Millwood is a class act

Millwood is a class act
When the Orioles acquired Kevin Millwood from the Texas Rangers last December for reliever Chris Ray, they were expecting him to be the leader of an inexperienced rotation and show the Orioles' young starters what it takes to be a consistent member of a major league staff. Millwood has gone beyond expectations. Now if only the Orioles could give him some support. Millwood lost his last start in Toronto to fall to (0-5) on the season. But his winless record is misleading. Millwood has an...

Matt Angle moves to Triple-A

Matt Angle moves to Triple-A
Matt Angle, one of the O's top outfield prospects, was moved today from Bowie to Triple-A Norfolk and immediately joined the Tides lineup as the leadoff hitter and center fielder. Angle went 5 for 22 in 16 games for the Orioles in spring training but suffered a broken hamate bone in his right hand very late in camp and underwent surgery. He joined Double-A Bowie on May 13 and hit .383-1-9 in 14 games. He went six for nine in his last two Baysox games on Thursday and Friday and hit .429 vs....

The hanger went far (update...O's lose again)

The hanger went far (update...O's lose again)
I am not going to jump on Jason Berken. He is finally getting a deserved chance today to pitch in the later innings and not in long relief. But O's relief pitchers seem to make bad pitches at bad times lately. See Cla Meredith recently vs. Josh Willingham and Kevin Kouzmanoff. See Mike Gonzalez from the first week. See various other pitchers at other points late in games. Berken just left a 2-2 curve ball up and in, the definition of a hanging breaking ball, that Vernon Wells crushed to...

Taking advantage of Toronto's mistake (w-update)

Taking advantage of Toronto's mistake (w-update)
The Orioles came up with three straight hits with two outs in the sixth inning today to take a 2-1 lead at Toronto. They took advantage of a mental error by Blue Jays left fielder Fred Lewis. First, Cesar Izturis hit a two-out double to right and Julio Lugo singled to left to tie the game, 1-1. On Lugo's single, Lewis made the wrong decision and threw home where he had no chance to get Izturis. His throw was not only well off line, but missed the cutoff man allowing Lugo to run to second...

The failures of the offense (update)

The failures of the offense (update)
There are several things that can frustrate you when you watch the Orioles hitters: *The lack of production, an obvious one. *The fact they swing at so many pitches that are not strikes. *The fact they can't seem to adjust to a pitcher as the game wears on. *The fact that some players recognition of pitches is poor and they chase so many breaking balls. It would almost be better for the Orioles to face a 96 mile per hour flamethrower without good off-speed stuff. At least they could sit...

Tillman time again

Tillman time again
Over the winter he was considered likely to begin the 2010 season in the Orioles starting rotation. But that didn't happen and now today, 22-year-old right-hander Chris Tillman makes his first Major League start of the year. Tillman was having a real solid year at Triple-A, highlighted by his no-hitter on April 28 at Gwinnett. That outing seemed to turn his season around. Tillman was only 1-3, 6.11 when he took the mound that night vs. the Braves affiliate. Over ten starts with Norfolk,...

O's lay an egg in Toronto (Meredith to AAA)

O's lay an egg in Toronto (Meredith to AAA)
During a season of poor performances, the Orioles may have actually raised the bar on poor on Friday night in a 5-0 loss at Toronto. They made physical and mental errors in the first inning, failed to score or record an extra-base hit and basically looked flat, disinterested and just plain bad. Here are more notes from the latest O's loss: Roster move: After the game, the Orioles officially recalled Chris Tillman from Norfolk to make Saturday's start. Reliever Cla Meredith was optioned...

Gabino takes Tillman's spot at Triple-A

Gabino takes Tillman's spot at Triple-A
While the Orioles have not yet made it official that Chris Tillman will make Saturday's start vs. Toronto, it is, of course, all but official and expected that the right-hander will take the mound Saturday vs. the Jays. For now, the O's will not move a pitcher up from Double-A to take Tillman's spot in the rotation, although that could change. Right-hander Armando Gabino will start on Sunday or Monday for Norfolk, when Tillman's turn next comes up. The Orioles appear to be open to moving...

Rowell removed from Frederick's roster (Rowell comments added)

Rowell removed from Frederick's roster (Rowell comments added)
When the Frederick Keys activated infielder Greg Miclat from the disabled list today the player removed from the roster was Billy Rowell, the Orioles first-round pick in 2006. Rowell has been transferred to Aberdeen's roster. I just spoke on the phone with Rowell, who is with the Keys in Lynchburg. He said he's a little banged up right now and the Orioles are taking him off the roster for a couple of days. He's dealing with a sore hamstring, strained thumb and an ankle strain. He could...

An Oriole near you

An Oriole near you
As O's fans settle into the heart of the baseball season, June promises a handful of Orioles player appearances in and around Baltimore. Catch former Oriole Larry Sheets at Hightopps Backstage Grille on York Road in Timonium for an O's Alumni MASN Viewing Party on Wednesday, June 2. Sheets will sign autographs and meet with fans from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. So don't miss a great chance to gather with your fellow Orioles fans (and Larry Sheets!) to watch the O's take on the Yankees June 2 at...

Jordan preps for draft and O's No. 3 pick

Jordan preps for draft and O's No. 3 pick
The First-Year Player Draft is now less than two weeks away and the Orioles will have the third pick in round one on June 7. The man who will make the selection, O's scouting director Joe Jordan, has narrowed his choices but said he has not yet made his final call on which player he'd like to take. "We haven't made a decision and we won't until we get into the draft room and start going through it. I don't have to make a decision until the seventh, so I try to practice what I preach...

Clubhouse quotes after Thursday's loss to the A's

Clubhouse quotes after Thursday's loss to the A's
In the quiet of the O's clubhouse after thier latest blown lead we heard from Brad Bergesen, Ty Wigginton and Mark Hendrickson after Oakland scored five in the 8th for a 7-5 win over the Orioles. The Orioles are now 11-6 when leading after seven innings after going 52-5 in those situations last year. Bergesen on when the umpires spoke to him about not pitching on the rubber: "I definetly was pitching from the rubber. It's something that happens sometimes unintentionally. It's not...

I'm going with the cursed theory at this point

I'm going with the cursed theory at this point
Cursed. How else to explain some of this. Yes, I don't think Dave Trembley needed to take Jason Berken out in the eighth either. But a grounder caroms off Mark Hendrickson for a hit to keep the inning alive. He gets what looks like an inning-ending ground ball vs. Jake Fox and it takes a bad hop off Izturis at short for an RBI and 5-4 game. Cla Meredith comes in and gives it up again. A three-run double to Kevin Kouzmanoff for a 7-5 lead. Some guy just serenaded the press box, something...

Bergy settles in

Bergy settles in
With dark clouds close and lightning lighting the sky beyond the center field fence, the O's and A's are tied 2-2 after five and a half innings. Brad Bergesen struggled with his control early, but looks to have it dialed in now. After giving up a two-run homer to Gabe Gross in the second, he walked the first two hitters to start the third. But he got that 4-3-6-2 double play and his night has been going much better ever since. Bergesen has retired 11 batters in a row though the sixth. ...

Early game notes

Early game notes
*From the something has to give department, tonight, either the Orioles will win a series for just the third time this year or the A's will win a road series for just the second time. The O's are 2-11-1 in series and are 6-9 in the final game of a series on the season. Oakland is just 1-5 in road series and is 6-14 in road games. *The A's are 4-2 vs. the O's this year, have won 14 of their last 17 vs. the Birds and are 69-30 vs. the O's since 1999. That's the best winning percentage...

Trembley on Markakis' power numbers

Trembley on Markakis' power numbers
If you look at the stats of Nick Markakis this year, he's exceeded his usual numbers in batting average, on base and OPS. His career average is .298 and he's batting .305 now. His career on base figure is .371 and now he's at .401 and his OPS this year of .850 exceeds his average OPS of .835. But after hitting 18 homers with 101 RBI in 2009, Markakis would hit just 10 homers with 51 RBI this year at his current pace. Manager Dave Trembley said today he is not concerned that Markakis'...

Roberts: "June 9 might be pushing it at this point."

Roberts:  "June 9 might be pushing it at this point."
After a bout with pneumonia and two nights in a hospital, O's second baseman Brian Roberts has resumed light baseball activities. He will head to Sarasota, Florida on Friday to continue his rehab. He still fully intends to return this season but admits now that the date of June 9th, when he can return from the disabled list, might be a little optimistic for his return to the Orioles at this point. He said he cannot be certain when he will return to a Major League field, but remains...

Where in the Yard? (Updated w/Answer)

Where in the Yard? (Updated w/Answer)
Every week for 'Where in the Yard?' we try to identify pictures of items located in or around Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Well this week we're sticking with the same rules, but we're going big picture. So where in the Yard can you get a Bird's eye view of all of Oriole Park? Let us know using the comment box below, and don't forget that you can earn bonus points for being the first O's fan to guess correctly or for posting pictures to the MASNsports.com Facebook page with the item...

The longball cometh

The longball cometh
When Garrett Atkins came to the plate in the third inning last night, he had just one hit in his last 18 at bats and just one RBI over his previous 24 games. Now he has one home run. He drove a 1-2 pitch from Trevor Cahill 374 feet to left center field to end a 145 at bat drought without a longball. "Obviously, its frustrating, you don't want to have a zero in any column, really. That's a big one, so, you know, was just able to put a good swing on it tonight. I wasn't trying to do...

Another rocky outing for Matusz

Another rocky outing for Matusz
O's lefty Brian Matusz struggled for the third time in his last four starts as the Oakland A's beat the Birds 6-1 Wednesday night to even the series at a win each. Matusz allowed six runs and eight hits over five innings to fall to 2-5, 5.76. He gave up four runs in the first inning, three on an Adam Rosales homer. He had retired 10 in a row before giving up three straight hits to begin the sixth. Matusz has allowed 13 ER over 7 1/3 innings over his last two starts. In the last four...