wore NYPD caps today while taking batting practice. Moore's favorite...

Steve Pearce still shelved with stomach virus

Steve Pearce still shelved with stomach virus
NEW YORK - Steve Pearce continues to battle a stomach virus, which explains his absence from tonight's lineup. Pearce was removed from Sunday's game against the Rays at Tropicana Field and he's not feeling any better today. Orioles manager Buck Showalter wrote out two lineups this afternoon before deciding to sit Pearce and start Jimmy Paredes at second base. "Just a little under the weather right now," Pearce said. "Just hope I'm at the very end of this thing and hopefully I'll get out...

Orioles and Mets lineups

Orioles and Mets lineups
NEW YORK - The Orioles will attempt to break a six-game losing streak to the Mets tonight as they begin a two-game interleague series at Citi Field. The Orioles are 9-19 all-time against the Mets, going 3-8 on the road (0-3 at Citi Field and 3-5 at Shea Stadium) since interleague play started in 1997. They haven't won since June 18, 2009 and haven't prevailed in New York since June 17, 2006. Not that the sides play on a yearly basis. They've competed against each other in New York in two...

Entering interleague play

Entering interleague play
The Orioles are entering their first interleague series tonight against the Mets, and they're designated as the visiting team at Citi Field. Attendance and statistics count as road games. The uniforms will be gray in color. We're slowly getting back to normal. The Orioles were 12-8 against the National League in 2014 and 11-9 in 2013. Starter Bud Norris gets the opportunity to bat tonight, which puts a knot in manager Buck Showalter's stomach. It isn't because Norris is completely...

Cruz beats out Jones for American League honor

Cruz beats out Jones for American League honor
Major League Baseball announced today that former Oriole Nelson Cruz was named the American League's Player of the Month after his home run binge for the Mariners. Cruz finished ahead of Orioles center fielder Adam Jones, who batted .400 with six doubles, five home runs, 19 RBIs and 17 runs scored. That may be good enough to win it in other months, but Cruz earned his first award - and the first by a Seattle player since Ichiro Suzuki in August 2004 - with a .322 average, three doubles, one...

Odds and ends following a weekend series in St. Petersburg

Odds and ends following a weekend series in St. Petersburg
The Orioles are back home today, and not in the dome sense of the word. They're really home until later this afternoon, when they board a train to New York. Coming up are two games against the Mets followed by four against the Yankees. They don't return to Camden Yards until May 11 against the Blue Jays. The Orioles are preparing for their first interleague series. They should be excited just to get out of the American League East. The most positive development at Tropicana Field involved a...

Wrapping up a 4-2 win

Wrapping up a 4-2 win
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles took two of three games at Oriole Park at Tropicana Field, or OPATF for short, and moved above .500 for the first time since April 20. They handled their latest challenge like all the others, in businesslike fashion and refusing to accept any sort of pity. "People have been through worse, man. People have been through worse," said center fielder Adam Jones, who went 4-for-4 with a tie-breaking two-run single in a 4-2 win over the Rays before 16,652. "We're...

Catching up with Matt Wieters (O's win 4-2)

Catching up with Matt Wieters (O's win 4-2)
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Catcher Matt Wieters provided an update today on his rehab schedule at extended spring training. However, he's still unable to pass along a timetable for his first injury rehab games or his return to the Orioles' 25-man roster. Wieters caught five innings in Saturday's extended game and threw out a couple of runners, another positive step in his return from ligament-reconstructive surgery on his right elbow. He was back in the Orioles clubhouse this morning to visit...

Hardy and Flaherty ready for rehab assignments

Hardy and Flaherty ready for rehab assignments
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy and infielder Ryan Flaherty will begin their injury rehab assignments on Monday at Double-A Bowie. Both players are expected to play three games with the Baysox. They may skip the 11 a.m. game Thursday and use it as a travel day. Orioles manager Buck Showalter is hoping that Hardy and Flaherty will join the team this weekend in New York. Flaherty, on the disabled list with a strained groin muscle, ran the bases again today and said he's...

Orioles lineup vs. Rays (with Rays lineup)

Orioles lineup vs. Rays (with Rays lineup)
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Manny Machado will bat leadoff again today for the Orioles, the fourth time in his career that he's been atop the order. After going 0-for-3 with a walk last night, Machado's now 2-for 13 in the leadoff role. Steve Pearce will get another start at second base. For the OriolesManny Machado 3BJimmy Paredes DHAdam Jones CFChris Davis 1BSteve Pearce 2BDelmon Young RFTravis Snider LFCaleb Joseph CEverth Cabrera SS Wei-Yin Chen LHP The pitching matchups for the two-game...

Machado's defense and today's game

Machado's defense and today's game
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles third baseman Manny Machado charged a slow bouncer last night from Tampa Bay's Steven Souza Jr. and fired across the diamond for the out, making the play appear routine. Soft hands, cannon arm. The usual tools that Machado brings on the field. Souza Jr. tested Machado again in the third inning, laying down a two-out bunt with Kevin Kiermaier at third base. Again, Machado charged the ball and recorded the out with a laser to first baseman Chris Davis. Machado...