Orioles catcher Matt Wieters began this season going 7-for-7 when batting with runners in scoring position. While he wasn't going to keep hitting 1.000 in those clutch spots, he is still batting over .500 with RISP and the team is now 46 games into the season. Wieters is hitting .576 on the year at 19-for-33 with RISP. He has five doubles, three homers and 25 of his 26 RBIs in those spots. He is easily the American League's top hitter with RISP. So what is the key to hitting well in clutch...

Orioles manager Buck Showalter sent Robert Andino to the plate in the fifth inning last night with instructions to bunt a strike. The Orioles trailed by two runs and had two runners on base with no outs after back-to-back walks from Royals starter Danny Duffy. Andino offered at the first pitch, a high fastball, and popped it up for a double play. The bunt made perfect sense with the tying runs on base and no outs, but Andino wasn't supposed to go after a pitch out of the strike zone. And he...

For the Orioles: Felix Pie LF Adam Jones CF Nick Markakis RF Vladimir Guerrero DH Matt Wieters C Luke Scott 1B Mark Reynolds 3B J.J. Hardy SS Ryan Adams 2B Jake Arrieta RHP Catcher Craig Tatum is expected to be recalled before the Orioles fly out to Oakland following tomorrow afternoon's game. You can speculate on the corresponding roster move. Brandon Snyder is a strong candidate because Scott and Jake Fox can play first base in Derrek Lee's absence. Tatum could be recalled in time to...

One thing that has been pretty true about how this Orioles season has gone is this observation. Just when you think you may have a handle on how the O's are playing, it will usually change. They began the year going 6-1 and fans were fired up by that start. They then proceeded to lose eight in a row. In late April, the Orioles won five of six against Boston and Chicago. They then lost six of seven. That was followed by a three-game sweep against Seattle and a series win on the road versus...

The Orioles are fortunate to be surrounded by dedicated military personnel throughout the region, and the organization is grateful for all of those who risk their lives each day for our country. In that spirit, as we approach Memorial Day, the club is proud to announce support for military members and their families through a variety of exclusive ticket offers, suite donations and special gameday activities. ORIOLES MILITARY APPRECIATION PROGRAM TICKET DISCOUNTS AT EVERY GAME: The Orioles...

The Colorado Rockies lost left-hander Jorge De La Rosa to a torn ligament in his elbow Tuesday. He will have to undergo Tommy John ligament replacement surgery and will be out for at least one year. With starting pitcher Jason Marquis having a very consistent start for the Nationals this season, his stock will not be any higher at the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. Washington could be able to cash in if they want to go after some solid leadoff prospects in the Colorado farm system. The...

The news came out yesterday, not long after I wrote this story about concern over the future for the Single-A Frederick Keys. The City of Frederick yesterday selected the Keys over an Atlantic League team to negotiate a new lease with to play in Harry Grove Stadium starting next year. This comes as great news and should mean the Keys, who have played as an Orioles' affiliate in Frederick since 1989, should continue there and remain aligned with the Orioles - hopefully for many, many years to...

It's way too soon to christen Zach Britton the ace of a pitching staff. However, based on his starts for the Orioles so far, he may be it. As of right now, it is accurate to say that he is exceeding expectations. Most thought that Britton would be solid, perhaps go through the school of hard knocks at the major league level. Rather than coming off as a fresh-faced rookie - which Britton basically still is - he's pitching like a tenured, proven major league veteran at the moment. To win...

I sometimes have people come up to me and ask what I am going to do when this all ends. What happens when the blog and the revolution are all over? I tell them the truth: I will retire and disappear into the wilderness of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where I will live near one of the Great Lakes and simply watch the large freighter ships go by and record all their names, dates and times that I see them in a notebook while listening to Gordon Lightfoot all day. This is "it" for me. This...

A caller to my radio show last night on the 105.7 FM The Fan in Baltimore asked me a question: Which ending was more exciting - Matt Wieters' caught stealing double play that ended Sunday's game or Adam Jones' walk-off homer last night in the ninth against Kansas City? Both were exciting finishes, but that was an easy one for me. I went with the walk-off homer. As this season marches on and the Orioles are past the quarter-pole and approaching the one-third point into this season, the...