Not really news, here. No surprise.

But Major League Baseball just announced its initial vote tallies for the American League All-Star team, and not one Oriole is in the top five at any position (MLB releases the top 5 at infield spots and the top 15 in the outfield).

Perhaps it's a tiny bit surprising that catcher Matt Wieters hasn't gotten any national recognition considering how weak the position is.

New York's Russell Martin leads catchers with 843,459 votes. Martin has been solidm and he is a Yankee -- six of the nine current leaders are Yankees -- so that one is a given. But the second-place catcher is the injured Joe Mauer, he of the nine games played for the last-place Twins.

Detroit's Alex Avila, who really has emerged this season, is third, ahead of Cleveland's Carlos Santana and Texas' Yorvit Torrealba. We'll have to assume Wieters is sixth (wink, wink).

By the way, before you complain that All-Star voting is a popularity contest and doesn't take into consideration a player's current performance -- and there is certain merit to that argument -- I have one silver lining for you: Toronto's Jose Bautista leads all vote-getters, including all Yankees, with 1.26 million votes. The only other ALer with more than 1 million votes so far is New York's Robinson Cano.

So bottom line: Want to be an All-Star starter if you don't play for the Yankees or Red Sox? Hit every third pitch out of the park.

Posted by Dan Connolly at 3:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

I don't really have time to get this in story form, but here are a couple of comments from Jake Fox, who was designated for assignment today to make room for Brian Matusz's activation from the disabled list. The Orioles have 10 days to reassign Fox to the minors, trade him or give him his outright release. Fox doesn't want to go to the minors so a trade is the most likely scenario.

On whether he was surprised: "You see it coming. This isn’t the first time I’ve been through it. I went through it last year. It basically comes down to numbers. [Orioles manager Buck Showalter] didn’t see me getting any at-bats. We got Derrek Lee coming back [to Baltimore] tomorrow, and they wanted to take care of pitching first with Matusz coing back today. He just didn’t feel like I was a good fit here, and it’s disappointing because I felt like I was a good fit here, I enjoyed it here. I liked the guys, I liked the team. It’s the same thing I went through last year with Oakland, where there just weren’t enough at bats for me. Everybody thinks I’m good enough to play for somebody else, just not for them. I feel like I’m kind of in the in-between stage. It’s been difficult."

On not finding rhythm after great spring: "It’s just a different job, coming off the bench. It’s just trial and error, like I told Buck. It’s still trial and error. It’s just been difficult having to learn a new job, I’m still learning how to do it. I’m hitting better, but still not what I can do. And it’s just a matter of getting some place where they are going to try to use me. And I think that’s what
they are trying to do. They said this time period is going to take a long time because they are going to try to move me to a different team. They are going to put me on waivers and see what happens. I don’t think I would clear waivers. It’s possible. Anything’s possible. All I can do is remain positive and believe this move is for the best. I’m going to go somewhere that’s going to give me an opportunity."

On whether he'd have any interest in going down the Orioles' minor league system: "I don’t and for me, I feel like it’s always an option to go overseas and play. I’m not ready to do that because I still feel like I can play every day at this level. And unfortunately this organization thinks I can’t. But I’m not going to believe it until its proven to me that I can’t play. So
hopefully I will go some place that will give me a chance to play."

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 2:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

As I write this, Nick Markakis is out on the field with a cadre of Orioles coaches taking ground balls at first base and getting instruction. He is using manager Buck Showalter's glove. It's been a busy morning, so I'm sure we'll have more on this later, but Markakis has jokingly been asked to play first for a while now. Wanting to give Vladimir Guerrero the day off and give Luke Scott's sore shoulder a rest from playing the field, Showalter decided the time was right. Here are a couple of quotes from Markakis:

On whether he was surprised with decision: "I didn’t know if I would get the opportunity, but I’ve always thought it would be fun to get another view and perspective of the game at a different position. I think it just makes our lineup more versatile. It gets more guys in there with the injuries that we do have. Whatever helps the team, whatever makes the team better and allows us to get guys in there that need to get in there. I’m up for the challenge. We’ll see how it goes.”

On taking ground balls before the game: “That’s all you can do besides actually getting into the game. Besides messing around and taking ground balls in batting practice, that’s as far as it’s gone until now. We’ll see how it goes tonight.”

When is the last time you played there?: “I haven’t played first base since high school. It’s just another position, and you do what you can and that’s it.”

Speaking of first basemen, Derrek Lee is on his way back to Baltimore. He'll start a rehab assignment with Double-A Bowie tomorrow night. Showalter said he's not sure how many games the rehab assignment will last, but it's certainly possible he'll be activated from the DL on Friday or Saturday. Showalter said a pitcher would likely be demoted to make room.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 2:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

You didn't read that wrong. Jeff Zrebiec, reporting from Seattle, isn't having eye trouble reading the lineup card.

It has been posted, and right fielder Nick Markakis is batting third and playing first base. Luke Scott is at DH. I am sure we'll have more on this later.

By the way, Nick has not played first base since high school. Not in junior college. Not in the minors. Not in the majors.

Here is the lineup:

Pie RF
Jones CF
Markakis 1B
Wieters C
Scott DH
Hardy SS
Reimold LF
Reynolds 3B
Andino 2B
Matusz SP

Posted by Dan Connolly at 1:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (22)
        

To make room for the activation of today’s starter Brian Matusz from the disabled list, the Orioles have designated catcher-infielder Jake Fox for assignment.

Fox, who was the talk of spring training after he hit 10 home runs to win the backup catcher job, batted .188 with two homers and four RBIs in 19 games for the Orioles. He started just 12 of the Orioles’ 53 games this season, six at catcher, two at first base and four in left field.

Asked Tuesday how difficult it was to find opportunities to Fox, Orioles manager Buck Showalter said: “If a guy is playing well and hitting well, it’s not that hard to find opportunities. Jake hasn’t made good use of the opportunities he’s had, with some exceptions. We saw in spring training in that environment what he’s capable of. We will see.”

With first baseman Derrek Lee expected back from the disabled list soon and the Orioles preferring Craig Tatum as their backup catcher, Fox figured to get even less playing time. The Orioles have 10 days to trade Fox, reassign him to the minor leagues or give him his outright release.

The Orioles acquired Fox last June from the Oakland Athletics in exchange for minor league reliever Ross Wolf. Fox, 28, batted .220 with five homers and 10 RBIs in 38 games for them last season.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 1:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

Seattle first baseman Justin Smoak landed the big blow smashing Jeremy Guthrie's 0-1 changeup deep into the right-field seats to power the Mariners to a 3-2 victory over the reeling Orioles.

However, the most important play of the game happened two batters earlier when Guthrie got Ichiro Suzuki to hit a ground ball to the right side. First baseman Luke Scott made a diving stop on the ball, but his hard throw glanced off Guthrie's glove at first base.

"Quick runner. You have to get rid of the ball," Scott said. "That’s a tough play to make as a
pitcher because he’s running, focusing on the throw and then he’s got to touch the bag at the same time. ... I just tried to get it to him as fast as I could. It was a tough play. Jeremy is very
athletic. He's made plays, he’s made tremendous plays before. I led him maybe two or three inches too far."

Guthrie, who is one of the best-fielding pitchers in the league, was actually credited with the error. Nobody cares what I think, but I'd have a hard time giving that error to him. I've never tried it, but I can't imagine reaching across your body to catch a hard and slightly wide throw while sprinting to first base with Ichiro right behind you is an easy thing to do.

"Tough throw," Guthrie said. "I think you guys know. You’ve watched me play. I don’t think you’ve ever seen me drop a ball that’s thrown to me. It’s unfortunate."

Orioles manager Buck Showalter didn't point any fingers, but it sounded like he was of the same opinion as Guthrie.

"Well, when you throw the ball that hard from that short a distance, it makes it doubly hard on the pitcher," Showalter said. "If anybody can make that play, Jeremy is a Gold Glove candidate every year. So when he doesn’t catch the ball, you very seldom fault him."

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 2:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

A brutal road trip reached a new low tonight when Jeremy Guthrie lost his shutout and the Orioles lost their lead on Justin Smoak's two-out, three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Guthrie, who had pitched brilliantly through seven innings, got two quick outs in the eighth before Ichiro Suzuki reached on an error by the Orioles starting pitcher. First baseman Luke Scott made a diving stop on Suzuki's grounder, but Guthrie couldn't handle his throw.

The next batter, Brendan Ryan, blooped a single into right field, and then Smoak absolutely crushed Guthrie's 0-1 pitch deep into the right-field seats for his eighth home run.

Brandon League pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth, striking out two to pick up his 15th save. Former Oriole Chris Ray got the victory, allowing one hit and a walk in 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

Guthrie got the loss, falling to 2-7.

The Orioles will try to avoid a series sweep and an 0-6 road trip tomorrow afternoon.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 12:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (15)
        

ORIOLES
Robert Andino, 2B
Adam Jones, CF
Nick Markakis, RF
Vladimir Guerrero, DH
Matt Wieters, C
Mark Reynolds, 3B
Luke Scott, 1B
Nolan Reimold, LF
J.J. Hardy, SS
Jeremy Guthrie, SP

MARINERS
Ichiro Suzuki, RF
Brendan Ryan, SS
Justin Smoak, 1B
Jack Cust, DH
Franklin Gutierrez, CF
Adam Kennedy, 2B
Miguel Olivo, C
Luis Rodriguez, 3B
Carlos Peguero, LF
Erik Bedard, SP

First baseman Derrek Lee (strained left oblique) hit off a tee and will take live batting practice tomorrow in Sarasota, Fla. Mmanager Buck Showalter didn't rule out Lee's starting a rehab assignment with Double-A Bowie by the weekend.

Despite the fact that lefty Erik Bedard is on the mound for the Mariners, Jake Fox is again not in the lineup. Asked whether it's tough finding Fox opportunities, Showalter said: "If the guy is playing well and hitting well, it's not that hard to find opportunities. Jake, so far, hasn't made good use of the opportunities that he's had, with a few exceptions. In spring with that environment, he showed what he's capable of. We'll see."

The Orioles still expect Jake Arrieta, who was nailed in the left shin by Ichiro Suzuki's come-backer yesterday, to make his next start.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 6:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
Categories: Minors
        

For those who were clamoring for manager Buck Showalter to pinch hit Jake Fox for Luke Scott in the eighth inning yesterday against lefty Aaron Laffey, consider the following: Fox is 3-for-28 against left-handed pitching this season. He’s also a .206 career hitter against southpaws with 41 strikeouts in 204 at-bats. Scott has obviously struggled against left-handed pitchers this season, going 2-for-27 with 10 strikeouts. Those two hits were both home runs. For his career, he’s a .236 hitter against lefties. Just one man’s opinion, but I’m still taking my chances with Scott over Fox at this point.

Speaking of Fox, it will be really interesting to see what happens when first baseman Derrek Lee is activated from the disabled list, which could happen later this week or early next week. The Orioles have options, especially since they are carrying a nine-man bullpen. But it has already been a struggle to get Fox at-bats, and I can’t see where he would get opportunities with Lee back on the 25-man roster. It’s obvious that Showalter prefers Craig Tatum as the backup catcher, and I don’t see Fox getting time in left field, not with Scott, Felix Pie and Nolan Reimold still on the roster. I would think there would be enough interest in Fox, who could be a valuable bench player if used in the right role, where the Orioles could at least get something back in a trade before they would designate him for assignment. I’m not saying that’s the likely result, but it is hard to foresee where he fits when Lee's back.

With Reimold swinging the bat really well and Pie adding the occasional spark, would now be the right time just to shut Scott down and have him get the surgery to repair the tear in his right labrum? The thought has crossed my mind, too, but Scott said yesterday that while he’s immensely frustrated by his inability to get hot, he’s still not even considering surgery until after the season ends. The temporary move to first base in Lee’s absence has been a welcome change for Scott because throwing the ball is very painful. However, Scott is going to have to deal with it when he heads back to left field upon Lee's return.

I mention this only because I brought it up on one of the blogs yesterday, but it appeared that Pie forgot how many outs there were again in the Orioles’ series-opening loss to the Mariners. With Pie on first base with two outs in the third inning, J.J. Hardy lofted a ball that was caught in right-center field. Pie stopped about three-fourths of the way to second base and started watching the ball before it had even gotten to Ichiro Suzuki’s glove. Pie is one of my favorite Orioles to watch and deal with because he’s such a character and an excitable personality, so I’m certainly not picking on him. However, these are the types of things that are going to drive Showalter crazy and get Pie even fewer opportunities to play. He has forgotten how many outs there were twice on this road trip, and he also committed a bad base-running miscue on the last homestand in the blowout loss to the Washington Nationals.

I’m sure Orioles fans, who are tired of watching their team get shut down by any left-hander with a pulse, are dreading it. However, I’m looking forward to watching Erik Bedard pitch tonight for the Mariners. I haven’t really seen Bedard healthy and at his best since he was the Orioles’ ace in 2007. Although I never had any problems dealing with him, he wasn’t a huge favorite of the Baltimore media -- and I’m probably understating things. But when he was on, there was no better pitcher to watch. His complete-game, two-hit, 15-strikeout performance against the Texas Rangers that season was probably the most dominant pitching performance I’ve ever covered, and that included Clay Buchholz’s no-hitter against the Orioles that same season. There’s always going to be skepticism because of Bedard’s injury history, but all signs suggest he has moved beyond some of his shoulder issues. He has thrown 15 consecutive scoreless innings, and since falling to 0-4 with a 7.71 ERA after a loss to the Detroit Tigers on April 20, Bedard is 3-0 with a 1.09 ERA over his past five starts. He has also struck out 28 batters over his past 33 innings.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 6:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (28)
        

The Orioles' latest loss, this one to the Mariners, looked an awful lot like the previous three in Oakland. They didn't get good starting pitching, and they also didn't get enough clutch hits.

Let's start with the starting pitching: Jake Arrieta allowed four runs on four hits and four walks in 2 1/3 innings, the shortest start of his career. He was yanked from the game after issuing back-to-back bases-loaded walks in the third.

"I’m pretty upset about this one,” Arrieta said. “Just couldn’t give the team what I needed to give them. It’s real frustrating to go out there, especially after a sweep. I knew what I wanted to do today. To only get seven outs is pretty frustrating. To come out of the game with the bases loaded, put [Alfredo] Simon in a tight spot -- which he did very well in -- just doesn’t feel good. I need to forget about this one as quickly as I can. I know I’m not going to be able to, but I have to find a way to kind of flush it and get over it."

Arrieta's four walks were a season high, and he has issued 31 free passes in 63 1/3 innings this season. In his past five outings, two of which he went four innings or less in, Arrieta has allowed 16 walks in 24 innings.

“I don’t ever like to walk guys,” he said. “I tell myself to be aggressive every time I take the mound, it’s just sometimes things don’t go my way. I seem to not be able to correct the mistakes I’m making. I have to figure it out. Just need to start getting back to the consistent pitching that I was [doing] toward the first seven or eight starts. I got to get back to that. Two innings isn’t good enough. Four or five innings isn’t good enough. I got to go out there and get the job done.”

Arrieta didn't make excuses, but he was in a little discomfort after getting drilled in the left shin by Ichiro Suzuki's come-backer to start the second inning. He retired only of the next five batters. Arrieta had X-rays on the shin later, but they came back negative and he expects to make his next start.

Now to the hitting: The Orioles have totaled just 11 runs over the past four games. They went 1-for-10 today with runners in scoring position and are 4-for-31 in such situations on the road trip. They also stranded six base runners and have left 28 on base during this skid. They have just three extra-base hits over the past 36 innings, and two of those came today on Mark Reynolds’ third-inning homer off Mariners starter Doug Fister and Luke Scott’s leadoff double in the fifth.

“It’s frustrating, but we’re doing a lot of things that are frustrating,” said Orioles catcher Matt Wieters. “It’s not just hitting with runners in scoring position. We’re not being aggressive both in the field and at the plate that we can be. We need to get back to that soon.”

The Orioles cut the Mariners lead to 4-3 in the eighth when Nick Markakis hit an RBI single off Fister, and Seattle third baseman Chone Figgins made a run-scoring error on Vladimir Guerrero's ground ball. However, Wieters grounded out with runners on first and second, and Scott grounded out with runners on the corners and two outs.

Nolan Reimold led off the ninth with an infield single, but Mariners closer Brandon League retired Reynolds and got Robert Andino to hit into a game-ending double play.

That one hurt, but the missed opportunity that bothered Showalter the most was when Scott hit a leadoff double in the fifth and never left second base. Reimold and Reynolds grounded out, and Andino struck out. That loomed large as the Orioles came up one run short.

“It’s one of those things where if a guy hits a ball into left-center field, OK. But if you make an out there, it’s got to be to the other way,” Showalter said of the offense’s failure to score Scott after his leadoff double. “I don’t care what the score is. You need to get that run across. You got a man on second and third and nobody out or a man on second and nobody out, you should at least score a run at the minimum. That’s frustrating.”

The Orioles' much-maligned bullpen deserves credit for keeping the team in the game. Simon pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings, Pedro Viola retired all five batters he faced and Jim Johnson struck out the only hitter he faced.

Adam Jones (sore right shoulder) entered the game as a pinch-runner in the eighth inning. In case you are wondering why he wasn't held back to pinch hit later in the eighth inning, perhaps for Scott in his matchup against lefty Aaron Laffey, Showalter was hesitant to give him an at-bat because of the shoulder. Jones should play tomorrow.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 9:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

We won't know how much Jake Arrieta was affected by Ichiro Suzuki's come-backer that hit him in the left shin to lead off the third until we ask him after the game, but the fact remains that the starter's command wasn't good beforehand and it certainly didn't improve after it.

Arrieta was removed from the game with one out in the bottom of the third inning after he issued back-to-back bases-loaded walks to give the Seattle Mariners a 4-1 lead.

Alfredo Simon entered and recorded back-to-back strikeouts of Carlos Peguero and Chone Figgins to save Arrieta a couple of more runs and still keep the Orioles within striking distance.

In his shortest start of the season, Arieta allowed four earned runs on four hits and four walks over 2 1/3 innings. He threw 68 pitches, just 38 of them for strikes.

The Orioles got their only run so far on Mark Reynolds' homer in the top of the third. Reynolds' seventh homer went into the upper deck in left field and broke a 38 2/3-inning stretch without a homer.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 5:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Felix Pie, CF
J.J. Hardy, SS
Nick Markakis, RF
Vladimir Guerrero, DH
Matt Wieters, C
Luke Scott, 1B
Nolan Reimold, LF
Mark Reynolds, 3B
Robert Andino, 2B
Jake Arrieta, SP

Adam Jones, who left Sunday's game with a sore right shoulder, worked out before the game and did some throwing with first base coach Wayne Kirby. He said he feels much better and is hoping to get back in the Orioles' lineup tomorrow. I'd imagine he'd be available if he's needed to pinch hit today.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 2:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

In his pre-game session with reporters yesterday, Orioles manager Buck Showalter used the phrase “not good enough” or some derivation of it about eight different times when explaining the decision to option Brad Bergesen, and shake up the rotation, which we later learned included the demotion of Chris Tillman. He also made the comment: “We are trying to find people to help us compete in the division.” The message came across loud and clear: Showalter is tired of watching Bergesen and Tillman fall behind hitters, struggle with their command, fail to get deep into games, and battle the same issues every five days. Of course, it’s a little easier to send a message when you have five off days this month, Brian Matusz is coming back and you can afford to go with four starters for most of June. However, my read on it is Bergesen and Tillman will stay in the minors until they prove that they have some of their issues worked out. Injuries and rainouts can always change things and Tillman and Bergesen could go down to Triple-A and absolutely dominate to accelerate their return, but it wouldn’t surprise me if we don’t see them starting for the Orioles for a good while.

Speaking of the rotation, the way the schedule stands now, the Orioles will only need a fifth starter just twice in June: the 7th and the 18th. Showalter said the club will make a decision then on how to handle those starts, but the guess is that Alfredo Simon could get an opportunity.

With every passing game, Nick Markakis does something to remind you that he has gotten away from certain qualities that made him such a good hitter. On Sunday, he came up to the plate after a shaky Guillermo Moscoso had just walked Nolan Reimold on five pitches with the bases loaded to force in the go-ahead run. Markakis then swings at the first pitch and hits a weak groundball to first base. Sure, it got a run in but you’d like to think that a guy hitting in the middle of the order would be able to knock a ball in the gap or line a two-run single, especially against a pitcher on the ropes. A scout I talked to recently was astonished by how early in the count Markakis was consistently swinging yet he still was rarely making good contact. Markakis went 1-for-11 in the Oakland series. He’s now gone 52 at-bats without an extra-base hit, and he has just three RBIs in his last 18 games. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen him more frustrated as he was over the weekend. He angrily ripped off his batting gloves after he made the last out of the game Saturday, and he was essentially seated in the clubhouse following Sunday’s game with his head in his hands. I feel like I talk about Markakis’ psyche or his struggles in every post, but I’d have a hard believing there is bigger concern right now among team officials then the statistical regression of the right fielder the past season and a half.

Not only did the Orioles not hit or pitch well over the weekend in Oakland, their execution was poor and several players didn’t look like they had their heads in the game half of the time. On Sunday, Felix Pie either forgot how many outs there were or got a terrible read on Adam Jones’ lineout to left in the third inning and he should have been doubled up at first. First baseman Luke Scott clearly forgot how many outs there were after the bottom of the second inning, heading to the dugout only after he saw his teammates doing the same. Robert Andino was picked off second base in the first inning Saturday. There have been several other similar incidents recently, including one in which Mark Reynolds forgot the number of outs and didn’t break off first on a fly out despite there being two outs. Showalter is not one for throwing his players under the bus through the media. He also sees everything, so you can bet that these mental miscues are being addressed behind closed doors. However, they are cropping up far too often recently.

I’m sure everyone would have liked Zach Britton to have a much better start Sunday, but the rookie lefty did ace his post-game interview. Britton chastised himself for shaking off catcher Matt Wieters and wanting to throw a changeup to Josh Willingham, who pounded it into the left-field seats for a three-run homer in the decisive fifth. He remarked that any time he’s given four runs, the Orioles need to win, and he took accountability for the latest loss. “This is on me,” he said. This may mean nothing to you, but it certainly was refreshing for me to hear. For years, I’ve watched some of the Oriole young arms pitch poorly and then talk about the “couple of pitches” that they didn’t make or how close they were to a great outing or even “tip their cap” to the opposition for hitting “good” pitches. Britton would have none of that Sunday, a fact not lost on some veterans when they learned of his post-game remarks. I’ve said this before, Britton obviously has good stuff, but his makeup has impressed me more than anything.

Just an update on a stat that I find rather amazing: Orioles closer Kevin Gregg, who pitched a scoreless eighth but not before walking the bases loaded Sunday, has gone to three-ball counts with 31 of the 93 batters that he has faced this season, an absurd 33 percent. He also has walked 18 batters in 20 1/3 innings, including 10 in his past seven appearances spanning 6 1/3 innings. But I assume, if the Orioles have a one-run lead in the ninth inning over the next three days at Safeco Field, Gregg will be the guy on the mound. And Oriole fans will be holding their breath.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 6:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (33)
        

Chris Tillman talked to Oriole beat writers after learning that he was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk following today's game. Here are his comments:

On whether this took him by surprise: "Yeah, it is. I know I have things to work on and they want me to keep doing it down there. Just go out there and have fun and get the anxiety off my back. They said that they needed some relief when [Brian] Matusz comes back. They’re not sure what’s going to happen and they want me to just keep doing what I’ve been doing."

On whether a potential demotion has been weighing on him: "I don’t think I’ve felt like that. I just want to work on what I was working on. I put all my focus on that. I wasn’t really buying all the other stuff."

On how this demotion compares to the other ones that he's experienced: "It’s never easy going down, I can tell you that much. I know what I need to work on and I know I need to get better. I want to get going as soon as I can. Hopefully, I can throw a side tomorrow or the next day. I want to pitch as soon as I can. Hopefully on Wednesday."

On how tough to accept it is: "Yeah, it’s a shock, but they got to do what they got to do. I’ve been wearing down the bullpen and they need the bullpen guys with Matusz coming back. It kind of makes sense."

On what he needs to work on: "I haven’t felt right, I haven’t felt like me. I’m going [out] there and thinking about everything, what I need to do to throw this pitch, what I need to do to throw that pitch. I just need to go out there and have fun and do my thing."

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 8:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)
Categories: Minors
        

Orioles center fielder Adam Jones was removed from the game before the bottom of the fourth inning today with a sore right shoulder, but he’s optimistic that he’ll be able to play tomorrow.

“No DL,” Jones said. “If I feel good in the morning, I don’t see them holding me back.”

Jones admitted that the pain, which he said he’s been feeling for about a week, became “unbearable” today while he was throwing the ball. He said that he does not feel it while he’s swinging.

He was 0-for-2 in the game, flying out to shallow right field in the first inning and lining out to left in the third. When he left the game, Felix Pie moved over to center field and Nolan Reimold entered the game in left.

“Today was just one of the most painful days,” Jones said. “It made no sense for me to potentially make it worse. We have a capable player in Reimold of filling in and he did a great job. There is no point in trying to hurt myself worse or doing something that I shouldn’t be doing this early in the season. We’ll see how it feels in the morning.”

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 7:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Orioles center fielder Adam Jones was removed from the game before the bottom of the fourth inning with a sore right shoulder.

It's far too early to speculate on the severity of it at this point. Jones went 0-for-2, flying out to shallow right field in the first and lining out to left field in the third.

When the Orioles took the field for the bottom of the fourth, Nolan Reimold ran out to left field and Felix Pie moved over to center.

Meanwhile, the Orioles just scored four times in the top of the fifth to take a 4-1 lead against the Oakland Athletics. They loaded the bases on J.J. Hardy's infield single, Mark Reynolds' single and then Robert Andino's bunt.

Oakland pitcher Guillermo Moscoso fielded Andino's bunt and threw to third base and replays showed that Hardy was out by half of a step, but third base umpire Chad Fairchild gave the Orioles the call, loading the bases with no outs.

Felix Pie tied the game at one on a single that just popped up out of the glove of diving center fielder Coco Crisp. Reimold gave the Orioles the lead with a bases-loaded walk, and then the visitors scored two more on back-to-back RBI groundouts from Nick Markakis and Vladimir Guerrero.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 5:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

ORIOLES
Felix Pie, LF
Adam Jones, CF
Nick Markakis, RF
Vladimir Guerrero, DH
Matt WIeters, C
Luke Scott, 1B
J.J. Hardy, SS
Mark Reynolds, 3B
Robert Andino, 2B
Zach Britton, SP

A's
Coco Crisp, CF
Daric Barton, 1B
Conor Jackson, LF
Josh Willingham, DH
Kurt Suzuki, C
David DeJesus, RF
Mark Ellis, 2B
Kevin Kouzmanoff, 3B
Cliff Pennington, SS
Guillermo Moscoso, SP

It's been a relatively quiet morning at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Orioles manager Buck Showalter spent much of his pre-game talk with reporters addressing the decision to demote Brad Bergesen. To him, the answer is pretty simple.

"First of all, what was going on with Brad was just not good enough, and he knows that," said Showalter. "There's only one place to get better and that's down below."

Showalter didn't rule out more juggling of the rotation in the days ahead. Because of Thursday's off day, the Orioles don't need a fifth starter until June 7. Showalter said that it's possible that the Orioles could go to a four-man rotation for a little stretch, but as of now, Chris Tillman is tentatively scheduled to start Friday's series opener against Toronto. Jake Arrieta, Jeremy Guthrie and Brian Matusz are scheduled to start in the Seattle series.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 2:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Minors
        

Double-A Bowie left-handed reliever Pedro Viola was recalled today for the Orioles' series finale against Oakland. The move gives the Orioles another bullpen arm after they optioned Saturday night's starter, Brad Bergesen, to Triple-A Norolk.

Viola's big league stay will likely be a short one with starter Brian Matusz in line to be activated from the disabled list Wednesday and start that afternoon against the Seattle Mariners.

Bergesen allowed three runs (two earned) in 5 2/3 innings in a 4-2 loss to the A's Saturday and was sent to the minors after the game. He is 1-6 with a 5.36 ERA in 10 games (nine starts) for the Orioles.

The 27-year-old Viola, who pitched in two games with the Orioles in September, is 3-1 with a 1.80 ERA at Bowie.

Posted by Ron Fritz at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Minors
        

Orioles manager Buck Showalter said after tonight’s game that a decision on whose rotation spot Brian Matusz would take would be made “down the road.” About an hour later, the answer became pretty clear.

After tonight’s game, the Orioles optioned Brad Bergesen, who allowed three runs (two earned) in 5 2/3 innings in a 4-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics, to Triple-A Norfolk. Bergesen was 1-6 with a 5.36 ERA in 10 games (nine starts) for the Orioles.

Double-A Bowie reliever Pedro Viola is expected to be recalled before Sunday’s series finale, but his big league stay will likely be a short one with Matusz in line to be activated from the disabled list Wednesday and start that afternoon against the Seattle Mariners.

It was believed all along that Matusz would take the spot of either Bergesen or Chris Tillman. Neither pitched particularly well over the previous two days here as Bergesen allowed nine hits and walked two, while Tillman surrendered two runs (one earned) on six hits and three walks over 4 1/3 innings in the Orioles’ 6-2 loss to Oakland Friday night.

Tillman is 2-3 with a 4.69 ERA in 10 starts this season. He’s actually allowed one earned run or less in five of his past six starts, but he’s made it past the fifth inning in just one of those outings. He’s gone six innings or more in three of his 10 starts.

Bergesen pitched a complete game shutout against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 14, but the rest of his season has been a struggle. The Orioles are 1-8 in his nine starts and Bergesen has allowed 30 earned runs on 58 hits and 15 walks over 50 1/3 innings. He’s also gone six innings or more in just three of his 10 outings this season.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 4:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Minors
        

Another night, another frustrating loss for the Orioles at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum as they fell 4-2 and are now 1-11 in this building since 2009 and just 31-74 against the Oakland Athletics since the start of the 1999 season.

Brad Bergesen fell to 1-6, allowing three runs (two earned) on nine hits and two walks over 5 2/3 innings. He didn't pitch poorly, but he was done in by a failure to get the third out. Of the 12 baserunners that reached on Bergesen, nine of them came with two outs, continuing a frustrating pattern that started in Friday’s series opener. In the series, eight of Oakland’s 10 runs have come with two outs.

“It’s been a challenge for a lot of our guys, especially in the counts, too,” said Orioles manager Buck Showalter. “We had a lot of counts in our favor, too. We were a hitter away from having some easy innings, just couldn’t get it done.”

Another challenge for the Orioles has been getting a clutch hit. The Orioles got at least one baserunner in every inning, but they went 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position, stranded 10 baserunners,and hit into two more double plays. A day after they managed just two runs despite Oakland starter Gio Gonzalez allowing five hits and walking five in five innings, the Orioles got just two runs off starter Josh Outman, who surrendered six hits and walked five over six innings.

Over two games here, they have hit into six double plays, gone 2-for-15 with runners in scoring position, stranded 16 baserunners, and scored just four runs despite having at least one baserunner in 15 of the 18 innings.

“We are stringing together good at-bats, but at some point, we got to make them pay for it,” Showalter said.

Right fielder Nick Markakis was one of the biggest culprits tonight, going 0-for-4 and snapping his 12-game hitting streak.

He stranded five baserunners and came up empty in three at-bats with runners in scoring position. He’s now hitting .222 with runners in scoring position this season.

“That’s what we get paid for, those are the situations we want to be in,” Markakis said. “Sometimes, we just press too much and try to do too much instead of [relaxing] and letting our abilities take over. It’s frustrating, but you move on. We still have a lot of baseball left. I’m just trying to do too much in situations instead of going with a pitch here, going with a pitch there, and trusting my ability. I think I’m getting away from that a little bit.”

Getting back to Bergesen, the big question was whether he did enough to save his rotation spot. Assuming that he gets through tomorrow's bullpen session, Brian Matusz will make his 2011 big league debut Wednesday in Seattle. There doesn't appear to be room for both Chris Tillman and Bergesen on the 25-man roster, though Showalter said after the game that it won't necessarily be one or the other jettisoned from the roster to make room for Matusz.

"That’s down the road, obviously," Showalter said. "I’m not going to start handicapping it publicly, not to say that it would be either one of them either. [It] could be another form."

For the record, Bergesen is 1-6 with a 5.36 ERA. The Orioles have won just one of his nine starts. He's also gone six innings or more just three times.

Tillman is 2-3 with a 4.69 ERA in 10 starts. He's gone six innings or more just three times this season, including just once over his last six starts. However in those six starts, he's surrendered one run or less in five of them.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 2:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Brian Matusz arrived at The Coliseum earlier today and said that if he gets through a bullpen tomorrow with no problems, he'll start Wednesday against the Seattle Mariners. Orioles manager Buck Showalter also said that's a likely scenario.

First baseman Derrek Lee felt pain free today, so the club has decided that he'll start baseball activities tomorrow. The original plan was Monday. Starter Justin Duchscherer threw three innings today in an extended spring game.

You'll notice below that Showalter will run out an interesting lineup against A's left-hander Josh Outman. That includes Mark Reynolds at first base. It will be Reynolds' 25th career start at first base with the other 24 coming in 2009. Showalter opted for that move because he feels that Robert Andino is really the team's only leadoff option against left-handed pitching. He also wanted to get rookie Ryan Adams in that game. So the only way to do that was to play Reynolds at first.

Matt Wieters also was off for the second time in three games. Showalter pointed out that Wieters caught 197 pitches last night and he was going to get either Saturday or Sunday off because the whole day game after night game thing. They opted to play him Sunday and pair him up with rookie Zach Britton.

Here are the lineups:
ORIOLES
Robert Andino, 3B
Adam Jones, CF
Nick Markakis, RF
Vladimir Guerrero, DH
Nolan Reimold, LF
J.J. Hardy, SS
Mark Reynolds, 1B
Ryan Adams, 2B
Craig Tatum, C
Brad Bergesen, SP

A'S
Coco Crisp, CF
Daric Barton, 1B
David DeJesus, RF
Josh Willingham, LF
Hideki Matsui, DH
Kurt Suzuki, C
Mark Ellis, 2B
Kevin Kouzmanoff, 3B
Cliff Pennington, SS
Josh Outman, SP

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 8:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Triple-A Norfolk right-hander Ryan Drese was granted his release by the organization.

Drese, who was trying to make a comeback to the big leagues, was 2-3 with a 6.55 ERA in nine appearances (six starts) for the Tides.

He is now a free agent and he looking for an opportunity to start. He wasn't necessarily going to get that at Norfolk, especially with Jason Berken going down there and joining the Tides rotation.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 1:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Minors
        

The Orioles are once again in a position where they have to make some roster decisions because of the 12-inning game Thursday and Chris Tillman’s 4 1/3 inning start last night.

As masnsports.com first reported last night, Double-A Bowie left-hander Pedro Viola was summoned to Oakland. However, I’m told that it’s unlikely that he will be recalled today.

Tomorrow could be a different story. One option for the Orioles is to recall Viola tomorrow to get another fresh arm in the bullpen for a couple of days and then send him out Wednesday when Brian Matusz is activated to start the series and road trip finale against the Seattle Mariners.

Either way, Matusz is going to take the rotation spot of Tillman or Brad Bergesen who has a big start tonight. After tonight, Bergesen and Tillman wouldn’t be available for a couple of days anyway so you might as well augment the bullpen during that span, and go with just the four starters.

Starting Thursday, the Orioles will have three off days in a 12-day span so there is no need to have an extra starter around.

Why Viola you ask?

The 27-year-old lefty is 3-1 with a 1.80 ERA in 17 relief appearances for Bowie. But his promotion would be more a matter of convenience than rewarding good performance.

He is on the 40-man roster, and for a guy that may only be up for three games, he probably would be the path of least resistance. Chris Jakubauskas just pitched seven innings on Thursday so he really wouldn’t be an option. Troy Patton is expected to report to Triple-A Norfolk tonight or tomorrow. Jason Berken hasn’t been down in the minors for the required 10 days yet and the team doesn’t want to yo-yo him around anyway, especially for such a short-term fix.

The Orioles desperately need innings out of Bergesen tonight.

Alfredo Simon threw 55 pitches over two innings last night so he obviously wouldn’t be available. Simon, who has either pitched in a game or warmed up four consecutive days, admitted that he was a little tired on the mound last night. Michael Gonzalez also wouldn’t be available after he threw 41 pitches over 1 2/3 innings.

That would seemingly leave Jeremy Accardo as tonight’s long man, but I’m not sure how “long” he could go. Accardo pitched two innings on Thursday, and 1 2/3 innings on Tuesday so saying that he’s fresh is probably a bit of an exaggeration.

Clay Rapada, Koji Uehara, Jim Johnson and Kevin Gregg would also be available tonight.

That would seem to be enough to have things covered, but Showalter is big on the “What If?” game, so I’m sure he’s pondering what would happen if Bergesen was knocked out of the game in the first couple of innings either by ineffectiveness or an injury, or what would happen if the Orioles were forced to play another long extra-inning game.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 11:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Minors
        

Neither starter was sharp tonight, though the game remains tied at two heading into the bottom of the sixth.

Orioles starter Chris Tillman allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits, three walks and a hit batter in 4 1/3 innings. His line could have been much worse but Alfredo Simon came in with the bases loaded and one out and struck out Kurt Suzuki and Mark Ellis to keep the game tied heading into the sixth.

Tillman needed 102 pitches (60 strikes) to get 13 outs. It is the fifth time in the past six starts that Tillman has pitched five innings or less.

A's left-hander Gio Gonzalez allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and five walks while striking out seven over five-plus innings. He threw 99 pitches, 53 for strikes. When Oakland manager Bob Geren removed him from the game, he had words with home plate umpire Angel Campos and was tossed from the game.

The Orioles, meanwhile, hit into their fourth double play to end the sixth inning..

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 12:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

Oakland Athletics left-hander Gio Gonzalez needed just 14 pitches to strike out the side in the first inning tonight against the Orioles.

He then allowed the first four hitters that he faced in the second inning to reach base, and yet the Orioles only scored one run.

Vladimir Guerrero led off the second with a single to right, extending his hitting streak to 12 games. Matt Wieters followed with a single to left and then Gonzalez walked Nolan Reimold to load the bases.

Gonzalez issued yet another walk to Mark Reynolds to bring in a run and tie the game at one. Still with no outs, J.J. Hardy got ahead 2-0 before he struck out, and then Jake Fox bounced into an inning-ending double play.

I've certainly seen this before where the Orioles have one opportunity to get to a talented pitcher and mostly let him off the hook. Let's see what happens, but Chris Tillman is clearly laboring here.

Oakland just scored a run on David DeJesus' single to take a 2-1 lead.

Posted by Jeff Zrebiec at 10:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)