The Weekend So Far; Some Notes & Thoughts

So far, the Orioles have played very well on their trip out to sunny California beating the Angels on Friday night, 4-3, thanks a great performance by Jeremy Guthrie, a Markakis homer, and a tight ninth inning; however, on Saturday, they faced a strong hurler in John Garland and lost, 3-1.

Cabrera, who pitched this afternoon, was decent and had a shut-out until the sixth inning - that is, until glimpses of inconsistency and walks did him in.

In the end, Baltimore held the Angels in check, but in the end, the lack of offense opportunities did the Orioles in, (for example, Nick Markakis and Melvin Mora swapped places in the lineup -- however, that might have not worked too well).

The two teams play in the rubber match on Sunday as Steve Trachsel goes against the undefeated Joe Saunders.

We all know what we are getting with Steve, and the Baltimore must put some runs on the board, or they’ll lose the series. The Orioles have played some real close and very competitive games; however, their margin of error is very low and the lack of punch along with hits may put their strong start in peril unless something happens.

(Amber Theoharis, in her latest blog on MASN Sports has some notes on the offense).

Despite my words, I’m glad we are in every game so far and making something of a season that many assumed would have been a throw-away one. In light of a bad outing or two by the bullpen so far (Sarfate on Wednesday against the Rays) -- it's been rock solid and will need to sustain that success in order to keep their heads above water.

Well, Lance Cormier was brought up from Norfolk this weekend; meanwhile, Freddie Bynum is starting his rehab assignment in Bowie (can anyone assume he'll see a lot of time at shortstop sooner rather than later, Randor Bierd is on the DL, and Greg Aquino is in the minors after being designated for assignment and passing through waivers.

Speaking of the Birds, I am watching the Alfred Hitchcock classic, "The Birds" on Turner Classic Movies, but that shouldn't damper our thoughts on the Baltimore Orioles.

Before I go, did anyone read the real nice story on Miguel Tejada and what he did for a young fan down in Houston? In light of went on with his inclusion in the Mitchell Report, the ESPN E:60 episode and the federal authorities investigation of him, perhaps his gesture reminds us about the small things in life and the role of sports.