Matusz and O's lead at the halfway mark (w-updates)

Matusz and O's lead at the halfway mark (w-updates)
Ty Wigginton's 11th homer of the year, which came on a 414-foot shot to left in the second inning, has the O's up on Cleveland 1-0 through four and a half innings. Brian Matusz, touched for six runs in just 3 2/3 Sunday at Minnesota, has not been scored on through five tonight. Matusz has pitched out of the stretch in each frame and Cleveland has left seven on base through five. Matusz has thrown 79 pitches and stranded two runners each in the third and fourth. The O's tonight are...

Ohman remains "O-man" in ERA

Ohman remains "O-man" in ERA
The O's bullpen has been pitching much better lately with an ERA of 1.65 over the last 12 games. Several pitchers are throwing well out of the pen right now. A list that includes first-year Oriole Will Ohman. Turns out he is more than a funny guy. He is also turning out to be more than a left-handed specialist. In fact this year, lefties bat .231 vs. Ohman and right-handers hit .200 vs. him. "The one difficulty with carrying that label (of lefty specialist) is the splits are so glaring...

A Matusz matter

A Matusz matter
As good as Brian Matusz has been for most of this year, there is one trend when he pitches that needs some improving on his part. With each succeeding plate appearance during the game, opponent batters hit Matusz better according to stats posted at baseball-reference.com That can and does happen to many pitchers, but it is something worth noting about Matusz and Dave Trembley has taken note of it, too. "I think his curveball could get better. He relies on his changeup a lot. If he...

Did You Know...

Did You Know...
*That even though the Orioles offense has produced 19 runs over the last three games, several players are currently in or have recently been in RBI droughts. Atkins - Just 1 RBI his last 17 games Markakis: Has 0 RBI his last 6 games and 3 in 12 games Scott: Had just 2 RBI in a recent 10-game stretch, but now has 7 RBI the last three games. Tejada - Recently went 10 games without an RBI, but now has 5 over the last three games. Wieters: Just 1 RBI his last 10 games *The O's bullpen is on...

Clubhouse quotes after the O's 8-1 win over Cleveland

Clubhouse quotes after the O's 8-1 win over Cleveland
On a night the O's were 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position in the first five innings, they went 3 for 5 while scoring four in the 6th to beat the Tribe 8-1. They are 3-1 on this homestand and 10-8 over the last 18 games. Here are quotes from four Birds after the game. Jeremy Guthrie on his outing tonight: "Felt good out there. Really was able to keep the fastball down for the most part and get some ground balls, which was good. We made some good plays on defense and the hitters...

Guthrie and O's romp over the Tribe

Guthrie and O's romp over the Tribe
For the Orioles, it was their most lopsided win of the year. They beat Cleveland 8-1 behind Jeremy Guthrie. Guthrie beat the organization that drafted him in the first round in 2002 and is now 2-0 in two career starts vs. Cleveland. After giving up a first-inning run, he retired 16 batters in a row and on the night gave up just two hits and one run over eight innings. He threw 113 pitches and is now 2-4, 4.13 on the season. He has recorded six quality starts among his eight...

Corey's catch (with updates)

Corey's catch (with updates)
Corey Patterson is winning the fans over quickly at Camden Yards. He just made a leaping catch at the wall to end the top of the third and rob Shin-Soo Choo of his fifth homer. This after he led off the bottom of the first with a ground single to center. He just led off the last of the third with another single and is now 5 for 11 as an Oriole. So he cut down a run at the plate to end yesterday's game and kept a run off the board today in the third. O's trail 1-0 in the last of the...

We are now underway (plus Norfolk roster move)

We are now underway (plus Norfolk roster move)
Play Ball: As of 8:12p, we are underway at Camden Yards after a rain delay of one hour and seven minutes. It's 74 degrees at gametime. Jeremy Guthrie is pitching vs. Justin Masterson in game one of this O's vs. Cleveland weekend series. From earlier: The grounds crew is putting the tarp on the field here at Camden Yards. It's getting darker and rain is on the way. We'll see how long before tonight's scheduled game begins. In the meantime, please leave any comments or questions...

Meet Matt Wieters

Meet Matt Wieters
Just as a reminder, Matt Wieters will be at the ESPN Zone on Monday, May 17 to take part in the next Orioles Q&A of the 2010 season. Wieters will answer questions from an Orioles broadcaster, as well as from O's fans, starting at noon on Monday. Following the Q&A, he'll stick around to sign autographs and pose for photos until about 1:00 p.m. So don't miss your chance to get to know Matt Wieters this Monday, and don't forget to grab an autograph before you go. In the meantime, also...

The pen is mightier

The pen is mightier
The Orioles are 9-8 over the last 17 games. That sure beats 2-16. There are many reasons the team has a winning record in that stretch. But Dave Trembley cited his improved and remodeled bullpen as a big reason today during his pre-game media session. "It's real simple. When you pitch, when you hit, when you catch the ball, you have a chance to win. When you get two out of three, you're in it. "When we've lost, we've not had timely hitting and our pitching has not been very good. ...

Right Side 5K Run on the calendar

Right Side 5K Run on the calendar
Nick Markakis's Right Side Foundation has announced that their second annual 5K Run and 1-Mile Fun Walk will be held on Sunday, August 8. The Orioles will take on the Chicago White Sox earlier that day, and Nick will head to Patterson Park later that evening to join his wife and foundation partner, Christina, for the 5K run and 1-mile walk. Interested runners (or walkers, families, or other O's fans) can register online at www.CharmCityRun.com or by calling Kelly Dees at...

Erbe starting to put it together at Triple-A

Erbe starting to put it together at Triple-A
Right-hander Brandon Erbe pitched seven scoreless innings of four-hit ball for Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday as he continues to improve his stats after his first four starts. The 22-year-old began the year with an ERA of 8.35 after four starts. But his ERA is 3.37 over his last three starts for Norfolk. "I tried not to pay too much attention to the numbers, but rather the way I was pitching. Even early on, I would throw three straight scoreless than just one inning things didn't work out. ...

Updating the Indians

Updating the Indians
Cleveland is 13-19 on the year and 2-1 on its current eight-game road trip after winning two of three at Kansas City. The Indians are 7-11 in road games and 4-6 in May. Cleveland has played one series versus an AL East team and was swept three straight by Toronto last week. The Indians, who have won seven of their last ten games against the Orioles, have dropped six of their last nine overall. Indians hot hitters: Asdrubal Cabrera: Batting .364 with six multi-hit games in his last ten...

Patterson on his outfield assist to end the game

Patterson on his outfield assist to end the game
Sometimes to make a game-winning play you have to be prepared for it before it happens. That was the case today for O's left fielder Corey Patterson. In just his second game with the team, he threw out Josh Wilson at the plate on Ichiro Suzuki's single to end the game as the Orioles beat Seattle 6-5. Corey Patterson gets a pie in the face after throwing out the potential game-tying run at the plate "With Ichiro up I knew he had more power to his pull side. Anything he hits opposite...

Erbe making progress at Triple-A (w/quotes added)

Erbe making progress at Triple-A (w/quotes added)
After a slow start in his rookie season at Triple-A Norfolk, right-hander Brandon Erbe is starting to pitch much better. Thursday afternoon he pitched seven shutout innings of four-hit ball vs. Syracuse. He walked one with six strikeouts. On May 2nd, Erbe allowed just one run, then had a start where he gave up six runs followed by today's outing. Erbe in 2010 at Norfolk: First four starts: 8.35 ERA and .342 opponent batting average Last three starts: 3.37 ERA and .225 opponents batting...

In decline

In decline
Good morning to all. Teams throughout baseball were busy this week declining options on their players, turning them loose on the free agent market. Three of them intrigue me at the moment. Could Jermaine Dye, at the right cost, provide that right-handed power bat for the middle of the order that manager Dave Trembley places high on his wish list? Dye has averaged 33 home runs over the past five seasons, though he's batted .254 and .250 in two of the last three. He could serve as the...
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Jones as good as gold

Jones as good as gold
I heard some rumblings earlier today about Orioles center fielder Adam Jones winning a Gold Glove, with the official announcement coming in another week or so. His brother apparently spilled the beans on his MySpace page. My first thought: People still use MySpace? My second thought: He ought to know. I'm told that it's true, which means Jones will be only the second Orioles outfielder to take home the award. Paul Blair won eight of them. Somehow, Jeff Stone kept getting snubbed. Ichiro,...
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Odds and ends

Odds and ends
Is Maryland still playing football this season? Maybe I should ask whether they've started. Bodog posted its 2010 World Series odds. You have to scroll down pretty far to find the Orioles: New York Yankees 11/4 Boston Red Sox 13/2 Philadelphia Phillies 9/1 Los Angeles Angels 10/1 St. Louis Cardinals 10/1 Los Angeles Dodgers 11/1 Chicago Cubs 15/1 New...
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Your thoughts on Delgado?

Your thoughts on Delgado?
I began my morning with a quick check of mlbtraderumors, and decided to cut-and-paste their Top 50 Free Agents list. Should make for some good discussion, especially with Carlos Delgado, at No. 43, going to the Orioles. Keep in mind that these are just predictions, and nobody has inside information about Delgado. He would make sense in one sense. The Orioles need a first baseman and a power bat (and he would probably benefit from the rest provided when serving as the designated hitter)....
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Baseball Prospectus chimes in

Baseball Prospectus chimes in
Baseball Prospectus has released its list of the top 11 Orioles prospects - a nice, round figure - and Brian Matusz is No. 1. He's also the only five-star selection. Josh Bell, Jake Arrieta and Zach Britton are four-star choices. Matt Hobgood, Brandon Erbe, Brandon Snyder and Mychal Givens are three-star selections, and Brandon Waring and Cameron Coffey receive two stars. Click here to view the entire list, which is compiled by Kevin Goldstein and includes four other prospects deemed worthy...
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