Postgame comments from Wieters, Roberts and Chen (Aberdeen eliminated)

Postgame comments from Wieters, Roberts and Chen (Aberdeen eliminated)
After the Orioles sixth walkoff win of the year, Matt Wieters talked about his two-out, two-run single that pushed the Orioles past Chicago today 4-3 in 10 innings. The O's were 1-for-17 with runners in scoring before his game-winning hit. "Just keep getting opportunities, that is all you can ask for," Wieters said. "Whether you succeed or not, you want that next opportunity to come to you. "It was a slider and I swung at a slider the AB before on a pitch I felt I could have done...

Davis double gives Orioles the lead, and other notes (Roberts homers)

Davis double gives Orioles the lead, and other notes (Roberts homers)
Chris Davis proved today that the Orioles don't depend entirely on home runs to do their scoring. Manny Machado raced home on Davis' two-out double into left-center field in the first inning, giving the Orioles a 1-0 lead against White Sox left-hander Hector Santiago. Davis has 124 RBIs, tying Eddie Murray for fourth on the club's all-time single-season list. Next up are Jim Gentile (141 in 1961), Rafael Palmeiro (142 in 1996) and Miguel Tejada (150 in 2004). Danny Valencia led off the...

Andrew Stetka: The future of Brian Roberts

Andrew Stetka: The future of Brian Roberts
The Orioles are going to have a couple of interesting decisions to make going into the offseason. I'm not for a second proclaiming the Birds out of the running for a postseason berth, but whether there is October baseball in Baltimore or not, the offseason will come about. The lineup seems pretty set for this team going into 2014. Aside from finding an everyday designated hitter (if that's something the team wants to do), only two positions are really up in the air - left field and second...

Wei-Yin Chen has worst outing of his career as Boston hammers the Orioles

Wei-Yin Chen has worst outing of his career as Boston hammers the Orioles
Maybe we should have known it might not be the Orioles' night when they had the bases loaded, no outs and scored a run in the top of the third but plated just one more run with their 2-3-4 hitters up. If we didn't know it, then it started to sink in when Boston scored 10 runs during the third, fourth and fifth innings. Boston whipped the Orioles 13-2 tonight to knock the O's 6 1/2 games out of first place in the opener of this series and a nine-game road trip. The 13 runs allowed tied an...

Chen gives up rare run in first (O's trail 4-2)

Chen gives up rare run in first (O's trail 4-2)
BOSTON - During the 2012 season, Orioles left-hander Wei-Yin Chen posted a 5.91 ERA in the first inning in his 32 starts. He gave up seven home runs. Chen fixed his first inning woes this season, posting a 1.69 ERA over 16 starts. He allowed only one home run. The Red Sox weren't interested in trends tonight, just taking an early lead. Shane Victorino drew a one-out walk off Chen in the bottom of the first, moved to third base on Dustin Pedroia's double off the Green Monster in left field...

Sunday lineups for A's and Orioles

Sunday lineups for A's and Orioles
Yesterday, Brian Roberts played second base and Ryan Flaherty was the designated hitter in the Orioles lineup. Today, they've switched roles for the finale of a three-game series against the A;s. Flaherty is at second base and Roberts is the DH against A's rookie Sonny Gray. For the Orioles: Nate McLouth LF Manny Machado 3B Chris Davis 1B Adam Jones CF Matt Wieters C Nick Markakis RF J.J. Hardy SS Ryan Flaherty 2B Brian Roberts DH Scott Feldman RHP For the Athletics: Coco Crisp CF Jed...

Brian Roberts on Jim Johnson: "You could see the look in his eye"

Brian Roberts on Jim Johnson: "You could see the look in his eye"
There were a few positives that came out of last night's win for the Orioles over the Athletics. From a team standpoint, they moved to within two games of Oakland for the second American League wild-card spot and within 4 1/2 games of first in the AL East. But seeing Jim Johnson buzz through the top of the ninth with no drama and get the A's three up and out on just nine pitches was a real plus and big lift for the team. Johnson had suffered three consecutive blown saves until getting No....

Jim Johnson and Brian Roberts comment after the O's beat the A's

Jim Johnson and Brian Roberts comment after the O's beat the A's
After he picked up his first save since Aug. 6 with a 1-2-3 ninth inning on just nine pitches, Jim Johnson was asked what made this outing different from the recent ones where he suffered blown saves. "Command. I was able to command both sides of the plate. And getting later action," he said. "There were a couple of games where it looked like the ball was reacting too soon. These guys are really good and if they see it move too early, they can make the adjustment. Just wanted to get about...

Showalter: "There are a lot of warriors out there"

Showalter: "There are a lot of warriors out there"
The Orioles fell behind by three runs tonight and took the lead. They fell behind by a run and reclaimed the lead. "There are a lot of warriors out there," said manager Buck Showalter. "They've been through some battles together and you're not going to see them give in." Jim Johnson retired the Athletics in order in the ninth inning for his 40th save after three straight blown chances, and the Orioles took the opener of this three-game series, 9-7, before 36,761 at Camden Yards. Brian...

Roberts with a slam, Johnson with a save as O's top Oakland

Roberts with a slam, Johnson with a save as O's top Oakland
Get the lead. Lose the lead. Get the lead back. The Orioles used six- and three-run innings to do just that in a 9-7 win over Oakland in the start of this important weekend series tonight in front of 36,761 at Camden Yards. Up by two runs, Tommy Hunter pitched a scoreless eighth inning before Jim Johnson pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to record his first save since Aug. 6 and No. 40 on the year. Johnson is now 31-for-33 in save chances when the lead is two or more. Brian Roberts hit his sixth career...

Roberts keeps delivering in clutch, Orioles take lead in 7th (O's win 9-7)

Roberts keeps delivering in clutch, Orioles take lead in 7th (O's win 9-7)
The Orioles have received lots of attention and criticism for their failures with runners in scoring position this season. None of the fingers can be pointed at second baseman Brian Roberts. Roberts' grand slam in the fourth inning tonight gave the Orioles a 6-3 lead. Bud Norris allowed two runs in the top of the fifth and was removed with the bases loaded and two outs. Troy Patton let two inherited runners score. More on that later. Roberts is 13-for-29 with 22 RBIs with runners in...

Valencia recalled, Roberts leading off, Hardy in lineup

Valencia recalled, Roberts leading off, Hardy in lineup
The Orioles made the expected move and recalled Danny Valencia from Triple-A Norfolk. He's serving as the designated hitter and batting eighth tonight against Tampa Bay left-hander David Price. Valencia is 7-for-10 lifetime against Price, the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner. Brian Roberts is leading off tonight, as manager Buck Showalter goes with a right-handed lineup. Roberts has 11 hits in his last 23 at-bats, with seven RBIs. Nick Markakis moves down to seventh. J.J....

O's playoff push shifts into a higher gear starting tonight

O's playoff push shifts into a higher gear starting tonight
I'm sure Orioles players might tell us their playoff push began 123 games ago. They may even say it began weeks before that under the hot Florida sun on the back fields in Sarasota. But the playoff push really heats up tonight. The Orioles still have nine games remaining with Boston - and they'll see the Red Sox soon enough - but starting tonight they play back-to-back series with the two teams ahead of them for a pair of American League wild card spots. They host Tampa Bay for three...

Feldman gets the win, Jones and Davis homer as O's top Rockies

Feldman gets the win, Jones and Davis homer as O's top Rockies
Scott Feldman pitched a strong game, Adam Jones joined an exclusive homer club and Brian Roberts came up with another key hit as the Orioles beat Colorado 7-2 this afternoon in front of 22,238 at Camden Yards. The O's won the series after losing the Friday opener and improved to 67-56. Not to be upstaged, Chris Davis hit another homer, a two-run shot in the eight to extend the lead to 7-2. It was his 45th of the year and leaves him one behind Jim Gentile, who hit 46 in 1961, for third on the...

Roberts continues to swing a hot bat (Davis homers, O's win 7-2)

Roberts continues to swing a hot bat (Davis homers, O's win 7-2)
Orioles manager Buck Showalter is getting a reminder of how Brian Roberts can impact a game when healthy. Roberts has two more hits today, and his two-run single in the bottom of the seventh inning increased the Orioles' lead to 5-2. Roberts is 11-for-23 with seven RBIs in his last seven games. Is that good? His average is now up to .275. This is the first time that Roberts had strung together back-to-back multi-RBI games since April 1-2, 2011. The first two games of the season. Yeah, a...

Brian Roberts on what it will take to make the playoffs

Brian Roberts on what it will take to make the playoffs
For the Orioles, there are now 122 games down and 40 left to play in the 2013 regular season. They are 5 1/2 games back of Boston for the AL East lead and trail Oakland by three games for the AL's second wild card spot, as they begin play this afternoon. The chase is on for wild card berths with Cleveland 3 1/2 back of Oakland, Kansas City five games back and New York six out. Brian Roberts was asked what it is going to take for the O's to make the playoffs. "It all boils down to pitching...

Feldman looking for better results at home

Feldman looking for better results at home
Scott Feldman gets another chance today to make himself feel right at home in Camden Yards. Feldman is 1-3 with a 7.66 ERA in his four starts in Baltimore since being acquired from the Cubs on July 2, allowing 19 earned runs over 22 1/3 innings. Feldman surrendered seven runs and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings against the Rangers, three runs and five hits in 7 1/3 innings against the Blue Jays, four runs and six hits in five innings against the Red Sox, and five runs and seven hits in 4 2/3...

J.J. Hardy feels confident he can play on Sunday (plus Norris and Roberts quotes)

J.J. Hardy feels confident he can play on Sunday (plus Norris and Roberts quotes)
Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy, who was a late scratch from tonight's starting lineup due to back spasms, provided an update on that after tonight's game. "Today right before BP, I was getting my glove ready and got up out of my chair and my low back started to spasm on me," Hardy said. "Went in to get some treatment and it has loosened up a lot since." Does he think he can play on Sunday in the series finale? "Yeah, I think so," he said. "I feel like I probably could have played...

Davis hits No. 44 (Hardy hits No. 22)

Davis hits No. 44 (Hardy hits No. 22)
The Orioles had a runner on second base and two outs in the fourth inning tonight, and Diamondbacks starter Randall Delgado decided to challenge Chris Davis with a fastball. Delgado lost. Davis hit his 44th home run to give the Orioles a 2-0 lead. Nick Markakis walked with one out and moved up on a wild pitch. Adam Jones grounded out and Davis hit a big fly ball, allowing him to pass Rafael Palmeiro for the most single-season home runs in franchise history. Jim Gentile is next with 46,...

Roberts triple leads to first run (Jones hits three-run homer, O's win 10-2)

Roberts triple leads to first run (Jones hits three-run homer, O's win 10-2)
The Orioles won't be shut out today. They won't go the entire afternoon without putting a runner in scoring position. Their starting pitcher won't supply all of their offense. Brian Roberts led off the top of the sixth inning with a triple to right-center field, and he trotted home with one out on Nate McLouth's single to reduce the Giants' lead to 2-1. Roberts hadn't tripled since April 1, 2011. He now has two three-baggers since 2009. The guy's been hurt, you know? Roberts didn't...