masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgOne night after their comeback to win from a 5-0 deficit, the Orioles look for a victory tonight in the second game of their series against the Detroit Tigers at Camden Yards.
Held to just three singles and no runs as they headed to the the sixth inning last night, the Orioles began their comeback scoring two runs on three hits in the sixth. Then they added five runs on six hits in the seventh to get the 7-5 lead and won by that margin.
The Orioles have now won five in a row, seven of nine and…

One night after their comeback to win from a 5-0 deficit, the Orioles look for a victory tonight in the second game of their series against the Detroit Tigers at Camden Yards.

Held to just three singles and no runs as they headed to the the sixth inning last night, the Orioles began their comeback scoring two runs on three hits in the sixth. Then they added five runs on six hits in the seventh to get the 7-5 lead and won by that margin.

The Orioles have now won five in a row, seven of nine and 10 of their past 14 games. They are 14-5 at home and a season-high nine games over .500. During the five consecutive wins, they have outscored the opposition 37-15.

tillman-pitching-alds-white-sidebar.pngChris Tillman (4-1, 3.05 ERA) tonight makes his eighth start of the year, pitching against Justin Verlander (2-3, 5.40 ERA), the 2011 American League Cy Young Award winner.

Tillman has recorded four straight quality starts, going 3-0 with an ERA of 2.08. In five home starts, he is 3-0 with a 2.39 ERA. He has allowed just one homer all year over 38 1/3 innings and none over his past five starts. The Orioles are 6-1 in Tillman’s seven 2016 starts.

Verlander has allowed three runs or less in five of his seven starts. But he gave up seven runs twice, once each against Pittsburgh and Cleveland to inflate his ERA. In his last start, he pitched seven scoreless innings allowing just three hits Sunday against Texas, throwing 111 pitches.

Verlander has at least one strikeout in 288 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the majors and the 10th longest since 2014.

In 16 careers starts versus Baltimore, Verlander is 9-3 with a 3.89 ERA. In eight career starts at Camden Yards, he is 7-0 with an ERA of 2.84.

We’ll see how an O’s offense on the uptick fares against him tonight. The Orioles have four straight games with 12 hits or more. In that span, they’ve scored 32 runs on 54 hits with 12 homers and a batting average of .344 (11-for-32) with runners in scoring position.

AL leaders in at-bats per home run:
11.82 – Mark Trumbo, Orioles
11.83 – Robinson Cano, Mariners
12.27 – Todd Frazier, White Sox
12.38 – Corey Dickerson, Rays

Farm notes: Double-A Bowie catcher Chance Sisco extended his hitting streak to seven games last night. He is batting .417 (10-for-24) during the streak. Sisco has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games, batting .446/.511/.513 (17-for-39) in that span. He leads the Eastern League in both batting average at .349 and on-base percentage (.457). Did I mention Sisco has thrown out 41.7 percent of attempting basestealers? Or that was he just 21?

Single-A Frederick right-hander Matthew Grimes logged 6 2/3 scoreless innings Thursday night, improving to 4-2 with a 1.67 ERA in seven starts for the Keys. Grimes ranks second in the Carolina League in ERA.

His Keys teammate, outfielder Jay Gonzalez, went 0-for-2 with two walks, a run scored and two stolen bases in that game. He ranks tied for second in the Carolina League with 20 stolen bases and is 20-for-22 (91.0%) in stolen base attempts this season.

Single-A Delmarva pitcher Ofelky Peralta picked up his first professional win last night. The 19-year-old right-hander from the Dominican Republic went five innings allowing two hits and an unearned run against Greensboro. Over six starts, Peralta, ranked as the Orioles’ No. 17 prospect entering the season by Baseball America, is 1-1 with an ERA of 1.98. Over 27 1/3 innings for the Shorebirds, he has walked 16 and fanned 30.