In the victorious Orioles clubhouse, Nelson Cruz was asked if he was trying to hit a homer when he batted with the bases loaded and the O's down 4-0 in the eighth inning tonight. "I was trying to not hit a groundball to shortstop," Cruz said laughing. "I think I did that enough tonight. Was trying to get something I could drive." He sure did that. After grounding into double plays in the fourth and seventh innings, Cruz hit his eighth career grand slam to tie this game at 4-4 in the...

Orioles pitcher Bud Norris will undergo an MRI on his right groin Thursday morning after having his next start pushed back. Norris threw a bullpen session and appeared to be "tentative," according to manager Buck Showalter, which led to the decision to start Chris Tillman in Game 2 of Friday night's doubleheader against the Rays at Camden Yards. Norris left his most recent start Saturday night against the Yankees after five innings because of tightness in his groin. Showalter sent Norris...

A night of frustration on offense for the Orioles ended with one big swing in the last of the eighth tonight. A Nelson Cruz grand slam tied the game against Chicago at 4-4. It took a bit longer to win it but the Orioles did that. David Lough scored from third on a Daniel Webb wild pitch in the last of the 12th as the Orioles won it 5-4. Catcher Nick Hundley led off the 12th with a walk and Lough came in to pinch-run. Nick Markakis singled to right-center and Lough advanced to third with no...

As a free agent after the 1978 season, pitcher Steve Stone chose the Orioles over other teams because he liked their chances to make the World Series. He was right. In his only Fall Classic, Stone pitched two innings in the Orioles' 1979 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. His 1980 season, though, was one for the ages in Orioles history: Stone won 25 games and the American League Cy Young Award. He is the last Orioles pitcher to win the award, joining Mike Cuellar, Jim Palmer (three times) and...

Does it still count as an off-day if a game goes past midnight? The Orioles will take it, no matter the definition. It's still going to feel like rest. The bullpen could use it after manager Buck Showalter called upon six relievers in last night's 5-4, 12-inning victory over the White Sox, though he skillfully limited their pitch counts to make them available for Friday's doubleheader. Brad Brach threw eight, Darren O'Day 14, Zach Britton 16, Ryan Webb 19, Brian Matusz 24 and Tommy Hunter...

It happened. The Orioles got into the White Sox bullpen and it happened. Nelson Cruz's two-out grand slam off reliever Javy Guerra in the bottom of the eighth inning tied the game 4-4. It's Cruz's eighth career slam and his second this season, the other coming April 23 in Toronto. He's hit 24 homers and driven in 64 runs this season Sounds like an All-Star to me. White Sox manager Robin Ventura used three relievers in the eighth. It wasn't enough. Or perhaps it was too many. Nick...

The walks that have plagued Orioles pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez this season rest entirely on his shoulders. He takes full responsibility. But he can't control each time the offense goes into shutdown mode while he's on the mound. White Sox right-hander Hector Noesi is blanking the Orioles tonight on four hits over six innings. He's thrown only 63 pitches. Jimenez held the White Sox to two runs over the first six innings before Tyler Flower's two-run single with none out in the seventh. Flowers...

Through three innings of tonight's game against the White Sox, Orioles starter Ubaldo Jimenez has not issued a walk. Through three innings, Jimenez has thrown 29 of his 38 pitches for strikes. He's stayed in control. The Orioles hope it lasts. Jimenez issued six walks in 5 2/3 innings in Friday night's start against the Yankees, and the Orioles were forced to make a roster move after the game, optioning Kevin Gausman and bringing up Brad Brad to aid the bullpen. In his last three outings,...

Manager Matt Williams provided reporters with his thoughts on Stephen Strasburg's rough start, rookie Taylor Hill's first outing and the dustup between Ian Desmond and Carlos Gomez following the Nationals' 9-2 loss to the Brewers. Strasburg fell to 6-6 with perhaps his worst start of the season. Hill saved the bullpen by pitching the final 3 1/3 innings and cooler heads prevailed after Desmond and Gomez went at each other following the eighth inning. Here's what Williams had to say after...

Stephen Strasburg's struggles and Taylor Hill's major league debut in Wednesday's series-ending 9-2 loss to the Brewers were overshadowed by a few tense moments after the eighth inning. The eighth had ended on a double play where Milwaukee's Carlos Gomez, after being hit by a Hill pitch, slid hard into Kevin Frandsen at second trying to break it up. Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond didn't like the fact that Gomez issued a takeout slide in that situation, potentially hurting Frandsen late in...