Miguel Tejada stepped to the plate in the eighth inning tonight with two outs, the bases loaded and the Orioles down by a run. Tejada fell behind 0-2 and flied to left. That's what you'd call "anti-climatic." Corey Patterson delivered his third RBI with an infield hit, bringing Tejada to the plate with the Marlins clinging to a 6-5 lead. Tejada has one RBI since May 27, and it came on June 13. This was his moment. Too bad it didn't live up to the hype. Instant update: Naturally, the...

Brian Matusz entered the top of the seventh having retired 11 batters in a row. But now, Florida has pushed across a tie-breaking run to gain a 5-4 lead after they trailed 4-0 in the second inning. Matusz walked Mike Stanton on a 3-1 pitch to start the inning. After he advanced to second on a ground out, Ronny Paulino's double just inside the right-field line scored Stanton for a 5-4 lead, the Marlins first lead of the night. The next hitter,Chris Coughlan has just doubled off the...

You'll forgive Brian Matusz if he doesn't recognize it. In his last five starts, Matusz had received a total of six runs while he remained in the game. In his last 10 starts, he received 12. Tonight, the Orioles hung four runs on the board in the bottom of the second, beginning with back-to-back homers from Luke Scott and Adam Jones. Scott jumped on a breaking ball, Jones a fastball. It was the first time the Orioles had gone back-to-back since Matt Wieters and Nolan Reimold turned the...

The Orioles fourth-round draft pick, Auburn outfielder Trent Mummey, joined the Aberdeen IronBirds today in Staten Island, New York. Mummey, the 118th overall selection in the draft and highest O's pick to agree to terms so far, will be officially activated as soon as his contract is approved by Major League Baseball, which could happen any day. The 21-year-old lefty hitter batted .366-17-54 in 36 games for Auburn this season and was first-team all SEC. He is likely to stay as a center...

Buck Showalter became the latest candidate to interview for the Orioles' managerial position, meeting for about three hours earlier today with president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail and majority owner Peter Angelos. MacPhail admits that it's an awkward process to keep updating reporters on the proceedings while Juan Samuel is currently serving as interim manager. He didn't provide many details on today's meeting beyond saying that it was "enjoyable" and that he finds these...

The Marlins will trot out their own interim manager tonight when Edwin Rodriguez, fresh from Triple-A New Orleans, takes over the ballclub. Does Juan Samuel have any advice for Rodriguez? "Maybe I need some myself, instead of giving some of those guys advice," he said, grinning. "I'm trying to do what I can here with my club to get them going, and I'm sure he's going to do the same." Fredi Gonzalez's firing hit close to home for Samuel, since he took charge of the Orioles following...

No one is saying or even hinting that Jake Fox could even begin to be the answer to all that ails the Orioles offense. But it would be nice to see him get a few starts along the way. Did they trade for the guy just as a utility/bench player? It's only two games since he has been here, but Fox is not in today's starting lineup either. I know the guy got designated for assignment and is batting just .214-2-12 in 98 at bats, but does he need to become the latest player to find the O's bench...

Koji Uehara is scheduled to pitch in a simulated game tomorrow, his first chance to face live hitters. The Orioles will determine whether he needs to go on an injury rehab assignment. Uehara made 30 throws off flat ground yesterday. As far as we know, he hasn't stood on a mound during his time in Sarasota, so a rehab assignment seems like the next logical step. "It all depends how it goes, whether he stays here or if he needs to go on a rehab assignment," interim manager Juan Samuel said....

For the Orioles: Corey Patterson LF Miguel Tejada 3B Nick Markakis RF Ty Wigginton 1B Luke Scott DH Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Scott Moore 2B Cesar Izturis SS Brian Matusz LHP For the Marlins: Coghlan LF G. Sanchez 1B Ramirez SS Cantu DH Uggla 2B Ross CF Stanton RF Helms 3B Paulino C Nolasco RHP Koji Uehara is here. Bobby Valentine won't be here, and the timing of his public dismissal of the Orioles is most interesting with Fredi Gonzalez being fired today. I think we can connect the...

Zach Britton was probably not expecting to find out this way. But when he got to his locker in the clubhouse Tuesday afternoon at Reading, there was an official looking letter from Major League Baseball. "When I got to my locker (yesterday) there was a letter from Major League Baseball. I wondered if I was in trouble. But then I saw it was a nice letter saying 'Congratulations, you've been selected to participate on the USA team for the 2010 MLB All-Star Futures Game.' "This is real...