Preliminary overnight Nielsen ratings show that new Orioles skipper Buck Showalter has re-energized both his players and viewers on MASN. More than 61,000 households in the Baltimore market tuned in last night to watch the Orioles sweep the Angels, a marked increase over the 2010 average tune-in for Orioles fans in Baltimore. With a 5.6 HH rating, the Orioles telecast was the top-rated prime show in Baltimore on Thursday evening, beating out the prime-time lineups of even the broadcast...

I'm happy to report that former Orioles pitching coach and manager Ray Miller looks exactly the same except for a goatee that he can wear without violating the club's facial hair policy. Miller looks terrific, which is a relief after he dealt with a serious health issue during his final season in the organization. He's a pretty stoic guy, as old-school as they come, but the honor of being inducted into the Orioles' Hall of Fame has clearly moved him. "First time in my life I was...

I'm heading over to Camden Yards to catch up with Ray Miller, who will be inducted into the Orioles' Hall of Fame before tomorrow night's game against the Chicago White Sox. It's been years since I've seen him. I'm relieved that he's in good health and enjoying his retirement. Going back to how we're all learning about manager Buck Showalter, I'm enjoying his thorough evaluation process this week. He's not focused only on the obvious stuff - how a player is swinging the bat, how a...

The Orioles have to be somewhat concerned about right-handed pitcher Brandon Erbe of the Norfolk Tides at this point. The 22-year-old from Baltimore has not pitched since a July 24 injury-rehab start with Aberdeen and underwent an MRA exam on Thursday. Erbe has been dealing with right shoulder soreness and was on the road back to Triple-A when he was sent to Aberdeen. The O's won't know the next move with Erbe until they get the results of that exam. Erbe was expected to make three...

Some notes and quotes from Jake Arrieta, Jason Berken and Matt Wieters after the Orioles 5-4 win over the Angels that provided them a series sweep and 3-0 record for Buck Showalter as manager. *This was the O's first three-game home sweep of the Angels since July 23-25, 1999. Their last three-game sweep of the Angels was in Anaheim from September 17-19, 1999. It was the fourth series sweep of the year following earlier sweeps over Boston, Washington and Texas. It was the O's first series...

Manager Buck Showalter was asked about the Orioles' refusal to become deflated after Torii Hunter's game-tying three-run homer off Jason Berken in the eighth inning. It led to my favorite quote of the night: "I looked for that," he said. "It's part of playing, not only in the big leagues, but in the American League. Big, strong, hairy guys here. They hit it where the grass doesn't grow. And that's part of playing in this division, this league. That's part of it. "We've got some...

Harrisburg Senators' shortstop Danny Espinosa, a rising star in the Nats organization, enjoyed a career night Wednesday with three home runs in the Sens 5-3 win at Binghamton, continuing a resurgence that began in June. Espinosa went 3-for-5 with a career high 3 homers, 3 runs and 4 RBI. He is hitting .286 with 4 HR and 13 RBI the last 10 games, raising his season average to .262. "It was a good time. I hit my first one when they were trying to jam me. It was a 1-0 count on an off speed...

For the Orioles, it was a blown lead, but not a blown game. When Torii Hunter drilled a three-run homer to left off Jason Berken in the 8th, the Angels had rallied from 4-0 down to tie the game, 4-4. The homer kept Jake Arrieta from getting a win on a night he took a no-hitter into the fifth and gave up just one hit through six. But the Orioles won it in the last of the ninth. Matt Wieters led off with a double to left center and Julio Lugo came in to run for him. After a Corey Patterson...

I feel bad for Jake Arrieta, but the Orioles just swept the Angels and improved to 3-0 under Buck Showalter. I'll choose to be happy. I'll also choose to celebrate another quality start from the Orioles' rotation. Matt Wieters led off the bottom of the ninth with a double to left-center field off Angels reliever Francisco Rodriguez. Pinch-runner Julio Lugo took third on Corey Patterson's sacrifice bunt, and the Angels went with a five-man infield against Cesar Izturis, with Torii Hunter...

Jake Arrieta walked Erick Aybar to put runners on first and second with one out in the eighth inning. The Orioles held a 4-0 lead. Arrieta's pitch count stood at 106, and left-hander Michael Gonzalez was ready in the bullpen. Manager Buck Showalter stuck with Arrieta as switch-hitter Maicer Izturis stepped to the plate. I can think of a manager or two who would have removed Arrieta before the inning started, or immediately after pinch-hitter Reggie Willits' leadoff single. The walk would...