Millwood regroups (for a while)

Millwood regroups (for a while)
After giving up more first-inning runs, Kevin Millwood has settled into a nice groove today through the fourth inning vs. his former team, the Texas Rangers. Millwood gave up a single, walk and three-run homer to Josh Hamilton to start today's game and put the O's in a 3-0 hole. Millwood has now allowed 38 runs in the first inning this year and his ERA is 13.32 in that inning. Opponent hitters are batting .390 in the opening inning vs. the right-hander. But he pitched shutout ball over...
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Trent Mummey to Delmarva (Ripken finale today)

Trent Mummey to Delmarva (Ripken finale today)
The Orioles have promoted outfielder Trent Mummey from Aberdeen to Delmarva, where he will take the roster spot of Steven Bumbry, who went on the disabled list Saturday with an oblique strain. Mummey, this year's fourth-round pick out of Auburn, was batting .266-3-24 in 49 IronBirds games with 16 doubles and two triples. He played in the New York-Penn League All-Star game. The 21-year-old center fielder got off to a hot hitting start with Aberdeen and was hitting over .300 as recently as...
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Koji closed it, but who is next?

Koji closed it, but who is next?
There are many things to like about Buck Showalter in his short time as O's manager. Among them, right now, is the fact that he has not labeled anyone as the Orioles closer. It's been frustrating at times this year when the O's seemed to use a pitcher in the ninth, because he had the label as "closer." With Alfredo Simon's recent struggles, that job is open again and if Showalter is in no hurry for one man to claim it, or get that title, that's fine with me. Let him go to the player...
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Bell: "Something I'll remember the rest of my life."

Bell:  "Something I'll remember the rest of my life."
Before he could get to post-game interviews, Josh Bell was heading out of the Orioles clubhouse to take care of some business. He was looking to get the two baseballs he hit for his first two Major League homers today in the O's 8-6 win over Texas. Two fans sitting near each other in right field had the baseballs. Now each has a Bell bat and ball and he autographed each. Now, where do those baseballs go? "Not sure yet. Probably, somewhere with Mom." Bell knew what to do with them when...
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Digging the longball: Bell homers twice as O's top Texas

Digging the longball:  Bell homers twice as O's top Texas
The Orioles used a stunning display of power over the third and fourth innings today to beat Texas and Cliff Lee 8-6 in front of 23,041 at Camden Yards. Josh Bell homered twice for his first two Major League homers while Ty Wigginton and Luke Scott went back-to-back for the Orioles, who are 6-1 in their last seven games vs. the AL West leaders. It was a four-homer day for the O's, who can take this series with a win on Sunday afternoon. Here are more notes on Bell and today's power...
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Additional homer notes (Lee now out)

Additional homer notes (Lee now out)
Another note or two on the Orioles home run outburst today after just watching Josh Bell single off the top of the fence in right, just missing his third homer of the day. Coming into this game, the O's had hit just one in their last five games and they hit four homers total over the last nine games. Then, they hit four today over the first four innings vs. a pitcher that had given up just nine all year. This is the O's 5th game this year with four or more homers: 5 Homers: May 1 vs....
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That's an amazing stat

That's an amazing stat
The Orioles put on a power display with three homers in the last of the fourth today vs 2008 AL Cy Young winner Cliff Lee and have a 7-2 lead on Lee after four innings. Here is the amazing stat. Lee has now given up 13 homers all year and seven have come off the bat of an Oriole. Lee in 2010: *7 homers allowed in 20 1/3 innings vs. the Orioles. *6 homers allowed in 152 2/3 innings vs. everyone else. Josh Bell, who was just 3 for 16 over his previous five games, put on his own one-man power...
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Manny Machado's press conference

Manny Machado's press conference
Well, it wasn't exactly a grilling by the Baltimore baseball writers, but top pick Manny Machado did speak with those writers today for the first time since signing his 5.25 million dollar contract with the Orioles. It was a telephone press conference with Machado in Florida answering a few questions from reporters at Camden Yards. Here is how it went. Q: What was signing night like for you and did you feel certain a deal would get done? "Well, that night was just going crazy, with my...
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Minor league updates on Spoone & Bumbry

Minor league updates on Spoone & Bumbry
The Orioles put Bowie starting pitcher Chorye Spoone on the disabled list Friday due to a tired shoulder, but they have not necessarily shut him down for the rest of the season. The DL move came one day after Spoone's outing Thursday at Trenton, where he allowed a career-high eight walks and hit three batters over a 3 2/3 innings outing. "There is nothing physically wrong with his shoulder, it's just a little tired. We will have him skip one start but he may not be done for the year,"...
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O's still pondering a September call for Britton

O's still pondering a September call for Britton
O's manager Buck Showalter said today the Orioles have not made a final decision yet on whether pitching prospect Zach Britton will be a September callup. Britton is 9-6, 2.70 this year between Double-A and Triple-A. He's now pitched 136 2/3 innings after pitching 140 last year and a career-high 147 1/3 the year before at Delmarva. How many innings Britton has left to pitch is for sure a big factor in that decision. "It's more, what's his career high (in innings). You look at that...
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Some O's notes before game three of the Texas series

Some O's notes before game three of the Texas series
Checking in on some O's notes, stats and facts as they get set to play Texas in game three of the series this afternoon at Camden Yards. *The Orioles have been involved in a shutout in back-to-back games for the first time all year, one they won and one they lost. They have been involved in shutouts in three of the last four and four of the past eight games, winning two and losing two. *The Orioles had just three hits in 30 at bats and were shutout on Friday for the ninth time on the...
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Not tonight: Wilson pitches Texas past the O's, 2-0

Not tonight:  Wilson pitches Texas past the O's, 2-0
The Orioles tonight had three hits and two ejections. Probably not a good ratio. It wasn't tonight as C.J. Wilson, perhaps with some help from home plate ump Jeff Nelson, depending on your perspective, pitched Texas past the Orioles 2-0 in front of 18,751 at Camden Yards. Nick Markakis was ejected for the first time in his career. It came after he was called out on strikes for the third time on the night in the sixth. O's manager Buck Showalter was ejected by Nelson with Texas batting...
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Chorye Spoone to the DL

Chorye Spoone to the DL
After allowing a career-high eight walks and also hitting three batters last night, today the Bowie Baysox put right-handed pitcher Chorye Spoone on the disabled list. There is no immediate word on what the injury may be or the extent of it for Spoone. Spoone did not a allow a hit, but did give up three runs last night at Trenton. He walked four and hit two batters in the first inning, then walked four straight with two outs in the third before being lifted. Spoone had not lost in 15...
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Interesting Arrieta stat

Interesting Arrieta stat
Most realize that Jake Arrieta can, sometimes, walk too many hitters. Over 72 1/3 innings in his first 13 Major League starts this year, he has walked 40 hitters, that's a high number. But on nights when he has kept the walk number low, he's been pretty good. In five of Arrieta's 13 O's starts, he has walked two or fewer hitters. His ERA in those five starts is 2.70 and he has three of his four wins in those games. It's a small sample size, of course, but the message is pretty clear. ...
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Gonzo won't push for closer role, at least not now

Gonzo won't push for closer role, at least not now
He is back and pitching well, but Mike Gonzalez has not had a save chance since April 9 and that didn't go well on Opening Day here in Baltimore vs. Toronto. But now that Gonzalez is pitching like the O's hoped he would, he is beginning to look ready for another save chance. He says he would surely welcome that, but won't push for it right now and that manager Buck Showalter has let him know he is not anointing anyone his closer at this point. "Buck pretty much told me straight up what...
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The Birds pose with pets for 2011 Orioles Pet Calendar

The Birds pose with pets for 2011 Orioles Pet Calendar
The OriolesREACH 2011 Pet Calendars are officially out. It's the second year in a row that O's players have posed with either their own pets or a loaner canine from the Maryland SPCA for a 12-month calendar shot at Camden Yards. The Orioles, Orioles Wives and OriolesREACH teamed up again to produce the calendar, which benefits the Maryland SPCA. Just like last year, each month features a different Oriole and a different dog - No, last year's photo of Rich Hill and his cats wasn't...
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Lugo on his start in left

Lugo on his start in left
Partially due to an effort to stack his lineup with right-handed bats vs. Rangers lefty C.J Wilson, Buck Showalter is starting Julio Lugo in left field tonight vs. Texas. "It's been a while since I've been out there," Lugo said. He played as a reserve in the outfield in 2008 with Boston, but you have to go back to 2006 when he was a Dodger for a Lugo start in the outfield. Tonight will be just his 7th career outfield start. "He's the boss. I'll do whatever he says. I'm open to it....
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Orioles lineup

Orioles lineup
Brian Roberts 2B Julio Lugo LF Nick Markakis RF Ty Wigginton 1B Adam Jones CF Jake Fox DH Matt Wieters C Cesar Izturis SS Josh Bell 3B Jake Arrieta RHP The last time the Orioles went four straight starts with eight innings or more from their starter was July 20-23, 1999 (Sidney Ponson, Mike Mussina, Scott Erickson and Juan Guzman.) The longest streak of consecutive starts with eight or more innings in franchise history was a 12-game run from Aug. 15-28, 1970.
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More late-inning drama for Aberdeen

More late-inning drama for Aberdeen
All year, it seems, the Aberdeen IronBirds have had a penchant for late-inning offense and comebacks. The last two nights, the IronBirds have produced walk-off wins at Ripken Stadium. Wednesday, they beat Hudson Valley 7-6, scoring twice in the ninth. Last night, Aberdeen's Kipp Schutz hit a one-out, RBI triple in the bottom of the ninth to tie Hudson Valley 2-2. One inning later, Austin Rauch homered on the second pitch of the last of the tenth for a 3-2 sudden death win. Aberdeen, now...
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With starting pitching like this...

With starting pitching like this...
You can win a lot of games. The O's starting pitching has probably been the biggest reason the Orioles are 11-6 since Buck Showalter took over. The stats say that Orioles starting pitchers had pitched to an ERA of 5.61 before Buck. In the 17 games since he's been with the club, the starters' ERA is 2.82. It's been quite a roll for the O's starters: *They have 13 quality starts over the last 17 games. *They have pitched six innings or more in 15 of the 17 games and have gone seven...
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