orioles

A bloop and two blasts

April 27, 2011, 4:33pm

Orioles

The Red Sox wish they could have that short fly ball that Derrek Lee hit back. They failed to catch that pop with one out in the fourth and that should have been an out. Instead, an out later, Luke Scott came up and blasted a Eutaw Street, two-run homer. Adam Jones followed with a solo shot that just made it out to left center. If the Sox catch that ball, you can make a case the Orioles get no runs in that inning. Scott's blast was the 53rd onto Eutaw Street in the history of Camden Yards...

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Snyder extends batting streak in Norfolk's loss

April 27, 2011, 1:34pm

Orioles

Snyder extends batting streak in Norfolk's loss

Brandon Snyder extended his batting streak to five games today with two hits and two runs scored in Triple-A Norfolk's 7-6 loss this afternoon at Indianapolis. Snyder is 7-for-22 with four RBIs during the hit streak and is now batting .288 on the season. He is hitting .353 with runners in scoring position and has an OPS of .876 through today's game. Nick Green added a three-run homer for the Tides and Tyler Henson knocked in two runs. Leadoff hitter Matt Angle went 0-for-5 to drop his...

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With improved changeup, Johnson off to a good start

April 27, 2011, 12:45pm

Orioles

With improved changeup, Johnson off to a good start

Jim Johnson is off to a great start with the Orioles. He has an ERA of 2.79 with 11 strikeouts to just two walks over 9 2/3 innings on the year. Over his last four games, he has pitched five scoreless innings with five strikeouts. Johnson has always been a hard thrower, but now an improved changeup has become a real weapon for him. "JJ has always had a good changeup," manager Buck Showalter said. "(Pitching coach) Mark (Connor) and he worked hard at taking a little more velocity off it...

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Minor league notes on Schoop, Avery and Pelzer

April 27, 2011, 6:03am

Orioles

Minor league notes on Schoop, Avery and Pelzer

While Manny Machado is the most well-known and most-interviewed Delmarva Shorebird and is playing very well right now in his first full minor league season, the infielder that plays next to him is probably playing as well as anyone on the O's farm right now. Xavier Avery went 4-for-8 as the Baysox split a doubleheader last night. Avery got thrown out once on the bases in each game, just the second and third times he has been caught stealing this year. Avery's 13 stolen bases leads the...

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O's hold their own against Boston

April 26, 2011, 9:50pm

Orioles

Don't look now, but since going

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Quick note on Boston starting pitching

April 26, 2011, 5:39pm

Orioles

During the Red Sox' recent run of eight wins in nine games, the Sox starting pitchers were tremendous pitching to an ERA of 0.88 during that stretch. They had given up just six earned runs over 61 1/3 in the nine games. Tonight, Boston starter Clay Buchholz allowed four earned runs over 6 2/3 versus the Orioles. Buchholz entered with a career ERA of 2.98 against Baltimore and it went up to 3.26 tonight. Boston pitching gave up just five runs total in its four-game sweep of Los Angeles and...

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The lefties against the lefty tonight

April 26, 2011, 3:34pm

Orioles

You don't see this too often. The Red Sox have five left-handed batters in their starting lineup tonight versus Orioles' southpaw starter Zach Britton. Jacoby Ellsbury, Adrian Gonzalez, David Ortiz, J.D. Drew and Carl Crawford all will come to bat against Britton from that side as Boston looks for its ninth win over the last 10 games. The Sox' 8-1 record is the best in the majors since April 16. Those five Boston batters have a combined average coming into tonight of .228 versus...

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Buck on Markakis: "He'll be there."

April 26, 2011, 1:25pm

Orioles

With a batting average of at least .293 and OPS of at least .801 the last four years, it is a little strange to see Nick Markakis currently batting .208 with an OPS of .591. But he will take those numbers over 20 games and 77 at-bats into the Boston series that starts tonight here at Camden Yards. Manager Buck Showalter said you can't take it for granted when a slumping player says "my numbers will be there in the end," but even Showalter said when it comes to Markakis, that will be true....

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Arrieta gets 2011 off to promising start with four quality starts

April 26, 2011, 1:04pm

Orioles

Arrieta gets 2011 off to promising start with four quality starts

Jake Arrieta can't erase his start on April 9 against Texas from his record, but if he could, his ERA would be 2.63 over his other four starts versus Detroit, New York., Minnesota and New York. Arrieta has produced four quality starts in those four outings, giving up just seven earned runs and 20 hits over 24 innings. He feels he has gotten his 2011 season off to a good start. "I just think that every step of the way throughout my career I've been able to make adjustments and find a way to...

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Not a completely lost weekend

April 24, 2011, 6:40pm

Orioles

While the Orioles were outscored 21-6 by the Yankees the last two days, is was not all bad. Yesterday's game seemed to featured big play after big play in the final innings. The O's matched the Yankees and looked like they would pull out a huge comeback win that was much needed. After 11 losses in 13 games, fans are predictably down. There were a few things to take from the weekend, however. * Jake Arrieta battled well again versus the Yankees. He has made four career starts against New...

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Minor league notes on Hoes, Atkins, Mummey and more

April 25, 2011, 9:21am

Orioles

Minor league notes on Hoes, Atkins, Mummey and more

A couple of fans have written to ask me about LJ Hoes and why he played left field Sunday for Single-A Frederick. This is not a position change and Hoes is still considered a second baseman. But as I have written many times now, the Orioles plan to have many of the minor leaguers play other positions from time to time. It just makes sense to do it while they are in the minors as they take a look at them there and see if the players can add to their respective resumes. It's why we will see,...

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Clubhouse quotes after the O's loss to New York

April 24, 2011, 2:49pm

Orioles

Clubhouse quotes after the O's loss to New York

Some postgame comments from the Orioles after their extra-innings loss to New York. Jake Arrieta on settling down after giving up two runs in the first: "Just made good pitches. Even the slider to Granderson (that he homered on) wasn't a bad pitch, he's swinging the bat well now. Had to bear down and make pitches when I needed to. I kept us in the game. The walks in the first was really the only thing I was upset about." Arrieta on the pitch to Granderson in the first: "It was a slider,...

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Jones' bat starts to warm as he takes the team homer lead

April 24, 2011, 7:36am

Orioles

Jones' bat starts to warm as he takes the team homer lead

Adam Jones took over the Orioles team home run lead with four with his three-run shot last night off CC Sabathia. In recent games, we have seen Jones drop bunts for hits and also pick up key hits by driving the baseball to right and right center field. His homer last night went to right. It provides perhaps a glimpse into a future where Jones realizes his vast potential and puts it all together at bat. He has now hit safely in seven of his last eight games and his six RBIs over the last six...

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After blowout loss, O's get another chance

April 23, 2011, 9:02pm

Orioles

After blowout loss, O's get another chance

Well, at least the Orioles don't have long to stew over this loss. They got hammered 15-3 by the Yankees last night. The beat down featured five New York homers including an A-Rod grand slam and two homers by catcher Russell Martin. Some observations as the Orioles get another chance at New York less than 16 hours after that loss. *Josh Rupe stood at his locker and repeatedly said he did not throw at Martin, when he plunked him in the back in the top of the ninth. It could not have looked...

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Andino on Teixeira, Bergesen on his outing and Wieters on the loss

April 23, 2011, 6:46pm

Orioles

Andino on Teixeira, Bergesen on his outing and Wieters on the loss

Orioles shortstop Robert Andino had words with Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira after Teixeira slid into second base with a double ahead of Andino's tag in the first inning of Saturday's game. Andino was asked what happened and what was said on the field. "He came up with like a little shoulder and I told him, 'Relax, I'm just putting down a tag on you.' We talked when I got to first base (in the sixth inning), but everything's cool. He just came up with a shoulder and I just said...

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Rupe says hitting Martin was not intentional

April 23, 2011, 6:24pm

Orioles

Rupe says hitting Martin was not intentional

Minutes after tonight's game, Orioles pitcher Josh Rupe said it was not his intention to hit Yankees catcher Russell Martin with a pitch when he did just that in the top of the ninth inning tonight. Martin had homered in each of his two previous at bats. "Trust me, that's the last thing I want to do is go out there and make that situation look how it looked," Rupe told reporters in the Orioles clubhouse. "I pitch in. I am already out there and had given up a home run and, yeah, I'm a...

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Bronx Bombers live up to their name in romp over the Birds

April 23, 2011, 5:15pm

Orioles

Bronx Bombers live up to their name in romp over the Birds

Alex Rodriguez hit his 22nd career grand slam and had a six-RBI night as the New York Yankees pounded the Orioles 15-3 in the first game of a rain-shortened, two-game series at Camden Yards. His slam, which came on a 2-0 pitch in the eighth off Josh Rupe, was New York's fifth homer of the night and third of that inning. Rodriguez also had a two-run double in the first when New York took a 3-0 lead against Brad Bergesen. Rodriguez moved past Manny Ramirez on the all-time grand slam list and...

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A pitchers' duel emerges

April 23, 2011, 4:20pm

Orioles

After the Yankees' early offense, this game has settled into a pitchers' duel. Brad Bergesen gave up four hits to the first five hitters he faced tonight and has allowed just two to the last 17 batters he has faced. Bergesen has really settled in and, after needing 26 pitches to get through New York's three-run first, has needed just 52 pitches from the second through fifth innings. But the way C.C. Sabathia has pitched, those three runs in the first may be more than enough tonight. He...

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Showalter with a thought on Bergesen as he gets set to face Yankees

April 23, 2011, 1:22pm

Orioles

Showalter with a thought on Bergesen as he gets set to face Yankees

Brad Bergesen will make his fourth appearance and third start of the new season tonight versus the New York Yankees here at Camden Yards. Bergesen said this week he continues to work on his sinking fastball and perfecting the pitch that was a key reason he went 7-5 with a 3.43 ERA over 19 starts in 2009. He said that last year he struggled so much with the sinker that he turned more to his four-seam fastball as the year went on. Now he wants to get back to being more of a sinkerball pitcher...

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Nick Markakis: "I feel like I'm close"

April 23, 2011, 12:53pm

Orioles

Orioles manager Buck Showalter pointed out today how hard players like Derrek Lee and Nick Markakis are working behind the scenes to get out of batting slumps. He knows fans are wondering when his No. 2 and No. 3 hitters will get it going. Markakis is batting .203 over 18 games with two homers, two doubles, six RBIs and a .327 slugging percentage. So how is Markakis feeling about his swing right now? "I've got mixed emotions about it," he said. "I'm definitely not where I want to be,...