World Champions 1983, 1970, 1966

American League Champions 1983, 1979, 1971, 1970, 1969, 1966 American League East Division Champions 2014, 1997, 1983, 1979, 1974, 1973, 1971, 1970, 1969

American League Wild Card 2012, 1996

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Game Stories:

Ubaldo Jimenez earns 100th career win, Orioles quiet Nats in 4-1 victory The Sun 9/22

Ubaldo leads O's over Nats in Beltways opener MLB.com 9/23

Jimenez helps his own cause (O's win 4-1) MASNsports.com 9/22

Ubaldo Jimenez becomes 11th Dominican-born pitcher with 100 wins as O's top Nats

MASNsports.com 9/22

Jimenez gets 100th career victory, Orioles beat Nationals Associated Press 9/22

Jimenez wins 100th game, Orioles beat Nationals 4-1 CSN Mid-Atlantic 9/22

Columns:

Orioles right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez humbled by joining impressive list of Dominican

hurlers The Sun 9/23

Yogi Berra was wonderful 'unless you were batting,' O's slugger Boog Powell remembers

The Sun 9/23

Orioles closer Zach Britton dealing with strained lat The Sun 9/22

Orioles notebook: Thursday's game causing travel problems for O's The Sun 9/22

Century club: Ubaldo earns 100th victory MLB.com 8/23

Jones improving, but back issue lingering MLB.com 8/22

Leftovers from last night's win, tonight's game and more MASNsports.com 9/23

Zach Britton's injury and a 4-1 win MASNsports.com 9/22

Notes on Jones, the rotation, Gonzalez, Harvey and more MASNsports.com 9/22

Adam Jones out of Orioles lineup (with Nats lineup) MASNsports.com 9/22

Sad news on former Oriole Walter Young MASNsports.com 9/22

O's slowed down a hot-hitting Nats team last night, plus other notes MASNsports.com

9/23

O's game blog: A look at the Orioles' road record and tonight's game MASNsports.com

9/22

Orioles-Nationals Preview SI.com 9/23

Norfolk manager brings talent to Orioles CSN Mid-Atlantic 9/22

Rainout complicate Orioles' travel plans CSN Mid-Atlantic 9/22

Jones again out of lineup with back spasms CSN Mid-Atlantic 9/22

Are Orioles Or Nationals The Bigger Disappointment In 2015? PressBoxOnline.com

9/22

Mel Antonen Says The Pitching Rotation Has Been The Biggest Disappointment CBS

Baltimore 9/22

Orioles RP Zach Britton unavailable Tuesday with sore lat muscle CBSSports.com 9/22

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/bal-ubaldo-jimenez-earns-100th-career-win-orioles-

quiet-nats-in-41-victory-20150922-story.html

Ubaldo Jimenez earns 100th career win, Orioles quiet Nats

in 4-1 victory

By Eduardo A. Encina / The Baltimore Sun

September 22, 2015

Ubaldo Jimenez wore a proud smile, as well as remnants of a celebratory shaving cream pie

given to him by teammates Gerardo Parra and Wei-Yin Chen, following the Orioles' 4-1 victory

over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.

Yes, the Orioles' win at Nationals Park was a messy one. The Orioles committed three errors and

walked six batters, five of those issued by Jimenez. But right now, it doesn't matter how they get

them — the Orioles just need wins.

With less than two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Orioles (74-76) have little more

than math on their side. They are five games out of the second American League wild-card spot,

with four teams between them and a playoff spot with just 12 games left.

“[When you] look on the board and you've got more errors than them, you don't like your

chances, and you've got more walks than them,” Orioles manager Showalter said after the win.

“We were fortunate.”

They helped their own cause Tuesday night while also denting the postseason hopes of their

regional rivals in front of a mixed-allegiance crowd of 27,338 at Nationals Park. The Orioles

ended the Nationals' three-game winning streak, keeping them 6½ games back of the National

League East-leading New York Mets with 12 games remaining.

Jimenez won his third straight decision and earned his 100th career victory, becoming the 11th

Dominican-born pitcher to reach the milestone. Despite issuing four walks over his first three

innings, Jimenez (12-9) held the Nationals to one unearned run on three hits over six innings.

“It means a lot because it's not easy to come to the stadium and get a ‘W' every five days,”

Jimenez said. “It doesn't matter how you look at it, it's not easy. You have to go through a lot of

tough times, a lot of good times. … Once you get that number, you take a break and you look

back and it seems like yesterday when I got to the big leagues. I already have eight years and 100

wins.”

Jimenez, a career .115 hitter entering the night who spent his early years batting regularly in with

the Colorado Rockies, helped his own cause by driving in the game's first run with a two-out

RBI single in the second inning. Jimenez also had an RBI single in his last interleague start in an

NL park on June 17 in Philadelphia.

“That was fun,” Jimenez said. “You don't get to do that every day. Every time you have the

chance to help the team out and get it going, it's really neat. It's really nice. You have to enjoy

every hit you can.”

Jimenez's single, which scored Caleb Joseph from second base, was the first of back-to-back

two-out singles. Nolan Reimold followed Jimenez's hit with an RBI single of his own to score

J.J. Hardy and give the Orioles an early 2-0 lead.

The Orioles scored two more runs in the fifth inning on back-to-back RBI doubles by Chris

Davis and Steve Pearce, both off Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez (11-8), who allowed four

runs over 4 2/3 innings, tied for his third-shortest start of the season.

Manny Machado started that rally with a one-out single -- the 500th hit of his career -- and then

rounded the bases when Davis laced an opposite-field double into the left-field corner. Ian

Desmond's relay throw home was on target, but Machado just beat catcher Jose Lobaton's sweep

tag with a head-first slide into the plate.

Pearce followed with a double to left on a 2-2 pitch -- his fourth extra-base hit over his past four

games -- scoring Davis easily from second to give the Orioles a 4-1 lead.

“I think we have a lot of things going our way,” Machado said. “I think everyone's clicking,

everyone's doing what they need to do, doing their job. I think that's what it takes to get to where

we want to go. Everyone needs to chip in and be a part of it. If you need to drive in a runner, if

you need to play defense, if you need to get an out. I think we all know what we need to be doing

and that's what we're doing.”

The Nationals' only run came in a mistake-plagued fourth inning that began with center fielder

Junior Lake -- filling in for starter Adam Jones -- dropping a fly ball off the bat of Clint

Robinson for a two-base error.

Desmond then put runners at the corners on an infield hit to third base. Second baseman

Jonathan Schoop then made an over-the-shoulder catch on Michael Taylor's popup to shallow

right, and sent a pinpoint throw home on the fly to prevent a run from scoring.

But Schoop then booted a ball at second, allowing Robinson to score from third for the

Nationals' only run off Jimenez.

The Orioles defense helped Jimenez escape further damage that inning when Joseph jumped

from behind the plate on Gonzalez's sacrifice bunt and started a 2-5-4 third-to-first double play

with Schoop covering first. Gonzalez was initially called safe at first, but the call was overturned

by replay review after manager Buck Showalter issued a challenge.

“It was huge,” Showalter said of the double play.

Jimenez let four of the first seven batters he faced reach base, three by walks, but emerged

unscathed.

He issued back-to-back one-out walks in the first inning, but struck out Jayson Werth looking on

a full count and retired Robinson on a grounder to the mound.

Jimenez issued a leadoff walk to Desmond in the second inning, but one pitch later Joseph

picked off Desmond, who initially broke for second. Jimenez then allowed a bunt single to

Taylor, but struck out Lobaton and Gonzalez to end the inning.

“I think in the beginning of the game, I was walking a lot of guys from the windup,” Jimenez

said. “That was my trouble. It was the first guy I faced every inning. Once I got to the stretch, I

was able to throw strikes and able to throw good pitches. After that, I was able to figure it out

because my fastball was too short. I'm talking about getting to the plate, everything was down. I

was bouncing everything -- the split and the fastball -- so I was able to throw a little bit up so it

was able to be a strike.”

After Brad Brach tossed two scoreless innings in relief of Jimenez, Darren O'Day pitched a

scoreless ninth for his fourth save. It was the second time in five games that Showalter has gone

to O'Day over closer Zach Britton in a save situation.

After the game, Showalter said Britton wasn't available to pitch. Britton said he was dealing with

a sore left lat muscle and considers himself day-to-day. Britton said the injury first crept up

during the team's last home series against Boston last week and popped up again this weekend in

Tampa Bay.

“I tried to pitch through it a little bit,” Britton said. “But we take credit in keeping our bullpen

healthy and our starters healthy. They just felt like it was better right now to give it a few days,

and Darren's capable of pitching the ninth. When you have that, it makes it a little easier for me

to take my time. I want to be out there, but Darren can pick up the slack. He could be closing for

a lot of teams."

The Nationals put the leadoff runner on first in the ninth when Pearce dropped Taylor's fly ball

down the right-field line. But O'Day retired the next three hitters he faced to seal the win.

"It wasn't pretty but we did what good teams do; we found ways to overcome it,” Pearce said.

“We made mental errors, physical errors, but that's part of the game. We just have to look to

improve tomorrow."

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/151059492/ubaldo-leads-os-over-nats-in-beltways-opener

Ubaldo leads O's over Nats in Beltways opener

By Bill Ladson and Jacob Emert / MLB.com

September 23, 2015

WASHINGTON -- The Nationals know what's at stake as they approach the final weeks of the

season. They have to win almost every game if they want to catch the Mets in the National

League East race. The Orioles, meanwhile, are hoping to leapfrog a handful of teams and make a

run at an American League Wild Card spot. The O's struck first in the Battle of the Beltways on

Tuesday, beating the Nats, 4-1, at Nationals Park to move within five games of the second AL

Wild Card spot.

Washington remains 6 1/2 games behind the Mets, who lost to the Braves. With 12 games left in

the season, the magic number for the Nationals to be eliminated is six.

It was a game that saw Orioles right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez have his way with the Nationals. He

pitched six innings, allowed one unearned run on three hits and struck out five batters.

"He had good command of all of his pitches," Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper said. "He kept

us off balance. His sinker was pretty good, his curveball was pretty good. He pitched well. He

threw to his strengths."

Jimenez did the job with the bat as well, driving in the first run of the game with a single to

center in the second inning off left-hander Gio Gonzalez.

"That was fun," Jimenez said. "You don't get to do that every day. Every time you have the

chance to help the team out and get it going, it's really neat. It's really nice. You have to enjoy

every hit you can."

Gonzalez didn't have his best stuff, lasting just 4 2/3 innings and allowing four runs on six hits

while striking out six and walking two. He was taken out of the game in the fifth inning after he

allowed RBI doubles to Chris Davis and Steve Pearce.

Gonzalez blamed himself for the loss. He didn't stick to the game plan set by catcherJose

Lobaton.

"Lobby had a great plan. I tried to reinvent the wheel. I tried to change it up on these guys,"

Gonzalez said. "Obviously, I was wrong. I should give Lobby more of the credit he deserves. He

did a great job behind the dish. Again, my mistake making bad choices of pitches."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

One of many for Manny: With one out in the fifth, Manny Machado singled to right field. It

was the 500th hit of his career and the first of the three consecutive knocks that extended

Baltimore's lead to 4-1 and chased Gonzalez from the game.

"I mean, yeah, you look at [the records]," Machado said. "It's something that's always there,

something that you hopefully want to be just close to it. It's something that, Cal [Ripken]'s record

and Eddie Murray's, it goes on. I think you just want to have half the careers they've had, and

kind of not really think about it. Just go out there and play and whatever comes your way is

going to come."

Walk this way: Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper walked three times in the game. He now

has 118 walks, which broke Adam Dunn's Nats record of 116 set in 2009.

"I'm trying to be the best, trying to get on base. I have faith in the guys behind me to get it done,"

Harper said. "If I can just get on base, if we score runs, we are winning ballgames."

Work with what you got: Jimenez walked five hitters and threw only 55 percent of his pitches

for strikes, but he was able to work around the command troubles and limit the Nationals to the

one unearned run. A host of misplays including two errors led to the run in the fourth, but he

struck out five to earn the 100th win of his career.

"The thing about Ubaldo, he takes the ball every fifth day, he's been a healthy pitcher, he takes

care of himself, you never have to worry about him being ready on the day he pitches. It's a big

moment for him, especially for him," manager Buck Showalter said. "Sometimes we forget how

long and good a career he's actually had."

Fister and company do the job: Manager Matt Williams went to the bullpen in the bottom of

the fifth inning and the relievers pitched 4 1/3 innings without allowing a run. Doug Fister was

the most impressive, pitching two shutout innings and striking out four batters.

QUOTABLE

"We just have to win. If we win ballgames, that's what we have to do. We have to come in here

and win games. If we do that, I think we can be in contention. We have to keep winning, keep

going, keep battling the best that we can."

-- Harper

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

Ken Singleton holds the Montreal/Washington franchise record for most walks in a season with

123 free passes in 1973. Singleton played all 162 games in that season.

REPLAY REVIEW

After two Baltimore errors led to Washington's first run, Gonzalez tried to move Ian Desmond to

third base with a sacrifice bunt. Caleb Joseph got the forceout at third, but Machado's relay to

first for the double-play attempt was ruled not in time, which manager Buck Showalter

challenged. The call was overturned, and the 2-5-4 double play ended the fourth inning.

WHAT'S NEXT

Orioles: Baltimore will pitch Chris Tillman (9-11, 5.19 ERA) in Wednesday's second game of

the Beltways Series, with first pitch set for 7:05 p.m. ET. He hasn't pitched through the sixth

inning in any of his four September starts, and in four career starts against the Nationals, he is 0-

0 with a 4.37 ERA.

Nationals: Right-hander Max Scherzer will take the mound vs. the O's. In his last start on Friday,

Scherzer ended up with a no-decision, allowing two runs – on Christian Yelich's home run in the

first inning -- and five hits, while striking out six over seven innings.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2015/09/jimenez-helps-his-own-cause.html

Jimenez helps his own cause (O's win 4-1)

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON - Who needs a designated hitter?

The Orioles did OK without one in the second inning tonight, getting a two-out RBI single from

starter Ubaldo Jimenez to break a scoreless tie with the Nationals.

Nolan Reimold followed with a single into left field that scored J.J. Hardy to increase the lead to

2-0. Caleb Joseph and Hardy drew one-out walks against left-hander Gio Gonzalez.

Gonzalez threw 10 pitches in the first inning, when Chris Davis reached on a two-out error by

shortstop Ian Desmond, but he needed 23 to get through the second. Junior Lake flied to the right

field fence with two outs to move Joseph to third base and Jimenez lined a 94 mph fastball into

right-center field.

Jimenez smiled as he leaned forward at first base, hands on his knees and chest heaving from the

sprint up the line.

Jimenez is 33-for-280 (.118) with 11 RBIs, 17 walks and 96 strikeouts in the majors. He's 2-for-6

with two RBIs this season.

The Orioles are playing their final interleague series, so they've got two more games without a

designated hitter. Jimenez eased the loss a little tonight.

If only he could more easily locate the plate. Jimenez walked three of the first six batters he

faced and threw 22 pitches in the first inning while stranding Yunel Escobar and Bryce Harper.

Ian Desmond led off the second with a walk, but Joseph picked him off first base.

Jimenez has thrown 42 pitches in two innings. He's struck out three batters.

Lake is making his first start in center field with the Orioles and his 66th in the majors while

Adam Jones remains out of the lineup with back spasms.

"I feel good," Lake said. "I like to play center field. I feel comfortable there. I play everywhere. I

don't care what position it is. I just want to play."

Lake didn't assume that he'd be in tonight's lineup when he showed up at Nationals Park.

"Not at all," he said. "I don't have that control. I don't control the lineup. If they want to put me in

center or right or left, I know how to play them.

"I feel comfortable in center, but I don't care. I play everywhere. It doesn't matter what position."

Update: The Orioles made a series of mistakes in the field that led to a Nationals run in the

fourth.

Lake dropped a fly ball in left-center field and Jonathan Schoop bobbled a double play ball that

should have ended the inning without a run scoring. Schoop made a great running catch in

shallow right field with his back to the infield, spun and threw home to hold Clint Robinson at

third base, but he should have deferred to right fielder Steve Pearce.

Gonzalez bunted into a double play that allowed the Orioles to stay ahead 2-1. He was ruled safe,

but the call was overturned.

The Orioles got the run back in the fifth on Manny Machado's one-out single - the 500th hit of

his career - and Davis' RBI double to left. Machado raced home from first base and made a great

play to score, reaching for the plate with his left hand while avoiding the tag.

They weren't done. Pearce followed with an RBI double. Orioles 4, Nationals 1

Update II: The Orioles defeat the Nationals 4-1 and are two games below .500 again.

Jimenez wins his fourth consecutive start and becomes the 11th Dominican-born pitcher to

record 100 victories. Brad Brach tosses two scoreless innings and Darren O'Day records his

fourth save.

Jimenez allowed one unearned run and three hits in six innings, with five walks and five

striekouts. He was removed after 110 pitches.

The Orioles won despite committing three errors for the fourth time this season. They began the

night with 65, the fewest in the majors.

http://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2015/09/ubaldo-jimenez-becomes-11th-dominican-

born-pitcher-with-100-wins-as-os-top-nats.html

Ubaldo Jimenez becomes 11th Dominican-born pitcher with

100 wins as O's top Nats

By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

On the way to his 100th career win tonight, Orioles right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez walked five,

struck out five, drove in a run and weathered an ugly defensive inning.

So his night was eventful.

Jimenez also allowed just one unearned run over six innings, becoming the 11th Dominican-born

pitcher to record 100 wins as the Orioles beat Washington 4-1 at Nats Park.

In winning for the ninth time in their last 13 games, the Orioles improved to 2-2 on the year

versus the Nationals and to 74-76 for the season. It was just the second loss in nine games for the

Nats, who are 78-72.

Jimenez walked two in the first inning and issued leadoff walks in the second and third innings,

but kept Washington off the board until allowing one run during a fourth inning where the

Orioles made two errors. He allowed just three hits and improves to 12-9 with an ERA of 4.16

with a 110-pitch outing.

In four career starts at Nats Park, Jimenez is 4-0 with an ERA of 0.92. He is now 6-1 with an

ERA of 2.32 in eight career starts against Washington. Jimenez tonight became the 600th pitcher

in major league history with 100 victories.

In the O's second, Caleb Joseph and J.J. Hardy drew one-out walks from left-hander Gio

Gonzalez. They scored on RBI singles by Jimenez and Nolan Reimold. Jimenez drove a 94 mph

fastball to right-center for his second RBI and hit of the year.

Center fielder Junior Lake dropped Clint Robinson's fly ball for a two-base error in a

Washington fourth that also included an error by second baseman Jonathan Schoop. But when

Gonzalez bunted into a 2-5-4 double play, Jimenez got out of trouble. What had the look of a big

inning did not turn out to be that.

After that ugly inning on defense, the O's quickly added to their lead. Manny Machado singled

with one out in the fifth for his 500th career hit. Chris Davis and Steve Pearce followed with

back-to-back RBI doubles for a 4-1 lead. That was Davis' 110th RBI.

Gonzalez allowed four runs over 4 2/3 innings to take the loss and is 11-8 with an ERA of 3.94.

Over his previous three starts, he was 2-0 with a 1.47 ERA.

After Pearce's RBI double, 14 of the last 15 Orioles were retired. But their pitchers made the lead

stand up with a combined three-hitter. Brad Brach replaced Jimenez in the seventh and fanned

three in two scoreless innings. Darren O'Day, not Zach Britton, pitched the last of the ninth to

record his fourth save.

The O's staff slowed down a Nats offense that had scored 193 runs (6.0 per game) their past 32

games.

In the second game of this series on Wednesday night, Chris Tillman (9-11, 5.19 ERA) pitches

for the Orioles against right-hander Max Scherzer (12-11, 2.90 ERA).

http://www.si.com/mlb/2015/09/22/ap-bbo-orioles-nationals-1st-ld-writethru

Jimenez gets 100th career victory, Orioles beat Nationals

Associated Press / SI.com

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON (AP) Ubaldo Jimenez's outing Tuesday night wasn't always pretty.

It was, however, memorable.

Jimenez pitched six gritty innings to earn his 100th career win and added an RBI single as the

Baltimore Orioles beat the Washington Nationals 4-1 in the rain-delayed opener of a series

between teams fighting to remain in the playoff race.

The 31-year-old Jimenez (12-9) won his third straight decision for Baltimore, which began the

night trailing three teams and six games back for the AL's second wild card.

''It seems like yesterday that I got to the big leagues and I already have eight years and 100 wins,

so it's been a really enjoyable moment,'' Jimenez said.

The Nationals remained 6 1-2 games back of the Mets, who lost to Atlanta, in the NL East. But

New York's magic number to clinch the division dropped to six.

Jimenez walked five, but allowed just an unearned run on three hits while also striking out five.

''I've said it a hundred times, deception is part of his ability to get people out with the fastball and

the movement, and that's how he creates it,'' Orioles manager Buck Showalter said when asked

about the walks.

''You're going to have to sometimes live with it,'' Showalter said. That's a little bit more than you

want to.''

Jimenez is having a bounce-back season. He's doubled his win total from 2014, a year in which

he spent time on the disabled list and finished 6-9.

''In baseball you have to forget quick, because this is a game that can really eat you alive if you

think too much,'' he said.

Monday's opener was postponed by rain. The teams are scheduled to play a makeup game

Thursday.

Darren O'Day pitched the ninth inning for his fourth save.

Chris Davis and Steve Pearce had RBI doubles for Baltimore.

Bryce Harper set the Nationals record for walks, getting three free passes that upped his season

total to 118.

Michael Taylor had two hits for Washington, which had won seven of eight.

''Three hits, a lot of flyballs,'' manager Matt Williams said after Washington hitters stranded nine

baserunners. ''We've been coming through a lot lately, but not tonight.''

Gio Gonzalez (11-8) lasted 4 2-3 innings, allowing four runs on six hits and two walks.

He came in having allowed just three earned runs over his last three starts.

Gonzalez walked two batters with one out in the second inning and both scored.

With runners on first and third, Jimenez lined a two-out single to center to make it 1-0. J.J. Hardy

scored on a Nolan Reimold single.

The Orioles have committed the fewest errors in the majors, but they picked up two in the fourth.

Junior Lake, filling in for Adam Jones in center, dropped a flyball for a two-base error to start the

inning.

Another error, this one by Jonathan Schoop, allowed Washington to score, but the Orioles then

turned a sparkling 2-5-4 double play (aided by a replay review) with Schoop covering first to end

the threat.

The Orioles bumped it to 4-1 in the fifth.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Orioles: Showalter was unsure if Jones (back spasms) would return Wednesday. . RHP Miguel

Gonzalez (right shoulder tendinitis) will pitch a simulated game Wednesday.

Nationals: An MRI revealed INF Danny Espinosa has a small tear in his right hamstring,

Williams said. ''We'll have to be cautious with him for sure,'' said Williams, who didn't have a

timetable regarding Espinosa's availability. ... RHP Jordan Zimmermann could have been moved

ahead of RHP Tanner Roark to pitch Thursday's makeup game with Baltimore on normal rest,

but has a stiff neck and will pitch Friday as planned.

UP NEXT

Baltimore RHP Chris Tillman (9-11, 5.19) looks for his first win since Aug. 17 when he opposes

Max Scherzer (12-11, 2.90). Scherzer has allowed just two runs over 15 innings in his last two

starts.

CHASING JUAN

Jimenez became the 11th pitcher Dominican-born pitcher to earn 100 career wins. Hall of Famer

Juan Marichal leads the way with 243 wins, and current Orioles pitching coach Ramon Martinez

has 135.

''I was able to watch Ramon and Pedro Martinez every five days on the TV when I was a little

kid in the Dominican,'' Jimenez said. ''I never dreamed I was going to be in the same league.''

FISTER FORGES ON

Former Washington starter Doug Fister threw two scoreless innings in relief, striking out four. In

his last five appearances, Fister is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 9 1-3 innings.

http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/blog/orioles-talk/jimenez-wins-fourth-straight-orioles-beat-

nationals-4-1

Jimenez wins 100th game, Orioles beat Nationals 4-1

By Rich Dubroff / CSN Mid-Atlantic

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON –– Ubaldo Jimenez walked out for his postgame interviews dripping with

shaving cream. He had something to celebrate.

Jimenez became the 11th pitcher born in the Dominican Republic to record 100 wins on Tuesday

night.

His win wasn’t especially artful, but statistically it didn’t look bad. Jimenez walked five, but

allowed just three hits and an unearned run in six innings as the Orioles beat the Nationals 4-1

before 27,338 at Nationals Park.

Jimenez (12-9) won his third straight decision and had an RBI single, but it was his milestone

win he was eager to talk about.

“It doesn’t matter how you look at it, it’s not easy. You have to go through a lot of tough times, a

lot of good times and times you’re probably going to enjoy a lot. Once you get that number, you

take a break and you look back and it seems like yesterday when I got to the big leagues. I

already have eight years and 100 wins. It’s been a really enjoyable moment,” Jimenez said.

Manager Buck Showalter was happy for Jimenez.

“It’s a big moment for him,” Showalter said. “Sometimes we forget how long and good a career

he’s actually had.”

The Orioles (74-76), who were rained out on Monday, had the backing of much of the crowd in

this late season “Battle of the Beltway”, but the sense of fun that surrounds these games when

they’re played in the warm weather, was absent as fall arrives.

Brad Brach pitched two hitless innings and Darren O’Day got his fourth save. O’Day was used

where Zach Britton would normally pitch.

Britton revealed after the game he was suffering from a strained left lat muscle, one he hurt last

week against Boston, and Showalter, pitching coach Dave Wallace and bullpen coach Dom Chiti

have been monitoring the injury.

“Tried to come back and pitch in Tampa and it just kind of fired up again. The thing with Buck

and Dave and Dom is they maintain the health of their pitchers probably better than anyone in

the game. He doesn't want to risk my health or anybody's health right now at this point in the

season. We're coming in every day expecting to be able to pitch and just kind of going day by

day,” Britton said.

“But it's been a little bit of a challenge the last few outings to kind of get it to where I want it to

be. So trying to nip it in the bud. It shouldn't be anything that lasts for a long time. Everything

we've heard from the doctors is it's just a couple days. Kind of go day by day, really. It could just

disappear the next day.”

The Orioles scored two runs in the second off Gio Gonzalez. With one out, Caleb Joseph and J.J.

Hardy walked. Joseph took third on Junior Lake’s fly ball to right and scored when Jimenez

singled to right-center.

It was Jimenez’s second hit and RBI of the season.

Nolan Reimold’s run-scoring single made it 2-0.

A horribly played half-inning by the Orioles led to a Washington (78-72) run in the fourth. Lake

playing center in place of the injured Adam Jones, muffed Clint Robinson’s fly ball for a two-

base error. Ian Desmond’s infield single put runners on first and third.

Michael A. Taylor popped to short right. Jonathan Schoop, who nearly collided with right fielder

Steve Pearce, caught the ball with his back to the infield, wheeled and threw home, holding

Robinson at third.

Jose Lobaton bounced to second where Schoop bobbled the ball for an error. Instead of a double

play to end the fourth, Robinson scored, and the lead was 2-1.

Manny Machado singled with one out in the fifth and scored on a great slide after Chris Davis’

double. Pearce’s double drove in Davis, and the Orioles led 4-1.

It was Machado’s 500th hit, an impressive accomplishment for a player who turned 23 in July.

“It’s great that it came. I worked hard to get here,” Machado said. “Hopefully, I’ve got many

more hits to come. Right now it’s just keep playing baseball. If more hits come, just gonna help

the team in whichever way possible. Hopefully I can get more of them.”

Gonzalez (11-8) was removed after 4 2/3 innings. He allowed four runs on six hits.

The Orioles are five games behind Houston for the second wild card.

“I think we have a lot of things going our way. I think everyone’s clicking, everyone’s doing

what they need to do, doing their job. I think that’s what it takes to get to where we want to go,”

Machado said.

NOTES: The Orioles tied a season high by committing three errors. … Chris Tillman (9-11,

5.19) faces Max Scherzer (12-11, 2.90) on Wednesday night.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bal-orioles-righthander-ubaldo-jimenez-

humbled-by-joining-impressive-list-of-dominican-hurlers-20150922-story.html

Orioles right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez humbled by joining

impressive list of Dominican hurlers

By Eduardo A. Encina / The Baltimore Sun

September 23, 2015

WASHINGTON -- Ubaldo Jimenez grew up in the Dominican Republic watching his idols,

Ramon and Pedro Martinez, pitch in the major leagues.

As a kid, Jimenez and his father would crowd around the TV and watch the brothers dominate in

the major leagues, but he never imagined he’d be mentioned in the same breath as them.

But in the Orioles’ 4-1 win over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night, Jimenez became

the 11th Dominican-born pitcher to record 100 career wins.

“I was watching Ramon and Pedro Martinez on the TV every five days when I was a kid,”

Jimenez. “I would have never have dreamed to be in the same league as they are. That’s part of

life. You never know what could happen.”

It’s an impressive list (listed below) that includes two Hall of Famers – Juan Marichal and Pedro

Martinez – and 32 All-Star Games between them.

Jimenez now works closely with Ramon Martinez, a disciple of Orioles pitching coach Dave

Wallace who was hired this offseason by the club to be a special instructor. Jimenez credits

Martinez for helping him to pitch more consistently after last year’s frustrating first season with

the Orioles.

This season has been a frustrating one for Orioles fans, but considering how Jimenez began this

season as one of the rotation’s biggest question marks, he’s turned it around in 2015. And going

through last season, when he led the AL in walks for most of the year and lost his rotation spot

late in the season, helped him enjoy a moment like Tuesday night’s

“It means a lot because my whole career I never give up,” Jimenez said. “When things are going

the way I never expected them to be, I always find a way to keep it going. I never lose my faith

that I’m going to be able to come back and recover and be there for the team. It was really tough

last year, but I was like, I’m just going to forget about everything and that’s what I’ve been doing

my entire career. In baseball you have to forget quick, because this is a game that can really eat

you alive if you think too much.”

After winning his third straight decision, Jimenez is now 12-9 on the season with a 4.16 ERA.

He likely had two starts remaining, so he could win 14 games, which would be his most since

winning 19 in his All-Star season of 2010.

“The thing about Ubaldo is he takes the ball every fifth day,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter

said. “He’s been a healthy pitcher. He takes care of himself, you never have to worry about him

on the day he pitches. It’s a big moment for him…about where he fits on Dominican pitchers all-

time. Sometimes we forget how long and good a career he’s actually had.”

Most career wins by a Dominican-born pitcher

Pitcher Yrs Yrs active W L % ERA

Juan Marichal 16 1960-1975 243 142 .631 2.89

Pedro Martinez 18 1992-2009 219 100 .687 2.93

Bartolo Colon* 18 1997-2015 218 153 .588 3.97

Ramon Martinez 14 1988-2001 135 88 .605 3.67

Pedro Astacio 15 1992-2006 129 124 .510 4.67

Joaquin Andujar 13 1976-1988 127 118 .518 3.58

Ervin Santana* 11 2005-2015 124 104 .544 4.19

Jose Rijo 14 1984-2002 116 91 .560 3.24

Miguel Batista 18 1992-2012 102 115 .470 4.48

Mario Soto 12 1977-1988 100 92 .521 3.47

Ubaldo Jimenez* 10 2006-2015 100 93 .518 4.03

*active

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bal-former-orioles-slugger-boog-powell-

fondly-remembers-yogi-berra-20150923-story.html

Yogi Berra was wonderful 'unless you were batting,' O's

slugger Boog Powell remembers

By Mike Klingaman / The Baltimore Sun

September 23, 2015

Yogi Berra, the Hall of Fame New York Yankees catcher also known for his entertaining "Yogi-

isms," died Tuesday at the age of 90. On Wednesday, longtime Orioles slugger Boog Powell

remembered an interaction with Berra.

"He was wonderful to be around, humble and straightforward, a no b.s. kind of guy -- unless you

were batting and he was behind the plate," Powell said.

"In my first year (1962), I came to bat at Yankee Stadium and, right away, Yogi started talking to

me.

"He said, 'How ya doin'? Did you go out to dinner last night?' Strike one.

"'Did you have a good time?' Strike two.

"'What are you gonna do tonight after the game?' Strike three.

"My next time up, Yogi started again. I said, 'Just a minute, Yogi,' and hit a home run on the next

pitch. The next time I came to bat, he said, 'To hell with you, I'm never talking to you again.'"

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bal-orioles-closer-zach-britton-dealing-with-

strained-lat-20150922-story.html

Orioles closer Zach Britton dealing with strained lat

By Peter Schmuck / The Baltimore Sun

September 22, 2015

Orioles closer Zach Britton was not summoned to close Tuesday night’s 4-1 victory over the

Washington Nationals, which raised more questions about his physical condition and the outlook

for the rest of his season.

This time, however, he answered them.

Britton said that he has been dealing with a mild left lat strain since he pitched against the Boston

Red Sox in back-to-back games on Sept. 14 and 15 at Camden Yards. He said it cropped back up

during the final game of the series against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field, in which he

gave up two ninth-inning runs in a 7-6 loss Sunday.

"At this point in the season, everyone's dealing with something," Britton said. “Right now, we're

just trying to nip something in the bud. I have a little lat problem going on. Happened before

Tampa. Tried to come back and pitch in Tampa and it just kind of fired up again. The thing with

Buck [Showalter] and Dave [Wallace] and Dom [Chiti] is they maintain the health of their

pitchers probably better than anyone in the game. He doesn't want to risk my health or anybody's

health right now at this point in the season.”

Britton is nearing the end of another terrific season in the closer role, which is why it raised a red

flag when Showalter began turning to setup man Darren O’Day in some save situations,

including Tuesday night when he pitched a scoreless ninth for his fourth save of the year.

“I was not going to use Zach tonight," Showalter said after the game. “We’ll see what tomorrow

brings. I just didn’t think he was available tonight for a lot of different reasons. Darren was our

best option, all things health-wise concerned.”

The Orioles have 12 games remaining on their regular-season schedule and are trying

desperately to stay alive in the wild-card hunt, but Showalter has said all along that he will not

put any of his pitchers in harm’s way.

“He doesn't want to risk my health or anybody's health right now at this point in the season,"

Britton said. “We're coming in every day expecting to be able to pitch and just kind of going day

by day. … But it's been a little bit of a challenge the last few outings to kind of get it to where I

want it to be. So, trying to nip it in the bud. It shouldn't be anything that lasts for a long time.

Everything we've heard from the doctors is it's just a couple days.”

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bal-orioles-pregame-notes-thursdays-

rescheduled-game-causing-travel-problems-for-os-20150922-story.html

Orioles notebook: Thursday's game causing travel problems

for O's

By Eduardo A. Encina and Peter Schmuck / The Baltimore Sun

September 22, 2015

The rescheduling of the Orioles' series opener against the Washington Nationals on Monday has

caused to a traveling snafu for the club, manager Buck Showalter said Tuesday.

The game will now be played on a common day off Thursday at 4:05 p.m. Showalter isn't a fan

of playing doubleheaders, but he seemed to prefer one in this case.

While playing a doubleheader Tuesday was another option, Showalter said the league approved

the Nationals’ request to play Thursday, taking away the final day off of the regular season for

both clubs. The Nationals had already filled a previous day off Monday with a make-up game

against the Cincinnati Reds.

“It’s not a perfect world, that’s for sure,” Showalter said. “When you’re on the road, you’re kind

of at their mercy. That’s the way it is. I’m very proud of the process we have when we have rain

delays and stuff like that. Our guys, they do a good job, too. It’s never a perfect situation. You

can’t predict the weather.”

The Orioles were initially scheduled to fly to Boston out of BWI following Wednesday’s game

at Nationals Park for a three-game weekend series at Fenway Park beginning Friday. But now

they must eat the cost of hotel rooms that night in Boston and have to pay for an extra night of

hotel rooms in Washington.

Showalter also said the club still has yet to finalize its charter flight to Boston. The Orioles have

weighed the possibility of flying through a different airline or even going to Boston by bus,

Showalter said.

“Our biggest thing now is trying to find a plane to take us there because it’s not on the schedule,”

Showalter said. “Originally, we had to wait around until 11 [p.m.] or 12 [a.m.] because all the

planes had to get out of commercial service to get a plane. I know it’s an eight-hour bus ride, so

we’re looking into that, too. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get another plane.”

The teams attempted to play despite Monday’s storms. The start of the game was delayed more

than an hour before the decision was made to move the game to Thursday.

“You try to wait around as long as you can and try to get the game in without having people

[wait around],” Showalter said. “It’s not a perfect world. Everybody goes through it. At least we

didn’t start at 11:15 [p.m.] like we did at Yankee Stadium. You’re trying to think about it from a

competitive standpoint, but like I said, we don’t have a whole lot of choice. They conferred with

us on a couple of subjects with it, so we appreciate that. But at the end of the day, it’s MLB’s call

and their call.”

The Nationals shuffled their rotation for the remainder of the series. Right-hander Max Scherzer

will start Wednesday and right-hander Tanner Roark is scheduled to start Thursday.

Jones out of starting lineup again

Center fielder Adam Jones, who would not have played Monday night because of back spasms,

was not in Tuesday night’s starting lineup either. Showalter said that Jones is improving, but

would not guarantee that he will be in the lineup Wednesday.

“He’s better. … That’s encouraging,” Showalter said. “Hopefully, we can continue down that

path. He can do some things today that he couldn’t do yesterday. Good to see.”

Showalter indicated that Jones wanted to play Tuesday, but is on board with how he’s being

handled.

“Let’s see what the next 24 hours brings,” Showalter said. “He’s not happy [with sitting out]. He

always wants to play, but he agrees with where we are with it.”

Jones joked that his “feelings are hurt,” but he didn’t complain about getting at least one more

day off.

Getting Wright right

Pitching prospect Mike Wright has just a couple of weeks to bounce back from what has been a

difficult September in the major leagues. He has allowed 13 runs in 12 innings over three starts

and learned this week that he will pitch out of the bullpen the rest of the way.

“I’m just trying to stay positive and know that I struggled last year, too, at the beginning of the

year in Norfolk and finished with one of my best years ever,” he said Tuesday, “so I’m just

trying to do that again.”

Wright was clearly discouraged after delivering his worst major league start of the year against

the Boston Red Sox last week. But Triple-A manager Ron Johnson expressed confidence that

Wright will learn from this experience and continue to evolve into an effective big league

pitcher.

“I’ve been around Mike for two years and I don’t think it’s so much discouraged,” Johnson said.

“He’s a tremendous competitor. He is hard on himself, but I think a lot of that is what drives him

to be really good, and he’s going to be good.”

The Orioles need him to develop as a starter, but obviously want to see whether he is better

suited to a relief role.

“I’d rather be a starter, but right now obviously that isn’t working out,” Wright said, “so

hopefully I can be a Tommy Hunter-type guy in the bullpen.”

Players show solidarity on K Cancer Day

The Orioles joined players from throughout the major leagues to sport their “K Cancer” shirts

Tuesday. The shirts were the fundraising brainchild of Chicago Cubs pitcher Jason Motte and are

available for sale through the Jason Motte Foundation’s website.

However, the shirts are not officially licensed by Major League Baseball, so the foundation sent

out a letter to players telling them that they could face a uniform violation fine if they wore them

on the field before the game.

Many Orioles players wore them during pregame warmups anyway and closer Zach Britton

posted a clubhouse photo on Twitter asking fans to go to @HopkinsKids to contribute to the

Johns Hopkins Children’s Center.

Harvey to see team doctor

Top pitching prospect Hunter Harvey is still awaiting an appointment with Dr. James Andrews,

but in the meantime he is scheduled to have his elbow examined by Orioles team orthopedist Dr.

Mike Jacobs on Thursday.

The club shelved Harvey, the team’s 2013 first-round draft pick, after he felt discomfort in his

elbow and forearm area over the weekend while throwing in instructional league workouts.

Harvey didn’t pitch in a minor league game this season, first suffering a hairline fracture in his

right fibula and then being shut down in May with a flexor mass strain in his right forearm.

Around the horn

Showalter said right-hander Miguel Gonzalez’s simulated game Wednesday will likely be less

than five innings, but long enough to get him stretched out to return to the starting rotation his

next time out. “If that goes well, and his work day goes well, he would be in position to start

twice for us,” Showalter said. Gonzalez will not start in the Orioles’ series in Boston, so in order

to get him two starts by the end of the season, he’d need to start either Monday or Tuesday

against the Toronto Blue Jays. … The Orioles will start right-hander Kevin Gausman on Friday

at Fenway Park and left-hander Wei-Yin Chen is scheduled to pitch Saturday, but Sunday’s

starter has yet to be determined.

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/151086508/century-club-ubaldo-jimenez-earns-100th-win

Century club: Ubaldo earns 100th victory

By Jacob Emert / MLB.com

September 23, 2015

WASHINGTON -- Ubaldo Jimenez wasn't the sharpest version of himself on Tuesday night at

Nationals Park, but he was still sharp enough to make history.

Working around five walks and three hits in six innings, Jimenez allowed only one unearned run

and picked up the 100th win of his career in Baltimore's 4-1 victory over the Nationals.

"It means a lot because it's not easy to come to the stadium and get a 'W' every five days,"

Jimenez said. "It doesn't matter how you look at it, it's not easy. You have to go through a lot of

tough times, a lot of good times and times you're probably going to enjoy a lot. Once you get that

number, you take a break and you look back and it seems like yesterday when I got to the big

leagues. I already have eight years and 100 wins. It's been a really enjoyable moment."

Jimenez threw only 55 percent of his 110 pitches for strikes and walked two in the first inning,

but the 31-year-old buckled down when necessary. In the first, that meant catching Jayson

Werth looking and getting Clint Robinson to hit a weak dribbler back toward the mound.

"It's just part of it," manager Buck Showalter said. "I've said it a hundred times. His deception is

part of his ability to get people out with a fastball. That's how he creates it. You're going to have

to sometimes live with it. It's a little bit more than normal."

Jimenez has struggled through much of his two seasons in Baltimore -- he went 6-9 last year --

but after picking up his 12th win on Tuesday night, he has the chance to win 14 games in a

season for the third time in his career.

"The thing about Ubaldo is he takes the ball every fifth day," Showalter said. "He's been a

healthy pitcher. He takes care of himself, you never have to worry about him on the day he

pitches. ... Sometimes we forget how long and good a career he's actually had."

The former Colorado and Cleveland right-hander became the 11th Dominican Republic-born

pitcher to reach the century mark in career wins, and he joined current Orioles pitching instructor

Ramon Martinez on that list.

"I was watching Ramon and Pedro Martinez on the TV every five days when I was a kid,"

Jimenez said. "I would have never have dreamed to be in the same league as they are. That's part

of life. You never know what could happen."

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/151017276/adam-jones-still-bothered-by-mild-back-injury

Jones improving, but back issue lingering

By Jacob Emert / MLB.com

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON -- Adam Jones was out of Baltimore's lineup for the second straight day on

Tuesday, but manager Buck Showalter said the All-Star center fielder's back has improved.

"He's better. That's encouraging," Showalter said before the Orioles' opener vs. the Nationals.

"Hopefully he'll continue down that path. He can do some things that he couldn't do yesterday.

So that's good to see."

The Nationals and Orioles were rained out on Monday night, but Jones was left out of the

starting lineup with back spasms, according to Showalter. Jones said it was general soreness after

playing four consecutive games vs. the Rays on the tough Tropicana Field turf.

Showalter did not rule out using Jones off the bench -- "We might get a Kirk Gibson out here" --

nor did he go as far as to say he expected Jones to be in the starting lineup on Wednesday.

"We'll see what 24 hours brings," he said.

Tuesday marked the 14th game that Jones, 30, had missed this season.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2015/09/leftovers-from-last-nights-win-tonights-

game-and-more.html

Leftovers from last night's win, tonight's game and more

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

September 23, 2015

Looks aren't everything, and the same rule applies to baseball games.

The Orioles looked sloppy last night, committing three errors and failing to make a few other

plays that didn't show up in the box score. Chris Davis missed a pop-up in foul territory with two

outs in the ninth inning, but Darren O'Day stranded a runner that reached on Steve Pearce's

dropped fly ball down the right field line.

Jonathan Schoop made a tremendous catch in shallow right field with his back to the infield, then

spun and fired the ball home to hold a runner at third base. However, he should have deferred to

Pearce, who was rushing in and had a much easier play.

Here's what mattered: The Orioles defeated the Nationals 4-1 and moved within five games of

the Astros for the second wild card. The Blue Jays lost, allowing the Orioles to stay alive in the

division race for at least one more night.

You may not have pennant fever, but would you settle for a case of the sniffles?

I don't know what was more impressive, Ubaldo Jimenez allowing only an unearned run despite

walking five batters in six innings, or his RBI single in the first after back-to-back walks to Caleb

Joseph and J.J. Hardy.

"I really liked the turn he took at first like he was going to second," said manager Buck

Showalter. "I said, 'You know J.J.'s at second?'"

Schoop committed an error in the fourth inning on a potential double play ball, but he made up

for it one batter later by racing to cover first base on a 2-5-4 double play.

"It was huge," Showalter said. "We had a certain bunt defense on where the second baseman is

really challenged to get to first base, because you've really got to hold the guy tight at second and

trying to get the runner at third, and Jon made it all the way over to first base to turn a key double

play. Most second basemen aren't able to get to first base."

Brad Brach turned in two more scoreless innings. He became the set-up man with O'Day needed

to close.

Brach has allowed only seven earned runs in his last 47 2/3 innings over 37 appearances, and

he's struck out 50 batters, including three last night. This guy is vastly underrated.

"Very quietly, you take a look at him, he's had a heck of a year for us," Showalter said.

Any list of executive vice president Dan Duquette's best acquisitions must include Brach, who

only cost the Orioles Double-A pitcher Devin Jones. Jones ended up back in the Orioles' system

this year, ran up a 7.71 ERA in three games at Single-A Frederick and retired.

Chris Tillman exceeded 200 innings the past two seasons, an achievement that Showalter always

noted. He enters tonight's game at 154 1/3 innings, which ranks third behind Wei-Yin Chen (179

2/3) and Jimenez (171).

Tillman is stuck on nine wins, the last one coming Aug. 17 against the Athletics. He's 0-2 with a

9.64 ERA in four starts this month, with 20 runs and 25 hits over 18 2/3 innings. He's walked

eight, struck out 15 and allowed four home runs.

Tillman didn't get the decision on July 10 after holding the Nationals to two runs over six innings

in the Orioles' 3-2 victory at Camden Yards. He's 0-0 with a 4.37 ERA in four career starts

against Washington, with 11 runs in 22 2/3 innings. In his only start in D.C., he allowed two runs

and five hits with six strikeouts over seven innings.

Ryan Zimmerman is 3-for-6 with three home runs against Tillman, Ian Desmond is 3-for-10 with

a double and Bryce Harper is 1-for-6 with three strikeouts.

Tillman is 3-1 with a 4.91 ERA in 15 interleague starts.

Max Scherzer was bumped up to tonight's game, as the Nationals continue to toy with the

rotation and keep Showalter guessing. Scherzer's 12-11 with a 2.90 ERA in 30 starts, and he held

the Orioles to two runs and four hits over 8 2/3 innings on July 12, with no walks and seven

strikeouts.

Scherzer was 10-7 with a 2.11 ERA in 18 starts in the first half, but he's 2-4 with a 4.32 ERA in

12 starts in the second half. He went 0-3 with a 6.43 ERA in five August starts, but he's allowed

nine runs in 27 innings for a 3.00 ERA in four starts this month.

Scherzer is 4-1 with a 3.59 ERA in seven starts versus the Orioles. Adam Jones is 11-for-25 with

two doubles and three home runs, but he's day-to-day with back spasms. Davis is 7-for-20 with a

home run, Matt Wieters is 6-for-20, Hardy is 5-for-29 with a double and two home runs and

Manny Machado is 0-for-11 with five strikeouts.

Machado will be searching for his 501st career hit. Wieters will return to the lineup against a

right-hander.

Davis didn't strike out last night, keeping his season total at 196, three below his team record.

I mentioned how Triple-A Norfolk manager Ron Johnson and pitching coach Mike Griffin have

joined the Orioles in D.C. Johnson will stay with them for the rest of the season.

The Tides made the International League playoffs this year despite the usual high roster

turnover. They used 57 different players and 18 starters.

"It was probably one of the most fun teams I've ever managed," Johnson said. "I've done this for

like 20 years in the minor leagues and it's odd. Sometimes you get a mix of guys that can be

challenging and sometimes you get ... This bunch was as good as it gets. I even told them at the

end of the year, even with all the changes we had this year, it was probably the most fun group of

guys I've ever managed in all the time I've managed. Really good."

Managing a Triple-A team always brings its share of challenges due to the needs of the major

league club, but Johnson doesn't want your sympathy.

"It comes with the territory," he said. "I hate to say it's a challenge because that's the job I signed

up for. You know what you're getting into. We know what the purpose of the job is, to get guys

prepared to come up here. We were able to do that for the most part. A lot of them came up here

and had success, which is basically what I'm down there to do.

"It's nice when you can win and get all that stuff on the outside, too. That's great. From a

personal standpoint, I loved it. For myself and my staff. But you kind of know what it is.

Everybody always brings up that word when you come up here. 'It's challenging. Was it really

hard?' Well, that's what I'm hired to do and I take pride in being able to put it all together. Yeah,

it was a good year."

The Orioles knew that they needed to upgrade their defense at the top two levels, particularly at

shortstop, which would aid the development of their young pitchers. Ozzie Martinez proved to be

a plus-defender at Bowie and Paul Janish was exceptional at Norfolk before the Orioles selected

his contract.

"If you had to pick a Most Valuable Player on our team, we had a lot of guys who played well,

but Paul Janish solidified the left side of our infield," Johnson said.

"The difference between last year's team and this year's team, obviously we had more talent this

year, but we were the best defensive team in the International League. We turned a massive

amount of double plays and Paul Janish was right at the head of the list. He is a game-changer

with the glove. Down there, it was incredible. These young pitchers should pat him on the back.

That was a great sign by Buck. So, go get me another one."

Johnson also speaks highly of outfielder Dariel Alvarez, who's at a different stage of his career

compared to the veteran Janish.

"He's an exciting player," Johnson said. "I mean, he's got tools. He can do a lot of things. He's

going to go through a learning curve, but I tell you what, he was fun to watch. When he hits a

ball, it stays hit. You guys have all seen the arm. He can be an electric player at times. It's going

to be fun to watch his transition to this level."

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2015/09/zach-brittons-injury-and-a-4-1-win.html

Zach Britton's injury and a 4-1 win

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON - Darren O'Day closed out the Orioles' 4-1 win over the Nationals tonight,

leading to more speculation over Zach Britton's health.

Britton blew a save Sunday against the Rays after O'Day was called upon to get the last three

outs in the series opener. Britton explained tonight that he's bothered by a sore left lat muscle and

basically is day-to-day at this point.

The discomfort surfaced during the previous series against the Red Sox at Camden Yards.

"At this point in the season, everyone's dealing with something," said Britton, who has recorded

34 saves in 38 opportunities. "Right now, we're just trying to nip something in the bud. I have a

little lat problem going on. Happened before Tampa. Tried to come back and pitch in Tampa and

it just kind of fired up again.

"The thing with Buck (Showalter) and Dave (Wallace) and Dom (Chiti) is they maintain the

health of their pitchers probably better than anyone in the game. He doesn't want to risk my

health or anybody's health right now at this point in the season. We're coming in every day

expecting to be able to pitch and just kind of going day by day. What Richie (Bancells) and

(Brian) Ebel got for me, seeing how it reacts to certain things. But it's been a little bit of a

challenge the last few outings to kind of get it to where I want it to be. So trying to nip it in the

bud.

"It shouldn't be anything that lasts for a long time. Everything we've heard from the doctors is it's

just a couple days. Kind of go day by day, really. It could just disappear the next day. Just be

prepared to throw every day and go off of there. Buck's doing a good job of trying to maintain

the health and not let this turn into a big thing. So credit to Buck and Dave and Dom for slowing

me down a little bit, because I want to get out there and pitch. But they know that there's other

things that are a little more important right now, and that's the health of the lat."

O'Day notched his fourth save tonight and the Orioles overcame three errors to win for the ninth

time in 13 games.

"They just felt like it was better right now to give it a few days, and Darren's capable of pitching

the ninth," Britton said. "When you have that, it makes it a little easier for me to take my time. I

want to be out there, but Darren can pick up the slack. He could be closing for a lot of teams."

The game included Ubaldo Jimenez's 100th career win andManny Machado's 500th career hit.

Jimenez is one of 11 Dominican-born pitchers to reach the milestone.

"It means a lot because it's not easy to come to the stadium and get a W every five days," he said.

"It doesn't matter how you look at it, it's not easy. You have to go through a lot of tough times, a

lot of good times and times you're probably going to enjoy a lot. Once you get that number, you

take a break and you look back and it seems like yesterday when I got to the big leagues. I

already have eight years and 100 wins. It's been a really enjoyable moment."

Jimenez has two more starts left and could reach 14 wins, quite an achievement after his

nightmarish 2014 season.

"It means a lot because my whole career, I never give up," he said. "When things are going the

way I never expected them to be, I always find a way to keep it going. I never lose my faith that

I'm going to be able to come back and recover and be there for the team.

"It was really tough last year, but I was like, I'm just going to forget about everything and that's

what I've been doing my entire career. In baseball you have to forget quick, because this is a

game that can really eat you alive if you think too much."

Jimenez contributed an RBI single tonight.

"That was fun," he said. "You don't get to do that every day. Every time you have the chance to

help the team out and get it going, it's really neat. It's really nice. You have to enjoy every hit you

can."

Jimenez held the Nationals to an unearned run and three hits over six innings, but he also walked

five batters and threw 110 pitches.

"I think in the beginning of the game, I was walking a lot of guys from the windup," he said.

"That was my trouble. It was the first guy I faced every inning. Once I got to the stretch, I was

able to throw strikes and able to throw good pitches. After that I was able to figure it out because

my fastball was too short. I'm talking about getting to the plate, everything was down. I was

bouncing everything, the split and the fastball, so I was able to throw a little bit up so it was able

to be a strike."

Machado's milestone came on a single in the fifth inning.

"It's awesome. It's a great accomplishment," he said. "Just to get that many hits in the big

leagues, it's an honor. It's something that I'm just blessed. It's just an honor to be able go out there

and play every day, to be able to go out there and perform and get that hit."

No. 500 came at 23.

"It's great," he said. "It's great that it came. I worked hard to get here. It's been a great season so

far. Hopefully, I've got many more hits to come. Right now, it's just keep playing baseball. If

more hits come, just gonna help the team in whichever way possible. Hopefully, I can get more

of them.

"You look at it, it's something that's always there, something that you hopefully want to be just

close to it. It's something that, Cal (Ripken's) record and Eddie Murray's, it goes on. I think you

just want to want to have half the careers they've had, and kind of not really think about it. Just

go out there and play and whatever comes your way is going to come."

Machado was much happier about the achievement because it came on a night that the Orioles

were victorious.

"Definitely," he said. "It's a lot better. It's a touchy subject, but we came out with the win. We're

in a great position still to make things happen in this decision and we're just going to keep

playing."

Asked how he feels that the team is playing, Machado replied, "I think the team's changed. I

think we have a lot of things going our way. I think everyone's clicking, everyone's doing what

they need to do, doing their job. I think that's what it takes to get to where we want to go.

"Everyone needs to chip in and be a part of it. If you need to drive in a runner, if you need to

play defense, if you need to get an out, I think we all know what we need to be doing and that's

what we're doing."

Machado scored in the fifth on Chris Davis' double down the left field line.

"It was pretty magical," Davis quipped. "I don't know what you want me to say. It was kind of an

emergency hack - 0-0, good feeling. I've faced Gio (Gonzalez) I don't know how many times.

Obviously, he's been coming in a lot the last couple times I've seen him. Just trying to see a ball

out over the plate and put a good swing on it. It was just one of those ones that you're lucky it

was able to stay fair and rattle around in the corner."

The Orioles committed three errors for the fourth time this season, but baseball doesn't award

style points. A win is a win.

"Absolutely, we made some bonehead mistakes, but we were able to kind of grind it out and

score some runs and Ubaldo threw the ball really well, and obviously the bullpen came in and

shut everybody down, so it was good for us," Davis said.

Steve Pearce dropped a fly ball down the right field line for an error in the ninth, but he also

scored Davis with an RBI double.

"It wasn't pretty but we did what good teams do, we found ways to overcome it," Pearce said.

"We made mental errors, physical errors, but that's part of the game. We just have to look to

improve tomorrow.

"It's just baseball. It was very uncharacteristic of us, but we put it behind us. Ubaldo pitched

through it, O'Day pitched through it. It's great to see when you do mess up and the pitcher bears

down and gets you out of the inning."

Pearce liked the pace that Jimenez set despite the walks.

"He pitched great. Great pace out there," Pearce said. "That's what we expect out of him. He's a

good pitcher. He can do a lot of things with a baseball and I look forward to it every time he gets

out there on the mound."

A key moment in the game occurred in the fourth when the Orioles committed two errors, but

allowed only one run because they turned a 2-5-4 double play. Gonzalez was ruled safe at first

after his bunt, but the Orioles challenged the call and it was overturned.

"It was huge," Showalter said. "Not many second baseman would have made it there because the

reason we could make a play at third, our catching people call it a 'pull it play,' where the

catching goes out and 'pull it.' Manny's been talking about it. Not many second basemen can get

to first base can get that close to second when the ball is delivered. A lot of guys kind of give up

on it, and catching that ball with Manny bringing it across the diamond is tough."

Here's more from Showalter:

On Britton: "I was not going to use Zach tonight. We'll see what tomorrow brings. I just didn't

think he was available tonight for a lot of different reasons. Darren was our best option, all things

health-wise concerned. I felt like they didn't have (Danny) Espinosa off the bench, either."

On Davis' double: "I don't if Chris was trying to go that way or not. A month and a half ago,

two months, Chris really concentrated on trying to stay in the middle of the diamond a lot. It's

really benefited him a lot. I'm not sure if he was trying to hit it down there or not, but it worked

out well. Manny made a great slide."

On Jimenez's walks: "It's just part of it. I've said it 100 times, his deception is part of his ability

to get people out with a fastball. That's how he creates it. You're going to have to sometimes live

with it. It's a little bit more than normal."

On Jimenez having a chance at 14 wins: "The thing about Ubaldo is he takes the ball every

fifth day. He's been a healthy pitcher. He takes care of himself, you never have to worry about

him on the day he pitches. It's a big moment for him, about where he fits on Dominican pitchers

all-time. Sometimes we forget how long and good a career he's actually had."

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2015/09/notes-on-jones-the-rotation-gonzalez-

harvey-and-more.html

Notes on Jones, the rotation, Gonzalez, Harvey and more

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON - Orioles manager Buck Showalter said Adam Jones' back has improved,

though the All-Star center fielder remains out of the lineup.

"He's better, he's better," Showalter said. "That's encouraging. Hopefully, it will continue down

that path. He can do some things today that he couldn't do yesterday. That was good to see."

Showalter can't commit to Jones being in the lineup Wednesday night.

"No necessarily. We'll see what 24 hours brings," Showalter said.

Showalter also won't reveal whether Jones is available to pinch-hit tonight, again choosing not to

tip off the opposing manager.

"I wouldn't broadcast that," Showalter said. "Maybe. We might get a Kirk Gibson out here. You

never know. I know he can run.

"He's not happy that he's not available to start the game. He always wants to play, but he agrees

with where we are with it."

The Nationals are starting Max Scherzer and Tanner Roark in the final two games of the series.

They initially wanted to insert Jordan Zimmerman.

The postponement last night has caused travel and hotel headaches for the Orioles, who are

trying to charter a flight from BWI to Boston following Thursday's rescheduled game. Showalter

said he already checked the bus schedule, and the trip would take eight hours.

The Orioles also need to extend their hotel stay in D.C. for an extra night, and they can't get a

refund on Wednesday night's hotel reservation in Boston.

"It's not a perfect world. That's for sure," Showalter said.

The alternative was playing a doubleheader today, but the league office allowed the Nationals to

schedule a makeup game on Thursday.

"Hopefully, we'll be able to get a plane," Showalter said. "The pitching has changed around a lot.

There have been 10 or 15 things. Trying to see if we can keep this hotel for another night instead

of having to scatter in different hotels.

"I've got a couple extra bedrooms back in Baltimore. I can take a couple guys. We actually talked

about that if we had to move the guys around. I sure hope they have a big crowd Thursday.

"We're fine. We play. When they say play, we play. That's the way it is."

The Orioles' starters in Boston this weekend are Kevin Gausman, Wei-Yin Chen and TBD.

Showalter said Miguel Gonzalez isn't a consideration.

Gonzalez remains scheduled to throw a simulated game on Wednesday that's expected to last

fewer than five innings.

The Orioles are hoping that Gonzalez will be able to start twice before the regular season ends on

Oct. 4, "not counting the playoffs," Showalter said.

Orioles team orthopedist Dr. Michael Jacobs will examine Hunter Harvey's right elbow on

Thursday. No appointment has been set with Dr. James Andrews, who's out of the country on

vacation.

Harvey was shut down after experiencing discomfort in his elbow in the fall instructional league.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2015/09/adam-jones-out-of-orioles-lineup.html

Adam Jones out of Orioles lineup (with Nats lineup)

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON - Center fielder Adam Jones remains out of the Orioles lineup tonight with back

spasms. Junior Lake replaces him.

Nolan Reimold is leading off and playing left field. Steve Pearce is playing right field and

serving as the cleanup hitter.

The Orioles' game notes include this gem from the PR department:

On this date in 1994, the "cotton uniforms" episode of Seinfeld first aired featuring manager

Buck Showalter. Episode one of the sixth season (the 87th overall) is titled "The Chaperone," but

we remember it for assistant traveling secretary George Costanza's suggestion that the Yankees

replace their polyester uniforms with cotton.

As the note states, hilarity ensued.

For the Orioles Nolan Reimold LF

Manny Machado 3B

Chris Davis 1B

Steve Pearce RF

Jonathan School 2B

Caleb Joseph C

J.J. Hardy SS

Junior Lake CF

Ubaldo Jimenez RHP

For the Nationals

Anthony Rendon 2B

Yunel Escobar 3B

Bryce Harper RF

Jayson Werth LF

Clint Robinson 1B

Ian Desmond SS

Michael A. Taylor CF

Jose Lobaton C

Gio Gonzalez LHP

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2015/09/sad-news-on-former-oriole-walter-

young.html

Sad news on former Oriole Walter Young

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

Former Orioles first baseman Walter Young, once rated among the organization's top prospects,

passed away on Saturday from an apparent heart attack. He was 35.

A team official confirmed Young's death earlier today.

According to this article, Young was working as a resource officer for the Lamar County School

District in Mississippi.

The Pirates drafted Young in the 31st round in 1999 out of Purvis (Miss.) High School before the

Orioles selected him off waivers four years later. Young made his major league debut in 2005,

going 10-for-33 with a double and home run in 14 games. The Padres selected him off waivers

the following year.

Young played independent ball the final three years of his career, retiring in 2009 after appearing

in 41 games for Sioux City and 25 with Edmonton. His only major league experience came with

the Orioles in 2005.

Listed at 320 pounds, Young is believed to be the heaviest player to don a major league uniform,

according to Baseball-Reference.com.

Young was named the Single-A South Atlantic League's Most Valuable Player in 2002 after

hitting .333 with 25 home runs 103 RBIs and a .563 slugging percentage and leading Hickory to

the championship. He made the Single-A Carolina League's postseason All-Star team in 2003,

batting .278 with 20 homers and 87 RBIs for Lynchburg, but the Pirates needed room on their

40-man roster and placed him on waivers.

Young batted .274/.343/.539 with 28 doubles, 33 home runs and 98 RBIs in 133 games at

Double-A Bowie in 2004.

I wrote about Young back in 2004 at spring training.

http://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2015/09/os-slowed-down-a-hot-hitting-nats-team-

last-night-plus-other-notes.html

O's slowed down a hot-hitting Nats team last night, plus

other notes

By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com

September 23, 2015

Heading into last night's game, the Washington Nationals were averaging 6.0 runs per game over

their previous 32 games, scoring 193 runs and going 20-12.

But for one night anyway, the Orioles slowed the Washington offense, holding the Nats to three

hits in a 4-1 win on Tuesday in the opener of a three-game series.

Considering the Orioles made three errors - and one or two other plays could have been scored

errors - and walked six, holding the Nats to one run was no easy task. But they did it by walking

hot-hitting Bryce Harper three times, and Washington went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring

position, leaving nine men on base.

Ubaldo Jimenez certainly opened the door for the Nationals by walking four in the first three

innings. But he gave up just one unearned run over six innings to become the 11th Dominican-

born pitcher to record 100 wins.

More notes on the Orioles:

* Jimenez ranks third in wins among active pitchers from the Dominican Republic. Bartolo

Colon has 218 wins, Ervin Santana has 124 and Jimenez is next with 100.

* O's right-hander Brad Brach pitched two scoreless innings last night. Over his past 31 games

since June 23, Brach has an ERA of 1.11.

* The Orioles got a well-pitched game last night, which has been rare this month. Heading into

last night, the club's ERA was 5.50 in September and the starting rotation ERA was 6.13 this

month. But the Orioles are now 11-8 in September. Jimenez recorded just the fifth quality start in

the last 24 games for the Orioles.

* Chris Davis drove in a run with an RBI double in the fifth inning for his 110th RBI. Over his

past 19 games, Davis is batting .369 (24-for-65), with eight homers and 18 RBIs. In 62 games in

the second half, Davis has 24 homers and 58 RBIs.

* Gerardo Parra entered last night's game as a pinch-hitter in the sixth inning and went 0-for-2.

Over his last 23 games, he is batting .167 (15-for-90) with no multi-hit games in that span.

Chris Tillman (9-11, 5.19 ERA) makes his 29th start tonight. Over his past six starts, he is 0-4

with an ERA of 7.76. To further illustrate Tillman's struggles this year, his ERA has been under

5.00 just one month this season.

Tillman ERA by month, 2015: 7.58 - April

5.03 - May

5.13 - June

1.31 - July

5.73 - August

9.64 - September

http://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2015/09/os-game-blog-a-look-at-the-orioles-road-

record-and-tonights-game.html

O's game blog: A look at the Orioles' road record and

tonight's game

By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com

September 22, 2015

If the Orioles were to finish .500 this year at 81-81, that would mean they would have won 15

fewer games this season compared to last year's 96-win division champions.

There are a lot of reasons for the falloff and we discuss many of them here daily. But the dropoff

in the O's performance on the road is one that is significant.

A current 15-win difference can be found there, not that this is even close to the only reason for

the lesser overall record. But the 2014 Orioles went 46-35 (.568) on the road. The 2015 Orioles

are 31-47 (.397) on the road heading into their final road series of the year beginning tonight at

Washington.

The 2015 Orioles have just not hit well enough away from Camden Yards. They average 5.0 runs

per game with a 4.09 team ERA at home. They average 3.85 runs per game with a 4.08 ERA on

the road.

But how about a comparison between the Orioles on the road in 2014 and 2015: In 2014: 4.49 runs per game, .254 average, .419 slugging, 1.28 homers/game, 3.65 ERA.

In 2015: 3.85 runs per game, .237 average, .388 slugging, 1.09 homers/game, 4.08 ERA.

The Orioles played .617 ball last season (50-31) at home and their record is good at home this

season, as they are playing .592 ball (42-29). But the difference in road results has been striking

and a big issues for this year's team.

Tonight's scheduled starters were pushed back a day from last night's rainout. The O's starter is

right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez (11-9, 4.31 ERA) and left-hander Gio Gonzalez (11-7, 3.83 ERA)

gets the start for the Nationals.

Jimenez will become the 11th Dominican-born pitcher with 100 career victories with his next

victory. Of his 99 career wins, 56 came as a member of the Colorado Rockies, 26 with Cleveland

and 17 with the Orioles.

As for Orioles pitching, in September they have a 5.50 ERA, their highest for any month this

year. O's pitchers have allowed seven runs or more in eight of 18 games this month, yet the

club's record is 10-8. The next highest ERA by month for the Orioles was their 4.78 mark in

April.

Gonzalez is on a three-start roll, going 2-0 with an ERA of 1.47. Over 18 1/3 innings, he has

allowed 11 hits and three runs, with nine walks to 26 strikeouts. He has two games of 10 or more

strikeouts this year and both came during this recent stretch. He is 1-4 with a 3.51 ERA in five

career starts versus the Orioles.

The Orioles went 1-2 against the Nats in Baltimore in the last series before the All-Star break.

They won that series opener 3-2 on Jonathan Schoop's walkoff homer in the ninth. But they lost

the next two games, 7-4 and 3-2. The Orioles are 30-23 in the all-time series against the Nats and

are 11-6 since the 2012 season.

Upcoming Orioles milestones courtesy of O's PR:

* Chris Davis needs one homer for 200 in his career

* Manny Machado needs three steals for 20 homers and 20 stolen bases this season

* Matt Wieters needs two homers for 100 in his career

* Adam Jones needs four homers for 200 in his career

http://www.si.com/mlb/2014/07/06/ap-bbo-orioles-nationals-preview

Orioles-Nationals Preview

SI.com

September 23, 2015

There's been a too-little, too-late feel to the Washington Nationals' recent wins, and the same can

be applied to their ace's latest work.

Max Scherzer can pitch the Nationals to an eighth win in 10 games Wednesday night against the

visiting Baltimore Orioles, and in doing so he can further distance himself from a month of

personal struggles.

Washington's three-game winning streak came to an end in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to open the three-

game series, and with the New York Mets' loss, it missed out on a chance to get within 5 1/2

games of the NL East leaders.

Even so, a five-game losing streak preceding the recent success was likely the end of the

Nationals' postseason hopes.

The Orioles (74-76) have won three straight in Washington and seven of nine in the interleague

rivalry.

Baltimore is 9-4 since falling a season-worst seven games under .500 on Sept. 7 and finds itself

five games out of the second wild card with four teams to pass after Houston lost.

Scherzer (12-11, 2.90 ERA), like Washington (78-72), has gotten it together recently, going 1-0

with a 1.20 ERA and .196 opponent batting average in his last two starts after going 0-3 with

6.35 and .324 marks in his previous six. The right-hander allowed two runs and five hits in seven

innings of Friday's 5-4 home win over Miami in 10 innings.

He clearly hasn't given up on the season, as was evident as he raised his voice to manager Matt

Williams to remain in the game for the final out of the seventh.

"You have to have the belief in yourself when those situations arise," Scherzer told MLB's

official website. "I know I still have my best bolt left. I'm good to go. I'm ready to face anybody

in the league in that situation. I'm not going to get everybody out. I have the attitude I can

succeed in those situations."

Williams didn't allow his ace to get the final out in a 3-2 win in Baltimore on July 12 as Scherzer

yielded two runs and four hits in 8 2-3 innings to improve to 4-1 with a 3.59 ERA in seven starts

against the Orioles.

He's dominated Manny Machado (0 for 11 with five strikeouts) and J.J. Hardy (4 for 26), but

Adam Jones is 11 for 22 with three home runs.

Jones has been out of the lineup the last two days with back spasms, and manager Buck

Showalter wasn't sure if he'd return Wednesday.

"He's better. That's encouraging," Showalter said. "Hopefully he'll continue down that path. He

can do some things that he couldn't do yesterday."

Scherzer is up against Chris Tillman (9-11, 5.19), who's been awful since early August.

Tillman's second half got off to a glowing start with a run allowed over 23 2-3 innings of his

final three starts of July. He missed a turn in the rotation because of an ankle injury and has

never been the same, going 1-4 with a 7.52 ERA in eight starts.

The right-hander at least kept the Orioles in Thursday's 4-3 win in Tampa Bay, surrendering

three runs and five hits in 5 2-3 innings before the lineup saved him with a four-run eighth, but it

was also his sixth straight start allowing at least three runs.

He faced Washington for the fourth time on July 10, giving up two runs in six innings, and

remains without a decision while sporting a 4.37 ERA.

Ryan Zimmerman has done the most damage with three home runs in six at-bats, but the first

baseman hasn't played since Sept. 7 due to an oblique injury and is considered day to day.

http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/blog/orioles-talk/norfolk-manager-brings-talent-orioles

Norfolk manager brings talent to Orioles

By Rich Dubroff / CSN Mid-Atlantic

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON – For the final 13 games of the season, Norfolk manager Ron Johnson is

helping the Orioles out. Johnson, in his fourth season as Norfolk’s manager, guided the Tides to

the playoffs in 2015.

“It was probably one of the most fun teams I ever managed,” Johnson a veteran of two decades

of minor league managing.

Johnson’s job is a difficult one because he has to juggle lineups and pitchers continually since

many calls are not his, but the Orioles’.

“I hate to say it’s a challenge because that’s the job I signed up for. You know what you’re

getting into. We know what the purpose of the job is, to get guys up here,” Johnson said. “We

were able to do that. A lot of them came up here and had success, which is basically what I’m

down there to do.”

Fourteen of the 34 players with the Orioles were on Norfolk, and two others, Ryan Flaherty and

Matt Wieters were there on rehab assignments.

One of those was Paul Janish, who Johnson said was the team’s MVP because the shortstop

anchored an improved defense.

“He’s a game-changer with the glove,” Johnson said.

With all the Tides who are with the Orioles now, is there a sleeper who isn’t?

“I think Rey Navarro finished up extremely well for us down there,” Johnson said. “It was

interesting not only to watch him play not only second base, but a lot of shortstop down the

stretch.”

Johnson says he likes what he sees with the Orioles already.

“I think we have a lot of sleepers who are already here. The whole idea here is to see how they fit

and how they’re going to help the Baltimore Orioles be a first division club. I think they’re in

this room right here,” Johnson said.

http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/blog/orioles-talk/rainout-complicate-orioles-travel-plans

Rainout complicate Orioles' travel plans

By Rich Dubroff / CSN Mid-Atlantic

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON -- The Orioles were expecting a Tuesday doubleheader when Monday’s game

was rained out. Instead, the Orioles and Nationals will make the game up on Thursday at 4:05

p.m., the only remaining off day of the season.

The rainout will cost the Orioles because they were scheduled to fly to Boston after Wednesday

night’s game, and now they won’t use the hotel rooms they had reserved.

In addition to that cost, the Orioles are hoping that, with Pope Francis I visiting, they’ll be able to

stay at their hotel an extra night. According to manager Buck Showalter, traveling secretary

Kevin Buck is scrambling to find a chartered plane for Thursday night.

“I know it’s an eight-hour bus ride [to Boston]. We looked into that, too,” Showalter said.

“Kevin’s got his work cut off for him.”

Showalter wouldn’t say if he would have preferred a doubleheader to losing the off day.

“When they say play, we play,” Showalter said.

http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/blog/orioles-talk/jones-again-out-lineup-back-spasms

Jones again out of lineup with back spasms

By Rich Dubroff / CSN Mid-Atlantic

September 22, 2015

WASHINGTON – Adam Jones wasn’t in the lineup for Monday’s rainout, and he’s not in the

lineup for Tuesday’s game. Manager Buck Showalter said that Jones, who has missed 13

previous games with shoulder, ankle and wrist injuries, is better.

“That’s encouraging. Hopefully, he’ll continue down that path. He can do some things yesterday

that he couldn’t do today,” Showalter said.

It’s not a certainty that Jones can play on Wednesday.

“Not necessarily. We’ll see what tomorrow brings,” Showalter said.

“He’s not happy…[but] he agrees where we are with it.”

Junior Lake will play center field in place of Jones.

“I like playing center field. I feel comfortable. I don’t care what position I play,” Lake said.

NOTES: Hunter Harvey, who was shut down in Instructional League last week, will see team

orthopedist Dr. Michael Jacobs on Thursday in Baltimore. Harvey was supposed to see Dr.

James Andrews, but the orthopedist was out of the country. … Kevin Gausman, Wei-Yin Chen

and a pitcher to be determined will work the weekend series in Boston. Showalter said Sunday’s

pitcher will not be Miguel Gonzalez. … The Nationals will pitch Max Scherzer and Tanner

Roark on Wednesday and Thursday.

http://www.pressboxonline.com/2015/09/22/are-orioles-or-nationals-the-bigger-disappointment-

in-2015

Are Orioles Or Nationals The Bigger Disappointment In

2015?

By Paul Folkemer / PressBoxOnline.com

September 22, 2015

The Orioles and Nationals will play their second leg of their Battle of the Beltways interleague

series Sept. 22-24 following a Sept. 21 rainout. But instead of being a highly anticipated matchup

between two regional rivals, the series is more of an anticlimactic limp to the finish line -- an

unimportant footnote between two teams that expected much more of themselves in 2015.

Both the Orioles and Nationals were division winners in 2014, each going 96-66 and advancing

to the playoffs. A year later, both are well out of the postseason hunt and will be booking their

tickets home in October. But which of the two teams has been the bigger disappointment?

As far as each team's current record goes, the Nationals have the advantage on the Orioles. The

Birds enter play Sept. 22 with a 73-76 record, looking increasingly unlikely to finish the year

with a winning mark. The Nationals, meanwhile, are comfortably above .500 at 78-71, seemingly

on their way to a fourth consecutive winning season.

Of the two clubs, the Nationals have been better by a slight margin in 2015. But there's more to

consider than just win-loss records -- there's also the expectations.

Coming into the season, baseball observers had mixed opinions on the Orioles. Granted, the O's

had run away with the American League East in 2014 and finished one series shy of a World

Series appearance. And while the Birds had a few supporters in 2015, the majority of MLB

prognosticators expected them to fall back somewhat in the AL East pack in 2015, anticipating

the Birds' free-agent departures and questionable pitching depth would cost them. That has ended

up being the case, though the Orioles' decline has been more extreme than expected.

The Nationals, on the other hand, were expected to be the greatest thing since sliced bread -- and

possibly even better than sliced bread. The defending National League East champions appeared

to get even better during the winter, adding right-handed ace Max Scherzer to their already

loaded starting rotation. Their rotation of Scherzer, righties Stephen Strasburg, Jordan

Zimmermann and Doug Fister and lefty Gio Gonzalez was -- on paper -- the most dominant in

the majors. And their lineup appeared to have no holes, as six of their eight projected position

players had above-average offensive seasons in 2014.

Major sports media outlets were quick to jump on the Nationals' bandwagon. In ESPN's 2015

predictions, 85 of their 88 experts picked the Nationals to win the NL East, and 37 of them

tabbed Washington as their World Series winner. The breakdown was similar on Fox Sports,

where half of the 12 predictors crowned the Nationals as World Series champions. A panel of

MLB.com and MLB Network analysts, too, reached a consensus on the Nationals as World

Series victors.

But the Nationals haven't materialized as the mega-team so many expected, as a combination of

injuries, poor performances and questionable managing have torpedoed their 2015 season,

particularly after the All-Star break. On July 30, the Nationals held a three-game lead in the NL

East. Since that date, Washington has gone 24-25, including a pair of damaging three-game

sweeps at the hands of the New York Mets, who now lead the NL East by 6.5 games.

The Orioles didn't even make it that far into the season in first place. The last time the Birds held

sole possession of first was July 1, when three other teams were within one game of them. The

O's are 31-40 since then, dropping not only out of the AL East race, but also out of competition

for one of the two AL wild-card spots.

At this point, neither team has much to play for except pride. Both entered the season as reigning

division champions, and by the end of 2015, both will have given up that crown without much of

a fight. For both clubs, the precipitous decline from 2014 to 2015 has been surprising and

disappointing.

But for one club in particular -- one that was widely expected to be a powerhouse, steamrolling

the competition on the way to the World Series -- the 2015 season has been one of the biggest

letdowns in franchise history. And for that reason, the Nationals have earned the dubious honor

of being this season's most disappointing team.

http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2015/09/22/mel-antonen-says-the-pitching-rotation-has-been-the-

biggest-disappointment/

Mel Antonen Says The Pitching Rotation Has Been The

Biggest Disappointment

CBS Baltimore

September 22, 2015

Mel Antonen covers the Orioles for MASN, and appears on Sirius/XM radio.

Mel joined Ed and Steve to preview the Orioles series against the Nationals tonight in DC.

Steve asked Mel about what the biggest flaw has been this year for the Orioles. Mel noted that it

has been our starters that have disappointed the most this season, “the rotation, especially in the

second half of the season. A year ago four of the five starters cut their ERA in half from the first

half to the second. If they could have fixed one thing, it would have been the starting rotation.”

Ed asked Mel about the possibility of Orioles closer Zach Britton moving to the starting rotation.

Mel believes Britton is capable of making the switch saying, “he was one of the top pitchers in

all of baseball when he first came up from the minors. He’d have to develop secondary pitches

and arm strength, but he’s talented enough to do that.”

Mel went on to discuss his grades for manager Buck Showalter and General Manager Dan

Duquette, the impact of the off season saga between Orioles GM Dan Duquette and the Toronto

Blue Jays on the Orioles season, and his picks to reach the World Series in the American and

National Leagues.

http://fantasynews.cbssports.com/fantasybaseball/update/25313012/orioles-rp-zach-britton-

unavailable-tuesday-with-sore-lat-muscle

Orioles RP Zach Britton unavailable Tuesday with sore lat

muscle

CBSSports.com

September 22, 2015

Orioles closer Zach Britton has a sore left lat muscle, the Baltimore Sun's Eduardo Encina

reports.

Britton said Tuesday that the issue won't affect him long term, but he was not used in Tuesday's

save situation, and he may be unavailable in the short term. Darren O'Day pitched a perfect ninth

inning for his fourth save of the season Tuesday against the Nationals.