As a younger player, one of the biggest knocks on Adam Jones was his poor plate discipline. Jones chased a lot of pitches out of the strike zone, which led to a bunch of strikeouts and not many walks. Working on that looked like one of the keys for Jones to get his production more in line with what his tools suggested he could accomplish. In 2009, it looked like some progress was being made, as Jones walked in a career high 6.9 percent of his plate appearances (even though league average was...

After Tuesday night's loss at Oakland, the Orioles play the A's this afternoon and a win would give them their first series win in nearly two months and their first road series win in more than three months. The Orioles' last win in any series was when they took two of three from the Reds at home June 24-26. Since then, they have lost 11 series and tied one. During that stretch, the Orioles have won the first game of the series three times, but they lost every other game in those three...

Josh Bell has driven in two runs for the second straight night, with his RBI single in the fifth reducing Oakland's lead to 4-3. Robert Andino reached second base with one out after Josh Willingham dropped his fly ball for the Athletics' 100th error of the season. Andino raced home when Bell followed with a single into center field. The Orioles keep pecking away at that lead. They sliced it to 4-2 in the fourth on a two-out single by Adam Jones and a Vladimir Guerrero double. Bell has made...

I was looking forward to tomorrow's off-day and a little relaxation, or what qualifies in my life, but now I'll be tracking down the results of Chris Davis' visit to orthopedic specialist Dr. Lewis Yocum. Yes, it's all about me. Davis has a slight tear in his right shoulder and could be facing a shutdown or surgery. If you're Luke Scott or Jake Arrieta, it can turn into both. The Orioles are keeping Yocum on speed-dial. No truth to the rumor that they're thinking of moving the...

Left-hander Brian Matusz followed a scoreless first inning tonight with a messy second that's placed the Orioles in a 3-0 hole. Matusz walked a batter in the first and two more in the second. He gave up an RBI double to Scott Sizemore on an 82 mph changeup, an RBI bloop single to Cliff Pennington on a 76 mph curveball and a bloop RBI double to Jemile Weeks on a 90 mph fastball. Pitching coach Rick Adair visited the mound as Matusz struggled through a 28-pitch inning that raised his total to...

After two starts and 12 runs allowed, there was concern about how far Nationals' right-hander Chien-Ming Wang needed to go to get back to his form from 2006 and 2007. Then came wins over the Chicago Cubs and Tuesday over the Cincinnati Reds, where he surrendered four runs in two starts, showing the potential of Wang in a Nationals uniform. He still has a long ways to go, but to see a positive turn in results, where he was pitching out of bad spots, even without his best stuff, was certainly...

The Orioles today announced that they have recalled left-handed pitcher Brian Matusz from Triple-A Norfolk. Matusz will start tonight's game against the Oakland A's. The club has also placed infielder Chris Davis on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 15, with a right shoulder strain. Matusz is 1-4 with an 8.77 ERA (25.2IP, 25 ER) in six starts for the Orioles this season. Davis has batted .241 (28-122) in 38 games between the Orioles and Texas Rangers, including .224 (9-40) in 10...

Pitcher Zach Britton, on the disabled list with a strained left shoulder, allowed one run over five innings in tonight's start for Triple-A Norfolk. Britton gave up three hits to Charlotte, walked one and struck out three. He threw 62 pitches, 39 for strikes, before left-hander Mark Hendrickson replaced him in the top of the sixth. Hendrickson promptly surrendered back-to-back home runs that increased Charlotte's lead to 4-0. Britton fell behind, 1-0, in the first on Dallas McPherson's...

The hits just keep coming for the Orioles, and not the good kind. First baseman Chris Davis was scratched from tonight's lineup because of continuing discomfort in his right shoulder, and president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail confirmed that the former Ranger has a slight tear. He's scheduled to be examined Thursday by, of course, Dr. Lewis Yocum, who's performed surgery on Jake Arrieta and Dan Klein within the past week. Dr. James Andrews must be seething. Davis will go on the...

Orioles pitching prospect Dan Klein underwent surgery today to repair a small tear in his right labrum and to loosen his shoulder capsule. He'll likely begin a throwing program in mid-December and could begin pitching for an affiliate by June 1. Orthopedic specialist Dr. Lewis Yocum used one anchor to repair the tear. The average amount for a smaller tear is two. "That's good news. There was little damage," said John Stockstill, director of player development. Yocum also loosened the...