Monthly Archives: July 2009

Yankees Complete Sweep, Beat O’s 6-4

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Jason Berken loses again to make his record 1-8.

It could’ve been worse for Berken. He gave up 4 runs in the first inning, but settled down and only gave up one more run the rest of his time in the game on a Jorge Posada homerun. He ended up going 6 innings giving up 5 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks. At this point I would keep him in the rotation a little longer and remove Rich Hill to make room for Chris Tillman. Cla Meredith made his Oriole debut today, hitting a batter and giving up a single, but he got out of the inning without giving up a run because he struck out Derek Jeter and got Mark Texeira to hit into a double play. George Sherrill struck out the side in the 8th, but not before giving up a run on 3 hits and a walk.

The Orioles scored 4 runs, but it was too little too late. In the 7th inning we got 2 runs on a Nick Markakis sacrifice fly and a wild pitch. In the 9th Adam Jones and Markakis hit back to back homeruns but that would be it. Jones had a great game, his first 4 hit game of the season, with 2 singles, a double, and that homerun. Gregg Zaun continued to bring a hot bat off the bench, going 2 for 3 with a walk. Luke Scott and Robert Andino each had a single and a walk.

Player of the game: Adam Jones (4-5, 2 R, RBI, double (18), HR (14) (.307 AVG))

The O’s have a much needed day off tomorrow before heading into Boston on Friday. Brad Bergesen (6-4, 3.51) goes against Brad Penny (6-4, 5.02).

Hill Struggles; O’s Lose 6-4

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Rich Hill loses to even his record at 3-3.

Something needs to happen with the starting rotation. Both Hill and Jason Berken have been struggling mightily for over a month. I think its time to bring Chris Tillman up for one of them and maybe David Pauley up for the other. I would try to pass Hill through waivers, I don’t think anyone will claim him right now. He couldn’t make it out of the 4th inning last night. He couldn’t even record an out in the 4th inning before getting pulled for Brian Bass. He gave up 5 earned runs on 3 hits and 4 walks in 3 innings. Hes just relying too much on his curveball because he can’t locate his fastball, but hes hanging his curveball way too much. Bass came in and gave up a run of his own in the 4th. He was struggling with his control but he ended up going 2.1 innings only giving up the 1 run on 2 hits and 3 walks. Matt Albers pitched great in an inning and 2/3rds scoreless and Mark Hendrickson pitched in a scoreless inning.

The Orioles got their 4 runs on an RBI single by Nick Markakis, an RBI groundout by Adam Jones, and a 2 run single by Melvin Mora. We were facing a pitcher who hadn’t thrown a pitch in the majors for almost two years, we should’ve been able to do more damage against him. Markakis and Brian Roberts each had 3 hits in the game. Roberts with his 32nd double and his 20th stolen base. Markakis also saved a run in the field when he threw out Derek Jeter at the plate, his 10th outfield assist. Aubrey Huff and Matt Wieters added singles, but it wasn’t enough.

Player of the game: Brian Roberts (3-4, 2 R, double (32) (.284 AVG))

Jason Berken (1-7, 6.44) tries to keep his spot in the rotation today against Maryland native AJ Burnett (8-4, 3.81).

Down On The Farm: July 21st

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AAA Norfolk 1, Gwinnett 4

RHP David Pauley: 6 IP, 11 H, 1 ER, 8 K, L (7-8) (3.73 ERA)
DH Steve Torrealba: 1-3, R, double (7) (.247 AVG)

AA Bowie 6, Harrisburg 2

LHP Brian Matusz: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, BB, 4 K, W (6-0) (1.88 ERA)
DH Danny Figueroa: 2-3, 2 R, 2 BB, triple (1) (.328 AVG)
1B Eric Crozier: 3-3, R, 2 RBI, 2 BB (.272 AVG)
2B Miguel Abreu: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, BB (.294 AVG)

High A Frederick 5, Salem 1

LHP Zach Britton: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 7 K, W (6-4) (2.66 ERA) – Minor league player of the night
SS Pedro Florimon: 2-4, 2 R, RBI, 2 doubles (23) (.256 AVG)
C Caleb Joseph: 2-4, double (17) (.331 AVG)

Short A Aberdeen 3, Mahoning Valley 2

LHP Nicholas Haughian: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, BB, 3 K, W (2-2) (2.40 ERA)
3B Tyler Kelly: 2-3, BB (.326 AVG)
1B Tom Baxter: 2-4 (.242 AVG)
DH Levi Carolus: 1-3, 2 RBI, BB (.326 AVG)

Rookie Bluefield 4, Greeneville 5

RHP Vito Frabizio: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 K, L (1-2) (3.00 ERA)
C Dashenko Ricardo: 2-4, RBI, double (2) (.203 AVG)
3B Mike Flacco: 1-3, double (6) (.256 AVG)

GCL Orioles 10, Rays 0

RHP Jario De La Cruz: 7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (2-1) (2.60 ERA)
3B Tyler Stampone: 2-4, R, 4 RBI, BB, HR (2) (.263 AVG)
CF Edwin Cintron: 2-4, 2 R, double (2) (.273 AVG)
2B Paco Figueroa: 1-3, R, 4 RBI, 2 BB, triple (1) (.364 AVG)

Meredith Added; Mickolio Sent Down

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RHP Cla Meredith was officially added to the roster. RHP Kam Mickolio was optioned to AAA Norfolk.

Grade: C

The move makes sense, but I would’ve liked to have seen more from Mickolio at the big league level. He looked really good in the three games he pitched in. He’ll be back by September at the latest, maybe sooner depending on who gets traded at the deadline. Danys Baez and George Sherrill are candidates.

O’s Lose Pitchers Duel 2-1

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Jim Johnson loses his 4th game.

David Hernandez was outstanding last night. Pitching in Yankee Stadium for the first time ever, which has been an offensive players dream park, he only allowed 1 run, 3 hits, and 3 walks over 6 innings. He struck 4 batters out and left with the game tied at one. Mark Hendrickson continued to be effective out of the bullpen, pitching a perfect 7th inning. Jim Johnson pitched a perfect 8th and got one out in the 9th, but he made one mistake pitch. Hideki Matsui made him pay for it by hitting a walk off homerun for the Yankees. But its hard to get mad at the pitching when the offense performed as poorly as it did.

Pettite pitched great, but we still should’ve scored enough runs to win the game. We got thrown out at home twice in the 8th inning. We led off the inning with a Cesar Izturis single and a Brian Roberts double after Matt Wieters struck out. Nick Markakis hit the ball to first base, but Izturis got thrown out at home trying to score. In the next at bat the Yankee pitcher threw a wild pitch, which Roberts tried to score on but was called out at homeplate. He argued the call but it looked like he never touched home plate. Our only run came on a Markakis homerun in the 1st inning.

Player of the game: David Hernandez (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (3.55 ERA))

Tonight Rich Hill (3-2, 7.22) tries to keep the pitching rolling against Sergio Mitre (0-0, -.–), who is making his first major league appearance in two seasons.

Down On The Farm: July 20th

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AAA Norfolk 6, Gwinnett 7

LHP Troy Patton: 4.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, BB, 6 K (6.39 ERA)
LF Victor Diaz: 1-4, 3 run HR (1) (.250 AVG) – The Orioles signed Diaz to a minor league contract yesterday. Hes another all hit, no field or patience type player just like the one we traded away (Oscar Salazar).
2B Justin Turner: 1-3, R, BB, double (16) (.303 AVG)
C Robby Hammock: 2-3, BB (.199 AVG)

AA Bowie 0, Harrisburg 2

RHP Freddy Deza: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 5 BB, K, L (5-4) (3.48 ERA)
1B Eric Crozier: 1-3, BB, double (7) (.250 AVG)

A Delmarva 2, Bowling Green 5

RHP Ryan O’Shea: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (3.48 ERA)
LF Kyle Hudson: 3-4, RBI, BB (.298 AVG)
CF Xavier Avery: 1-3, R, BB, triple (6) (.248 AVG)

Short A Aberdeen 9, Mahoning Valley 2

RHP Kenny Moreland: 7 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 6 K, W (4-1) (0.95 ERA)
LF Richard D Oleo: 3-3, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB (.284 AVG)
DH Tyler Kelly: 2-3, 2 R, BB (.315 AVG)
C Justin Dalles: 2-5, 2 RBI (.226 AVG)

Rookie Bluefield 1, Johnson City 13

RHP Jesse Beal: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 K (3.57 ERA) – Minor league player of the night
DH Matt Tucker: 2-4 (.556 AVG)

O’s Bats Come Alive; Win 10-2

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Jeremy Guthrie wins his 7th game of the season.

Guthrie pitched a great game. Looks like hes completely recovered from the flu he was suffering from. The only runs he gave up were on two solo homeruns. He went 8 innings and only gave up 3 hits and a walk, with 5 strikeouts. It would be nice if Guthrie could bounce back to form for the 2nd half of the season. Jim Johnson tossed a scoreless 9th to close the game.

The offense let loose with 10 runs on 11 hits. Every player in the lineup had at least one hit except for Nick Markakis, who got on base twice via walks. In the first inning Brian Roberts singled, stole second base, went to third on an overthrow, and scored on a wild pitch. The Orioles scored their second run on another wild pitch, this time with the bases loaded. That was followed by Melvin Mora getting hit by a pitch to re-load the bases, then back to back bases loaded walks made it 4-0. Gregg Zaun singled in the 5th run, then Cesar Izturis grounded into a double play but the 6th run was able to score before the force out ended the inning. The rest of our runs came in the 9th when Luke Scott doubled in a run, then Zaun hit a 3 run homer.

Player of the game: Gregg Zaun (3-4, R, 4 RBI, BB, HR (4) (.253 AVG))

The O’s are headed to New York to face the Yankees tonight. David Hernandez (2-2, 3.94) goes against Andy Pettite (8-5, 4.85).

Down On The Farm: July 19th

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AAA Norfolk 4, Charlotte 3

RHP Andy Mitchell: 7 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, W (8-2) (3.90 ERA)
SS Blake Davis: 1-3, BB, solo HR (1) (.306 AVG)
CF Jeff Fiorentino: 1-4, 2 run HR (7) (.317 AVG)
C Chad Moeller: 2-3 (.212 AVG)

AA Bowie 3, Akron 7

RHP Brandon Erbe: 5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 5 BB, 3 K (2.33 ERA)
CF Danny Figueroa: 2-4, 2 R (.328 AVG)
DH Ambiorix Concepcion: 2-5, 3 RBI (.259 AVG)
C Guillermo Rodriguez: 2-4 (.253 AVG)

High A Frederick 8, Wilmington 5

RHP Sean Gleason: 6 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, W (2-3) (4.28 ERA)
SS Pedro Florimon: 2-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, double (21) (.253 AVG)
RF Wally Crancer: 2-4, 2 R, RBI, HR (5) (.294 AVG) – Minor league player of the night
3B Brandon Waring: 1-3, RBI, BB, double (25) (.277 AVG)

A Delmarva 2, Bowling Green 4

LHP Cole McCurry: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K (3.50 ERA)
C Victor Castillo: 2-3, 2 RBI, double (1) (.205 AVG)
RF Ronnie Welty: 1-3, BB (.303 AVG)

Short A Aberdeen 0, Vermont 1

LHP Tyler Sexton: 6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 5 K (2.45 ERA)
CF Richard D Oleo: 1-3, BB, triple (4) (.263 AVG)
2B Michael Mooney: 1-2, BB (.233 AVG)

Rookie Bluefield 0, Johnson City 6

RHP Justin Moore: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 K, L (1-2) (3.42 ERA)
3B Mike Flacco: 1-3, double (5) (.253 AVG)

GCL Orioles 5, Twins 1

RHP Eiri Ramirez: 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 K, W (2-2) (2.96 ERA)
3B Anyi Tejeda: 2-3, RBI, BB (.256 AVG)
2B Paco Figueroa: 1-3, R, BB (.375 AVG)

Salazar Traded To Padres For Meredith

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The Orioles traded INF Oscar Salazar to the San Diego Padres yesterday for RHP Cla Meredith, a relief pitcher.

Grade: C+

We had to do something to make room for David Hernandez, who will be recalled to pitch tonight’s game in New York. We had to get rid of a position player since we’ve been playing a starting pitcher short. It made sense to trade Salazar for something rather than lose him for nothing trying to pass him through waivers. Meredith is a submarine type pitcher who gets alot of ground balls. Hes 26 years old, so almost like a younger version of Chad Bradford. Meredith has pitched 36.2 innings so far this year giving up 47 hits (but only 1 HR), 13 walks, and striking out 20 batters to the tune of a 4.17 ERA and 1.64 WHIP. He was unhittable as a rookie in 2006 when batters only hit .170 off him. In the past 3 years its been closer to .300. His lifetime ERA is 3.49. He’ll be a nice guy to have if we trade Danys Baez and/or George Sherrill, he’ll be under our control for 2 more years after 2009, and he has an option remaining. Look for Kam Mickolio to be optioned later today to make room for Hernandez on the active roster, but he’ll be back.

Down On The Farm: July 18th

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AAA Norfolk 8, Charlotte 5

RHP Jake Arrieta: 5 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, W (3-3) (4.10 ERA)
1B Brandon Snyder: 2-3, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB, HR (2) (.220 AVG)
RF Melvin Dorta: 3-4, R, double (8) (.264 AVG)
LF Brandon Pinckney: 3-4, R (.281 AVG)
3B Justin Turner: 2-3, R, BB (.303 AVG)

AA Bowie 3, Akron 5

RHP Ryohei Tanaka: 4 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K (1.33 ERA)
CF Danny Figueroa: 2-3, R, 2 RBI (.322 AVG)
SS Jason White: 2-3, 2 R (.667 AVG)
3B Jonathon Tucker: 2-3 (.267 AVG)

High A Frederick 1, Wilmington 3

RHP Pedro Beato: 4 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K, L (5-6) (4.82 ERA)
RHP Pat Egan: 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K (0.63 ERA)

High A Frederick 0, Wilmington 5

LHP Nathan Nery: 5 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, BB, 4 K, L (3-4) (4.66 ERA)
CF Matt Angle: 2-3, double (10) (.282 AVG)

A Delmarva 1, Bowling Green 0

LHP Nathan Moreau: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 5 K, W (4-2) (3.29 ERA) – Minor league player of the night
DH Joe Mahoney: 2-3, solo HR (3) (.293 AVG)

Short A Aberdeen 5, Vermont 0

RHP Patrick Kantakevich: 6 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, W (1-2) (3.81 ERA)
3B Tyler Kelly: 2-5, R, double (3) (.318 AVG)
RF Jason Rook: 2-3, BB, double (2), solo HR (1) (.243 AVG)
DH Levi Carolus: 2-5, R, RBI (.329 AVG)

Rookie Bluefield 10, Johnson City 8

RHP Matt Hobgood: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, K (9.00 ERA) – Hobgood was our 1st round draft pick this year. This was his first action since being drafted, hes going to slowly build up his arm/innings.
3B Corey Thomas: 2-4, R, RBI, BB, double (4), triple (2) (.277 AVG)
SS Matt Tucker: 3-3, 4 R, BB, double (1) (1.000 AVG)
1B Mike Flacco: 2-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, double (4) (.250 AVG)

GCL Orioles 5, Reds 11

RHP Angel Cespedes: 5 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, K, L (2-2) (1.65 ERA)
SS Anyi Tejeda: 2-4, R, double (3) (.241 AVG)
RF Grolmann Gonzalez: 1-3, 2 R, BB (.286 AVG)