O's game blog: Chris Tillman on the mound in road trip finale

O's game blog: Chris Tillman on the mound in road trip finale
Out to quickly erase the memory of Saturday's 11-4 loss where Ubaldo Jimenez allowed six runs and the Orioles fell behind 7-0 after three innings, the O's play the series and road trip finale today at Cleveland. The Orioles (27-20) gave up runs in six different innings on Saturday, went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position and made four errors. So yeah, they expect today to be better. After going 2-1 in Anaheim, 0-3 at Houston and 1-1 in Cleveland so far, the Orioles will have a losing...

O's game blog: A look at today's game and a few minor league notes

O's game blog: A look at today's game and a few minor league notes
Now that the Orioles have ended that little four-game losing streak, they hope to start to build another winning streak starting this afternoon at Cleveland. Last night's 6-4 victory came with only six strikeouts, but also with 13 hits. Adam Jones and Manny Machado combined to go 7-for-10 with two doubles, three runs and an RBI. Mark Trumbo hit his 15th homer and the Orioles went 4-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Today, they look to go 2-0 in this series, but they'll need Ubaldo...

O's notes on the offense, Vance Worley, Hyun Soo Kim and Mike Yastrzemski

O's notes on the offense, Vance Worley, Hyun Soo Kim and Mike Yastrzemski
HOUSTON - The Orioles' road trip has hit a road block. It began Friday night in Anaheim with back-to-back homers to start that game leading to a 9-4 win. The next night Matt Wieters hit a three-run blast in the ninth to win it. Would that provide momentum for the O's to have a great road trip? Nope. Over the last four games, the Orioles have scored 10 runs and struck out 58 times. Going back the last six games, O's batters have struck out 75 times. They have fanned 19 and 18 times at Minute...

Reimold taking advantage of chances (plus farm notes)

Reimold taking advantage of chances (plus farm notes)
ANAHEIM, Calif. - It might be one of the hardest things to do in Major League Baseball. That is not play regularly, but then come through with hits in the times when you are called on. So far this year, Orioles outfielder Nolan Reimold is handling that task well. He doesn't start every night and has just 62 at-bats and that ranks 10th on the team. But when given the opportunities, he has come through. "It's tough, you just have to stay ready," Reimold said. "The more you do it, the better...

Orioles' winning streak ends at seven games with 6-5 loss

Orioles' winning streak ends at seven games with 6-5 loss
Darren O'Day was so confident today that he struck out J.D. Martinez to end the top of the eighth inning, he took a couple of small steps toward the Orioles dugout while waiting for confirmation. First base umpire Mark Wegner, on the appeal, ruled that Martinez checked his swing. Two pitches later, the Tigers had the lead. Martinez and Miguel Cabrera hit back-to-back home runs off O'Day, who's been scored upon in only two of his 17 appearances. He allowed only one homer before today. O'Day...

Minor league notes on Yastrzemski, Mancini, Janish and more

Minor league notes on Yastrzemski, Mancini, Janish and more
Double-A Bowie outfielder Mike Yastrzemski today was named the Eastern League Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday. Yastrzemski hit .438 (14-for-32) with three doubles, three home runs, nine RBIs and seven runs scored during the week. This all followed a slow start for the grandson of Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski, who was hitting .143 after eight games. But since then, the younger Yaz has hit safely in all seven games with six multi-hit games. His current hitting streak is eight...

A few early notes

A few early notes
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles still haven't announced their corresponding roster move that allows Kevin Gausman to come off the disabled list and start tonight against the Rays. Yovani Gallardo is with the team and will receive treatment from the athletic training staff while the Orioles engage in their three-game series. An MRI yesterday didn't reveal any damage to Gallardo's right shoulder beyond the wear and tear that already showed up during his physical. A team official said...

Bowie media day: Gausman to pitch, Mancini on Baysox

Bowie media day: Gausman to pitch, Mancini on Baysox
BOWIE - The defending Double-A Eastern League champion Bowie Baysox will open a new season at Prince George's Stadium on Thursday night. Orioles reliever Brian Matusz may pitch during that game for the Baysox. And right-hander Kevin Gausman, who like Matusz is also on the O's disabled list, is slated to start on Saturday night for Bowie, according to manager Gary Kendall. Gausman, who got a cortisone injection on March 20 for shoulder tendinitis, is working his way back to the O's rotation...

A look at the Orioles' top 30 prospects per Baseball America

A look at the Orioles' top 30 prospects per Baseball America
SARASOTA, Fla. - Earlier here we discussed the Orioles' top 10 ranked prospects, according to Baseball America. Here is the previous story and another look at the top 10: 1) Dylan Bundy 2) Hunter Harvey 3) Chance Sisco 4) Jomar Reyes 5) Mychal Givens 6) Chris Lee 7) Ryan Mountcastle 8) Trey Mancini 9) D.J. Stewart 10) Mike Wright According to the Baseball American Prospect Handbook (which went to press in early December), here are the players rated 11 through 30 with a comment on each and...

A look at the Orioles' minor league spring training roster and schedule

A look at the Orioles' minor league spring training roster and schedule
Here is the lengthy list of players who will be reporting to the Orioles' minor league spring training camp later this week in Sarasota, Fla. Pitchers and catchers report this Friday, March 4, while the position players report date is Tuesday, March 8 at the Buck O'Neil Complex at Twin Lakes Park. Just like at major league camp, many players are already at this camp, well ahead of the reporting dates. These players will join a group of 37 players who reported to an early camp over a week ago....

Baseball America pitches a shutout: No Orioles on the top 100 list

Baseball America pitches a shutout: No Orioles on the top 100 list
It may be Valentine's Day, but Baseball America did not show the Orioles any love on Friday. When it released its latest list of the game's top 100 prospects, not a single Oriole was on the list. Baseball America has released 27 such lists since its debut top 100 ranking in 1990. The only other time the Orioles were shutout on a top 100 was in 2003. I went through all 27 lists since 1990. In that span, there were 17 times the Orioles had at least three players on the list. They've had four...

What does the Davis signing mean to Walker and Mancini?

What does the Davis signing mean to Walker and Mancini?
The Orioles don't intend to sign Chris Davis to a seven-year, $161 million deal to have him play right field or serve as the primary designated hitter. He's here to play first base, with the ability to move around in specific cases. As it now stands, Mark Trumbo figures to get most of his at-bats as the designated hitter. However, the Orioles still haven't figured out who's playing right field and they haven't explained how Davis' return is going to impact Trumbo. The subject is bound to...

Brady Anderson on winter workouts; young O's meet the media at FanFest

Brady Anderson on winter workouts; young O's meet the media at FanFest
When it comes to leading a group of Orioles in winter workouts, club vice president of baseball operations Brady Anderson is ready to help. He's already joined pitcher Miguel Gonzalez for some of his workouts on the West Coast, and that group will later include Mike Wright, Jason Garcia and minor league lefty Tim Berry. "Garcia and Wright will spend some extensive time right before spring training," Anderson said. "They'll probably be there the last six weeks. Dariel Alvarez will come in....

Terry Doyle agrees to minor league contract and a few FanFest quotes

Terry Doyle agrees to minor league contract and a few FanFest quotes
He was easily among the best starting pitchers on the Orioles farm last year and maybe the best of them all. And as of yesterday, 30-year-old right-hander Terry Doyle is back with the organization, agreeing to a minor league contract with the Orioles. In 2015, in 26 games (21 starts) between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk, Doyle went 16-2 with a 2.16 ERA. Over 158 2/3 innings, he gave up 137 hits with just 22 walks and 110 strikeouts. He went 12-1 with a 1.97 ERA for Bowie. In seven...

A look at the possible Chris Davis market; Vandy coach remembers Flaherty and Yastrzemski

A look at the possible Chris Davis market; Vandy coach remembers Flaherty and Yastrzemski
NASHVILLE - The Orioles continue to be in the hunt for free agent first baseman Chris Davis. He led the majors with 47 homers last year and leads the majors with 159 since 2012. But what is unclear is how many teams are in that hunt with them. There has been very little information getting out on Davis and any negotiations that may have taken place thus far. MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko reported via Twitter that the Orioles are scheduled to meet with Scott Boras, Davis' agent today. Boras...

A look at Orioles players in the Arizona Fall League

A look at Orioles players in the Arizona Fall League
For six players from the Orioles minor leagues, their time in the Arizona Fall League is almost over. They've played for the Peoria Javelinas, who are 12-12 with three games left and cannot finish in first place. But the six have gained valuable high-level experience. Orioles director of player development Brian Graham was recently in Arizona and I asked him about the O's prospects out there. Adrian Marin is a 21-year-old infielder who was the Single-A Frederick Keys' shortstop the past two...

Bowie hitting coach talks about some minor league batters

Bowie hitting coach talks about some minor league batters
About a week ago, I wrote about Double-A Bowie hitting coach Keith Bodie and how he fit in very well in his first season in the Orioles organization in 2015. Bodie has had a long and strong career in pro ball. During my visit with Bodie, we talked about a few Bowie hitters during the Eastern League playoffs. To no surprise, Bodie is pretty high on first baseman Trey Mancini. "I've been around a lot of good and special players and what he has done this year is very special," Bodie said. "He...

Dylan Bundy breezes through AFL debut (updated again)

Dylan Bundy breezes through AFL debut (updated again)
Orioles top pitching prospect Dylan Bundy retired the side in order in his only inning today for the Peoria Javelinas in the Arizona Fall League. Bundy needed only seven pitches to dispose of the Mesa Solar Sox. He threw five strikes. Bundy, 22, induced a fly ball to center field by Chad Hinshaw, struck out Daniel Robinson on four pitches and induced a fly ball to right field by Wilson Contreras. Lucas Sims replaced him in the bottom of the second inning. Orioles top catching prospect Chance...

Notes on Matt Wieters, Dylan Bundy and Mike Yastrzemski

Notes on Matt Wieters, Dylan Bundy and Mike Yastrzemski
Another Halloween is upon us and I'm still breaking out the same costume - sportswriter sitting on his front step handing out candy. If something works, I stick with it. I don't pass out candy corn, toothbrushes or pennies. I'm not that guy. I grab bags of fun-size candy bars from the shelves of my local grocery store and ponder exactly what makes them fun. Two bites, max, and they're gone. The Orioles held another organizational meeting yesterday and the usual topics were addressed again,...

Notes on Vance Worley, Chris Davis and winter ball

Notes on Vance Worley, Chris Davis and winter ball
When the Orioles claimed pitcher Vance Worley off waivers from the Pirates earlier this week, they added a right-hander to their 40-man roster that could prove to be a solid addition to their bullpen. He's also a pitcher that has made 81 major league starts. If he heads north with the Orioles next April, my guess is he does so in a relief role. He could be a multi-innings reliever. In 2015, he pitched to an ERA of 2.83 with an average against of .236 out of the bullpen. Now 28, the Phillies...