Orioles place Scott and Mateo on injured lists

Orioles place Scott and Mateo on injured lists
The Orioles recalled reliever Marcos Diplán from Triple-A Norfolk this afternoon and selected the contract of infielder Pat Valaika. In corresponding moves, the club placed reliever Tanner Scott on the 10-day injured list with a left knee sprain and put infielder Jorge Mateo on the 60-day injured list with right lumbar inflammation. The move with Mateo frees up a spot for Valaika on the 40-man roster. Mateo batted .280/.328/.421 in 32 games after the Orioles claimed him off waivers from the...

Orioles lose lead in seventh and drop Game 1 11-10 (updated)

Orioles lose lead in seventh and drop Game 1 11-10 (updated)
Dean Kremer was handed the ball today and given no promises. Lots of run support, but no promises. The 29th man for a September doubleheader knows his way back to the minors. But there are no rules against him staying, just that someone must be optioned after the nightcap. Kremer's first start with the Orioles in more than two months lasted four innings and included more strikes, but also three home runs among six extra-base hits and leads that shrank or disappeared. The Orioles wouldn't let...

Orioles notes before today's series opener (updated)

Orioles notes before today's series opener (updated)
The Orioles are recalling rookie left-hander Zac Lowther from Triple-A Norfolk today but haven't announced the move or who's leaving the active roster for the series opener against the Royals at Camden Yards. This is Lowther's second major league start and sixth appearance. He's allowed 10 runs and 13 hits in 8 1/3 innings. His lone start was May 8 against the Red Sox, when he surrendered seven runs and seven hits in 2 1 /3 innings. Lowther has never faced the Royals, who are 61-75 overall...

Mullins joins 25/25 club and O's rally for 8-7 win (updated)

Mullins joins 25/25 club and O's rally for 8-7 win (updated)
Nine consecutive four-seam fastballs to Gary Sánchez in the second inning today showed tremendous confidence in the pitch. But also with the obvious risks and other potential repercussions. Sánchez got the barrel on the ninth, with the bases loaded and the Orioles ahead by a run, and launched it into the second deck for a grand slam. The chance at a rare series win on the road seemed to disappear with the ball, but the Orioles kept clawing, kept putting runners on base and finally found...

O's break tie in ninth vs. Chapman, beat Yankees 4-3 (updated)

O's break tie in ninth vs. Chapman, beat Yankees 4-3 (updated)
On a day they let a late three-run lead get away, the Orioles were still able to win. And they pulled it out by scoring in the top of the ninth off Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman. The lefty took the mound in the ninth of a 3-3 tie and fanned Ryan Mountcastle, but Mountcastle reached first on the wild pitch to start the inning. An Austin Hays single to left and a walk to Trey Mancini followed to load the bases with no outs. After a strikeout, catcher Pedro Severino ran the count full. He then...

Orioles rally to tie, but lose 5-4 in Toronto (updated)

Orioles rally to tie, but lose 5-4 in Toronto (updated)
A couple of bases-loaded walks tonight in the second inning gave the Orioles a lead and some evidence that they can work a count and offer their manager the type of at-bats he's been pleading for during the season. Those walks, by Cedric Mullins and Ryan Mountcastle, weren't intended to provide the bulk of the offense. The Orioles would need to back them with some clutch hitting and hope the bullpen also could step up. Jorge Mateo led off the sixth with a double against Tayler Saucedo, his...

Ellis' improvement overshadowed by Guerrero (updated)

Ellis' improvement overshadowed by Guerrero (updated)
The first batter of the fourth inning got Chris Ellis again, except he kept going tonight. Kept himself in the Orioles' pitching plans that otherwise are in their familiar unsettled state. Ellis didn't allow a run against the Blue Jays until Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered to lead off the fourth and tie the game. He went a career-high 4 2/3 innings, allowing just the one run and two hits. Ryan Mountcastle homered and had an RBI infield hit to drive in both Orioles runs, but Dillon Tate was...

Harvey retires 16 in a row, but O's lose 6-3 (updated)

Harvey retires 16 in a row, but O's lose 6-3 (updated)
Ditching a 19-game losing streak and winning two in a row created a positive energy with the Orioles that couldn't withstand the cold water dumped on it tonight. By a team that brings its own buckets. The Rays maintained their hold on the Orioles tonight, scoring three runs in the first and seventh innings with nothing in between, and registering a 6-3 victory before an announced crowd of 7,155 at Camden Yards. Matt Harvey retired the last 16 batters he faced, beginning with his strikeout that...

The homers, the bullpen and the fans get credit for streak-ender

The homers, the bullpen and the fans get credit for streak-ender
It was not an evening billed as "Fantastic Fans Night" as it was in May 1988. Then, just days after the Orioles had snapped their 0-21 start to the season, more than 50,000 fans showed up to welcome them home at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium. But when the Orioles rallied for five runs in the last of the eighth last night and took a 10-6 lead over the Los Angeles Angels, a crowd of 15,867 - some of them there, no doubt, because Shohei Ohtani was pitching - roared their approval. It sounded...

Orioles rally in eighth, end losing streak at 19 games (updated)

Orioles rally in eighth, end losing streak at 19 games (updated)
The old reverse lock theory is supposed to have its limits. A team riding a 19-game losing streak, its last victory on Aug. 2, and resorting to a bullpen tactic rather than using a starting pitcher, already is operating from an extreme disadvantage. The bench had two healthy players. The best hitter in 2021 fell into an August slump. The Orioles needed to catch a monumental break last night. Instead, they got Shohei Ohtani - on the mound and in the Angels lineup. An anchor tossed to a club with...

Orioles face big early deficit and lose 19th straight (updated)

Orioles face big early deficit and lose 19th straight (updated)
Multiple roster moves on Monday weren't intended to distract from an 18-game losing streak. They weren't designed to spare manager Brandon Hyde from the daily bombardment of questions about it. But he lasted the full seven minutes of today's media session without going into another deep dive. The closest he came was expanding on a suggestion that the jolt of energy provided by new second baseman Jahmai Jones could benefit a team that's beaten down. The streak doesn't care about any of it....

The challenge of trying to stay upbeat during a losing streak

The challenge of trying to stay upbeat during a losing streak
As the Orioles' losing streak reached 16 Friday night, the team was remaining upbeat pregame in the clubhouse and keeping their energy and work ethic up amid mounting losses. Media is not allowed back in big league clubhouses yet, so we'll take manager Brandon Hyde's word for it. But that was the experience I had in 2019. The Orioles were losing games, but maintaining a positive attitude then as they are now, which cannot be easy to do. "I give our guys a ton of credit," Hyde said before...

Thoughts on decision to put López in bullpen

Thoughts on decision to put López in bullpen
The Orioles don't know who's starting Wednesday night against the Angels. Their game notes this morning are likely to list the spot as TBD or TBA. Has to be determined before it can be announced. No matter who's inserted into the rotation, they did the right thing by shifting Jorge López to the bullpen. Anyone watching his last start could see that he isn't right. His velocity was down and he just appeared to be flinging the ball to the plate. López insisted that he wasn't hurt,...

López removed early, O's losing streak at 15 games (updated)

López removed early, O's losing streak at 15 games (updated)
Jorge López walked to the mound today in the bottom of the second inning, still trying to process what happened in the first. Or perhaps wishing he could forget about it and treat his return as a fresh start. Something his teammates desperately need right now. What came next, most unfortunate for the Orioles, represented what's happening to them this month. There are no fresh starts or quality ones. Just more of the same, with the occasional sprinkling of intrigue. And for López, an...

Mistakes and homers doom O's as skid reaches 13 (updated)

Mistakes and homers doom O's as skid reaches 13 (updated)
Only the pitch count was threatening John Means tonight. At least for a while. Means carried a two-hit shutout into the fourth inning at Tropicana Field, but he already threw 66 pitches - 12 to strike out Kevin Kiermaier in the third. A bigger issue arose when Jorge Mateo's error led to three unearned runs, the last two coming on Mike Zunino's homer. Means was at 80 pitches heading into the fifth, Nelson Cruz hit a three-run homer and the Orioles' losing streak reached 13 games with the Rays...

Orioles lineup vs. Rays (updated)

Orioles lineup vs. Rays (updated)
The Orioles begin a four-game series against the Rays tonight at Tropicana Field with Jorge Mateo at second base, Richie Martin at shortstop and Ramón Urías at third. Mateo has hit safely in eight of his nine games since joining the Orioles, going 10-for-35 (.286). Austin Wynns is catching. Anthony Santander, who's the designated hitter, has registered a .378 average (17-for-45) in 12 games this month. He has a .318 average (21-for-66) with six walks in 18 games since the break. DJ...

O's fell in first-inning hole as losing streak continues

O's fell in first-inning hole as losing streak continues
In baseball, what happens in all nine innings counts. and what happened today in the first inning at Boston was pretty big as the Orioles saw their losing streak to extended 11 games in a row. They fell behind 3-1 after one frame on their way to a 6-2 loss. Boston swept this three-game series by a combined score of 30-5 after being swept there in the first series of the season when they were outscored by Baltimore 18-5. Former O's farmhand Eduardo Rodriguez took the mound for Boston today,...

How Zimmermann's return impacts rotation and roster

How Zimmermann's return impacts rotation and roster
The TBA for the Orioles' starter Sunday afternoon is expected to become rookie left-hander Bruce Zimmermann in the latest change to the rotation. The tweaking never stops. It just takes a brief rest. John Means and Matt Harvey are staying for the obvious reasons. The Orioles were reluctant to move Jorge López into a bullpen role, though they saw the same logic as everyone else, and he's completed six innings in both starts this month with only three runs allowed to lower his ERA from 6.19...

Scout on Mateo: "He's still young and he's got a lot of tools"

Scout on Mateo: "He's still young and he's got a lot of tools"
Middle infielders Richie Martin and Jorge Mateo have experience playing the outfield. Mateo has made more starts and appearances in center than in any other position in the majors. Will the Orioles play them in the outfield this year? While it's possible late in the summer or under special circumstances - like Mateo serving as a defensive replacement - manager Brandon Hyde wants to take an extended look at them in the infield. There are no immediate plans to switch their roles. Martin's...

A few notes on O's latest loss and more from Adley Rutschman

A few notes on O's latest loss and more from Adley Rutschman
On a night the Orioles losing streak was extended to seven with a 5-2 loss to Detroit, there were a few positive signs that some better days could be in the offing. For one, it was good to see Matt Harvey return, throw four scoreless innings before he ran into trouble in the fifth and get through his start doing fine physically. This outing was pushed back a few days after he tweaked his right knee in his last start. With lefty Bruce Zimmermann likely to rejoin the rotation this weekend, this...