Orioles News - 9/7/07 - Shutout by Boston

The Baltimore Orioles were shut out last night in a 4-0 loss to the BoSox. This loss, their 11th straight home loss, tied the team record for most losses in a row at home. We managed only 4 hits off of starter Jon Lester and a pair of relievers. Most of the action from the Orioles came in the 4th inning, but for all the wrong reasons. Daniel Cabrera balked with a runner on 3rd base, and the run was allowed to come home and score. Cabrera's next pitch ran up and nearly hit Dustin Pedroia's head. The umpire quickly ran out to warn both sides but in the Red Sox dugout, several players were yelling at Cabrera. Cabrera yelled back, and the benches emptied. The relievers from the bullpen came running in just so they could get in some of the action. No one threw any punches, and order was eventually restored. The umpire's discussed what to do for several minutes, eventually ejecting Cabrera. Dave Trembly, our manager, went nuts over this call, arguing with the umps, but he still couldn't save Cabrera from an ejection. The worst part of all this was when the bullpen came running in to join the fighting. Come on, show some class. That right there is what's wrong with baseball. - John T.

Orioles News - 9/6/07 - Another Loss

The Orioles lost again Thursday night, 7-6 to the Boston Red Sox. Like we've never heard that line before. The Sox really didn't win this game, the O's lost it. With the game tied in the 6th, bases loaded with no outs, the Orioles didn't score any runs. The O's left 5 runners in scoring position in that game and a total of 8 men left on base. The game was lost in the 9th inning, when reliever Dany Baez gave up a single to Coco Crisp. Crisp then stole second base, allowing him to easily score on Jason Varitek's single. Starter Garrett Olson looked horrible, allowing 5 runs in 3 2/3 innings. Red Sox starter Tim Wakefield looked just as bad, allowing 6 earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. Olson left the game after being hit. Not that he was doing well anyway... Now for reliever Dany Baez. Why is he even on this team? He is 0-6 with a 6.38 ERA in 50 games so far this year. That's sad. - John T.

Orioles News - 9/5/07 - 17-2 loss to the Devil Rays

What a difference a day makes. One day the Orioles pick up a late inning win, the next night they get whupped 17-2 by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. And they have a 4 game series with Boston coming up. This just keeps getting better. The D-Rays had a 8 run 4th inning, hitting 3 homers during this inning. Delmon Young hit a 3 run shot, Brendan Harris hit a solo shot, and Carlos Pena hit a grand slam. ALL IN ONE INNING!!! Pena also smacked a 2 run shot in 6th inning to bring his grand total to 7 RBI's on the night. Jonny Gomes hit a home run in the 7th inning to score the game's final run. Radhames Liz looked terrible, giving up 4 runs while retiring only 5 batters. He did take a line drive off his leg, to be fair, but he still stayed in the game. The O's are now 2-13 in their last 15 games. Pretty sad huh?

This offseason, the Orioles need 2 things: A better bullpen and Peter Angelos to sell the team. How many games has the bullpen lost us so far this year? How many times have we had the lead in late innings, only to have the bullpen blow the game? Too many. And since Angelos doesn't want to spend the money to overhaul this team, he should sell. With a new owner who is willing to spend money to get stars, instead of 2nd and 3rd rate players, the O's would be in a much better situation. More fans would come to the ballpark, and with reason because they know their team can compete. Now, hardly anyone comes out to games simply because they don't care. They always know the end result: A loss. Angelos needs to go! - John T.

Orioles News - 9/4/07 - O's win

The Orioles picked up a rare win last night, 8-4 over Tampa Bay. The O's had a 5 hit, 4 run 8th inning to help them win. For once, the tables were turned, as it was not the Orioles bullpen that gave up a win, it was the Devil Rays bullpen that gave up a win. The O's gave rookie pitcher Jeremy Guthrie a 2-0 lead in the 1st inning after Corey Patterson hit a solo homer and Miguel Tejada doubled, scoring on Nick Markakis's weak infield single. The Rays fought back in the 2nd inning, earning a run on 2 hits. Tampa Bay took the lead in the 5th inning on a bases loaded single that scored 2 runs. In the 7th inning, Melvin Mora walked on a full count and on the 1st pitch he saw, Aubrey Huff hit a 2 run homer to rightfield. The O's took the lead, 4-3. Tampa Bay tied it in the 7th inning, WITHOUT EVEN GETTING A HIT!!!! In the 8th inning however, Melvin Mora hit an RBI single to give the O's a 5-4 lead. Ramon Hernandez later hit a 3 run double to provide the games final runs. So, the O's finally pick up a win. - John T.

Orioles News - 9/3/07 - O's lose again

The Orioles lost again last night, 9-7 to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Orioles have now lost 12 of their last 13 games. Kurt Birkins made his 1st career start last night and got a no-decision even though he blew a big lead. The O's provided him with a 4-0 lead in the 3rd inning on a collection of basehits, stolen bases, and errors. Birkins however, couldn't hold onto this lead. The Devil Rays made it close with a 3 run 3rd inning, and then tied up the game with a run in the 4th. In the 7th inning, Carlos Pena hit a 2 run homer off Jim Hoey as the D-Rays took the lead. This "home run" however, was debateable. It was hit off of the catwalk and outfielder Nick Markakis played it and threw the ball into the infield. The umpire called it a home run however. Tampa Bay got another run in the inning too. Then in the 8th inning, Brian Burres gave up a 2 run shot as the Rays extended their lead. Ramon Hernandez hit a 3 run homer in the 9th to make the score more respectable. It was an ugly loss as Tampa Bay moved within 3 games of 4th place in the AL East. - John T.

Orioles News - 9/2/07 - O's drop series to Boston

Sorry I couldn't blog yesterday, but could this season get any worse? A 30-3 loss to the Texas Rangers, an 11 run 8th inning by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and now a no-hitter from Boston Red Sox rookie pitcher Clay Buchholz on Saturday night. He was making only his 2nd major league start and he threw a no-hitter. Plus a 9 game losing streak. Great. Just great. What a season. The O's now have dropped 11 of their last 12 after a 10-0 loss on Saturday and a 3-2 loss on Sunday to the Bosox. The loss yesterday was just a case of missed oppurtunities. 2 baserunning errors, bases loaded with no outs and the O's don't cash in as no one scores, then in the 8th inning with a runner on 3rd base and 1 out, yet again no one scored. One of the baserunning errors came on Miguel Tejada trying to score from third base on a shallow fly ball to rightfield in the 4th inning. Tejada was thrown out with ease. Then in the 6th inning, Melvin Mora had just hit an RBI single, and Kevin Millar rounded 2nd base too far and was thrown out. Millar slapped the ground in frustration as he knew that he had just cost the Orioles. Kind of how this season went so far. In the 7th inning, Ramon Hernandez homered to make it a 1 run game. But, that was too little, too late. This was a shame though because Daniel Cabrera pitched a good game, allowing 3 runs in 6 innings. With these losses, the Orioles dropped another series. What a surprise... - John T.

Orioles News - 8/31/07 - O's snap losing streak

The Orioles won last night, 9-8 over the Boston Red Sox to halt their losing streak at 9 games. It wasn't a very pretty game, but a win is a win. Rookie pitcher Radhames Liz went only 3 innings giving up 2 runs (both earned), on 72 pitches. Of those 72 pitches, only 37 went for a strike. He looks like a Daniel Cabrera in the works, great one night and terrible the next. The O's took the lead in the 4th inning as a double by Nick Markakis followed by a home run from Miguel Tejada (In picture) gave the O's their first runs. Then Kevin Millar walked and Aubrey Huff singled, sending Millar to third base. A single from Melvin Mora scored Millar, followed by a single from Ramon Hernandez which scored Huff. That gave the O's a 4-3 lead. Also in the 4th inning, manager Dave Trembley was ejected for arguing that a Red Sox player had interfered with Ramon Hernandez on third base. In the 6th inning, the Orioles busted this game wide open. The bases were loaded with no one out and Jay Payton hit a sacrifice fly to bring in a run. Brian Roberts then walked to load the bases again, but this time with one out. Another sacrifice fly, this time from Corey Patterson, scored Melvin Mora. Nick Markakis then ripped a 3 run homer to rightfield, and the O's now had a 9-3 lead. The Orioles were done scoring after that outburst. The Red Sox weren't though, as they would score 5 more times and as our bullpen nearly blew a 9-3 lead. In other news, starting pitcher Steve Trachsel was traded away to the Chicago Cubs for 2 minor leaguers, 3rd baseman Scott Moore and reliever Rocky Cherry. Both of them have been staying at AAA this year. Trachsel's stock rose after a 2.37 ERA in 6 starts this August. He was 1-1 in August and would have been better if not for the bullpen collapsing and poor run support that has cost him wins. Also, pitcher Erik Bedard, a Cy Young canidate, could be out for an extended amount of time with a strained right Oblique muscle. That loss is going to hurt the Orioles badly. So, a busy day for the O's. The O's won, the manager got tossed, Trachsel was traded, and our ace, Erik Bedard is injured. - John T.