Quick updates on Matusz, Simon and Hardy

Quick updates on Matusz, Simon and Hardy
I just chose the order at random. Brian Matusz threw a bullpen session and live batting practice today at Twins Lakes Park in Sarasota. Matusz felt strong and had good command of his fastball. He also threw some breaking balls. Matusz threw 30 pitches in the bullpen and 20 more to live hitters. He'll start Saturday's extended spring training game. The Orioles confirmed via a press release that Alfredo Simon will start tomorrow for Double-A Bowie. The Baysox are hosting Harrisburg at Prince...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Davey Johnson's stepson dies

Davey Johnson's stepson dies
Condolences go out to former Orioles second baseman and manager Davey Johnson, whose stepson Michael Jacob 'Jake' Allen, 34, died Tuesday, according to a statement issued by the Washington Nationals. Allen died from pneumonia and infection at Florida Hospital in Orlando with his parents and siblings at his side. He had been hearing and visually impaired since birth. In lieu of flowers, the Johnson family requests that contributions be made, in Jake's memory, to Lighthouse Central Florida...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Joe Mahoney likely headed back to the disabled list (updated)

Joe Mahoney likely headed back to the disabled list (updated)
This has been a brutal Wednesday in the Orioles minor leagues. Earlier, I posted the info on Trent Mummey leaving the Single-A Frederick game and Jesse Beal's surgery. Now comes word that Billy Rowell has been placed on the seven-day disabled list at Double-A Bowie with a left ankle injury and Joe Mahoney, the Orioles' 2010 minor league Player of the Year is probably headed there, too. Mahoney is still having discomfort because of a quad injury that earlier had him sidelined from April...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Rowell headed to DL (Mummey injury update)

Rowell headed to DL (Mummey injury update)
The Orioles are busy today doing a makeover on Double-A Bowie's roster. They traded outfielder Jeff Fiorentino to the Braves for cash considerations. They promoted outfielder Kyle Hudson from Single-A Frederick to Bowie. And they're placing infielder Billy Rowell on the seven-day disabled list with tendinitis in his left ankle. Rowell is batting .231 with four RBIs, two walks, 12 strikeouts and a .510 OPS in 14 games and 39 at-bats in his first season in the Eastern League. He spent the...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Mummey taken from field in Frederick; Beal has surgery

Mummey taken from field in Frederick; Beal has surgery
Some of the news coming out of the Orioles minor leagues today is not good. Single-A Frederick is playing Winston-Salem at home right now in a day game and center fielder Trent Mummey has left that game in the second inning after crashing into the center-field wall. He was taken by ambulance from Harry Grove Stadium. If there is further word later, I will pass it along. Meanwhile, Jesse Beal, a promising young right-handed pitcher that was at Single-A Delmarva last summer, had surgery...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Kyle Hudson moves to Double-A Bowie

Kyle Hudson moves to Double-A Bowie
Single-A Frederick Keys center fielder Kyle Hudson has moved today to Double-A Bowie. This will be the first crack at Double-A ball for the 24-year-old left-handed batter. He was hitting .279 in 23 games with the Keys with no homers, two RBIs and eight steals. He played all last season with Frederick and recently Trent Mummey was moved from Single-A Delmarva to Frederick, giving the Keys essentially two center fielders. Mummey can now move to center for the Keys. Hudson will now join a team...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Fiorentino gone again

Fiorentino gone again
Jeff Fiorentino is packing his bags again. According to this tweet from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Orioles traded Fiorentino to the Atlanta Braves for cash considerations. Here today, gone tomorrow, here again, gone again... Fiorentino was batting .250 with one double, two triples, two homers and 13 RBIs in 20 games with Double-A Bowie. He'll report to the Braves' Double-A affiliate in Mississippi. Fiorentino appeared in 56 games with the Orioles over parts of the 2006, 2007...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Stacey Long: Is Adam Jones finally breaking out?

Stacey Long: Is Adam Jones finally breaking out?
When the Orioles traded for Adam Jones in the winter of 2007, he was considered by many to be a future star. His potential to be a power-hitting center fielder with above-average defensive skills had Orioles fans drooling, but he hadn't put it all together up to this season and the frustration level among fans was raised to a critical level. Since the beginning of this season, it's been obvious that Jones has worked hard on his defense. He is consistently making plays both shallow and deep...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Frustration in Kansas City

Frustration in Kansas City
Whenever you lose by one run, you can often point to a lot of things that went wrong. Tuesday night in Kansas City, a lot of things went wrong. Brad Bergesen pitched a scoreless first, but got rocked during a three-run second. He can't seem to find any consistency right now. Derrek Lee made a baserunning blunder. In the fourth he hit a bloop single to right. But, with the Orioles behind 3-0, he tried to stretch that into a double on right fielder Jeff Francoeur and he was thrown out. Lee...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Talking about Lee and Arrieta

Talking about Lee and Arrieta
It's happening so quietly, it's barely making a sound. Imagine a mouse wearing fuzzy slippers, or a cloud wearing ... fuzzy slippers. OK, that's probably not working for you. Derrek Lee has raised his average from .209 to .255 in his last 11 games. He's got 15 hits during that stretch, and five multi-hit games in his last 10. Has anyone noticed? Perhaps it would be more obvious if baseballs were crashing into the bleachers. Lee went 2-for-5 last night in the Orioles' 6-5, 10-inning...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Another bullpen blunder (and a loss)

Another bullpen blunder (and a loss)
Before tonight, the Orioles' starting pitchers had posted a 3.43 ERA over their last 13 games, working at least six innings in 11 of those 13. They made nine quality starts in that period and had gone five innings or more in 17 consecutive games. The bullpen, however was 1-2 with a 6.86 ERA over the last 13 games. Brad Bergesen left tonight's game after five innings with a 5-4 lead. Jeremy Accardo replaced him and served up a leadoff homer to Jeff Francoeur. Bergesen was charged with three...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Great Scott (updated)

Great Scott (updated)
Luke Scott tied tonight's game, 3-3, with a three-run homer off Kansas City's Jeff Francis in the top of the fourth inning. Scott has six homers in his last 14 games, and four homers and nine RBIs in his last six. Yes, he can be streaky. Scott has two hits in 17 at-bats against left-handers this season - both home runs. Matt Wieters threw out another runner trying to steal and blocked the plate again while tagging out another runner. It's become routine. Update: A one-out error by Cesar...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

It's all about the series

It's all about the series
With the Major League Baseball season being a 162-game marathon, every team strives to maintain consistency which hopefully leads first to being competitive and then to being a contender. And with consistency the goal, every team also has the same approach: Win as many series over the course of the six-month season as possible. Managers for all 30 major league teams follow the edict, "Let's take two-out-of-three and move on." Take a look at the starts to the last two seasons, and it's...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Tracking the O's hitters versus Jeff Francis

Tracking the O's hitters versus Jeff Francis
Here is a pretty surprising stat. The four hitters batting second through fifth for the Orioles tonight - Nick Markakis, Derrek Lee, Vladimir Guerrero and Mark Reynolds - are a combined 21-for-41 in their careers at gametime against Jeff Francis, who is starting for the Royals tonight. The rundown: Markakis is 2-for-3 with a homer Lee is 7-for-12 with a homer Vlad is 3-for-4 with two doubles Reynolds is 9-for-22 with two doubles So, of course, that foursome went 0-for-4 the first time...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Quick word on Matusz and Hardy (updated)

Quick word on Matusz and Hardy (updated)
Orioles pitcher Brian Matusz, on the disabled list with a strained left intercostal muscle, will follow up Sunday's bullpen session by throwing 30 pitches on the side tomorrow and 20 more against hitters at Twins Lakes Park in Sarasota. Matusz is still scheduled to pitch in an extended spring training game on Saturday before beginning his injury rehab assignment in the minors. The Orioles want him to make at least three starts before activating him. It's hard to believe we haven't seen him...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Markakis stays in lineup, Roberts sits (updated)

Markakis stays in lineup, Roberts sits (updated)
Cleveland Indians outfielder Shin-Soo Choo became the sixth major league player charged with a DUI this season. Good thing he wasn't tweeting or he might be facing a suspension. Here's the Orioles' lineup for tonight's game in Kansas City, which includes Nick Markakis one night after he hurt his right knee and right hand, but does not include Brian Roberts: Update: The Sun's Jeff Zrebiec tweets that Roberts had root canal surgery this morning and could be available off the bench...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Another honor for Machado

Another honor for Machado
After being named South Atlantic League player of the week yesterday, today, shortstop Manny Machado of the Class-A Delmarva Shorebirds was named the Orioles' minor league player of the month for April. The 18-year-old that was the Orioles 2010 first-round draft pick hit .338 with four home runs and 18 RBI in the month. In 21 games in April, Machado also had 27 hits, including six doubles and two triples. He also showed great patience at the plate with 16 walks and only 11 strikeouts and...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Quick word on Millwood

Quick word on Millwood
The Orioles retain some interest in veteran pitcher Kevin Millwood, but nothing is on the immediate horizon, according to one team official. The Orioles haven't ruled out bringing back Millwood, who opted out of his minor league contract with the Yankees, but it isn't something they'll jump into over the next few days. Millwood wants a major league contract and an immediate spot on a 25-man roster. He won't find it in Baltimore. The Orioles would only sign him to another minor league...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Taking another left turn (updated)

Taking another left turn (updated)
Since I brought up left-handed relief in this morning's entry, I wanted to drop a few names from Triple-A Norfolk, which is playing a doubleheader today against Louisville. Mike Ballard is starting Game 1, and the Orioles were prepared to purchase his contract on April 23 if Chris Tillman's sore groin had led to a stint on the disabled list. Ballard is 1-2 with a 4.74 ERA in four starts for the Tides, allowing 22 hits and walking 10 in 19 innings. Chris George impressed manager Buck...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments

Are Nick and D. Lee getting ready to break out on offense?

Are Nick and D. Lee getting ready to break out on offense?
Here is a bad stat that simply must get better for the Orioles and certainly should get better. Derrek Lee and Nick Markakis are batting a combined .133 with runners in scoring position at 6-for-45. Lee is 2-for-22 and Markakis is 4-for-23. I am going to go out on a limb here and say there is no way that number continues too much longer. There are signs recently both are starting to get their offense in gear and that would be pretty big for this team since they bat second and third in the...
Continue reading
  0 Comments
0 Comments