Delmarva does a great job hosting South Atlantic League All-Star Game as Machado heads for Frederick

Delmarva does a great job hosting South Atlantic League All-Star Game as Machado heads for Frederick
SALISBURY, Md. - The only thing that went wrong with last night's South Atlantic League All-Star game was the home team lost. The South beat the North 6-3 in front of a sellout crowd of 7,410 at Perdue Stadium. The North squad had won four straight from 2006-2009 and last year's game ended in a tie, so this was the first win by the South since 2005. But despite the fact that the team with five Delmarva Shorebirds on it came up short, everything else was pretty much a huge hit last night in...
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Frederick bound: Machado gets official word after All-Star Game

Frederick bound: Machado gets official word after All-Star Game
SALISBURY, Md. - The news that was very expected became official after tonight's South Atlantic League All-Star Game. The Orioles are sending top prospect Manny Machado from low Single-A Delmarva to high Single-A Frederick. Machado played his last game representing the Shorebirds tonight and went 2-for-4 with a run scored as his North team lost 6-3 to the South in front of a sellout crowd. Before tonight's game Machado said he had not been told anything about his next move, but shortly...
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South leads 6-2 at Delmarva (updated)

South leads 6-2 at Delmarva (updated)
SALISBURY, Md. - After four and a half innings of the South Atlantic League All-Star game, the South team leads the North 6-2 at Perdue Stadium. The South plated five runs in the third, getting two-run homers from Adam Duvall and Cory Vaughn. Single-A Delmarva's Manny Machado is 1-for-2 with a single and a run scored in the first and he struck out in the top of the third. His Shorebirds teammate, Ty Kelly, starting at second base, is 0-for-1 after a third-inning ground out. Delmarva lefty...
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Ty Kelly

Ty Kelly
SALISBURY, Md. - Manny Machado is not the only Delmarva Shorebird position player here at the South Atlantic League All-Star game. Ty Kelly is batting ninth at second base for the North team. Kelly is 10th in the league batting at .312 in 52 games with seven doubles, three homers and 27 RBIs. He went 8-for-16 over his past four Shorebirds' games and, after hitting .259 for Delmarva last year, has taken his game to a higher level in 2011. "The more I think about it, there were times I...
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The Earl of Baltimore: Weaver a hit with the fans in Salisbury

The Earl of Baltimore: Weaver a hit with the fans in Salisbury
SALISBURY, Md - Orioles Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver headlined the Fan Fest festivities today in Salisbury at the South Atlantic League All-Star game and signed autographs for around two hours for a steady stream of fans. Earl said the fans here kept asking him about returning to manage. "Since (80-year-old Jack) McKeon went back, if I would," Weaver said. "There is no way I can go back (with my arthritis). You just saw me hobble in here. I couldn't get up and down the dugout...
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Ty Kelly on Machado: "He deserves all the attention he gets"

Ty Kelly on Machado: "He deserves all the attention he gets"
SALISBURY, Md. - Orioles top prospect Manny Machado singled tonight in his first at-bat in the South Atlantic League All-Star game. Machado fell behind 0-2 on the count, got back to a full count and drove a ground ball up the middle for a single against Savannah's Taylor Whitenton. Machado was batting second and his single sent Hagerstown's Blake Kelso, who had singled, to third base. After a wild pitch sent Machado to second, Bryce Harper hit an RBI groundout to second to give the North a...
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Delmarva's David Walters is unlikely All-Star

Delmarva's David Walters is unlikely All-Star
SALISBURY, Md. - There are seven first-round draft picks on the rosters here for the South Atlantic League All-Star game, but Single-A Delmarva reliever David Walters is not among them. The 23-year-old, right-hander, who leads the league with 17 saves, was actually signed by the Orioles as a free agent in June, 2009 after the draft out of Francis Marion University in South Carolina. He saw 50 rounds come and go and his name was not called. "I just wanted an opportunity and glad the Orioles...
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Machado on his hot start, his knee injury and tonight's All-Star game

Machado on his hot start, his knee injury and tonight's All-Star game
SALISBURY, Md. - In what is likely to be his last appearance for the Delmarva Shorebirds, Orioles' top prospect
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Checking on the O's offense and preparing for a trip to Salisbury

Checking on the O's offense and preparing for a trip to Salisbury
I am not ready to say the Orioles' offense has turned the corner or that it's finally living up to its preseason hype, but I will say it is functioning on most of its cylinders right now. Maybe for the first time all year. The top six in last night's order all are hitting pretty well right now. That is J.J Hardy, Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Derrek Lee, Matt Wieters and Mark Reynolds. The Orioles are not getting much offense out of left field right now, but most players manning the other...
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For the O's, usually the first is the worst

For the O's, usually the first is the worst
The Orioles, who took a 5-0 lead in the first inning tonight at Pittsburgh, began this game as major league's lowest-scoring first inning team. They come in averaging just 0.26 first-inning runs per game to rank last in the majors. 0.26 - Orioles 0.29 - Seattle 0.32 - Oakland 0.36 - Kansas City and Washington The Yankees lead the majors in scoring with 0.76 first inning runs per game. The O's got five runs on six hits in the big inning as Adam Jones delivered a two-run single and they got...
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Checking on the Pirates past and present

Checking on the Pirates past and present
The Orioles have lost two World Series against the Pirates, in 1971 and 1979. Tomorrow night, before Game Two of their series with the Orioles, the Pirates will celebrate the 40th anniversary of that 1971 team. The Orioles won the first two games, by scores of 5-3 and 11-3 at home, but then lost three straight in Pittsburgh. When that series returned to Baltimore, the O's Game Six win was followed by a 2-1 Game Seven loss with Steve Blass besting Mike Cuellar. The Orioles and Pirates will...
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No longer under the radar: McCurry got to Triple-A in a hurry

No longer under the radar: McCurry got to Triple-A in a hurry
Sometimes in the minor leagues you can find players who actually put up better stats as they move up to higher levels. You wouldn't think that possible, but some players mature and learn more about the game and themselves, and it happens. Joe Mahoney hit .222 his first year at Single-A Delmarva in 2008. He returned there in 2009 and hit .278. Then in 2010, Mahoney hit .299 at Single-A Frederick and then .319 at Double-A Bowie. His game took steps forward as he moved up. For lefty pitcher...
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Some impressions from the weekend series against the Nats

Some impressions from the weekend series against the Nats
Some thoughts after the end of the weekend series in Washington. The clubs split six games this year and today's O's win keeps the Orioles ahead, 19-17, in the all-time series versus the Nationals. * We've said it before, but maybe this team will finally get hot on offense for an extended time. It seems that Nick Markakis and Derrek Lee have heated up and maybe those hot bats will join those of Adam Jones, Matt Wieters and J.J. Hardy to see this club finally put up some runs. Markakis is...
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Orioles get series finale, 7-4 at Nats Park

Orioles get series finale, 7-4 at Nats Park
The Orioles overcame some early frustrations - they hit into three double plays in the first four innings - to beat the Nationals 7-4 Sunday and salvage the final game in this series. The Orioles won for just the second time in eight games and are 2-4 on their current road trip. They ended the Nats' eight-game winning streak. The clubs wind up splitting six games this year, with each taking two of three at home. The Orioles are 11-7 versus the Nats since 2009 and the all-time series has the...
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Updating Lee and Hardy

Updating Lee and Hardy
Derrek Lee is 2-for-3 today with an RBI double through the fifth inning in Washington and the Orioles lead 5-3. That makes him 9-for-12 in this series with three doubles and an RBI and he has raised his average from .214 at the start of play Friday to its current .246. Lee had five hits Friday, two Saturday and has two today. Lee had multi hits two games in a row just twice all season before this series and now has three in a row. Before this series, in seven games since coming off the DL on...
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Are the wheels starting to come off for the Orioles?

Are the wheels starting to come off for the Orioles?
In a season filled with ups and downs, the Orioles have hit another bump in the road. This one looks like a crater. In just the last three days both Jeremy Guthrie and Brian Matusz have left starts with injuries. The club has been terrible with runners in scoring position the last week or so and every new game seems to bring another major blunder on the bases or in the field. And, then usually another injury. It is looking like the wheels are beginning to come off the cart. No one is saying...
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O's lose game, Matusz and Scott to injury at Nats Park

O's lose game, Matusz and Scott to injury at Nats Park
On a day when the Orioles had two players leave the game injured, they also scored just two runs in a 4-2 loss to the Nationals in front of 36,614 at Nats Park. Luke Scott left the game in the fourth with back spasms and starting pitcher Brian Matusz left during the Nats three-run sixth with left hamstring cramps. Both players are listed as day-to-day. The Nationals scored three times in the last of the sixth to break a 1-1 tie. Michael Morse hit a two-run homer off Matusz to right field to...
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Like most pitchers, Matusz needs the command as much as the velocity

Like most pitchers, Matusz needs the command as much as the velocity
Brian Matusz is having a good start so far today in Washington. We'll see whether that continues deep into this game, but his outing so far is very encouraging. Some fans will say it's because he is throwing harder today and his velocity seems up a tick or two from earlier starts. But with Matusz it is almost never about the velocity. It's about his excellent four-pitch assortment, commanding those pitches and keeping the hitters off balance. When he can work ahead in the count and use all...
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Where to start with this loss?

Where to start with this loss?
This had to be one of the ugliest Orioles losses of the year. They had numerous chances to score more than four runs. They had poor relief pitching. They allowed three unearned runs. They had 18 hits and somehow managed to turn that into four runs. It was another game where a Mark Reynolds' mistake was glaring. After the game, Buck Showalter would not pin the loss on Reynolds' throwing error in the last of the fifth, but that fueled Washington's four-run inning. Showalter correctly said...
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Hot Nats bats provide challenge for Britton tonight

Hot Nats bats provide challenge for Britton tonight
While Zach Britton has to bat in tonight's game in Washington, how he pitches against a hot team will still very likely be the bigger determining factor in whether he and the Orioles get a win tonight. After giving up 14 earned runs in 16 2/3 over a three-start stretch, Britton returned to earlier form in his last start against Oakland on June 8 when he gave up just one run over 6 1/3 innings to post his first win since May 1. Britton is 2-2 with an ERA of 4.94 in four road starts in...
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