Bad Baseball Doom the O's

K.C. Royals vs. Baltimore Orioles; July 3rd, 2008

Last night was painful to watch, real painful as the Orioles blew a game that they should not have, 10-7.

We have the free-swinging Rangers on the docket this 4th of July weekend, but first, last night started off so well and then became an unadulterated train wreck.

Garrett Olson started off well, and the Orioles pounced the Royals for seven runs — including two long balls by Aubrey Huff — however, in the sixth inning, Olson would wilt and the game would be turned over to the bullpen.

Adam Loewen did not look good at all, but the meltdown was not all his fault as Kevin Millar committed a critical error that opened up the flood gates, and down — the Orioles never got back up. Chad Bradford came in and the K.C. hit parade continued.

When all was said and done, the Royals would put seven runs in the sixth inning, and their bullpen shit us down.

Baltimore just needs to shake off this loss, and start the weekend off strong. If the Orioles can go into next Monday with a .500 or better record, this season so far will have been above and beyond anyone’s expectations.

Two questions for you all. One, do we continue trotting Adam Loewen out there, considering the absence of Albers — or should he work himself out in the minors? Two, if you’re Andy MacPhail, what changes do you make in the second half (for example: Do we keep or trade Huff and do we really need David Eckstein)?

Photo Gallery: K.C. Royals vs. Baltimore Orioles; July 1st, 2008

K.C. Royals vs. Baltimore Orioles; July 1st, 2008

Photos: Kansas City Royals vs. Baltimore Orioles: September, 24th, 2007

Kansas City Royals vs. Baltimore Orioles; Sep. 24, 2007

The Good Daniel Shows Up, Markakis Homers: O's Win 3-2...

Well, everyone. We are close to the end of the season, and by this time next Monday, we'll know who is in the playoffs and the Orioles' season will be over and mercifully finished.

Last night, the Orioles kicked off their final homestand with a win against the Kansas City Royals, 3-2. Despite it being a matchup of two-second division teams playing for pride and stats, it was quite a good ball game as Daniel Cabrera was solid against Gil Meche.

Cabrera, finally was consistent for a change, and looked like a top flight starter in the action on Monday as he only allowed in one run in seven innings.

The game was made up in lieu of a rainout in early April; howver, there were only few thousand fans at the Yard last night.

The bullpen once again nearly blew the game, as Mark Grudzielanek homered off Jamie Walker, to tie the game, 2-2; however, the amazing Nick Markakis homered to lead the Birds to victory.

Chad Bradford got the save.

It was good to know that we swept the season series against the Royals - alas, some good news for a change.

As well, I sat with the "Free the Birds 2" contigent during the 2nd and 3rd innings to see what was happening up there last night. Well, the time in upper left fiels was interesting to say in the least, and I'll share my thoughts in an upcoming post.

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The Baltimore Sun has a recap of the game, as does the Baltimore Examiner, Washington Post, Orioles MLB site, & Orioles Hangout.

Peter Schmuck of the Sun laments at the empty seats and the condition of the team with some thoughts from last night.

Pressbox's Craig Heist reports that the bullpen (obvious to almost everyone) will get a new look along with some other news & Stan Charles looks at the other candidates who could have been manager of the Orioles...

The Game Last Night: O's Sweep Royals, 3-0 Win!

Ok, I have had a busy morning with interviews and also work, so here's the rundown. The Orioles won a tight game yesterday 3-0, as Erik Bedard met up with KC's ace, Gil Meche. Jay Payton drove in a run, and Nick Markakis hit a 2-run homer late to give the Orioles some insurance.

Chris Ray got his 12th save, and the O's have won 5 straight. Next up are the Angels of Los Angeles, Anaheim, or whatever they call themselves these days.

If only we could play the Royals everyday...

***

The Baltimore Sun has a recap of last night’s shut-out, as does the orioles.com, and the Washington Post.

The O, By the Way Blog has thoughts from last night’s game, along with other things. As well, Roch Kubatko is his blog has news on Jeremy Guthrie and the AL All-Star voting.

The Orioles pitching has looked real good, especially with the new additions of Brian Burres and Jeremy Guthrie.

Congratulations to Jamie Walker, as he has his wife had a baby boy. However, he named him after someone known to all us O’s and baseball fans – his son’s name is James Leyland Walker. Well, to be honest, I like Jim Leyland and I think it’s a cool thing.

‘In the article, Jamie Walker says: "If people think that I named him after him, that's fine," he said. "We actually picked this name out, but my wife loves Jim Leyland to death anyway. He's a [heck] of a manager, a [heck] of a guy."

Walker said the child was named after his wife's grandfather, whose first name was Leyland, and his father, whose name was James. Both fought in World War II, so Walker and his wife, Natalie, felt that would be an added touch because the child was born on Memorial Day.’ (Baltimore Sun)

The Game Last Night: O's Win 6-2

It looks like things are finally coming together for the Baltimore Orioles this season, as they beat the Kansas City Royals by a score of 6-2 last night, emerging victorious in their fourth straight game.

Meanwhile, the Kansas City Royals have lost their sixth straight.

The amazing Jeremy Guthrie won, as he allowed two runs and three hits with seven strong innings pitched. Since beginning the season in the bullpen, Guthrie along with Steve Trachsel has been the team’s most consistent pitchers.

The bats were alive for the team once again as Ramon Hernandez drove in 2 runs, including swatting a solo homer in the 6^th inning. Nick Markakis, Kevin Millar and Aubrey Huff drove in a run each.

The O’s go for the series sweep tonight as the Orioles’ Erik Bedard counters with Royals ace, Gil Meche.

***

The Baltimore Sun’s Jeff Zrebiec has a recap of last night’s game as does the Baltimore Examiner. Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post pens an article on Jeremy Guthrie and his results last night.

As we all have seen, Miguel Tejada and Melvin Mora have made their share of mental errors this season, and while they have great fielding numbers, they could both use improvement.

Alan Eskew of the Orioles.com notes that the team’s bats have been hot as of late.

The O, By the Way Blog has a recap of the game last night along with other topics.

Adam Kilgore has a piece about Brian Roberts and the art of the stolen base…

The Baltimore Sun has a question with Juan Samuel about what makes a good base stealer…

The Baltimore Examiner Examiner has some minor league news, most important being, the return of Bill Rowell.

Jim Palmer is set to represent that Baltimore Orioles at the 2007 First Year Draft.

Quick Hits; The Game Last Night, O's win 9-1...

Well, after taking 2 of 3 from the A’s over the weekend, the Orioles hoped to stop in Kansas City to continue their winning ways.

Last night, they did by a score of 9-1.

Well, the unexpected savior of the pitching staff, Steve Trachsel pitched a five-hitter to win his third straight start and lead the Orioles to victory. Personally, I didn’t think he was going to be this good – just merely adequate and a good 5th starter.

It remains to be seen if he can keep up his remarkable run, but although he does not have remarkably good stuff, he gets the ball in play and fools hitters with his array of pitches.

Once again, the Oriole bats did the talking as they scored ten runs en route to victory.

The big boon for the team came in the fourth inning as Ramon Hernandez, who had been slumping, hit a grand slam homer off Scott Elarton.

Also driving in runs were Jay Payton who had two RBI, Aubrey Huff, Kevin Millar and Miguel Tejada had once each.

The Royals and Oriole face off again tonight.

***

Jeff Zrebeic has a recap of last night’s game in which the Orioles dominated.

Jay Gibbons is frustrated by having a terrible time of things at the plate, but this time he does not blame Sam Perlozzo for benching him.

The O, By the Way blog by Bill Ordine has his thoughts of last night’s game.

Washington Post writer Tom Boswell in an article titled “Orioles Have to Learn to Lay Off the Change-up”; he opines that the Orioles need to have an organizational change – starting with the players and front office taking accountability. He notes that it is not the fault of same Perlozzo, but rather a decade of losing, selfish players, and the front office.

Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post mentions that Chad Bradford and Jamie Walker will share the setup role, as well Jay Payton being hot as of late.

The orioles.com has an article up on their web site about the team’s running game – mainly, the stolen base.

The Baltimore Sun has a question with Brian Roberts, this time about what he takes on extended road trips…