Orioles recover from blown lead to win in 11 innings

Orioles recover from blown lead to win in 11 innings
NEW YORK - Given the chance for redemption today, the Orioles bullpen couldn't cover the last four innings of regulation without unraveling. It happened again. A late lead lost and a game forced into extra innings. Unwanted drama better saved for Broadway. What didn't happen was another defeat that tears at the gut. The Orioles overcame the loss of their lead and their manager to avoid being swept and move back into a first-place tie in the American League East. Mark Trumbo delivered an RBI...

Wrapping up a 12-4 loss (Aquino and Nuño optioned)

Wrapping up a 12-4 loss (Aquino and Nuño optioned)
NEW YORK - Two games lost, a series lost for the first time this month and more roster moves to come. The Orioles are in scramble mode and no longer in first place. Three Orioles pitchers combined to allow 12 runs today over the first seven innings and the Yankees cruised to a 12-4 victory. Caleb Joseph hit a two-run homer off Tommy Layne in the ninth for his first RBIs since Sept. 11, 2015. There was a highlight on the visiting side. The Orioles had a 6-0-1 series record, but they've dropped...

Because You Asked - The New Batch

Because You Asked - The New Batch
The mailbag is full again, though I'm estimating that three-fourths of it is occupied by weather-based questions. If this is any help, the latest forecast in New York calls for a high temperature of 78 degrees for Friday's series opener against the Yankees, with a 20 percent chance of rain. There's a 40 percent chance of thunderstorms on Saturday with a high temperature of 82, but it's not supposed to get above 63 degrees on Sunday, with no rain anticipated. Weather.com threw me a few days...

Rays walk past Orioles in 2-0 win (with Showalter quotes)

Rays walk past Orioles in 2-0 win (with Showalter quotes)
The walks came back and left marks on Wade Miley. Miley handed out six free passes tonight in seven innings, including two in back-to-back fashion in the fourth that led to the first two runs of the game. And the last. Miley completed seven innings at 116 pitches, with two runs and four hits allowed and eight strikeouts. He never got an ounce of offensive support, with 18 of the last 19 Orioles retired, and the Rays claimed a 2-0 victory at Camden Yards. The Orioles got four balls out of the...

Paul Fry "pretty speechless" after promotion

Paul Fry "pretty speechless" after promotion
It was past midnight when Triple-A Norfolk manager Ron Johnson informed Paul Fry that the Orioles were calling up the young left-hander. The rest seemed like a blur. "Pretty speechless," Fry said today while standing in front of a photo of Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson that hangs outside the clubhouse entrance. Fry, 24, said he wasn't expecting the Orioles to promote him. "Not really," he said. "I had two outings at Norfolk after getting there. Hadn't played a home game yet. Pretty...

Power and 'pen lead Orioles to 6-3 win (with Showalter quotes)

Power and 'pen lead Orioles to 6-3 win (with Showalter quotes)
This wasn't the Cincinnati version of Ubaldo Jiménez tonight. Different opponent, city, weather and result. These were the same Orioles with a deep bullpen and power throughout the lineup. Vidal Nuño relieved Jiménez with the bases loaded and one out in the fourth, got two strikeouts to limit the damage and tossed 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Hyun Soo Kim and Jonathan Schoop hit back-to-back home runs with two outs in the sixth to tie the game and Adam Jones launched a two-run shot in the...

Jayson Aquino gets first major league win as O's top Boston (quotes added)

Jayson Aquino gets first major league win as O's top Boston (quotes added)
The latest Orioles starting pitcher to shine was a 24-year-old left-hander from the Dominican Republic that was acquired from St. Louis last April for cash considerations. And left-hander Jayson Aquino was making just his fourth major league appearance and first as a starter. But save for allowing a two-run homer, he was strong tonight as the Orioles beat Boston 4-2 in front of 35,457 at Camden Yards. The first-place Orioles improved to 12-4, have won four in a row and win this series by taking...

Mancini and Schoop homer, Aquino gets first win (with quotes)

Mancini and Schoop homer, Aquino gets first win (with quotes)
The Orioles took a little longer tonight to figure out knuckleballer Steven Wright. Three innings without a run. The flutter pitch had them flummoxed. All was right with the Orioles in the fourth. Chris Davis doubled, Trey Mancini homered, Jonathan Schoop homered and Wright had a flashback and an early start on the postgame spread. The Orioles scored four runs in the inning, with Adam Jones contributing a two-out RBI single after Caleb Joseph doubled and Craig Gentry reached on an infield hit,...

Showalter on Britton's MRI, Machado's slide and a 2-0 win

Showalter on Britton's MRI, Machado's slide and a 2-0 win
Orioles manager Buck Showalter received encouraging news on closer Zach Britton's MRI from earlier today. Two victories without playing a doubleheader. "Looked good," Showalter said following a 2-0 win over the Red Sox at Camden Yards. "They did everything. Elbow looked really good. That bodes well obviously down the road. They found what they thought they would find. We're moving forward. Nothing to hold back his continued progress." Showalter wanted to focus on the game, which included...

Dylan Bundy and three relievers blank Red Sox 2-0

Dylan Bundy and three relievers blank Red Sox 2-0
The Orioles went from road to home, from playing a National League team to taking on an American League East rival. But their recent run of outstanding pitching followed the club to Camden Yards tonight. And Dylan Bundy's very impressive season continued, as he faced the defending division champion Boston Red Sox. Bundy pitched seven-plus scoreless tonight as the Orioles blanked Boston 2-0 in front of 34,442 at Camden Yards. The Orioles are 11-4 and end a six-game home losing streak versus...

Seven scoreless innings for Dylan Bundy (O's win 2-0)

Seven scoreless innings for Dylan Bundy (O's win 2-0)
Dylan Bundy's string of quality starts has stretched to four. It's not a reach to say he's the Orioles' best pitcher in April. Dealt a bad hand earlier in his professional career due to injuries, Bundy seems to be turning into an ace. He shut out the Red Sox tonight on six hits over seven-plus innings and the Orioles continue to hold a 2-0 lead before an announced crowd of 34,442 at Camden Yards. Manny Machado hit his third home run of the season in the fifth inning, a shot measured at 421...

Jiménez dazzles in 2-0 win over Reds (updated with quotes)

Jiménez dazzles in 2-0 win over Reds (updated with quotes)
CINCINNATI - Ubaldo Jiménez retired the Reds in order in the first inning tonight on only 11 pitches. Three ground balls, including a bunt that reached the front of the mound. No need to stop the presses, but at least pause to reflect. Jiménez had to throw 30 pitches to clear the first inning in his first start against the Yankees, when he managed to limit the damage to one run. He threw 104 in 4 1/3 innings against the Red Sox after the Orioles staked him to a nine-run lead at Fenway...

Orioles offense breaks out in 12-5 win (with quotes)

Orioles offense breaks out in 12-5 win (with quotes)
BOSTON - While so much attention is being paid to the flu and how the Red Sox didn't appreciate the needling from manager Buck Showalter, the Orioles may have found a cure for the common knuckleball. Drop the heavy lumber on it. The Orioles sent 10 batters to the plate in the top of the first inning and scored six runs on six hits. It started with Seth Smith being tapped by the first pitch from Steven Wright and ended with Smith sending left fielder Chris Young to the warning track with a...

Talking player development: The O's team that did it well while losing

Talking player development: The O's team that did it well while losing
If you look at the job of any minor league organization, its biggest task by far (but not the only one) is to develop players. Coach, teach, instruct and provide a framework for players to get better so they can one day reach the bigs and help the major league team win games. If you can win games on the farm while doing the first job, all the better. But make no mistake, when it comes to developing players or winning, the first is much more important than the second. Let's look at some players...

Today's game and a pending roster move

Today's game and a pending roster move
Wade Miley finally gets to pitch in a real game today, no longer confined to Sarasota exhibitions, minor league camp matchups and simulated action. This one will count. Miley, freed from the flu or its strength-sapping effects, is searching for his first career win against the Yankees. He's 0-3 with a 5.58 ERA in seven starts and has registered a 1.463 WHIP in 40 1/3 innings. Miley faced the Yankees twice last season, surrendering four runs and five hits with four walks over five innings in a...

Britton on his ankle, Hart on his win

Britton on his ankle, Hart on his win
Orioles closer Zach Britton isn't a doctor, but he knows the warning signs of a serious injury, and they weren't apparent this morning. "My foot and ankle were still there," he said. "It was good." Nothing to see here, folks, after Britton rolled his right ankle last night while recording the second out in the ninth inning. He stayed in the game after a visit from manager Buck Showalter and head athletic trainer Richie Bancells, and a few warmup tosses, to retire pinch-hitter Chris Carter...

Hart on his first win, Smith on his homer, Jiménez on his outing

Hart on his first win, Smith on his homer, Jiménez on his outing
On a night that right-hander Ubaldo Jiménez struggled and the club fell into a four-run hole, the Orioles called on their bullpen and power to bail them out. Manny Machado's three-run homer pulled the Orioles within 5-4 in the fifth inning and Seth Smith's two-run shot gave them the lead two innings later. The bullpen recorded 4 2/3 scoreless innings as the Orioles beat the Yankees 6-5 to go to 3-0. Smith said Machado's homer got his team back in the game. It was a laser to left-center...

Showalter on Britton, bullpen, Smith and a 6-5 win

Showalter on Britton, bullpen, Smith and a 6-5 win
Seth Smith hit his first home run tonight as an Oriole and Donnie Hart earned his first major league win. Nice timing for a team that now sits alone in first place in the American League East. Smith reached the flag court in right field with his two-run shot in the seventh and the Orioles rallied for a 6-5 win over the Yankees before an announced crowd of 25,248 at Camden Yards. Jonathan Schoop reached on third baseman Chase Headley's second error of the night and advanced to third base on...

Seth Smith hits go-ahead homer, O's beat Yankees to go to 3-0

Seth Smith hits go-ahead homer, O's beat Yankees to go to 3-0
Sometimes a sac fly will do. But a two-run homer is better. Needing a fly ball to tie this game in the last of the seventh tonight, new Orioles outfielder Seth Smith instead delivered a go-ahead two-run homer. His first as an Oriole took the club from one run down to one up as they rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the Yankees 6-5 in front of 25,248 chilled fans at Camden Yards. The Orioles have a 3-0 start and New York to falls to 1-3 in dropping the opener of a three-game series. Down...

Ceremonies completed, time to start 2017 season (O's win in 11th)

Ceremonies completed, time to start 2017 season (O's win in 11th)
Kevin Gausman's first pitch this afternoon to Blue Jays leadoff hitter Devon Travis was a 96 mph fastball for a called strike, and the second landed in shallow right field for a single. The 2017 season was underway. The Orioles did the usual fine job with the pregame ceremonies. Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson was booed upon his introduction, but the volume level was nothing compared to what awaited José Bautista. Executive vice president Dan Duquette wasn't kidding. Fans don't...