O's catcher Matt Wieters said before the game that Chris Tillman can pitch well at his current velocity and then Tillman went out and proved that to be true. We can all debate where Tillman's velocity went and why he doesn't throw low- to mid-90s more often now, but he doesn't. It doesn't mean he can't win consistently or pitch well if he gets ahead hitters and has movement on his pitches and command of them. Tillman's outing last night was encouraging. After yielding 10 runs and 15...

The Nationals just finished up an exciting homestand that saw them go 4-2 against two teams that were picked by many to win their respective divisions. The club's only losses came to two pitchers who can easily claim the title as the best right- or left-handed starters in baseball, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, and by winning both games of the doubleheader Sunday, the Nationals are now 8-7 on the season. With 15 games under their belt, they are just about 10 percent of the way through the year,...

We've grown accustomed to the Orioles crashing in August, though last year proved the exception. I wonder if they're aware that it's still April. Same first letter, different month. The losing streak has reached eight games, but I'm still not in panic mode. That's mostly because it's baseball, which doesn't freak me out unless it forces me to rewrite a game story in the ninth inning or a screaming line drive is headed for my larynx. Still, it's disturbing that the Orioles got off to...

It was another night of not much offense for the Orioles. The losing streak reached eight and the O's have scored a total of 20 runs during the skid. The last four games they have scored a total of 10 runs. Several individuals throughout the lineup continue to struggle. Vlad Guerrero went 0-for-4 in the loss and grounded into a double play. Guerrero just is not driving the ball at all right now and hit a 2-0 pitch to right field in the fourth inning. He has just one RBI the last nine...

May as well hear from Adam Jones, too. "We put ourselves in some situations to get a big hit and we didn't," he said. "Hey, come out tomorrow, stop feeling sorry for ourselves. We don't. No one else in the league is, so we'll just go out and keep playing the game of baseball." "We were a little more aggressive today. We had multiple situations. You never know how the game is going to end until the 27th out is made. We keep fighting until that 27th out, and lately we just haven't been...

Chris Tillman retired 11 in a row before the final batter reached on Robert Andino's throwing error. He finished strong, but wasn't exactly in the mood to celebrate. "I wouldn't say I'm pleased," he said. "I felt OK about it. It was OK. It wasn't good enough. It's definitely a work in progress here. From the last start to this start, I've come a long way. I still have a lot of work to do, but it was OK." Later, Tillman said he "got excited seeing the results." That's OK, too. He...

Manager Buck Showalter met with the media for about four minutes after tonight's 5-3 loss to the Twins, which ran the Orioles' losing streak to eight games. Manager Buck Showalter talks about Chris Tillman and the Orioles' 5-3 loss to Minnesota Here is a sampling: On Chris Tillman: "He was better. Obviously, they're operating without Morneau and Mauer, but it was good for the most part. He gave us a chance to win. We just didn't give him much offensive support. We knew Liriano was...

Clay Rapada faced four batters tonight in his Orioles debut, and he struck out three of them. All three Twins who fanned were caught looking at the third strike. None of them agreed with the calls from plate umpire Chris Guccione, who handed Twins manager Ron Gardenhire his 53rd career ejection. Jim Thome had to be restrained from going after Guccione. The strikeouts came against three left-handed hitters. That's why Rapada is here. The one batter who didn't strike out, switch-hitting...

Chris Tillman hasn't walked a batter in six innings. Tillman walked six in his first three starts covering 12 1/3 innings, including three on the night that he held the Rays hitless. Tillman has allowed three runs and six hits, with five strikeouts. He's retired nine in a row since Michael Cuddyer's double with no outs in the fourth. Nobody is warming in the Orioles' bullpen with Tillman's pitch count at 91, including 58 strikes. The Twins have gone down in order in the third, fifth...

Chris Tillman, trying to bounce back from that early exit at New York last week, is off to a mixed start so far tonight. He and the Orioles trail the Twins 2-0 after three innings. Tillman has pitched two scoreless innings in the first and third, but gave up two runs in the second inning. Of the four hits he has allowed, three came consecutively in that frame. With one out, Michael Cuddyer and Danny Valencia hit back-to-back singles. Then catcher Drew Butera, batting just .113 at gametime,...