masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgThe Orioles are prepared to make another roster move today as their road trip leads them into Cleveland for a three-game series.
Matt Wieters will be activated from the disabled list and manager Buck Showalter doesn’t seem inclined to carry three catchers. Caleb Joseph figures to stay, but we’ll see.
Steve Clevenger is 5-for-11 with a double since being recalled and his defense has improved. However, life isn’t always fair and that certainly applies to baseball.
Left-hander Brian Matusz…

The Orioles are prepared to make another roster move today as their road trip leads them into Cleveland for a three-game series.

Matt Wieters will be activated from the disabled list and manager Buck Showalter doesn’t seem inclined to carry three catchers. Caleb Joseph figures to stay, but we’ll see.

Steve Clevenger is 5-for-11 with a double since being recalled and his defense has improved. However, life isn’t always fair and that certainly applies to baseball.

Left-hander Brian Matusz could begin serving his suspension today, which might impact the roster decision. The Orioles can’t replace Matusz and will have to play a man short, most likely going with a reduced bench.

Matt_Wieters-sidebar_throwing_out_runner.jpgWieters hasn’t caught for the Orioles since May 4, 2014. He played his last game six days later.

Wieters has a career .236/.328/.473 slash line (26-for-110) in 31 games against the Indians, with seven home runs and 20 RBIs. He’s hitting .212/.281/.365 (11-for-52) with two home runs in 14 games in Cleveland.

It’s been a while since I’ve included Wieters in a pitcher-hitter matchup. He’s 1-for-8 with an RBI and three strikeouts lifetime against Indians starter Shaun Marcom.

J.J. Hardy will return to the lineup tonight. He was used as a defensive replacement at shortstop yesterday in the ninth inning, so the oblique no longer is a major concern.

Adam Jones has five hits in his last two games, including the huge tie-breaking home run yesterday in the eighth inning. Steve Pearce was 5-for-38 with 14 strikeouts in his last 14 games before delivering a game-tying RBI single in the sixth. He also singled in the ninth.

Think it would make a significant difference if those two guys heated up?

Marcum is further proof that you shouldn’t judge a pitcher strictly on wins and losses. He’s 2-0 with a 5.49 ERA in four games this season, including three starts. He’s allowed 12 runs, 16 hits and six home runs in 19 2/3 innings.

Marcum, a former Blue Jay, is 4-2 with a 4.33 ERA in 14 career games (12 starts) against the Orioles. Jones is 8-for-21 with a triple and home run against him, and Everth Cabrera is 2-for-4 with a double and home run.

The Orioles need to get Chris Tilman on track, but Progressive Field may not be the place. Then again, Dallas Keuchel hasn’t beaten them in two starts this season, so don’t try to make sense of baseball.

Tillman is 2-2 with a 5.94 ERA in 10 career starts against the Indians and 1-2 with a 7.07 ERA in three starts in Cleveland.

Tillman didn’t face the Indians last season. He went 1-1 against them in 2013 and allowed four runs and five hits, with five walks, in 5 1/3 innings in a 15-5 loss at Progressive Field.

The current Indians are batting .227 (20-for-88) against Tillman. Jason Kipnis is 2-for-6 with a double and home run.

Showalter is one win away from tying Frank Selee (1,284) for 34th place on the all-time list. Charlie Grimm (1,287) is 33rd and Cap Anson (1,295) is 32nd.