The Orioles' losing streak reached six games tonight and each loss seems more gut-wrenching than the last. Tonight the Orioles came back to gain a 4-3 lead and took that edge to the ninth only to see closer Jim Johnson suffer a third straight blown save as the Yankees tied it then and won it 6-4 in 10 innings. Travis Hafner's one-out solo homer off Johnson in the ninth made it a 4-4 game. Hafner had just three hits over his past 24 at-bats and was hitting only .147 in May when he launched...

The Nationals don't have a lefty reliever in their bullpen, and the division-rival Braves are running out of bullpen lefties as well. The Braves will be without lefties Jonny Venters and Eric O'Flaherty, their main setup guys for All-Star Craig Kimbrel. In addition, the Braves are without Jordan Walden, the right-handed reliever they acquired in a trade with the Angels, and ex-Oriole Luis Ayala, who is on the disabled list with an anxiety disorder. Walden should be back next week, but...

It happened again. Closer Jim Johnson blew his third consecutive save opportunity, serving up a solo home run to Travis Hafner with one out in the top of the ninth to tie the game 4-4. Robinson Cano grounded out with the count full, but Hafner drove a 3-1 pitch into the seats in left-center field. Johnson shouted at himself as the ball cleared the fence, his head snapping down. And the Yankees fans in attendance erupted. Hafner is now 2-for-4 against Johnson. Lyle Overbay followed with a...

We're no longer tied. Troy Patton entered the game in the top of the seventh, and the first batter he faced, first baseman Lyle Overbay, belted a home run to give the Yankees a 3-2 lead. The Yankees have four hits tonight. Three are home runs. Meanwhile, Alexi Casilla is making a strong argument for receiving more starts at second base. Casilla is in the Orioles' lineup because of his career numbers against Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia, though he's 0-for-2 tonight. But one night after...

Don't underestimate the black and orange. More than 147,000 votes were cast in the final round of ESPN's "Battle of the Uniforms." Facing the No. 1 seeded Cardinals, the Orioles emerged as champions after fans voted for the cartoon bird over the Redbirds by a final percentage of 59 to 41. But it didn't start there. The Orioles entered the competition as a No. 13 seed, which begs the question: "Have you seen the orange alternates?" Regardless, they started off the battle by facing the...

The Yankees have seven left-handed hitters in tonight's lineup against Orioles right-hander Freddy Garcia. Somebody has been reading the splits. Left-handers were batting .333 against Garcia heading into the game. Right-handers were batting .156. Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano wasn't going to dispute the numbers. He homered to the opposite field with one out in the top of the first inning to give the visitors an early lead. Third baseman David Adams ignored the splits. Batting from...

You may not remember this now - not after what happened in the American League Division Series last year - but the Orioles fared pretty well against CC Sabathia in the 2012 regular season. Sabathia made three starts against the Orioles then and went 0-2 with an ERA of 6.38 allowing 13 earned runs and four homers over 18 1/3 innings. But then he won Games 1 and 5 of the ALDS against the Orioles going 2-0 with an ERA of 1.53 and WHIP of 0.85 in those two games. He also beat the Orioles this...

Tonight's Nationals lineup will feature Bryce Harper. It will not feature Danny Espinosa or Kurt Suzuki. Harper returns to the Nats lineup after missing the last two games with a sore left knee, an injury suffered during his collision with the right field wall in Dodger Stadium a week ago. The 20-year-old will return to his normal No. 3 spot in the order and will play right field. Steve Lombardozzi will hit in front of Harper and will play second base. Lombardozzi will replace Danny...

The Orioles have lost five in a row for the first time since May 26-June 1, 2012, when they lost six in a row and they have dropped six straight at home for the first time since April 9-14, 2010. The last time the Orioles lost seven in a row at home was August 22-September 7, 2007 when they lost 11 in a row. Right now they are sitting on a winless homestand at 0-5 and the last time they started a homestand going 0-5 was was also April 9-14, 2010, when they lost three each to Toronto and Tampa...

Miguel Gonzalez said this afternoon he is ready to re-enter the Orioles' rotation and pitch against the Yankees tomorrow night. He has been on the disabled list with a right thumb blister since May 9 which was backdated to May 4, the day after his last start. He never made a minor league rehab start but Gonzalez threw in a simulated game at Camden Yards on Friday and got back on the mound Sunday. "I threw a little bit yesterday," he said. "Spinned a couple (threw curveballs) and just...