Jeremy Guthrie pitched well for the third straight start tonight, for all the good it probably will end up doing him. He worked six innings and gave up just four hits, but two of those hits were a home run and an RBI double by Nick Swisher, and they'll probably be enough to send Guthrie to his 13th loss -- especially after Mark Hendrickson gave up three more runs in the eighth.

Of course, with Andy Pettitte taking a perfect game into the seventh inning and a one-hit shutout into the eighth, Guthrie was never much of a threat to earn his 10th victory, but the Orioles have to be encouraged by his performance. He has pitched 20 innings in his last three starts and given up just four runs.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (61)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Andy Pettitte entered the seventh inning with a perfect game going at Camden Yards, but Adam Jones just hit a sharp grounder that handcuffed former Oriole Jerry Hairston at third base. it wasn't a tough decision for the official scorer, since it was an obvious error, and the no-hitter went right behind it when Nick Markakis slapped a base hit down the left field line.

Can't imagine Hairston feels too good right now. He's filling in for Alex Rodriguez tonight, and if he had made that play, the inning would have been over and the perfect game would have gotten into the eighth.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (34)
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Hot-hitting Felix Pie is not in the starting lineup for tonight's series opener against the New York Yankees. Manager Dave Trembley is going with a largely right-handed lineup, though Luke Scott is in the lineup as the designated hitter.

Don't know what to make of that, since Scott is 0 for 9 against Pettitte over the past two seasons. Pie did not have an at-bat in Pettitte's only previous start against the Orioles this year.

What I do know is that Pettitte is 25-6 lifetime against the Orioles and the O's are going with almost exactly the same group of hitters who managed one run off him in his first 2009 start against them. The only difference is that Ty Wigginton is at first base instead of Aubrey Huff and the order of the lineup is different.

Pie generally doesn't play against left-handers, but if he was ever going to, this would probably have been the time to see if he can stay hot. Trembley, however, may be looking at it from a different perspective. He may think the best way to keep Pie hot is not to expose him to one of the better left-handers in the game.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (48)
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Brian Matusz clearly figured something out before yesterday's terrific performance against the Cleveland Indians. Now, we get to find out if Jeremy Guthrie's last two starts were a sign that he has worked through the longball issues that have undermined his season.

Guthrie couldn't have been a whole lot better in his two starts on the last road trip, putting up almost identical lines against the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins. He pitched seven innings and gave up a run on six hits in each game, but was more dominant (5 K's) his last time out.

So, now comes the real test. Guthrie faces Andy Pettitte and the New York Yankees tonight in the opener of a three-game series at Camden Yards. This would be a pretty good time for Guthrie to keep the ball in the park and show that he can compete against anybody, though that might not be enough to beat the first-place Yanks and Pettitte, who has given up two earned runs or fewer in five of his last six starts and has a 2.61 ERA (11 ER in 38 IP) over that period.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (28)
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If you're watching the game on MASN, you saw the same thing I did. Adam Jones was trying to get his neck loose after slamming into the center field wall trying to run down Grady Sizemore's sixth-inning triple.

Jones went down on the warning track after going into the fence shoulder and hip first. The first thing that popped into my mind was that he might have aggravated the back injury that knocked him out of the lineup for a week, but the way he keeps rotating his head in center field, it looks more like he jarred his neck. He seemed okay chasing down the two-out single by Shin-Soo Choo, but you have to wonder whether he'll come back out for the seventh inning.

If he doesn't, it would create a big problem for manager Dave Trembley, since all of the other outfielders on the roster are already in the game in some capacity. Trembley would have to move Luke Scott from first base to left field, Felix Pie from left to center, Ty Wigginton from third to first and put Melvin Mora in the game. Or he could move Nolan Reimold to the outfield and lose the DH.

Instant update: What do I know? Adam is back out there and looks okay.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (81)
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Brian Matusz promised that he would be a different pitcher today, and he has kept that promise at the expense of the Cleveland Indians. I'm not sure which different pitcher he is, but Sandy Koufax comes to mind. Matusz has located his fastball almost perfectly and displayed terrific command of his curveball through the first five innings, striking out seven and giving up just a fifth-inning single so far.

He was perfect until umpire Bob Davidson called an automatic ball four after Matusz went to his mouth after a pitch in the fourth inning. Davidson, who is known as baseball's biggest stickler for that kind of thing, could have warned Matusz, but the ruling was technically correct. And hey, it's not every day you get to see an umpire break up a perfect game.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
        

Felix Pie's hot streak keeps getting hotter. I was a little worried that the night off and the hamstring strain might cool him off, but he just jacked that two-run homer in the third inning and remains on a tremendous offensive roll.

Don't know if he can keep this up for an extended period. If so, the Orioles will have to start thinking outside the box as far as the configuration of the team in 2010. To keep him in the everyday lineup, the club would almost have to consider experimenting with Nolan Reimold at first base next spring.

Of course, we're getting ahead of ourselves. Pie's latest power burst still only leaves him with seven home runs and 23 RBI in 183 at-bats, but that's a big improvement over his power and RBI ratios coming into this season. He had just three homers and 30 RBI in 260 major league at-bats with the Cubs.

Though you have to be impressed with the progress he seems to have made, let's see if he can keep cranking against the string of contenders the Orioles will face over the next three weeks.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (22)
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There was a moment tonight when all was right with the sports world in Baltimore. Cesar Izturis was at the plate with the rain pounding down on him and the O's needing him to drive home the go-ahead run from third in case the game was rained out. He delivered a triple to break the tie and bring on the tarp. Unfortunately for the Orioles, the rain eventually relented, though not before creating a plumbing disaster in the dugout.

The reason that moment was so significant to me was because of what was happening at almost exactly the same time down in North Carolina. Joe Flacco connected with Todd Heap for a nifty touchdown pass that put the Ravens ahead of the Carolina Panthers to stay in their third preseason victory. Both teams took the lead simultaneously, but only the Ravens could keep it. No great surprise there.

The Izturis hit, of course, had no chance to be as significant as the Heap catch, even though the Orioles were playing a regular season game and the Ravens were not. The Ravens have been looking for Heap to re-establish himself as a go-to tight end, and he certainly looked like that with four catches and the touchdown in tonight's game.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (25)
Categories: Just baseball, Just football
        

For some reason, I woke up this morning wearing my patented Jim Hunter rose-colored glasses, took a big swig of orange Kool-Aid, and tried to see light at the end of the looming string of 18 consecutive games against the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays and Rangers -- all teams that are in the hunt for the postseason. If you want to see if I succeeded, check out my column for Sunday's print edition right here.

It could get ugly, but I think the Orioles just might be able to take something positive out of the next three weeks, maybe even a few uplifting victories to carry the young starting rotation into 2010.

Have I gone completely nuts, or what?

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (42)
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Today's featured comment comes from our funny friend Chris Joseph, who read my "News Item" about Danica Patrick possibly posing nude in ESPN The Magazine and let his mind wander somewhere you -- and I -- don't ever want to go:

Chris's take: Pete, can you confirm or deny reports that you are appearing in a nude spread in Baltimore Magazine along with Tom Davis and Fred Manfra called "The Beefy Boys of Baltimore Baseball Broadcasting"? Don't forget to list your turn-ons, turn-offs, and your favorite color.

Pete's reply: I really hate it when a relatively innocent situation where I was in the Orioles broadcast booth with Fred Manfra and Tom Davis and we were all naked gets blown so out of proportion.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (30)
Categories: Today's featured comment
        

Jason Berken hasn't exactly morphed into Greg Maddux out there, but he worked five decent innings and gave up just two runs on five hits to earn the victory. He now has worked five innings or longer and give up three runs or fewer in four of his last five starts.

Gotta hand it to the guy. I had him on a slow boat back to Norfolk three weeks ago. Couldn't imagine him holding his place in the rotation with that ugly 1-9 record and huge ERA, even though he had been the victim of poor run support and some bad luck. He's 3-2 with a 4.93 ERA over his last five starts. That doesn't make him Cy Young material, but it says something about his strength of character.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (41)
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Hate to play shoulda-coulda, but it's hard not to look back on the past week and a half and think that the Orioles could be on a pretty nice roll right now if they hadn't squandered that 6-3 lead in Minnesota in Tuesday and blown a lead in the ninth inning in the series opener against the Indians.

If the O's had won those two games, they would be in the midst of a 7-2 run with a chance to build some more momentum for their upcoming two-week run against the Yankees, Rangers and Red Sox. Instead, the O's are 5-4 over their last nine games and suffered those four losses by a total of six runs.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
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Felix Pie is absolutely sizzling at the plate, so what happens? He was in the midst of another big game when he came up with a sore hamstring after slipping on the wet grass in center field. He stayed around long enough to get his third hit in the seventh inning before leaving the game. He might have had a chance to hit for the cycle for the second time in 15 games if he could have stayed around for the eighth. He had a single, double and home run tonight.

To review, dating back to the night he hit for the cycle against the Angels, Pie is batting .386 (17 for 44) with three doubles, a triple, four home runs and 10 RBI in 15 games. He didn't look terribly uncomfortable coming off the field, so maybe it isn't anything that will put him on the shelf for a significant period. He said after the game that his hamstrings already were tight after playing three games on the hard artificial turf in Minnesota.

"It's okay,'' Pie said. "It's a little sore, but I think it'll be okay by tomorrow."

With Adam Jones already struggling with a back injury, utility infielder Robert Andino had to take over in center field -- making only the second appearance in center of his major league career.

Instant update: Dave Trembley just said that the club is hopeful that Jones will be able to return to the starting lineup tomorrow night. He'll take early batting practice and go through some motions in the early afternoon before a determination is made on his status. If neither he nor Pie can go, the Orioles may have to bring up journeyman outfielder Joey Gathright a few days early.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: Just baseball
        

This is just a shameless plug for the column I just wrote for the Saturday print edition. If you want to check it out here, I weigh in on a variety of subjects, including Michael Vick, Bart Scott, Brett Favre, Eagles fans (yes, you), Danica Patrick and the rumors she will be part of a nude photo spread in ESPN The Magazine, as well as a few other random subjects.

It felt funny when I wrote it, but reading your own humor is like listening to yourself sing in the shower -- you may think you sound like Pavarotti, but there's a much better chance that you just look like him.

Let me know what you think.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 6:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: Schmuck being Schmuck
        

Adam Jones continues to rehab his sore back, which represents a significant loss of run-production potential, but might actually be a positive thing for the club on a couple of levels. The injury has forced manager Dave Trembley to play Felix Pie every day in center field, which -- even with his mistake-marred Tuesday night performance -- has given Pie a chance to demonstrate how much he has progressed since the start of the season.

He's still a very flawed player who sometimes acts like he's on Mars, but he has become more disciplined at the plate and he has shown how valuable he can be as a fourth outfielder. Who knows, another good month and he might even have some trade value if the Orioles decide to package some prospects for a marquee veteran pitcher or corner infielder.

Meanwhile, Jones has gotten a chance to sit and watch the game for the past week, which is not necessarily a bad thing either. He had fallen into an offensive rut at midseason, so he might benefit from the opportunity to watch the game from another angle for awhile. The Orioles can only hope.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 5:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
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Jim Johnson gets the first two outs of the ninth inning and then comes apart, giving up a ground ball single to Matt LaPorte and a two-run homer to No. 9 hitter Andy Marte. That kind of thing happens once in awhile, of course, but it has a much better chance of happening when you fall behind 3-0 to the last guy in the lineup and have to challenge him because you don't want the tying run moving up with Grady Sizemore on deck.

Painful collapses have become a habit for the Orioles, and this one was another illustration of something that's been obvious for months. These guys just don't know how to win, because none of them ever have.

Of course, you can also back up an inning and replay a couple of at-bats in which Danys Baez looked unhittable until he had two strikes on the Indians hitter, then -- inexplicably -- split the middle of the plate belt-high to give up an important run.

This is hard to watch.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (108)
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Orioles rookie David Hernandez did a pretty good job again tonight, though he continues to have trouble holding down his pitch count. He's pretty good at getting ahead of hitters, but allowed too many of them to fight their way back into more favorable hitting situations. Not that it ended up hurting him much. He worked his way out of some trouble and delivered a quality start, giving up just five hits and two runs over six innings.

The guy is coming along. He struggled against quality teams in three of his previous four appearances and generally has had less success facing teams for the second time, so he has some more growing to do if he's going to establish himself permanently in the Orioles' rotation of the future.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (27)
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Melvin Mora just hit his fifth home run of the season, a towering fly ball that just cleared the left field fence off Cleveland Indians starter Aaron Laffey to even the score after Grady Sizemore opened the game with a home run off Orioles rookie David Hernandez.

It was Melvin's first home run since August 17 and only the first time this year that he has hit two home runs in the same month.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 7:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
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Got to admit, I'm impressed with the way the Orioles fans on this blog have rallied around Felix Pie. I can remember when there was a lot of sentiment to run him off the roster a few months ago.

Felix has come a long way, but he still has a long way to go. There are times when it's clear he doesn't have much grasp of game situations. There's no doubt he has great talent, but if his flashes of athletic brilliance are cancelled out by an inability to make adequate decisions in the heat of the game, his value will remain marginal.

I realize some fans are offended that Dave Trembley has focused an unflattering light on him on a couple of occasions, and I agree that the first time around it seemed like Trembley was less likely to speak up about similar problems with veteran players.

This time, however, I think there's more to it than that. It's fair to debate whether Trembley should call out players publicly, but I doubt the intent was simply to embarrass Pie again. More likely, Trembley came down hard on Pie this time because he wants to drive the point home at a time when Pie just might be turning into a good player.

Pie, to his credit, knew immediately that he screwed up on that ridiculous tag-up play on Tuesday night, and you could see that he was very upset with himself in the dugout. He said afterward that he was responsible for losing the game, even though there was plenty of blame to go around. I think the kid is making progress on a lot of fronts, but -- before you hang Trembley out to dry -- keep in mind that Dave lost a lot of fan confidence by working so hard to develop Pie in the first place.

AP Photo

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (43)
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The Orioles salvaged a 4-5 record on the nine-game trip, which has to be considered respectable under the circumstances. They should have won last night, which would have put them in position for a winning trip against three pretty good teams, but they can take some consolation in outscoring the Rays, White Sox and Twins, 36-34, in the nine games.

Not looking for moral victories anymore, but they were competitive almost every day. Three of the five losses were by one run and a fourth was by two runs. The Orioles also won a couple of close ones.

The most important thing about tonight's game was another strong start by Jeremy Guthrie, who has been outstanding on the trip. Maybe he has worked something out, which would be very good news for the Orioles as they look toward next season.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (47)
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If you haven't already, take a look at Jeff Zrebiec's story on the Web site about the Orioles baserunning travails. Some very interesting quotes from Dave Trembley and Juan Samuel, including a rant in which Samuel comes right out and says some of these players don't belong in the major leagues.

Trembley doesn't pull a lot of punches either. His quote on Felix Pie's strange decision to tag up on that foul out last night is priceless.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (77)
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I've got to echo what Buck Martinez is saying about the play that Twins second baseman Alexi Casilla just made to force Chad Moeller at second and rob Brian Roberts of a hit. I've been covering baseball for three decades, and that was easily one of the greatest infield plays I've ever seen.

Casilla ranged far to his right and had to dive to glove the ball, then flipped it out of his glove to shortstop Orlando Cabrera covering second before he (Casilla) sprawled on the artificial turf. Just plan magical.

If that isn't ESPN's No. 1 Web gem tonight, I can't wait to see which Red Sox highlight they choose instead.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
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Luke Scott finally got some real action at first base in the second inning. He fielded a hot shot cleanly and took it to the bag unassisted, then made a nice pick on a long one-hop throw from shortstop Cesar Izturis to end the inning.

He was all smiles when he got back to the dugout, and he can use all the positive reinforcement he can get after a pretty frustrating second half at the plate. Maybe some success with the glove will give him a confidence boost going into September. It also would help the club sort out the first base/designated hitter situation headed into the 2010 season.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
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Fourth outfielder Felix Pie was inconsolable in the Orioles dugout last night after his second baserunning mistake of the game, but he is back in the lineup tonight because Adam Jones still isn't quite ready to return from a back soreness.

Jones lingering discomfort is a break for Pie, because the last thing you want to do after a game like that is sit on it. This way, he has an opportunity to do something to make everybody forget the night before.

Mark Viviano said on MASN that Pie told him he takes full responsibility for losing the second game of the series. That's nice of him, but there was plenty of blame to go around. The Orioles put 17 runners on base last night and had 10 fruitless at-bats (out of 13 opportunities) with runners in scoring position. They also allowed the Twins to get runs right back three times after Orioles rallies.

It wasn't just Felix, but at least he's taking responsibility for his mistakes. Maybe some of his teammates can take a lesson from that.

Instant update: Felix just launched a long home run to center field. I was worried that he might miss second base, but he made it all around and has to feel a lot better about himself now.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (23)
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That is the question that a lot of people were throwing around last night after Nolan Reimold hustled out a leadoff double in the top of the ninth inning. Nick Markakis came up and fouled out to the left side to begin a string of three straight weak outs while Reimold stood helplessly at second.

Should Dave Trembly have thrown convention to the wind and ordered Markakis to bunt Reimold over to third?

I'm sure the thought crossed just about everybody's mind, as it did mine. The Orioles have been pretty good at getting guys on base -- great, in fact, last night, when they had 17 baserunners -- but they have been frustratingly inept at bringing key runs home in clutch situations.

Don't talk to me about the hitting coach. If you average just under two baserunners an inning (last night), the hitting coach probably did his job. I'm sure we'd all like Terry Crowley to also be a psychiatrist or a hypnotherapist capable of installing the right mindset in pressure situations, but he's a hitting coach. He helps guys get hits and get on base by adjusting their mechanics and coaching them on their approach against individual pitchers. The ability to handle pressure and execute strategy comes from within.

Back to the situation at hand. If Markakis had bunted Reimold over, I certainly wouldn't have complained about it, but it looks like a much smarter move right now because we already know the O's came up empty in a situation where they should have gotten a key run that might have won the game.

Markakis is paid to produce runs and he is not an accomplished bunter. The notion that everyone can and should be able to bunt is nice in theory, but the fact is that players work on the stuff they are expected to do in the role they are in. That's why pitchers generally don't hit well, even though there is nothing stopping them from going out in the afternoon and taking extra hitting practice every day. They tend to concentrate on being good pitchers, just as your middle-of-the-order guys tend to concentrate on (in a perfect world) being disciplined at the plate and driving the ball.

In this case, there are two sets of probabilities to consider -- the probability of Markakis getting the bunt down successfully and the probability of the batters behind him scoring the runner from third base. Since Luke Scott has been struggling lately, I believe the Orioles had a better chance of scoring the run with Markakis trying to get a hit in that situation. It would have been nice if he had pulled the ball and created the possibility of moving the runner over that way, but you've got to give the pitcher a little credit there for preventing that.

When you talk about bunting, you also have to consider the downside. Markakis could have bunted and gotten Reimold thrown out at third. The notion that everyone should be able to get a bunt down also is great in theory, but it just isn't realistic, so you have to play the percentages. Obviously, if Cesar Izturis or Felix Pie is up and Markakis is on deck, it's a totally different equation.

There's also one other consideration. If Markakis bunts and Scott hits the sacrifice fly, does one run win the ballgame? Probably, but the Twins had the heart of their order coming up in the bottom of the ninth and the Orioles bullpen -- though effective the past week or so -- is no sure thing. If you concede me that run under those circumstances, I definitely would take it and take my chances with Jim Johnson there, but when you factor in all of the probabilities that come into play at the time you make the decision to bunt or not to bunt, I think Markakis has to swing away.

There's certainly room for debate on this, so fire away.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (53)
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Not anything else to say about this one. It ended like countless other games I've seen at the Metrodome over the years. The Twins hang around and hang around and find a way to pull that ugly rug out from under you.

If you've been reading the past few entries, you know that I knew this was the way it was going to go down, and the moment Michael Cuddyer reached on that ball off Brian Roberts' glove in the bottom of the ninth, I had the same bad feeling you did. The Orioles squandered at least four runs in this game and they were suddenly a walk and scratch hit from a walkoff loss.

It's almost better that it wasn't a cheap hit. Delmon Young had a great night at the plate and he topped if off with an opposite-field line drive to score Cuddyer with the winning run. Kam Mickolio was going to blink sooner or later, but he's going to toss and turn all night after getting both Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau to open the ninth and couldn't get that third out.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (78)
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The Orioles have had 17 baserunners in this game and are a less-than-stellar 3 for 12 with runners in scoring position, including three particularly fruitless efforts following Nolan Reimold's leadoff double in the top of the ninth.

If they don't find some way to pull this thing out, it's definitely going to hurt.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)
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How many ways can you find to lose a game that shouldn't be loseable. I'm not even sure that loseable is a word, but I'm pretty sure there's a dictionary somewhere with both the word and the Orioles logo right next to it.

I guess making the least out of two bases-loaded situations was just the beginning of another ugly turnaround.

Felix Pie gets thrown out tagging up on a pop foul? Brian Bass comes in to relieve Brian Matusz and allows five straight batters to reach base? What else could go wrong...a season-ending rug burn for Nick Markakis?

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)
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The first two Twins pitchers -- Armando Gabino and Philip Humber -- walked a total of seven batters in 3 2/3 innings, but the Orioles still may regret not making more of back-to-back opportunities with the bases loaded.

Humber walked in a run in both the third and fourth innings, but he also got a couple of generous ball-strike calls from home plate umpire Gary Darling to avert a total middleman meltdown.

Darling kept him alive against Cesar Izturis long enough to get out of the third, then gave him a shoulder-high fastball on a 2-0 pitch to Luke Scott with the sacks packed and one out in the fourth. Don't know how much sympathy Scott deserves, however, since he stared at a 2-2 curveball that got way too much plate to go by unmolested in a bases-full situation. The O's were fortunate to get their fifth run when Darling gave Matt Wieters the benefit of the doubt on a borderline breaking ball a few minutes later.

Five runs in four innings is nothing to sneeze at, but this game should not be this close, not after the O's put a total of 13 runners on base.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
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Wasn't it nice to see the Orioles finally facing a rookie pitcher making his major league debut. They took advantage of Armando Gabino's inexperience and lack of command to jump on top with three runs in the second inning and one more in the third before Twins coach Ron Gardenhire gave the kid an early hook.

Brian Matusz is a grizzled veteran by comparison. He made his fifth major league start tonight and he also has struggled allowing the Twins to answer immediately after each of the Orioles scoring innings.

The O's have to take advantage of the soft underbelly of the Twins bullpen in the next inning or two to tack on some runs or -- trust me -- this is another loss waiting to happen. The Twins always have a magnified home-field advantage at the Metrodome, so a team like the O's has to build a cushion when the opportunity presents itself.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
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Sorry for the recent baseball inactivity, but I was assigned to provide instant blog updates from the Ravens-Jets game last night and then write a column today about the Ravens for tomorrow's print edition. Obviously, I'm a versatile fellow, but my intellect -- though vast -- is not vast enough to concentrate on the column and the blog at the same time. Therefore, I'll get cracking on the blog tonight during the second game of the series between the O's and Twins at the Metrodome.

In the meantime, the two-sport fans here can read my Ravens column on the Web site now by going here.

Bonus shameless plug: Tune in to Sportsline at six on WBAL (1090 AM) and join the discussion of last night's Ravens game, which was more interesting than it was conclusive. If you're not in signal range, go to WBAL,com and click on the "Listen Live" icon.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (17)
Categories: Schmuck being Schmuck
        

The Jets scored in the final 22 seconds of the game and could have tied the score by kicking the point after, but Rex Ryan obviously wasn't interested in taking the game into overtime. He kept third-string quarterback Erik Ainge in for the two-point conversion, but his pass over the middle was batted away.

Nevertheless, Ryan was all smiles when he hugged John Harbaugh at midfield after time expired.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
Categories: Just football
        

Defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, who got the Ravens defense off to a great start with his interception and touchdown return in the first quarter, was pleased that the Ravens' first defensive unit shut out the Jets in the first quarter.

"We weren't planning on that,'' he said at halftime. "I think one of the things we mostly have got to work on is stopping the run. We take a lot of pride in that. We didn't do too well, so we've got to go back and fix that. But it was good that we were still able to have a dominant defense."

Ngata said he was just in the right place at the right time for the big interception.

"I was supposed to have contain on that play,'' he said. "I saw the running back coming out, so I tried to stay in between (the quarterback and the running back). I saw the quarterback looking aat him, and then he threw the ball. I just jumped up, and it hit my stomach. My stomach swallowed it, and I caught the ball."

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Just football
        

Following last week's offensive explosion against the Redskins, I kind of expected Cam Cameron to come out today with a more run-oriented approach, if only to keep Rex Ryan's defense from teeing off on Joe Flacco.

It didn't work out that way. The Ravens again threw the ball much more than they ran it in the first half. Flacco was 8 for 18 for 120 yards and Troy Smith was 2 for 3 for 22 yards after taking over late in the second quarter. The Ravens ran 21 passing plays and just 12 running plays. Ray Rice got eight of those carries and totaled 29 yards and a touchdown.

The receiver distribution also was quite a bit different. Derrick Mason had three catches for 68 yards and Demetrius Williams and Le'Ron McClain had two each. Last week's leading receiver, Justin Harper, is not on the stat sheet yet.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
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Rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez hooked up with running back Leon Washington on a 19-yard touchdown pass with 5:57 to go in the second quarter for the first points scored against the Ravens defense in the preseason. Washington beat Jameel McClain on a wheel route on Sanchez final series of the game to salvage what started out to be a dismal performance.

Sanchez didn't light up the stadium, completing 3 of 8 passes for 43 yards and throwing for a touchdown for each team, but he's got to feel a lot better about things now than he did a 15 minutes ago.

Instant update: McClain didn't spend a lot of time beating himself up over the Jets touchdown. He just picked off Kellen Clemens in the final minute of the half and ran it in from 16 yards out to give the Ravens a 21-7 lead.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
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Joe Flacco just hooked up with Derrick Mason for 43 yards to the Jets 3 yard line, then pulled a nifty pump fake and behind the back handoff to Ray Rice for the touchdown. The Ravens now lead, 14-0, which the defense remains unscored upon in the preseason.

It wasn't a particularly clean start for Flacco, because the Jets brought pressure throughout the first Ravens offensive series, but when Mason got loose, Flacco delivered a perfect strike. The cumulative score of the preseason so far:

Ravens 37, Redskins/Jets 0. Looks like they might have to polish up another game ball for new defensive coordinator Greg Mattison.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
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It didn't take long for the Ravens defense to welcome departed defensive coordinator Rex Ryan back to M&T Bank Stadium. On the second play from scrimmage, top Jets draft choice Mark Sanchez got hammered by a blitzing Ray Lewis and threw the ball right into the hands of tackle Haloti Ngata, who ran it back for a Ravens touchdown.

And it could have been a lot worse. Sanchez dropped back on the second play of the Jets next possession and threw the ball right into Lewis's breadbasket, but Ray could not come up with the ball. Otherwise, it would probably be 14-0 with less than two minutes gone in the game.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
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Ravens

CB -- Samari Rolle
OLB -- Terrell Suggs
WR -- Mark Clayton
WR -- Biren Ealy
T -- Stefan Rodgers
LB -- Dannell Ellerbe

Jets

K -- Jay Feely
DB -- Darrelle Revis
CB -- Donald Strickland
RB -- Jehuu Caulcrick
LB -- Joshua Mauga
OL -- Damien Woody
DT -- Kris Jenkins

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 7:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
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Don't know if it was a coincidence or what, but at a time when NFL fans and commentators around the country are bemoaning the preseason because the games cost too much and mean too little, the Ravens have been blessed with intriguing matchups with great local appeal in each of their two home preseason games.

Nobody was complaining after the offensive extravaganza in the preseason opener against the Washington Redskins, which ended in a 23-0 shutout and game ball for new defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. Tonight marks a quick homecoming for new Jets coach Rex Ryan, who remains very popular in Baltimore after all those years of leading one of the most stalwart defensive teams in the NFL.

Heck, Rex (left) was even nice enough to throw down the gauntlet early on by calling out the Ravens for giving No. 99 to rookie Paul Kruger. Ryan didn't think it was appropriate, considering that number was worn by Ring of Honor great Michael McCrary, but it was really a tempest in a teapot that only drew much-wanted attention to tonight's game at M&T Bank Stadium.

The Ravens were so offended they're doing a pre-game video tribute to Rex. Let's just hope he's so touched by that gesture that he doesn't use any of his blitz packages against Joe Flacco in the first half.

Of course, Rex isn't the only guy doing the prodigal son thing today. Bart Scott and Jim Leonhard are in the Jets starting defensive lineup tonight and assistant coaches Dennis Thurman (defensive backs) and Matt Cavanaugh (quarterbacks) also have Ravens roots.

Associated Press photo

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
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Last spring, the Orioles brought 37 pitchers to training camp, but there didn't turn out to be much strength in those numbers. The only starting pitcher remaining from the season-opening rotation is Jeremy Guthrie, who hasn't exactly set the baseball world on fire this season.

In fact, Guthrie's struggles as the club's default ace stand as a major argument for the acquisition of a solid veteran starter during the coming offseason, but the free agent market -- with the exception of Angels pitcher John Lackey, who probably isn't coming this far East -- isn't exactly stocked with attractive possibilities.

That's why it wouldn't surprise me if Andy MacPhail and his staff convince themselves that there are enough good candidates for the 2010 rotation already in the organization. They will be able to make the case that the O's already have more major-league-ready arms than there are places in the five-man rotation, with Guthrie, Brad Bergesen, Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman and David Hernandez deserving of jobs and a couple of others -- Jake Arrieta and Troy Patton -- who might be ready to pop.

There really is strength in those numbers, but I still believe that you can never have enough good pitching and it's never a good idea to take your existing pitching depth for granted. I hate to be fatalistic, but it would only take a couple of sore arms and maybe one regressing youngster in spring training to send the front office scrambling again for some stop-gap starter like Adam Eaton. And that is not a particularly unlikely scenario.

The front office needs to hope for the best and plan for the worst by making a legitimate run at a high-quality veteran starter either by trade or in the free agent market.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (63)
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Obviously, Jim Johnson was taking notes when George Sherrill was the Orioles closer, because JJ has been keeping O's fans in the same kind of suspense. He nailed down the save in the finale of the series against the Rays, but not until the potential tying run was at third base. In today's game, he came on in the ninth with a two-run lead and allowed a leadoff double to Paul Konerko and a one-out single to Alexi Ramirez before working his way out of the jam with the potential tying run again in scoring position.

It was scary, but Johnson has converted his last five save opportunities, dating back to a two-inning save the day before the Orioles completed the deal to send Sherrill to the Dodgers.

Sherrill, by the way, has pitched in 11 games since the trade and has yet to give up a run in the National League.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (56)
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Admittedly, what we've seen from Kam Mickolio is a very small sample, but you have to be impressed with his command and velocity since he moved into the setup rotation. He still hasn't allowed a major league run and his fastball topped out at 97 miles per hour during today's strong 1 1/3-inning outing, leaving room to wonder when his name will start getting traction as next year's eighth-inning setup guy or even a closer candidate.

The Orioles figure to go into next year with Jim Johnson projected into the closer role and Chris Ray in a setup/closer hybrid situation, but there's nothing wrong with putting somebody else on the same path. Mickolio's stock is going up, which only sweetens the return from the two big deals Andy MacPhail pulled off before the 2008 season.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
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Jason Berken did a great job of keeping his poise when the defense failed him in the first inning, and he looked like he was cruising with two outs in the fifth and a four-run lead. Then you got to see one of the reasons he is 2-11 despite a pretty good pitch repertoire.

He walked the No. 9 hitter and then could not put the hammer down when he got ahead on the count to the next two hitters. Both fought back to deliver run-scoring hits and now the game is very much in doubt.

Still, considering the way things started, it was a gutsy 5 2/3-inning performance by a guy who has had every reason to quit this season, yet keeps coming back start after start to compete.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
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Right after I ripped the O's offense for wasting an opportunity in the first inning and being overly aggressive in the second, the Orioles did everything right to take a three-run lead against Mark Buehrle in the third. Brian Roberts singled to open the inning and stole second without a throw; Robert Andino bounced the ball to the right side to move him to third; and Felix Pie hit a fly ball to bring him home. That's real baseball.

And, as so often hasn't happened lately, the Orioles kept the pressure on Buehrle, scoring two more runs on an infield hit by Nick Markakis and Nolan Reimold's 12th home run of the year.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
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It has reached the point where I'm starting to wonder what the rest of the Orioles have against Jason Berken. The guy has gotten some of the worst run-support in the major leagues, and today he found himself in a first-inning jam after getting the first two Chicago White Sox batters to hit routine ground balls.

Robert Andino booted the first one and Melvin Mora threw the second one into a camera well. So Berken pitched well enough to get the first two outs and instead was down by a run with another runner on second base and no one out. To his credit, he bounced back to work through the heart of the Sox order without further damage, but he's not good enough to get five outs in an inning very often.

The Orioles did get Berken a run in the top of the first, but even that inning was an illustration of why they have struggled badly in the second half. Three of the first four batters reached base, but the O's could not take full advantage. The best thing about the top of the first was that they made Mark Buehrle throw a lot of pitches, but they quickly made up for that in the second by swinging early in the count and going out quickly.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
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Adam Jones had to be removed from the game after coming up sore on a swing in the first inning. He stepped out of the box and reached behind his back, then tried to stretch it again int he dugout. The trainers quickly escorted him up the tunnel and Felix Pie took his place in center field.

He apparently tweaked his lower back and did not appear to be in terrible pain, so you'd have to guess he'll be day-to-day. I'm sure there'll be a report on MASN in the next couple of innings.

Instant update: The Orioles announced that Jones suffered a "mild middle-back spasm" and will be re-evaluated later today. You can probably figure on Felix Pie starting in center for at least the next couple of games.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
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White Sox pitcher John Danks allowed nine baserunners over his 6 1/3 innings, but the Orioles went 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position tonight to end their brief-but-uplifting two-game winning streak. The only O's run scored on a wild pitch.

Danks has beaten the Orioles three times this year, but they had a chance to get after him in the third inning when they loaded the bases with one out -- and the one out was Ty Wigginton getting thrown out stealing after drawing a leadoff walk. Had to be some kind of play on there, since Wigginton was looking at the plate as he chugged to second, but a bad out is a bad out.

The Orioles still ran up Danks pitch count as Brian Roberts walked, Cesar Izturis reached on an error and Adam Jones walked to load the bases, but Nick Markakis struck out and Nolan Reimold popped out to end the inning. Stuff happens, but when a good starting pitcher walks five batters in the first three innings, you've got to do something about it.

Column plug: If you want to read my latest column -- which takes a look at Brian Roberts' recent triumphs and also his less recent tribulations -- just click here or pick up Sunday's print edition.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (34)
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The most entertaining thing about tonight's MASN broadcast was the eighth-inning interplay between Melvin Mora and White Sox reliever Octavio Dotel. The two of them played together in the Mets organization, but it wasn't clear whether they were joking around or really getting after it.

Dotel seemed to be joking as he pantomined Mora's swing, but Melvin never smiled as he barked at the White Sox dugout from third base. Maybe we'll hear more about this later.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
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The roster limit rises to 40 on Sept. 1 and the Orioles are expected to bring up a handful of players the Triple-A Norfolk roster. They aren't talking, of course, but it's fair to speculate that infielder Justin Turner, outfielder Joey Gathright and catcher Robby Hammock are likely to join the club for the final five weeks of the season.

It's standard procedure in baseball to add at least a catcher, an infielder and an outfielder. The Orioles conceivably could take a look at corner infield prospect Brandon Snyder, but they figure to have enough trouble making room for Turner, Hammock and Gathright on the 40-man roster. There's little chance that pitching prospect Jake Arrieta will get a look. It's really not practical for non-contending teams to stretch their top minor league starting prospects into September.

Depending on the Dennis Sarfate situation, the O's could add some bullpen depth. The most likely candidates who are on the 40-man roster would appear to be Bob McCrory, Chris Waters and Jim Miller.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (33)
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Reliever Dennis Sarfate, who has been sidelined most of the year because of a circulation problem in his pitching arm, made his final injury rehabilitation appearance on Friday night. The club must make a decision on his future status in the next day or so, and that may be more complicated than you'd think.

Sarfate has been on rehab assignment since July 24, so his 30 days are up today. He must either be returned to the 25-man roster, waived and outrighted to one of the minor league affiliates or -- if the team can make the case that he's still not physically ready to pitch -- returned to the disabled list.

What I'm trying to get straight in my head is why the Orioles didn't wait a week until Aug. 1 to send him on the 30-day assignment, which would have allowed him to come back when the roster limit rises to 40. Probably because the club needed the bullpen depth at the time and figured he would pitch well enough to return to the major league bullpen way before now. Instead, his rehab hasn't gone that great and the O's need to bridge the final week until the roster expansion.

The other complicating factors are the strong performance of Kam Mickolio, who has pitched his way into a setup role, and a seemingly rejuvenated Chris Ray. Can't imagine the O's would option Mickolio again to avoid a tough decision, so it would appear that there just isn't room for Sarfate until Sept. 1.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 1:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)
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Obviously, Brian Roberts carried the offense on his back again tonight, but it was a pretty good team win for the Orioles.

Jeremy Guthrie pitched very well, giving up just six hits over seven innings and allowing just the one home run to Jim Thome (which is no crime). He looked confident and he showed solid command throughout on the way to his first victory since he defeated the White Sox on July 19. He had lost four straight decisions and had gone six starts since that victory.

Felix Pie also had a big night, with three singles for his first multi-hit game since he hit for the cycle against the Angels. He came in 2 for 12 since then, but is 12 for 37 in August, which works out to a pretty respectable .324 average. Not hearing a lot of complaints anymore about the decision to acquire Pie, who has developed into a pretty good extra outfielder with bonus tools.

Roberts, however, has been the driving force behind this brief offensive turnaround, and that's because he has been driving the ball the way he did during his biggest home run year four seasons ago.

"I don't think I've ever gone through a power streak like this since 2005,'' Roberts said during his second straight MASN postgame interview. "It's been nice, because I knew I could get back to it. Sometimes it clicks...It's nice."

Getty Images

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (48)
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Brian Roberts went deep in the third inning for his third home run in as many games. It wasn't as grand as his slam on Thursday at Tropicana Field, but it put the Orioles in front and kept Roberts on a major roll.

BRob has been hammering the ball for awhile now. He has hit in ten straight games, going 19-for-49 (.388) with eight doubles, four homers, seven runs and 11 RBI.

There are some posters who are wondering why he looks so inspired now, when he looked defeated a few weeks ago. It might be that he wasn't so much frustrated earlier in the season as banged up. He had a lingering bronchial infection for several weeks and has had a variety of bumps and bruises -- most recently that nasty foul tip off his shin two weeks ago.

If he was simply discouraged, his terrific performance the past two weeks makes little sense, since the situation is worse now than it was when so many people assumed that he was letting down because the O's were so far out of contention at midseason.

Instant update: Brian just did it again, launching his second homer of the game and fourth in the last three games to give the Orioles a 3-1 lead in the eighth inning. Jeremy Guthrie has been terrific, but his pitch count is getting up there and Danys Baez is warming up in bullpen.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (23)
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Brett Favre did start tonight's preseason game between the Minnesota Vikings and Kansas City Chiefs, but he wasn't around long. He played two series -- going 4-and-out after the Vikes recovered a fumble and 3-and-out in his other possession. He threw four passes and completed one of them for four yards. Tavaris Jackson took over late in the first quarter.

Hardly auspicious, but what could anyone expect? The guy has been in camp for a couple of days and he's two months removed from shoulder surgery. I'm a little surprised Brad Childress even sent him out there.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)
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The Orioles are on the South Side for another road series against another pretty good Chicago White Sox team, and you have to believe they'll eventually jump and bite somebody. They did that in the finale of the Tampa Bay series, when Brian Roberts and Nolan Reimold accounted for seven runs with two swings.

Trouble is, eight runs almost wasn't enough. The O's bullpen -- with the help of a key error -- gave back three in the eighth and it almost got away again. Fortunately for the O's, Jim Johnson nailed it down for his fifth save, though the potential tying run was at third base when the game ended.

Tonight, we'll find out if Jeremy Guthrie has made any progress in his attempt to minimize the mistake pitches that have plagued him all season. Tomorrow, David Hernandez will get another chance to show why he should be in the club's 2010 rotation. And Sunday, O's fans can hope there is such thing as a reverse lock when Jason Berken pits his 2-11 record and terrible offensive support against 11-game winner Mark Buehrle.

Actually, I don't think it qualifies as a reverse lock matchup, because Buehrle hasn't won a decision since since July 23, a span of five starts.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (42)
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Guess I picked the wrong game to rip the Orioles for leaving too many men on base, but it seemed like the thing to do when they were unable to get a meaningful hit with runners all over the bases in the early innings. Brian Roberts and Nolan Reimold changed that with a couple of big swings and the bullpen hung on by a thread to avert a three-game Rays sweep at Tropicana Field.

Never mind that the Orioles twice came within a run of giving back a four-run lead. This is no time to discount their effort. Anyway, I already did that earlier in the game and -- for once -- they made me regret it.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (42)
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Brian Roberts put the lie to my earlier entry, launching the Orioles' fourth grand slam of the season off former teammate Lance Cormier in the sixth inning. To that point, the Orioles had put 10 runners on base and scored just one of them on a fielders choice, but Roberts' 12th homer changed the conversation.

Also to that point, Brian Brian Matusz was pitching a very solid game, but could not keep the Rays under wraps in the bottom of the sixth. He gave up a three-run homer to Ben Zobrist to make it a one-run game, but it still was a positive outing that featured seven strikeouts and no walks.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (32)
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The Orioles are on pace for 15 baserunners and no runs tonight (through the first three innings), which probably shouldn't surprise anyone who has been watching this second-half slump. The O's lineup continues to pile up hits -- just not clutch hits -- which explains how they can rank fifth among the 30 major league clubs both hits and team batting average (.270), but only 15th in runs scored (10th in the American League).

Tuesday night against the Rays, the O's put 17 runners on base -- an average of just a shade under two an inning -- and scored just four runs. Gotta think that at some point, all those hits and walks have to come home to roost, but other than Friday's 16-run explosion against the Angels last week, they are making the least of their opportunities with frightening regularity.

Instant update: I guess I shamed them into scoring a run, because Felix Pie and Brian Roberts opened the fifth with back-to-back hits, then tied the score when Cesar Izturis bounced into a force out at second. Not exactly a dynamic rally, but the way things have been going, the Orioles have to take a run any way they can get one.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 7:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (33)
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Evan Longoria got the green light on a 3-0 fastball from Brian Matusz and hit a towering fly ball that hit halfway up the center field fence for a double in the first inning. The scary thing is, he hit it near the end of the bat and didn't really square it up. It was just a high fly ball that almost didn't come down.

Matusz put himself in position to get hurt by both Longoria and Ben Zobrist, who followed with a solid double down the left field line to give the Rays the early lead. The Orioles highly-regarded rookie fell way behind Longoria with two outs and nobody on, and fell behind Zobrist 2-0 to put him into a couple of nice hitting counts.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 7:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
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The Orioles claimed Detroit Tigers minor league pitcher Chris Lambert off waivers today and optioned him to Triple-A Norfolk. Lambert is a 26-year-old right-hander with decent numbers the last two years in the International League. He was the St. Louis Cardinals' first-round draft choice (19th overall) in 2004.

Don't know much about the guy, but this obviously is one of those no-risk moves that Andy MacPhail likes to make once in awhile. The guy ranked fifth in the International League last year with a 3.50 ERA for Toledo. He was 6-7 with a 3.55 ERA for the Mud Hens this season and has made a handful of appearances at the major league level. He struggled in two appearances for the Tigers this year, giving up 11 earned runs in 6 2/3 innings.

Maybe the Orioles hope to catch Jeremy Guthrie in a bottle again. They claimed Guthrie -- the 22nd overall pick in 2002 -- off waivers in 2007 from the Indians and he pitched quite well during his first season in Baltimore. He also won 10 games with a decent ERA (3.63) last year, but has struggled mightily this season.

Lambert has decent ratios and gives the Orioles a little more minor league inventory going into spring training next year, but he obviously didn't impress the Tigers enough to hold his place in that organization. In that regard, the move is reminiscent of the O's picking up Red Sox prospect David Pauley after he went 14-4 with a 3.55 ERA for Triple-A Pawtucket last year.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (68)
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In the interest of not invoking some kind of unpleasant karmic payback, I have made it a point throughout my life not to take pleasure in the misfortune of others -- except the Yankees and Red Sox, of course. But I'm going to have to make an exception for this article about several members of a Japanese pro baseball team who have contracted the Swine flu.

Of course, that's not funny, but when the team that was struck by the nasty virus is the Nippon Ham Fighters, well, what's a fun-loving blogger supposed to do?

There's a semi-local angle, too. One of the players who has tested positive for the virus is former major leaguer Terrmel Sledge, who played for the Washington Nationals in 2005.

By the way, when you refer to the Nippon Ham Fighters by their nickname, they are not the "Ham Fighters" -- though that certainly has a nice ring to it. They are just the "Fighters." Nippon Ham is the company that owns the team, which usually is a cool marketing tool, but I can't imagine a swine flu outbreak -- even in a well-detached subsidiary -- is great for business.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (36)
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The thing that distinguishes this bad season from many of the others is the Orioles' uncanny ability to find new ways NOT to score. Tonight, it was a bases-loaded, no-out opportunity in the fifth that evaporated on a shot through the box by Cesar Izturis. Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett made a nice play to knock it down and was able to force out Matt Wieters at the plate because the runners had to freeze on the liner in case it was caught. After that, anybody who didn't know the next sound you would hear was an inning-ending double-play ball hasn't been paying attention.

I take it all back. This stuff does not appear to even out.

Meanwhile, the meteor shower continues for the Orioles pitching staff, which has given up more home runs than any other team in the American League (157). Chris Tillman pitched pretty well after a rocky start, but he allowed solo homers to Pat Burrell, Ben Zobrist and B.J. Upton over the course of his six-plus innings.

The O's are creeping up on the Milwaukee Brewers, who lead the majors in gopher balls with 162. Can't be long now.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (50)
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The Ravens are going through their afternoon practice at McDaniel College and Jamison Hensley reports that Derrick Mason is wearing No. 9, which is the number his close friend Steve McNair wore for both the Tennessee Titans and the Ravens.

Don't know the significance of today's practice, but it's a nice gesture and I'm sure we'll find out Mason's reasons soon enough.

Update: Mason did not comment today on the uniform change, but Hensley reported in his Ravens Notebook today that the team's leading receiver will wear No. 9 in practice for the remainder of the season as a tribute to McNair. Mason will, however, continue to wear his usual No. 85 during games.

Ray Lewis on WBAL tonight: While we're talking Ravens, you'll want to join me at six on Sportsline (WBAL 1090AM). My guest tonight will be future Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis. If you're not in signal range, go to WBAL.com and click on the "Listen Live" icon.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
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If I remember correctly, I predicted at the beginning of this season that the Orioles would win 68 games this year, and that's starting to look generous. They'll win 65 games at their current pace, and you have to wonder if they can maintain that pace considering the strength of their remaining schedule and the way they've played since the All-Star break.

There's a lot of chatter about the O's possibly losing 100 games, which now seems very possible. That would be unfortunate, because it's a benchmark that will confirm for some fans that the franchise is not moving in the right direction, but I'm not sure how much difference it makes whether they win 62 games or 72. This is already a lost season, so there isn't a lot of sense wallowing in supposed hopelessness of 100 losses.

Everybody who was paying attention had to know where this season was going when Andy MacPhail plugged the holes in the rotation with Adam Eaton and Mark Hendrickson. Now, the only thing that's important is how the young starters perform the rest of the way. Personally, I don't think the Orioles end up getting to 100 losses. I'm guessing they end up right around 65, but I'll hold onto my original prediction just the same. If I don't, I've got a chance to be wrong twice.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (64)
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Just a few thoughts while I ponder whether Brett Favre's shoulder is healthy enough to throw a football across the credibility gap he and Vikings coach Brad Childress have created over the past four weeks:

Now that I've gotten a chance to watch the replay of Favre's news conference from last night (I couldn't watch it live because I was doing the radio show), I'm still not convinced that the whole thing just bubbled up again over the past couple days. I'm in the Cris Carter camp on this. There's no way that Favre was just home enjoying his retirement and got a call on Monday from Childress and said something like "Hey, why not?"

Maybe it was the unnamed Vikings players who were quoted at about the same time saying that Favre's arrival had been in the works for for weeks. Maybe it was the inconsistencies in Favre's explanation at the press conference.

Favre said in basically the same sentence that he was sure he was retired, but still talked to orthopedic specialist Dr. James Andrews recently about his ability to play. Sounds a lot like he was firming up plans to report to the Vikings. Sounds like the contract already was waiting for his signature -- though, to be fair, it was probably waiting for his signature on the first day of training camp.

None of this makes him a bad fellow, but I think that Favre's reputation as a straight shooter has been damaged by this, as has the credibility of Childress in the Vikings lockerroom. All will be forgiven if Brett leads the Vikes to the promised land, but I'll be surprised if this doesn't turn out to be a purple replay of the Jets fiasco last year.

Okay, maybe -- when I'm not apologizing for the Orioles -- I'm just a cynic. Is anybody buying what Favre and Childress are trying to sell?

Getty Images

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (33)
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Hey, sorry for the lack of activity so far this morning, but I've been dealing with a spam storm in the comment section. I was able to preserve almost all of the legitimate posts, but if one of yours is not there, it's not because I censored anyone. There was a handful of posts that I had to delete because they were buried under hundreds of junk comments. It was either that or force all of you to read a thousand phony Cialis ads.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (20)
Categories: Schmuck being Schmuck
        

When a team continually loses by small margins, it's either an indication that the team in question is a bad team that doesn't know how to win, or a sign that it isn't that far away from being a good team. I'll have to go with the doesn't-know-how-to-win option until the Orioles prove otherwise, especially considering their 8-23 record since the All-Star break.

The Orioles got 12 hits and drew five walks, which should have translated into more than four runs, but that's also a familiar tune. Clutch hitting has been a big issue throughout this dismal second half.

Orioles hitters struck out 11 times, including five times in the final two innings after Matt Wieters' two-run homer pulled the O's within a run with no outs in the top of the eighth.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (65)
        

Reliever Kam Mickolio has to be wondering what he's got to do to stick at the major league level. He's been yo-yo-ed up and down three times this season, even though he is yet to allow a run in very limited innings.

Tonight, he came on in the bottom of the seventh inning and worked out of a second-and-third, no-out situation that allowed the Orioles to stick close enough to make a comeback bid in the eighth. Mickolio struck out Evan Longoria, walked Carlos Pena intentionally, struck out Pat Burrell and got Gregg Zaun to pop out to end the inning. Impressive.

Mickolio was just as effective in the ninth inning and finished his hitless two-inning appearance with four strikeouts.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (17)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Every time I watch Jason Berken pitch, I can see how the Orioles keep thinking his luck is going to change and he's going to string together a couple of wins. He looked good early and still got dinged for a run on three infield hits in the second inning, then gave up three homers in the middle innings to seal his usual fate. Mix in the Orioles' typical lack of run support while he's on the mound and it all adds up to a 2-10 record that soon figures to be 2-11.

No great injustice. He gave up 11 hits over 5 2/3 innings. You're not going to win a lot of games doing that.

Maybe the Orioles know enough about Berken's makeup to be confident that his psyche isn't being damaged by the mounting defeats, but you've got to feel for the guy. He won his first major league start when he was called up, but his brief major league career has been a nightmare ever since.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: Just baseball
        

It's time for another edition of Schmuck's Shameless Self-Promotional Plugs, so pay close attention or you might miss an opportunity to blast me in the posting section or call me out tonight on the radio show.

If you want to read my column evaluating the Aubrey Huff deal before tomorrow's print edition, you can do that right here.

If you want to hear me make fun of Brett Favre and talk about the Ravens and the rest of the sports news of the day, tune in to WBAL (1090 AM) at six for Sportsline. If you're not in signal range, go to WBAL.com and click on the "Listen Live" icon. Lots of people do and call in from all over the country to tell me what an idiot I am.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (28)
Categories: Schmuck being Schmuck
        

Did anyone really think that Brett Favre was going to go quietly into retirement, even after he balked at reporting to Vikings training camp three weeks ago? The only way this guy is leaving the stage is if he makes like Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and falls off it.

OK, be honest now. How many people really believed that Stephen Strasburg was going to leave $15 million on the table and go play in some independent league? I sure didn't, and said so many times over the past few months. Both sides needed each other way too much.

And who thought that Aubrey Huff was going to finish the season in an Orioles uniform? Well, I'll give you this one. Once he cleared waivers, I didn't think anybody would be willing to give anything up to get him. Now, I can't wait to hear him on Bubba the Love Sponge after six weeks in Detroit.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (49)
Categories: Schmuck being Schmuck
        

If you bristle at all the Red Sox and Yankees fans who take over Camden Yards when their teams come to town, you're not going to like what may be a growing trend in sports marketing and promotion.

The New Jersey Nets recently unveiled a new ticket promotion that -- if it's successful -- could be coming to a ballpark near you. The Nets are offering a 10-game ticket plan that includes games against some of the top teams in the NBA and a promotional giveaway that features some of the game's top stars. Fans who buy two of the 10-game plans get five Nets jerseys, each of them reversible...and guess what's on the other side of that Nets logo?

The jerseys reverse to feature the names and numbers of the league's top opposing players, so a geographically displaced Lakers fan can turn the Nets jersey inside out and it becomes a Kobe Bryant jersey.

Nets CEO Brett Yormark was just on CNBC explaining that the Nets have to reach out to casual basketball fans to boost attendance. Opponent marketing, as this kind of thing is called, is nothing new, but the Nets have taken it to a whole new level. The 10-game plans start at $350 and fans must buy two to get the five jerseys, which feature a total of 10 players (five Nets and five opposing stars). The deal also includes a four-week subscription to the New York Post. Hmmmm.

The Orioles depend heavily on the patronage of Yankees and Red Sox fans to boost attendance for almost a quarter of their home dates. MASN already aggressively markets opposing players in its "Who will own it?" campaign. What's next? Nick Markakis/Derek Jeter Reversible T-shirt Tuesday?

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (28)
Categories: Schmuck being Schmuck
        

The Orioles announced the signing of second-round draft choice Mychal Givens less than an hour before the midnight deadline that would have sent him into the 2010 June draft. Givens, a shortstop and right-handed pitcher out of H.B. Plant High School in Florida, was the 54th overall choice in this year's draft.

The Orioles have signed nine of their top 10 draft choices and 29 of their 50 picks.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (48)
Categories: Just baseball
        

No surprise here. The Orioles optioned reliever Matt Albers to Triple-A Norfolk after tonight's loss to the Orioles and will replace him in the bullpen tomorrow with right-hander Kam Mickolio. The club also is expected to make a move to replace the departed Aubrey Huff before tomorrow's series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays in Florida.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (21)
Categories: Just baseball
        

The Orioles dispatched Aubrey Huff to Detroit today in exchange for minor league reliever Brett Jacobson, who was the Tigers' fourth-round pick in last year's June draft. The 6-6 right-hander had some decent stats at Class-A Lakeland this season and gives the Orioles some more organizational relief depth. He was ranked by Baseball America coming into this season as Detroit's No. 10 prospect.

The deal makes some long-term sense for the Orioles, but it makes Dave Trembley's job that much harder. The club has significantly weakened its offensive attack for the final quarter of the season at a time when Trembley needs to show some progress to have any chance of getting his contract option picked up for the 2010 season.

Here's the immediate impact: Huff leaves first base open for Luke Scott, who will start there tonight and probably get an extended opportunity to show he can be the stop-gap veteran at the position until somebody grows into the role or the club signs a front-line free agent to beef up the middle of the lineup. The Orioles also have an open roster spot, which could be filled by newly acquired first baseman John "Rhyne" Hughes..

Still likely to come, a roster move to beef up the major league bullpen, probably the Kam Mickolio/Matt Albers roster swap we've been predicting for the past 24 hours or so.

Radio plug: Join me at six on WBAL (1090 AM) for Sportsline. Ravens special teams star Brendon Ayanbedejo will join me from Ravens training camp at the start of the program, and we'll also break down the deal that just sent Huff to the Tigers. If you're outside of signal range, go to WBAL.com and click on the "Listen Live" icon.

Associated Press photo

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (103)
Categories: Just baseball
        

The recent numbers are so stark -- 17 earned runs in the last six innings -- that it's hard to imagine Matt Albers holding his place on the 25-man roster any longer than it will take to bring up another reliever from Triple-A Norfolk.

It's also hard to imagine that reliever being anyone other than Kam Mickolio, who has been up and down a couple of times already even though he has yet to give up a run this year at the major league level (4 2/3 IP, 2 H, 4 K). I'm guessing something happens before gametime tonight.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 1:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (65)
Categories: Just baseball
        

When your No. 1 starter is on the mound and you score eight runs, you're supposed to win, even when you're playing against one of the better teams in the American League. The Orioles have swung the bat pretty well this weekend, but the key to turning the corner is getting a passable performance from your starting rotation almost every day.

That doesn't mean that everybody has to pony up a quality start every time out, but it does mean you've got to win when you score six runs in the first five innings of the game. Maybe that's going to happen more next year when the young starters are better established, but it needed to happen today.

Jeremy Guthrie was not equal to the task, so a pretty good offensive performance went to waste, and with it a chance to secure a split and possibly win a four-game series against a potential World series team.

The Orioles showed some resilience by battling back over and over and finally tying the game in the ninth, but they were simply outlasted by a better, deeper team. If you want to beat teams like the Angels, Red Sox or Yankees, time is seldom an ally.

The final score was ugly, but that was largely irrelevant. The Orioles battled hard both offensively and defensively until the whole thing blew up in a nine-run 13th inning, but by that time it didn't matter whether the O's lost by one run or a hundred.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 6:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (69)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Brian Roberts kept this game alive all by himself, bouncing that ground-rule double into the bullpen and then getting a great jump to put the tying run on third base with nobody out against Angels' closer Brian Fuentes. Okay, give Adam Jones for fighting off a 1-2 pitch to tie the game with a sacrifice fly, but you know what I'm saying.

Who knows what's going to happen, but the Orioles added to a fine offensive afternoon by pinning a blown save on the Angels' closer. Roberts now has 45 doubles in the club's 117 games, which puts him on pace for 62 over a full season. Only five players in major league history have had as many as 62 doubles in a season. The record, set by Earl Webb in 1931, is 67.

Extra-inning update: Ty Wigginton, who got some grief from me in my Sunday column for his approach with RISP and less than two outs, just reached on a check-swing single to right. He's got three hits -- two of them kind of fluky -- but I'm still giving both him and Roberts credit for showing me up today.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)
Categories: Just baseball
        

If you're asking yourself why manager Dave Trembley wouldn't ask Chad Moeller to bunt Ty Wigginton over to third base in the bottom of the sixth, then you're asking the same question I am. I realize that the Angels are a big-hitting team and pushing the tying run into scoring position probably isn't going to win the game for you, but when Wigginton got the gift bright-sky double with no one out and the No. 8 and 9 hitters coming up, I'd be willing to take one run there with three innings left to go at home. But that's just me.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)
Categories: Just baseball
        

This discussion has been going on all season. I'm watching Jeremy Guthrie throw with good velocity and -- for the most part -- good command on the way to another subpar performance. If it was an isolated incident, I would chalk it up to the competition, but we're way past that point.

Jeremy has tools. There aren't any physical limitations that are keeping him from being a very effective pitcher. He just has fallen into a pattern where -- no matter how well he's throwing -- he's always a threat to hang a curveball (see Bobby Abreu's home run) or miss up in the strike zone in a dangerous situation.

The most frustrating part of it for O's fans is that he often does it right after the Orioles have put up some runs, which could be a sign of an inability to maintain focus when there is a dramatic change in the condition of the game. I'm guessing, however, that he's just fallen into a rut and will benefit from a fresh start (and a little less responsibility for leading the rotation) next season.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Most Orioles fans would probably agree that pending free agent John Lackey would look pretty good at the front of the O's rotation next year, though I wouldn't get your hopes up. Can't imagine the Angels letting him get away, and if they do, there has been talk that he might like to go home to Texas if he doesn't stay in Southern California.

Still, you never know what might happen during the free agent period, and money generally does most of the talking. The Orioles need a solid veteran pitcher to help mold a real rotation out of all those promising young arms, and Lackey fits that description almost perfectly. He's a consistent right-hander whose ratios have held firm for the past five years. He won 19 games in 2007 and his ability to handle the responsibilities of a front-rotation guy was preordained way back in his rookie year, when he became only the second rookie starter in baseball history to win the seventh game of the World Series.

Would he come here for the right price? Who knows? But if you want to grasp at some straws, this comment last night proves that he has noticed the change in the outlook for the rebuilding Orioles.

"Honestly they put some pressure on me," Lackey said. "They had some traffic on the bases and guys got some hits. I was able to make some big pitches to get out of a couple of innings with no damage, and they've got a nice lineup. They've got some pieces there that are going to be pretty good in the future."

So, maybe...

Saturday silence: Sorry to duck out on Saturday after posting my column. I went to the Talbot Kennel Club dog show in Easton to scout the next member of the family. Lost our best friend of 16 years a couple of weeks ago (definitely don't want to do this summer over again) and are just starting to consider a new dog. Then I took everybody out for a big night afterward to thank them for waiting on my helpless self for the past month. Hope you all understand. I'm back at it today.

Associated Press photo

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (37)
Categories: Just baseball
        

If you want to get a jump on your Sunday reading, my column for tomorrow's print edition already is up on the Web site. Coming off last night's big offensive performance, I just wanted to reinforce the notion that the Orioles veterans need to treat the next six weeks like it's their future, too. So, head on over and read it right here.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 1:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (28)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Guess Felix Pie's hand is okay, because he just came up for the second time in the seventh inning and tripled to become only the fourth player in Orioles history to hit for the cycle...and here's an even quirkier stat. Cesar Izturiz was on deck needing a home run to become the fifth Oriole to turn that trick.

The last Orioles player to hit for the cycle was Aubrey Huff on June 29, 2007. Cal Ripken and Brooks Robinson are the other two Orioles players who have accomplished the rare feat.

Izturis had a single, double and triple -- in that order -- before coming up for his opportunity at the cycle, but bounced out to first base to end the seven-run rally.

Pie didn't just help the Orioles with his bat tonight. He also showed off his five-tool talent when he made a fantastic diving play to rob Chone Figgins of a possible extra-base hit in the third inning (upper right).

Apparently, Pie got under the skin of Angels manager Mike Scioscia with his excited gyrations at third base after the triple. Scioscia stared him down as he went to the mound to make a pitching change, and apparently got the message across that you don't show up the opposition with a huge lead.

"I'm sad, because I showed too much emotion on the field,'' Pie said afterward. "I apologize to Mike Scioscia and the Angels for that. I just got too excited."

Associated Press photo

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (70)
Categories: Just baseball
        

When Nick Markakis delivered the Orioles' ninth double of tonight's game, it tied an Orioles record set previously on July 30, 1996 against the Minnesota Twins. Nine doubles also is a major league high this season. Felix Pie's cycle-completing triple also was the 12th extra-base hit of the game, which also tied a club record.

The 16 runs are a season high and the 19 hits are a nine-inning high for the Orioles this year.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Felix Pie had his third hit of the game in the seventh inning, but he appeared to injure his left hand sliding home on Cesar Izturis's triple. Pie went into his exagerated wingspan slide and apparently slammed his hand into Angels catcher Mike Napoli. It's not clear whether he jammed a finger against Napoli's shin guard or caught his hand on Napoli's spikes. Head athletic trainer Richie Bancells met him when he got to the dugout and apparently accompanied him back to the trainers room for treatment.

Instant update: Felix apparently is okay. He returned for his second at-bat of the inning with a chance to hit for the cycle with a triple.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Chris Tillman could have wilted in the first inning, especially after Vladimir Guerrero hit his one-hop curveball for a bloop single that set the wheels in motion for the Angels' two-run first inning, but the O's propped him up with their big rally in the bottom of the inning and he settled in to pitch 6 2/3 innings.

The outing was similar to his last start in Toronto, when he went 6 2/3 innings and gave up two runs on four hits. This time, he left with just three Angels runs on the board, but was charged with another run when Matt Albers allowed a couple of two-out hits before getting out of the inning.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Just baseball
        

If you haven't already, take a look at Jeff Zrebiec's story on the Web site about the future of manager Dave Trembley.

President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail essentially guarantees that Trembley will finish the season, which should come as no surprise to anyone who has been reading the blog for the past few weeks.

There has been plenty of anti-Trembley angst around here, and some of it is understandable with the team in a horrible tailspin, but I've been saying for quite a while that MacPhail would not make a managerial change in-season. The short-term mollification of the most disenchanted fans isn't enough to justify a move that could end up handcuffing MacPhail if he decides to make a change after the season.

MacPhail continues to leave open the possibility that the team will pick up Trembley's option for 2010, but that probably will depend on the team showing improvement over the final seven weeks of the season.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Faster than you could say "Here we go again," the Orioles rebounded from the Angels' weird two-run rally in the first inning to bat around and score six times in the bottom of the first. And, believe if or not, they actually added a tack-on run in the third when Felix Pie launched a solo home run well into the right center field bleachers.

It was Pie's second hit of the game. He also had an RBI double in the six-run first. Not bad for a guy O's fans wanted to run out of town when he was batting .158 back in early May. Since May 10, he now is 25 for 81 (.309).

Ex-Oriole update: For those who thought Adam Eaton should no longer be in the major leagues, he currently is warming up in the bullpen for the Colorado Rockies at LandShark Stadium in Florida.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
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The Ravens receiver corps took another hit in tonight's game when Marcus Smith went down with a knee injury that coach John Harbaugh described as potentially serious.

"Marcus is getting checked out,'' Harbaugh said. "It could be serious. It could be an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament)."

That would be very bad news for a team that already needs everybody to stay in the competition for the receiver reps. Smith said after the game that the injury didn't seem all that painful on the field, but that doctors were concerned that it did not respond well when he was examined afterward.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 11:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
Categories: Just football
        

Running back Ray Rice carried the ball five times for 22 yards and caught three passes for a total of 38 yards as the Ravens first-team offense moved the ball well against the Redskins early in the game.

"I think it was all confidence,'' Rice said. Washington has one of the best defenses in the league. Now, it's no knock on them, but we see the best defense every day in practice. It would be like a slap in the face to our defense if we didn't come out here and move the ball."

Rice said the highlight was just getting out on the field against a real opponent.

"We finally got to hit a different color jersey,'' he said. "Just being at game speed against another team, trying to get a win, that's what's so exciting."

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Just football
        

Troy Smith played about two quarters and winged the ball all over the place. He completed 14 of 30 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown, involving just about every receiver who was available to play. It wasn't the most efficient performance -- partly because of a handful of dropped passes -- but it was fun to watch him put his athleticism on display for an extended look.

If you were hoping to get a sense for the pecking order in the receiver corps, good luck with that. Nine different receivers and running backs caught passes in the second quarter and a total of 11 caught passes from either Flacco or Smith in the first half. When it was over Flacco, Smith and John Beck used a total of 15 receivers and running backs.

"It's been drilled into all our heads to spread the ball around,'' said Smith, who returned to the game near the end when Beck got banged up. "Hugh Jackson (quarterbacks coach) has down a great job of broadening our horizon."

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Just football
        

John Harbaugh seemed very pleased with both of the quarterbacks in the first half, applauding the two-minute execution by Troy Smith that resulted in a touchdown pass to Justin Harper with just seconds left before intermission.

"That's the way to finish a half -- get the turnover and then a touchdown...How about that?'' he said. "That last drive is a pressure situation and we practice it all the time. Troy executed it well. I'm happy for him and really happy for Harp, who came back to score the touchdown."

Offensive coordinator Cam Cameron agreed: "The two-minute drive by Troy and the guys we had out there was outstanding -- just very well executed. Good for Troy."

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Just football
        

Ravens QB Joe Flacco seemed to enjoy his first taste of 2009 competition. He was 9 for 15 for 103 yards in a little more than a quarter.

"It felt great to be out there,'' he said at halftime. "As an offense, everything felt really good. I was happy with the way our receivers and running backs were moving. Our line did a heck of a job for being their first time out there. I didn't have to do anything but sit in the pocket and make throws. I think this was a pretty good first outing so far. We'll go back and look at the film and see what we have to clean up now."

Flacco on top draft choice Michael Oher: "I didn't feel any pressure. From what I hear from the guys on the sideline, he is doing a great job. He was nasty out there, which is what I like to see. If he keeps that up, he'll be fine."

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Just football
        

The Orioles had the day off today, but I heard that Dave Trembley ordered the French Slam at Denny's when he should have ordered the American Slam, and everybody knows that you go American in that situation...so he obviously should be fired.

In reality, Trembley needed the day off more than many of his players, who have been taking games off for awhile now. There are a lot of people on this blog who think that Dave needs a lot of time off, but I still doubt that Andy MacPhail would paint himself into a corner by changing managers right now. I've been wrong before, of course, but I see MacPhail as a three-moves-ahead guy who probably has a manager in mind for next year if he isn't going to extend Trembley.

Then, of course, there's the other reason. MacPhail gave Trembley a team that opened the season with Adam Eaton and Mark Hendrickson in the starting rotation. He made it clear that this was going to be a transitional year and Trembley was not expected to win with an ever-changing roster that has gotten progressively younger over the course of the season. Dave has his flaws, but it's hard to blame him for this self-fulfilling prophecy.

Sun photo

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (44)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Joe Flacco had his first pass of the preseason batted down, but hit Demetrius Williams on a quick slant for a first down and then connected with running back Ray Rice on a 34-yard pass play across the middle to the Redskins' 17-yard line. Not a bad start, though the drive stalled at the 3 and the Ravens settled for a 21-yard field goal by Steve Hauschka.

Tough first drive for Ravens top draft choice Michael Oher. He got beat by Phillip Daniels to create the pressure on the tipped pass, then banged heads with defensive end Renaldo Wynn near the goal line and had to leave the game bleeding from a gash above his eye. He is in the lockerroom receiving stitches to close the wound.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 7:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Just football
        

The Ravens open their preseason schedule tonight against the Redskins at M&T Bank Stadium, and I couldn't be more excited.

No, not because the first preseason game has any measurable competitive significance to anyone but the bubble players on the roster. It's a big night because I'm actually going to be there -- and I won't be on crutches.

It's been five weeks since my mid-life basketball career came to an end with a complete right Achilles rupture, but thanks to the great people at Johns Hopkins Sports Medicine, I'm back on my foot and headed to the stadium. Can't drive yet, because I have to wear this big black orthopedic boot for another month or so, but WBAL sports guy Keith Mills was nice enough to offer to pick me up and bring me home.

So, I guess I owe Keith a radio plug. He'll be hosting the pregame coverage on WBAL starting at 5 p.m. Future Hall of Famer Jonathan Ogden will be a regular presence on the pregame show this season, and the format will be much more interactive than in the past. Keith and Jon will take questions from fans in the show tent at the Federal Hill end of the stadium as well as by phone.

The pregame show will also feature a long list of guests, including myself, WBAL-TV's Pete Gilbert, The Sun's Jamison Hensley and the in-game broadcast crew of Gerry Sandusky, Stan White and Rob Burnett.

It doesn't end there. Keith also will host the post-game show, which will include interviews with the players and coaches, as well as postgame analysis and -- most important -- your calls. It's a great way to pass the time in postgame traffic. I'll be joining Keith after the game tonight, and if I do good, he said won't make me limp home.

Pregame update: The stadium just got a nice rinse, but the skies appear to be clearing and we're still 2 1/2 hours from kickoff. Some of the Ravens are loosening up on the field. Joe Flacco is playing some light catch. There are even a handful of players kicking a soccer ball around. And the sun just peeked through. Nice.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
Categories: Just football
        

The Orioles can curse the fates and the inequities of the baseball economy all they want, but it all goes out the window when they can't win a series at home against a team much less fortunate than themselves.

The A's won the season series, five games to one, which renders moot the argument that it is impossible to compete with the well-heeled New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in the American League East. Now, the O's get to test their top young starters against a Los Angeles Angels team that is among the best in baseball, which will be interesting to watch but probably won't be pretty.

Today's featured fruitless at-bat belongs to Ty Wigginton, who is a completely different hitter when there are runners in scoring position and two outs (.333) than in the more promising situations with fewer than two outs. He popped up with the tying run on third base and one out during the Orioles one scoring inning after jumping ahead 2-0 on the count, dropping his average with RISP and less than two outs to .179.

Shameless plug alert: Join me tonight at six for "Sportsline" on WBAL (1090 AM) as me, Ravens reporter Jamison Hensley and WBAL football analyst/broadcaster Stan White look ahead to tomorrow night's Ravens/Redskins preseason opener at M&T Bank Stadium. We'll also let you vent on the Orioles in the wake of this afternoon's loss to the Oakland A's. If you're out of signal range, go to WBAL.com and click on the "Listen Live" icon.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (83)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Maybe the Orioles aren't getting outplayed today, but they definitely are getting out-guessed. Brian Roberts had third base stolen easily with one out in the seventh and Nick Markakis behind him at first base, so A's catcher Landon Powell simply gunned Markakis at second help reliever Craig Breslow get out of another jam.

If Markakis stays put, the O's have the tying run at third with one out, just as they did in the sixth inning when Ty Wigginton popped out and Cesar Izturis struck out. The O's have had some big hits today, but they continue to come up empty in key RISP situations.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (32)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Jason Berken had just one bad inning over the course of his five-inning performance, but four runs is four runs and -- with the run support he has gotten since he got up there -- four runs is almost certainly going to be enough to send him to his 10th defeat.

Though I was incredulous when it was decided to keep him in the rotation, it's only fair to point out that his record might not look so bad if the Orioles offense had given him anything to work with over the past couple of months.

Going forward, I would assume he'll keep his place, since he has had more success in his last two starts than during the period when it looked like the club was getting ready to bring somebody up to take his place.

Instant update: Did I speak too soon? The Orioles just got on the board on Aubrey Huff's two-run home run and now are within a run after Luke Scott doubled and center fielder Rajai Davis misplayed a single by Matt Wieters so badly that Scott scored and Wieters ended up at third base with one out. The O's are a fly ball away from getting Berken off the hook.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
Categories: Just baseball
        

Manager Dave Trembley clearly was relieved after tonight's 3-2 victory over the Oakland A's, for a number of reasons.

He was relieved to see David Hernandez bounce back from his two shortest major league outings of the season with a solid 6 2/3 innings during which he gave up just six hits and struck out six.

Trembley also had to be relieved after getting a string of successful relief efforts by Matt Albers, Danys Baez and Jim Johnson, who combined to give up just one hit over 2 1/3 innings. Johnson recorded his fourth save in seven attempts.

Then there was the other thing Dave was relieved about -- the fact that the Orioles held on to win the one-run game on a night when Brian Roberts made a horrible baserunning mistake that cut short the fifth-inning rally that put the O's ahead.

"I told him after the game that I'm glad we won,'' Trembley said, "because if we hadn't, that might have put me over the edge."

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (64)
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Can't believe it. I was just on my WBAL show saying that the Orioles had cleaned up a lot of their baserunning blunders, and now Brian Roberts forgets how many outs there were and runs into a double play on the Nick Markakis pop out to shorten the Orioles' fifth-inning rally.

That's embarrassing...and I'm wondering how Roberts got past the third base coach without being told to go back, not that it would have made any difference at that point.

I'll leave it there, because I know there'll be several scathing posts from Mark about this. I don't want to steal any of his thunder.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 8:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (29)
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In my column for tomorrow's print edition -- which you can read here right now -- I was inspired by the news reports of Senator Ben Cardin's noisy town hall meeting to speculate on what it might be like if the Orioles held the same kind of event for their disenchanted fans.

Don't worry. There are no health care reform politics included from either side of the aisle. I just got to thinking how it might go if the Orioles had to answer to their fans in the same format...and at the same level of intensity.

The real deal: Turns out, however, that I didn't really have to wonder about it, because the Orioles -- coincidentally -- are holding a "State of the Orioles" event for full-season and Plan A ticket holders on Saturday before the game against the Los Angeles Angels. Gates will open at 3:30 p.m. for an autograph session with Orioles players and then president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail and manager Dave Trembley will take questions from 5:00-5:30 p.m.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (54)
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The rumors were true. The Chicago White Sox claimed outfielder Alex Rios off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays and didn't have to give up anything to get him -- unless, of course, you count the $60 million or so that was left on his contract. Of course, the deal didn't get done fast enough to help the Orioles, who heard the same rumors as everybody else but watched Rios stick around with the Blue Jays just long enough to hit two home runs against them over the weekend.

The Rios salary dump is just the latest repudiation of the Blue Jays' contract frenzy a few years ago. They also released B.J. Ryan with about $15 million still guaranteed on the huge deal he signed after leaving the O's for free agency, and still are on the hook for much of the mega-contract they gave Vernon Wells.

It's hard to tell if J.P. Ricciardi's willingness to give away Rios is part of some kind of trend in baseball during these hard economic times. The Jays also shopped Roy Halladay a year ahead of his free agent eligibility, and the Indians did some downsizing at midseason, so maybe there is more of this to come this winter.

That might bode well for the Orioles, who need to fill some holes, but don't seem to be in sync with the upcoming free agent market -- which is heavy with run-producing outfielders at a time when the Orioles need a big-bat corner infielder. The O's have been "conserving resources" under Andy MacPhail, so they should be positioned well if some other teams start shedding high-salaried players.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (21)
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Help me out here. Is there anything left to say about Jeremy Guthrie's lost season that hasn't already been said. He struggled again on Monday night against the Oakland A's, who don't exactly summon up images of Reggie Jackson or the Bash Brothers these days. Guthrie was on a 200-pitch pace when he left in the fifth inning and he doesn't look like he's got an ounce of confidence left. Gotta feel for him, but the only thing left to do this year is stay healthy so he can start over next season.

It's not hopeless. Lots of pitchers have tailspin years and then come back to be very effective, and Guthrie has above-average velocity and a decent repertoire. He just can't seem to miss a bat when he makes a mistake pitch. Lots of people have pointed to his participation in the World Baseball Classic as the beginning of the end of his chance to establish himself as the true ace of the Orioles staff, but there has to be more to it than that.

For his sake, you have to hope he thinks that was the reason and comes back next spring confident that an uninterrupted training camp will help him get back on track.

In the meantime, however, the Orioles must go into the offseason prepared to compete for one of the best free agent starters on the market. The bright young pitchers who are auditioning right now for next year's rotation need someone to look up to at the front of the rotation, and Guthrie does not have the mound cred to be that guy.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (79)
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Join me at six for "Sportsline" on WBAL (1090 AM). We'll have Ravens defensive lineman Kelly Gregg to kick off the show and we'll look ahead to Thursday night's preseason opener against the Washington Redskins. If you're outside of signal range, go to WBAL.com and click on the "Listen Live" icon.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 5:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (47)
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Jeff Zrebiec has been beating the bushes and he ascertained today that Aubrey Huff, Melvin Mora and Danys Baez have cleared waivers, which makes them available for trade in August if anybody is interested. Check out his notebook here, because there are a few other interesting news items to go along with the waiver stuff.

Don't really know if getting those players through waivers will change anything. If the Orioles could have moved them before the July 31 waiver deadline to any benefit for the club, you'd have to think Andy MacPhail would have done that. But there's always the possibility that a contending team will have an emergency need and come calling with a prospect or two.

Huff is coming out of a lengthy slump, which may make him more attractive in August than he was in July, but I think you can still make a case for holding onto him and offering him salary arbitration after he files for free agency. If he accepts, the O's have him on a one-year deal while they wait on their young corner infielders. If he doesn't, they get draft choice compensation if he signs elsewhere as a free agent.

Injury update: Turns out Chris Tillman is suffering from a mild groin strain, which seems to explain his decreased velocity in Saturday's start. Knew it had to be something like that, though he appeared to be stretching his back between innings.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 10:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (77)
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Check out my column in today's print edition of The Sun. I take issue with the NFL and several other major amatuer and professional sports governing bodies for the lawsuit that they filed to stop Delaware's attempt to add sports betting at its racinos.

I don't expect everyone to agree with me -- What fun would that be? -- but I think it's pretty hypocritical. Take a look at it right here and tell me what you think.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
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Rookie Brian Matusz needed 62 pitches to struggle through 2 2/3 innings before manager Dave Trembley went to his bullpen, but I think he pulled the kid a little too soon. If Matusz gets one more out in the inning, he's got a chance to save the Orioles one middle reliever in the game by starting the fourth. And, who knows, maybe he settles down and learns something from the experience.

I'm sure Trembley made the move to preserve the club's chance to win the game, but going into the bullpen in the third inning while you're three runs down to Roy Halladay doesn't bode well for a late comeback.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (73)
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...that the Orioles are moving in the right direction. When was the last time this team had a must-see game like today's matchup between rookie Brian Matusz and Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay?

If you're a baseball fan -- and I don't just mean an Orioles or Blue Jays fan -- and you can get this game where you live, you're sitting down with a huge bag of Cool Ranch Doritos and a six-pack of Diet Coke* and you're on the couch for the duration.

*Based on results from a recent study at the Schmuck Institute of Nutrition (SIN), researchers now believe that 24 ounces of diet soda will cancel out the calories from a medium size bag of chips. If you're still feeling guilty about the carbs, feel free to use the rest of the six-pack as a makeshift barbell and work on your forearms and biceps between innings.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (24)
        

There was a lot of banter here during the first half about the level of effort coming from the Orioles, and there were times when it seemed like some of the veteran players were going through the motions. Haven't seen quite so much of that since the All-Star break -- in spite of the club's 6-16 record over that period.

I think today will provide a great opportunity to see where this team is from an emotional standpoint. The O's don't play well on Sunday. They don't have a whole lot to play for right now. And they're facing a pitcher who is capable of making them look like they are flat as a piece of Canadian bacon. Let's see if they let that happen.

Brian Matusz's second major league start should provide some motivation, especially with the way he pitched his first time out, and winning today's game -- against all odds -- would give the Orioles a road series and a 3-4 split on the trip. That doesn't sound like much, but it wouldn't be too bad after the way things started in Detroit.

Roberts update: Brian Roberts, who took that nasty foul ball off his shin, apparently suffered just a nasty bruise. X-rays were negative.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (27)
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If you want to win on the road in the American League East, you've got to take advantage when you get in a position to score in the late innings, but the Orioles couldn't even move Nick Markakis up after that leadoff double in the 10th. There were some questionable umpiring calls at the end -- and I'm disturbed that home plate umpire Gary Cederstrom was too stubborn to ask for help on a dirt ball he could not possibly have seen -- but the O's didn't do enough to help themselves to blame this loss on anything but their inability to drive in runs.

Guess this goes in the moral victory column, since Chris Tillman showed everyone why the Orioles are so excited about him.

Clearly, the injury to Brian Roberts early in the game was a big factor, since it stacked light-hitting Cesar Izturis and Robert Andino back-to-back in the lineup and created a situation where Ty Wigginton was at second base in the 10th to come up short on a pair of defensive plays that Roberts might have made.

Hard to pin this one on Dave Trembley, but I'm sure somebody will find a way.

Tillman update: Trembley said that Tillman had trouble getting loose early in the game, but that there was nothing physically wrong with him. I'm not buying it. He spent too much time stretching his back both in the dugout and on the mound, but he did loosen up late in the game and his velocity reflected it.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 4:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (62)
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I'm sure a lot of fans would have loved to see Chris Tillman get a chance to win this game, and he would have gotten that chance if the Orioles hadn't wasted five baserunners in the last two innings.

The decision to remove Tillman was sound. I think we're going to find out after the game that he was pitching through some back stiffness, but he still worked deep into the game and was very effective. Interestingly enough, he must have loosened up some late, because his fastball creeped up into the 90s in his last two innings of work.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 3:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (17)
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It's not often that you see a play that is a credit to everyone who had anything to do with it, but the bunt single by Robert Andino was -- in my humble opinion -- the perfect baseball play. Great opportunistic pushed bunt by Andino. Great defensive play by pitcher Brett Cecil to chase it down, dive for it and shovel it with his glove hand accurately to first base. Great call by first base umpire Fieldin Culbreth, who signaled safe on a bang-bang play that was confirmed by the replay.

Of course, no good deed goes unpunished. Cecil was shaken up after bouncing on the artificial turf and had to be removed from the game.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 2:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
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Chris Tillman is clearly pitching with less velocity than he did in his first two starts, but it's hard to tell whether it's as pronounced as it seems from the radar gun readings being flashed on the MASN screen. Broadcaster Buck Martinez also is commenting on the fact that he doesn't look "right" -- and mentioned that he left the dugout with strength and conditioning coach Jay Shiner between innings -- but it's not clear whether he is not throwing as hard by design.

I'm guessing the radar readings are a little deceptive, since Brett Cecil's fastball is registering consistently in the 80s. He also is a normally a low-90s guy. Still, that would not explain Tillman's fastball being as much as 10 miles per hour slower than his last outing.

Instant update: Tillman has been confering with the trainers between innings and looked like he was stretching his lower back before taking the mound for the fifth. That might explain a lot about his dramatic decrease in velocity, but it also says something about his ability to adjust and his desire to compete. I'm impressed.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 1:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
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Orioles rookie Chris Tillman is about to take the mound for his third major league start, which still is way too early to draw any conclusions from the results, but I'll be watching to see if he backs off a bit on the velocity in favor of more movement on his fastball.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has noticed that his fastball is straight as an arrow when he throws it in the 93-94 mph range, so I'm wondering if pitching coach Rick Kranitz will try to get him to relax a little more on the mound and let the ball do more of the work.

When you've got talent like Tillman's, it's not hard to dominate minor league hitters with a high-velocity fastball and decent breaking stuff, but it takes a little more nuance than that in the big leagues. He can be effective with the stuff he took out there the first two times, but his command will have to be very, very good to dominate major league hitters without more movement on the ball.

Lots of local interest in today's afternoon game at Rogers Centre. Blue Jays rookie Brett Cecil, who hails from Dunkirk, MD, has won five of his first six major league decisions.

Instant update: I'm not sure what to make of this, but the MASN pitch clocker has Tillman throwing in the mid-80s in the first inning. That's not quite what I was talking about. I was thinking more like 89-91 mph. It's possible that the Toronto radar gun is off, but this is a little bit unsettling.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
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Maybe those breaks do even out, because the Orioles scored two runs when a sharp bouncer by Nick Markakis took a wicked hop past first baseman Lyle Overbay in the four-run sixth inning and Nolan Reimold drove in the fifth run with a single off the glove of second baseman Aaron Hill in the eighth.

The Orioles picked a good time to wake up in the late innings after going hitless until the fifth against Blue Jays starter Ricky Romero. Things didn't look good when Jason Berken gave up back-to-back home runs to Vernon Wells and Alex Rios in the second, but he showed some grit and battled through six innings to give himself a chance to earn his first victory since he won his major league debut on May 26.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 9:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (32)
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While you're waiting for that Alex Rios home run to come down, why don't you take a look at my "Week in Review" column for tomorrow's print edition. You can read it right now if you click here.

Posted by Peter Schmuck at 7:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (22)
Categories: Just baseball