Rodrigo Lopez struggles and falls to 6-11.

So the pitching didn’t improve any. And Rodrigo didn’t improve his trade value any. And we blew multiple chances to win the game. But I liked the way the team fought back to within one after being down 13-3. The offense exploded tonight for 12 runs on 22 hits…and we lost. Rodrigo Lopez started off good, then got lit up for 7 runs in less than 5 innings. The Devil Rays scored 10 runs in one inning. Kurt Birkins came in after Rodrigo and didn’t do anything useful. He recorded one out, sure, but he also gave up 2 homeruns and 3 runs in that 1/3 of an inning. Chris Britton struck the only batter he faced out, then got pulled for Todd Williams who gave up 3 more runs. Bruce Chen and LaTroy Hawkins got through the rest of the game unscathed. Todd Williams should be done as an Oriole after this season. At least on the MLB squad. Bruce Chen’s last 2 outings have been good, but he still has an ERA over 7. Hawkins improves his trade value, instead of doing what Rodrigo did. Birkins has come back down to earth since his sizzling start. I still think Rodrigo will be traded and fetch us the most of anyone we will trade. This has been an incredibly rough road trip for the pitchers so far. It can only get better from here one would hope.

The offense did alot of good things tonight and would have won on 98% of games played, but they also made some mistakes. We scored 3 runs in the first inning. The pitcher only recorded 1 out in the inning… because we ran ourselves right out of the inning by getting thrown out on 2 chances. We would have scored more than 3 runs if we didn’t go and do that. The other gaffe was in the 8th when we had the bases loaded with nobody out and only needed a run to tie the game. We couldn’t even manage that. Brian Roberts popped out and Ramon Hernandez hit into a double play. The positives were there though. Roberts went 4-6 with 2 doubles and an RBI. Corey Patterson went 5-5 with 2 doubles, 2 RBI and a stolen base. Brandon Fahey went 2-3 with an RBI. Miguel Tejada went 4-5 with a walk. Melvin Mora went 2-5 with a walk and 2 RBI. Jeff Conine went 2-4 with a walk and 3 RBI. Everyone had at least one hit except for Ramon Hernandez. You can’t really blame the offense on a loss like this, but they did play stupid and couldn’t do it in the clutch.

Markakis watch: 1-3 (.276)

Tomorrow is the battle of the dominant lefties as Erik Bedard (11-6, 4.02), haven’t I said this before?, goes to the mound for the birds against Scott Kazmir (10-7, 3.40). I guarantee that the scoring won’t be like the last 2 games, thats for sure. I feel optimistic with Bedard on the hill… and thats more than I can say for any other pitcher not named Britton or Ray. Go O’s.

Russ Ortiz gets the loss to fall to 0-7 overall.

Erik Bedard was supposed to start last night, and I have no doubt in my mind that the outcome would have been much different if he actually did. But he got food poisoning and has been pushed back to sunday. Ortiz got the emergency start since he only pitched 2 2/3 innings in his last outing. What he did last night was probably the worst pitching performance ever for an orioles pitcher. He faced 6 batters and didn’t get any out. He gave up 5 hits (including 2 doubles and a homerun), 6 runs, and a walk. Adam Loewen came in to replace him and pitched decent for 2 innings before he too imploded. He pitched 4 innings overall, giving up 6 hits, 5 runs, and 2 walks. Most of the damage came on a grand slam by Jorge Cantu. Eddy Rodriguez came in for Loewen in the 5th and he did just as bad. He pitched 3 innings and gave up 3 hits (2 homeruns), 3 runs, and 2 walks. Finally Chris Britton pitched a scoreless inning to stop the bleeding.

Russ Ortiz needs to go. Now. I don’t care who replaces him, but he has to go. Bring Daniel Cabrera back up. Bring Brian Burres up. I don’t care. Just release Russ Ortiz. There is no excuse for this guy. He just plain sucks. We never should have signed him in the first place. Adam Loewen still has some work to do, but he was called upon for an emergency situation because Ortiz sucks so bad. Loewen was supposed to start sunday, and he didn’t have any excuses to pitch on less rest like Ortiz did. Eddy Rodriguez continues to struggle in the majors despite dominating AAA. I don’t know what to do with the guy. I guess let him pitch in meaningless innings until he figures it out because he obviously is too good for AAA right now. Britton continues to impress…good job.

The offense scored 7 runs, but that doesn’t mean anything when your opponent scores 14. Some positives for the offense. We got off to a 2-0 lead in the first innings, but then Tampa Bay came back with 12 unanswered. Luis Terrero had a hit and 3 RBIs. Miguel Tejada went 3-4 with a double and 2 RBIs. Brian Roberts, Ramon Hernandez, and Corey Patterson had doubles also, Hernandez with an RBI. Kevin Millar had the other RBI. Roberts also had 2 walks and 2 stolen bases. But none of it really mattered because of…..you guessed it, the pitching – lead by Russ Ortiz – sucked so bad.

Markakis watch: 0-3 (.275)

Tonight we try again, with trade bait Rodrigo Lopez (6-10, 6.44) going up against rookie Tim Corcoran (4-1, 2.48) in game 2 of a 3 game series. The O’s need to win the next 5 games to have a respectable road trip since we’re facing the only team behind us in the east and the lowly Kansas City Royals. Go O’s.

Also, check out www.orioleshangout.com (the message board) for some inside information on Peter Angelos and the O’s front office. Its really disappointing and a little shocking. Hopefully Tony Pente bringing this out to the open can help change how things are done.

Kris Benson loses again, he’s 9-9 on the season.

Benson did not continue his steady pitching from his last start. He went 6 innings giving 9 hits (3 homeruns) and 5 runs. Even with his excellent last start his ERA is 7.07 in his last 4 starts. I’m not too worried about it, I think thats just what you have to expect from Kris Benson. Hes gonna give you some good starts, some bad, but mostly just enough. He’ll give you an ERA in the mid 4′s and have an about een record. Hes the kind of pitcher good teams have as a 4th or 5th starter. He could be an important piece next year if we make some moves and try to compete. Bruce Chen came on and actually pitched very well for 3 innings. He didn’t give up any hits or walks and struck out 3. With all the dumping we should be doing before the trade deadline, Chen could actually be of some use, if hes still here, keeping the bullpen warm for next year.

As for the offense, it struggled as excpected. The lefty Cy Young candidate was on the mound and he did as good as you would expect against the O’s lineup that can’t hit lefties to save their lives. The only surprise was that he only recorded 2 strikeouts. The O’s only had 6 hits and only one was for extra bases (a double by Kevin Millar). Millar actually had 2 hits and the only run. The other hits came from Nick Markakis, Luis Terrero, Corey Patterson, and Ramon Hernandez (who had the only RBI). Brian Roberts got the day off with Chris Gomez getting his first start since rejoining the O’s. He went 0-3 with 2 GIDPs. I was surprised to see Hernandez back behind the plate today after catching last night in a game that lasted past 11PM. Javy Lopez back was bothering him and he couldn’t give Hernandez the day off. I don’t expect Hernandez to last very long if he doesn’t get some rest every once in a while. I can’t wait to get rid of Javy, so we can actually have a real back up catcher. Not a back up hitter (if you wanna call him that) that catches every once in a while.

Markakis watch: 1-3 (.278)

The O’s get the day off tomorrow before heading down to Tampa Bay to try and hold off the Devil Rays for 4th place. Erike Bedard (11-6, 4.02) pitches, so we should be able to win. He goes against lefty (DOH!) Casey Fossum (3-3, 4.91). Go O’s.

Eddy Rodriguez gets the loss. He’s 0-1.

Russ Ortiz continues to prove to the world that he doesn’t belong in Major League Baseball. The O’s got lucky that there was an hour and a half rain delay, since they had to bring in somebody else after the long rest. Ortiz gave up 3 runs in less than 3 innings. He looked pretty good until he gave a triple and back to back homeruns to start off the 3rd. Then he beaned Mark Kotsay in the head before the rains came. Eddy Rodriguez didn’t do much better in his first appearance since being called up. In getting the loss, Rodriguez pitched the rest of the 3rd and 2 more innings, giving up a hit and 2 runs (both unearned) with 4 walks and 2 strikeouts. The runs came in when Rodriguez threw a ball past Brian Roberts and into center field, leading the way for the 4th and 5th runs to come in. Eddy has incredible control in AAA, but terrible control with the big club… I gotta hope he can get past the hump and be effective for us. Chris Britton and LaTroy Hawkins both pitched 2 scoreless, effective innings. Keep it up LaTroy…

Brandon Fahey is in the middle of a hitless streak, he went 0-5 tonight. His average is down to .267. Not too much doing for the offense tonight. Kevin Millar hit a 2-run homerun to push the O’s early lead to 3-0. Corey Patterson had 2 hits, as did Nick Markakis which included an RBI double. Jeff Conine had another RBI single tonight, where is he gonna end up? San Francisco? Miguel Tejada had a basehit in 3 at bats. The bats just weren’t enough tonight to come back in the end after the bullpen did a nice job of holding the A’s offense late.

Markakis watch: 2-3 (.278)

Tomorrow afternoon is another game and another chance to take the series from the A’s. Kris Benson (9-8, 4.59) hopes to have another complete game against Oakland ace Barry Zito (9-6, 3.30) in an early afternoon game. I don’t like our chances, especially against the lefty, but maybe Benson can hold the Oakland offense and we can scrap together a few runs. Go O’s.

Kurt Bikrins gets the win in relief, he’s now 5-1. Chris Ray closes out the game for his 23rd save.

Adam Loewen started the game and went 5 innings, only giving up 2 runs and 1 hit. He had 5 strikeouts….6 walks and 2 HBP. He looked better than his previous starts, but still the control isn’t good enough. The left handed version of Daniel Cabrera so far, but I have hope. He clearly has nothing left to prove at the minor league level, and we clearly have nothing to prove in the standings. He can get some experience and come in next year armed and ready. Chris Britton, Kurt Bikrins, Todd WIlliams, and Chris Ray each pitched an inning of relief. Britton gave up a run, other than that they were great.

Brian Roberts continued his hot streak which I kinda predicted. I was just hoping really… last night he went 2-2 with 2 walks and a stolen base. Now I’ll predict that he starts hitting with some power in the next couple weeks. Hey, it worked before… Melvin Mora and Miguel Tejada both went 2-4, Mora with one RBI and Miggy with 2. The Angel’s Orlando Cabrera said he would move to 3rd base if the Angels got Miguel Tejada. That could make the Angels push harder for him and give us enough to trade him. Who knows… Brandon Fahey and Ramon Hernandez were the only players without a hit. Hernandez is in a pretty big slump, I’d like to see him get on track again soon. Jeff Conine had the other RBI. Keep producing Jeff, the more you do, the more we get in a trade.

Markakis watch: 1-4 (.273)

Tonight its Russ Ortiz (0-1, 8.68) and Esteban Loaiza (3-5, 6.34) in a match up of two terrible pitchers. I think we’re going to have to score a season high in runs tonight in order to win our 4th in a row. Good luck O’s…

Rodrigo Lopez wins his 6th game of the year to go with his 10 losses.

Rodrigo pitched good again, going 5 2/3 innings. He only gave up 5 singles and a walk. He struck out 2. His last 3 starts could only have raised his trade value. I’m hoping we can trade him before his next start, so he doesn’t ruin whatever value he has recently built up. I think we could get some outfield help for him. I’m thinking a deal to the Mets for Xavier Nady or Victor Diaz. If I had to guess. Kurt Birkins, Todd Williams, and Chris Ray combined for 3 1/3 perfect relief innings. Solid pitching all around for the 3rd straight game. Maybe Todd Williams could get us something at the deadline…

On the offensive side, every starter got a at least one hit except Brandon Fahey. But he did a nice job of getting the runner from 2nd to 3rd on a grounder to the right side early on. Melvin Mora had 3 hits, an RBI, and a stolen base. Brian Roberts went 2-4 with a double, a walk, and a stolen base. Miguel Tejada hit a 2-run homer in the first inning and Nick Markakis hit a solo shot in the 5th. Markakis has been hitting for average lately, if he can start mixing in some power with that, we could see the next home grown Oriole star.

Markakis watch: 1-4 (.273)

So a good finish to the Texas series after a terrible start. Adam Loewen (0-2, 7.12) makes his return tomorrow night against the Oakland A’s. He’ll be facing Jason Windsor who will be making his major league debut. If Loewen can pitch how did when he was sent down for 3 games, we’ll have this one in the bag. Seems like the Orioles have seen alot of pitchers major league debuts this year…maybe thats just me. Go O’s

Erik Bedard continues his dominance. He now sits at 11-6.

Bedard has now won 6 consecutive starts. His ERA is now down to 4.02 after his 7 innings yesterday. He gave up one run, but it was unearned. He gave up 6 hits and a walk, and he had 6 strikeouts. I don’t think theres any question now that Bedard has turned a corner. He asn’t even this impressive when he started last year hot. Plus he now has Leo Mazzone to keep him at this level (hopefully). I would give him one more year before we lock him up for years to come since I don’t think the arbitor would give him too much of a raise. He’ll still be cheap for his production.

The bullpen was good in 2 innings yesterday as well. LaTroy Hawkins pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. Keep up the good work while you’re still here LaTroy. Chris Ray struck out the side for a perfect ninth. Nice to see, since it appeared he was having a little trouble striking out hitters recently.

The hitting actually came to life in time to give Bedard some run support. Everyone in the lineup had at least one hit. Kevin Millar had 2 hits, Miguel Tejada had 2 hits, Nick Markakis had 2 hits, and Jeff Conine had 3. I like seeing players that are on the trade block having good games to up their value. Rodrigo Lopez should have a good start tomorrow to keep up the trend. Markakis keeps up his hot streak. I have a bet with my boss that he will finish the season with a batting average over .280. I like my chances… or why else would I make the bet… I’m rooting for him to hit over .300 just for good measure. Anyway, the only extra base hits in the game were doubles by Brian Roberts, Melvin Mora, and Jeff Conine.

The O’s need to win today to split the series against the Rangers. Rodrigo Lopez (5-10, 6.77) goes up against John Wasdin (2-1,4.26). I wanna see the offense continue where they left off yesterday and I wanna see Rodrigo have a good start. I’m sure there will be some scouts at the game for him. Go O’s.

Kris Benson gets the loss despite a good performance. He’s now 9-8 on the season.

The pitching was not to blame tonight. Benson pitched a complete game only giving up the 2 runs. He let up 4 hits and 3 walks with 2 strikeouts. Great outing despite the loss. Here is one example of why won-lost records aren’t significant. A pitcher can pitch his ass off like Benson did tonight and get the loss, while a pitcher could give up 8 runs over 5 innings and get the win. As long as his team has 9 runs when he leaves and they end up winning.

The hitting once again was held to one run, on 6 hits. Brian Roberts went 2-4. I guess I was right about him breaking out of his slump. Brandon Fahey, Melvin Mora, Jeff Conine, and Nick Markakis had the other hits. This is getting pretty sad. Where are all our run producers at? Its not like the Rangers have some of the best pitching in the league. People say we need starting pitching to compete. I think that a power hitting first baseman and at least one capable outfielder are just as needed right now. Our hitting is not at the level we need it to be. Either is the pitching, but people tend to put everything on them.

Tomorrow night should be a win, since Erik Bedard (10-6, 4.28) is pitching. He’ll be going up against John Rheinecker (4-3, 3.96). Go O’s.