There has been a lot of talk about catcher Matt Wieters and his offensive numbers, or lack thereof. I asked Wieters about his offense today and also if carrying such a heavy load with catching and playing almost every day hurts his offense a bit. "I don't think so. I think you can look at my numbers last year and they are probably similar to this point in the same number of at bats. You have a good month or couple of weeks and you are right back where you need to be." You know what,...

The Orioles selected Pacific catcher Joe Oliveira in the 15th round, Fresno Community College outfielder Brandon King in the 16th and Hillsborough (Fla.) CC left fielder David Richardson in the 17th. Corey Patterson remains day-to-day after aggravating a left groin injury that he originally sustained during the last homestand while running the bases in a game against Oakland. He tweaked it again in his last game, against Boston, while chasing a fly ball and trying to avoid shortstop Cesar...

Second baseman Brian Roberts will undergo more tests on his back over the next few days before the club determines the next step to take with him. Interim manager Juan Samuel said he isn't sure whether surgery is becoming an option. That would seem to be the case, but the team hasn't confirmed it. Reliever Michael Gonzalez threw an inning today in extended spring training, allowing one hit. His fastball was clocked in the mid-80s. "His velocity is still down," Samuel said, "but just to...

For the Orioles: Julio Lugo 2B Miguel Tejada 3B Nick Markakis RF Ty Wigginton 1B Luke Scott DH Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Lou Montanez LF Cesar Izturis SS Kevin Millwood RHP For the Yankees: Jeter SS Swisher RF Teixeira 1B Rodriguez 3B Cano 2B Posada DH Granderson CF Cervelli C Gardner LF Hughes RHP

Here are the rest of the Orioles' picks since I drove to Camden Yards: 178th pick: Dixon Anderson, RHP, California 208th: Matthew Bywater, LHP, Pepperdine 238th: Wynston Sawyer, C, Scripps Ranch (Ca.) High 268th: Parker Bridwell, RHP, Hereford (Tx.) High 298th: Clayton Schrader, RHP, San Jacinto (Tx.) College North Anderson was named to the 2010 CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic District 8 Baseball Team. He has a 3.60 GPA in society and environment and was first-team Pac-10 All-Academic...

In a move that potentially could lead to Jake Arrieta joining the Orioles, right-hander Tim Bascom has joined the Triple-A Norfolk Tides. Bascom has not yet been activated, but soon could be joining the Norfolk rotation. The 25-year-old right-hander is 3-4, 3.43 in 11 starts with Double-A Bowie. Over 63 innings, he gave up 71 hits with just ten walks to 41 strikeouts. He has allowed 2 ER or less in seven of his 11 Baysox starts. Bascom is a fourth-round pick from 2007. Bascom last started...

The Orioles used the 148th overall pick in the draft to select high school switch-hitting shortstop Connor Narron, the son of former major league catcher and manager Jerry Narron. Nice bloodlines. Narron, 6 foot 3 and 195 pounds, was named an AFLAC All-American last year at C.B. Aycock High School in North Carolina. He also was invited to participate in the East Coast Showcase as a sophomore and junior. Narron, who has committed to play at the University of North Carolina, batted .317 with...

The Orioles have selected Auburn left-handed hitting center fielder Trent Mummey in the fourth round. I'll try to dig up more on him later. Update: Mummey was named a 2009 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division I Gold Glove Award winner after posting a .995 fielding percentage and finishing with seven outfield assists. He committed only one error. Mummey homered, doubled twice and drove in five runs Saturday in Auburn's 17-8 victory over Southern Mississippi. He's batting .366 with 17 homers, 54 RBIs...

The first-half of the Carolina League season is nearing completion and the Frederick Keys are in the drivers seat to clinch their first playoff berth since 2007. With 13 games left, the Keys lead the Northern Division by eight games over Wilmington. They have a magic number of five to win the division first-half title. Frederick is 35-23, the first time since the end of the 2005 season that the Keys are 12 games over .500. After beating Potomac 3-1 last night, the Keys now have a...

Draft update: The Orioles chose UCLA closer Daniel Klein with the third overall pick in the third round. He missed the 2009 season after undergoing shoulder surgery but made up for it this year. Baseball America notes that he can throw four pitches for strikes, leading some scouts to think he should be given the chance to start. Klein has recorded nine saves for UCLA, the most by a Bruins pitcher since 1993. He's 5-0 with a 2.03 ERA in 35 games, with 35 hits allowed, eight walks and 48...