Robert's wrong number

Raffy speaks! This is sad. Personally, I think Raffy knew what he was going and he's sticking with his story to the bitter end. It's also sad that the entire team hates his apparently, but throwing your teammates under the bus like he did will do that to you.

Palmeiro said the only former Orioles teammate he has spoken to recently is second baseman Brian Roberts, whom Palmeiro called last weekend after Roberts had inadvertently text messaged Palmeiro instead of another friend. "It was like a two-minute conversation," Roberts said. "But it was good to see how he was doing."

I wonder how that conversation went. "Hey there, You looked hot tonight. Whatcha doing, sexy?." "What?!? Who is this? Why can't I be left alone?" "Uh...oh...hey...Raffy...how's it.er..going?" "Oh, Brian..it's you. I'm doing All right." "So...you get any calls to play?" "An independent league team offered me a try out, but I'm not fooling around with that...only Major League ball." "I heard that." Akward silence "I've really taken a shine to whittling." "What?" "You know, with a knife and a piece of wood. I whittled a tiger yesterday." "that's...awesome." "I do a lot gardening too." "Well, I hate to do this..but I gotta run. We all miss you, big guy. We got an early flight tomorrow." "Trust me, I know how it is. Tell them all I said hi." "I will." "Bye." "Goodbye." Click. "I really need to clean out my phonebook." Rick Maese isn't giddy about the O's second half prospects. Killjoy. This is the negativity I hate. Yeah, the O's aren't the best team and yeah we're not not going to win the division this year...but geez, this stuff gets me ill. -The Benson, Patterson, Hernandez acquistions were good, but they haven't translated into wins. -The farm system turnaround is a myth. -More Tejada talk -Fan apathy Reading that was like hitting myself in the face with a hammer. Thanks Rick. He does have some good points, but just the sheer "our team stinks" air of it ruins it all. btw, I think I think this team would be a lot worse without Benson, Patterson, and Ramon and I think our farm system is vastly improved....but don't reap the rewards overnight. Jose Canseco will not fade away. Pitching and DHing? I wonder how long this lasts a week...maybe 2? Canseco is a car wreck that's wrapped in a trainwreck and covered with a chemical spill. Keep on driving, folks...the only things left to see here is tragedy and arrogance. I have no pity for Jay Mariotti. I just do not like this guy. Ozzie Gullien needs to use his words more carefully, if you pick someone to call somebody some kind of name, well...Jay's probably your guy. I got a kick out of this part...

he could have gone looking for Guillen in the clubhouse. He thought about it. “But what would have happened? He could have hit me. He could have choked me. He could have just screamed at me—best-case scenario. What exactly does that serve? I refuse to be part of this flying circus. If he wants to call and meet like a man and not in front of his frat house, I’m available. But not in that circus. That’s the jock mentality, and I don’t buy into it.”

That whole bit about St.Jay not going to the clubhouse out of fear, I think it's more out of arrogrance. Ozzie Guillen is an ass I'm sure...but I bet Mariotti is an even bigger one. In fact, I'm sure of it. At least Guillen doesn't have those creepy waxed eyebrows. That's it, I'll be back Sunday. Hope the O's can extend the Braves' woes and Russ Ortiz can prove me wrong.

Slick Nick hits BIG

I love doubleheaders. Nick Markakis loves them more, I'm sure. Nick went a combine 5-7 in yesterday's 2 games and he looked good. He looked a pro. I'm backing of my earlier stance that I thought he should spend a couple weeks in Ottawa. At this point, he should start everyday. The only way he's going to keep improving is to play him everyday and PLAY him against lefties. My ideal scenario is to put him in right, move Gibbons to DH (once Javy is traded...that'll happen) or maybe first base, and then start Newhan there after the break or trade for someone. No Luis Matos. PLEASE. Since 1954 is a good new O's blog. Drop on by. Did anyone watch the NBA Draft? Back in the day before the High Schoolers(who are now ineligible) and International players got involved, I loved the NBA Draft. That was also when I used to love the NBA. I knew the players and new the teams. In case anyone possibly cares...here's the top ten. 1 Raptors PF Andrea Bargnani Benetton Treviso (Italy) Who? Jurrasic Park is early 1990's...how about updating that name? Are there Raptors in Toronto? If so...well, don't advertise it you chumps. 2 Bulls PF LaMarcus Aldridge Texas I have absolutely no opinion of the Bulls. none. nada. nothing. 3 Bobcats SF Adam Morrison Gonzaga Great. The Weeper is coming to the Carolinas. Hope he leaves the lame mustache behind. If he puts on a flannel shirt, dirty jeans, and an old cap, he'll fit right in. I miss the Hornets. 4 Blazers PF Tyrus Thomas LSU I wonder what Isiah Rider is doing now. Is he drinking beer and playing dice? Is he sending text messages on stolen cell phones? Is he finding better uses for Sprite cans? Babysitting for Shawn Kemp? 5 Hawks PF Shelden Williams Duke One thing hasn't changed since I stopped watching the NBA, the Atlanta Hawks are a bad team. I'm sure all ten of their fans agree with me. 6 T-Wolves SG Brandon Roy Washington Is that a good pick? I have no idea. 7 Celtics SG Randy Foye Villanova Too bad Roy and Foye couldn't be on the same team...Roy and Foye. 8 Rockets SF Rudy Gay Connecticut He took a drop. 9 Warriors C Patrick O'Bryant Bradley I can't comment on every pick when I've never seen Patrick O'Bryant from Bradley play. I regret that now. 10 Sonics C Saer Sene Pepinster (Belgium) Saer Sene from Pepinster? That sounds like acid fiction. I'm down on the NBA in case you couldn't tell. THE Stephen A. Smith getting heckled at the NBA Draft. Saw this on Deadspin and laughed til I stopped. Probably the best bit of television from the NBA Draft in years. And for the record, I'm eatting Cheese Dooooodles right now. That's the most attention I'll ever give to the NBA here. One more against the Phils and the sweep is complete and then it's on to Atlanta.

Mazzone Effect?

The O's won game 1 of the double header. Erik Bedard has really turned it on. 3 straight wins and a 1.29 ERA over that span. He also hasn't allowed a run over the last 16 innings. Maybe Mazzone's finally having an effect...because lately a lot of our pitchers have been having a lot of quality starts. June Total: Bedard W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO NP-S G O-AO 3 2 3.09 6 6 35.0 28 13 12 2 10 39 599-397 40-26 Benson W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO NP-S GO-AO 2 1 2.65 5 5 34.0 29 11 10 4 10 14 520-327 39-46 My boy...the engima known as Daniel Cabrera W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO NP-S GO-AO 2 3 4.94 5 5 27.1 26 15 15 4 21 32 533-315 23-26 Lopez W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO NP-S GO-AO 2 1 5.18 4 4 24.1 28 14 14 4 8 16 388-242 30-26 Guess who's June line this is? W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO NP-S GO-AO 0 1 2.45 6 0 11.0 13 3 3 1 2 5 171-103 7-19 Bruce Chen...surprise surprise. If he can keep those numbers, then if looks like he could be answer to our 6th and 7th innings. I'm gonna wait out June, July and August though before I make that statement on the record. Not really a great month for Cabrera, but he's streaky...up and down...and unpredictable. Once he gets better control though, he'll be lights out. I wonder how Russ Ortiz's numbers will look. All in all, it looks like June has been a great month for our pitchers. Get well soon Peter Gammons. The National Post article about Tejada has made a big flap. I discount a lot of stuff for the Post because....because they care more about the Nats than the O's. But the fact remains that Tejada is getting fined. That's not good leadership from someone who's supposed to be our team leader. As for these trade rumors, Peter Angelos said today: "The Orioles have no interest in trading Miguel Tejada ," said Orioles principal owner Peter Angelos. "He is an exciting and exceptional athlete and a great baseball player." Geez, well that increases the chances he gets traded if Pete says that. For the record, I'm not one of the O's fans who are saying "Trade Tejada, Trade Tejada," I just think if an offer that comes our way where we can get three players that will make us a better all around team...then I think we should seriously think about it. If we can get a 1 or 2 starter, a real everyday first baseman, and another young player, the Front Office would be fools not to consider that. Ramon Hernandez just got hit by a pitch the for the second time today, taking the Plunked Award from the battered grasp of Melvin Mora. I don't think that's an accident. Have I mentioned that I don't think Charlie Manuel is a good manager? Commercials I am sick of Rico Copiers (I get it...you're a procrastinator) Red Roof Inn (Multitask somewhere else) Taylor Hicks/Ford (Do me a favor and fade away quickly) Geico Caveman (It's not funny after the millionth time) Geico Lizard (You think you're witty lizard...but you're not) Man, I love double headers.

Shoeless Joe and another Tejada Trade Rumor

There's not much business with the O's right now...a little but I'll get to that later. I was reading Buster Olney's blog on ESPN.com and he mentions a new book about Shoeless Joe. Since I needed something to post about, I figured this was a golden opportunity to talk about Shoeless Joe. Joe in his playing days. I really liked this. Joe in his later days at his liquor store. There's a new book out that might clear Shoeless Joe Jackson. Jackson was born a few towns away from me in Pickens and he would die in Greenville, so the debate on whether Jackson should on shouldn't be in Cooperstown is rather one-sided here. I'll definately have to read this book. It's been my opinion that he should be in. He was accused of taking money to fix the series....but if you look at his numbers for the 1919 World Series, he batted .375 with 1 HR and 6 RBI. That's not numbers of someone trying to rig a series. Management and ownership of baseball were more corrupt than the players were back then. The contracts were horrible towards players and guys like Kenesaw Mountain Landis were in bed with the owners. Jackson never got a hearing...just the boot from baseball. I know you can say guilt by association, but I don't think he's guilty. He might have been backed into a corner by the mob, his teammates, whoever...but he obviosuly didn't go along with it in the end. I'm not just giving him the benefit of the doubt because he's a hometown boy.. I think it's cool that he's from my hometown, but I don't get my jollies out of it. Unlike the city of Greenville does. I'm glad they've embraced a tragic historical figure....sometimes though, they seem to overdo it. Before we got the name "Greenville Drive," the city and ownership were going to go with the "Greenville Joes." I would have rather have had that than the drive...but baseball didn't go for the name, since he has the ban and all. Here's the statue downtown...which is a classy touch. Here's the Jackson house. It's new home is by the ballpark where it's being turned into a Shoeless Joe mueseum. It's not opened yet, but when it does I'll post some pictures. For everything you've ever wanted to know about Shoeless go here. On to the O's and trade rumors. The Washington National Post says the O's are willing to trade Tejada partially because he's always shows up late and won't pay the fines he's levied for being late. That's the first I've heard of this, but if it's true...that's not good. I really think this is his last season as an O. I hate it...but I'm moving more towards the trade Tejada camp. If we were a player away from being a contender, then I'd be against. But we're several players away...sad thing is we might could get those players by trading him. Here's the follow up chat to the article. I'll just post spectualtion and we'll see if what happens. If anything does, I'll bet it's to the Angels. And further more.... From FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal

The Orioles stopped entertaining offers for Miguel Tejada after the shortstop rescinded his trade request last off-season, but they almost certainly would listen if teams inquired again. A ninth consecutive losing season, which appears inevitable, should be enough for Orioles owner Peter Angelos to figure out that his team won't improve until it trades Tejada for players who could fill multiple holes. Frankly, it might have been a good idea for the Orioles to also move third baseman Melvin Mora and right fielder Jay Gibbons rather than sign them long-term. It certainly wasn't a good idea to grant Mora a no-trade clause. The Orioles are less likely to trade Tejada before July 31 than they are during the off-season, when they could market him to a greater number of clubs. At that point, Tejada will have three years and $38 million left on his contract

. Asheville Tourists manager Joe Mikulik got his penalty for his awesome tirade. Ending on a positive note, I got the Brian Roberts jersey today and it rocks.

Hilarious beyond words

Was going to take the day off, but I must...I am required to share this video. The Asheville Tourists were playing the Lexington Legends. Tourist Manger Joe Mikulik went out to dispute a call. Lexington's Koby Clemens was leading off on second base after hitting an RBI double when Asheville pitcher Brandon Durden tried to pick him off. Umpire Andy Russell called Clemens safe, sending Mikulik barging out of the dugout like a drunken boar and then came an epic performance that would make Earl Weaver jealous. You MUST..YOU HAVE to see this!!!! That's it for the day.

Lucky me....

From Yahoo Sports: Before the game, Baltimore signed RHP Russ Ortiz, who had been cut by Arizona, which still owes him almost $22 million. Ortiz will start July 1 in place of LHP Adam Loewen, who was optioned to Triple-A Ottawa. I will be able to see Russ Ortiz's first start for the Orioles...in person. Lady luck has smiled on me and planted a wet on my face. I had thought I'd be seeing Cabrera, but I guess my figuring was off by a day. In retrospect, I should have waited on the buying the jersey. How cool would an Oriole Russ Ortiz jersey be? But I had to buy a Brian Roberts jersey... Sometimes I hate myself. All sarcasm aside... Here's the details. It's for the minimum...so there's no big investment in this guy. Classic buy low situation. The guy did great with Mazzone in Atlanta, maybe by being reunited they'll rekindle that old magic. If he pans out though, we better start saying our goodbyes to Rodrigo Lopez. I think the mouthing off about the skipped start sealed his fate. If Ortiz gives up 6 runs in the first Saturday though, I'll have no mercy on this guy. I'll be there and I know how to boo. Did you notice in the Post article where it mentions that the O's and Rowell are at stalemate over 100 k on the signing bonus? The O's offer 2 mil and he wants 2.1 mil. We got til August to work that out...as silly as it looks. If you have John Rocker backing you... do you need anyone else? The O's took 2 out 3 from the Nats this weekend. Good job, boys.

Russ O-rtiz?

John Boggs, agent for Russ Ortiz, told ESPN that the O's are the leaders for the services of Ortiz. Ortiz's numbers those don't factor in this season's numbers Look at these babies.... GM W L BB K ERA 6 0 5 22 21 7.54 AARGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! If those numbers were an animal, they'd be road kill. ugly ugly roadkill. Those are ugly numbers. With those numbers you could combine Russ and Chen and make a ultra-super bad pitcher. I shouldn't call him bad yet. I'll like him if he signs with the O's until he ruffles my feathers with some bad games. Arizona owes him a lot of money....22 million bucks to be exact. So Ortiz can be signed for the pro-rated portion of the major-league minimum salary of $327,000. He flourish under Mazzone's system, so I don't have a problem with this. If the Orioles do sign him, one of two things happen. 1) Rodrigo Lopez gets traded. to the Rockies for Ryan Shealy? I can only hope. 2) Adam Loewen goes back to the minors. I don't have a huge problem with this either. Another month or two in the minors for the kid would probably do him a lot of good. But if Ortiz comes in and Browers it up, they'd better cut the cord quickly. It could be another of thoese Patterson/Benson low risk/high reward moves. He could turn to be a nice pick up that translates into a good 4 or 5 pitcher, decent tradebait (if he puts up some good numbers), or he could just stink. I have no exceptations for him if he WERE to sign. By the way, great game last night. Good job by Rodrigo and good to see Chris Ray get three quick outs for the save after bloody Thursday. A week from today at this time I'll be in Atlanta gearing up for the O's and Braves!

Let the "Rivalry" resume

I want to hate you...but you're so dang jolly. Events that would make the Nats and O's a real rivalry *Earl Weaver attacks Screech the Eagle with a Louisville Slugger *Todd Williams hits Alfonso Soriano (who's in the dugout) while trying to intentionally walk Ryan Zimmerman. *Sammy Sosa comes to bat amid a cloud of smoke and sparks for the Nats in a pinch hit situtation in the bottom of the ninth. Chances are he'd strike out or hit a ball towards the warning track. *Matt LeCroy beans a Baltimore ballgirl while trying to throw out Patterson on a steal attempt for second. *Ed Rodgers comes to bat and the bases loaded.The ball disappears. All three runners score on what is thought to be a very very wild pitch. It would turn out later that Rodgers hid the ball in his jersey. *The Nats steal Brandon Fahey's lunch money and lock him in his locker after giving him a wedgie. *Jim Bowden and his girlfriend drive into the front of Camden Yards after "a couple drinks." *Luis Matos was Screech the Eagle's long lost son. *Peter Angelos eggs and rolls RFK with some Angel Soft. *Jeffrey Maier starts in Right Field tonight.

DISGRACEFUL

From MLB.com

Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez led off the 10th with a bunt single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. With first base open, the Orioles decided to intentionally walk cleanup hitter Miguel Cabrera -- but were unable to. Reliever Todd Williams, who normally throws from the side and not directly over the top, has trouble trying to throw intentional walks. He softly tossed the first pitch of the sequence too close to home plate, and Cabrera alertly swung and hit an RBI single into center field, giving the Marlins the lead. "He has a little trouble with his intentional walks," manager Sam Perlozzo said. "It's something that shouldn't happen

." I don't know what to say about last night's game. Chris Ray blew the save, but you know what...I'm fine with that. A closer will blow saves sometimes. It stinks...but it was going to happen at somepoint. I think Perlozzo warming up Ray 3 seperate times didn't do the kid any favors. But Todd Williams? How can anyone have a problem throwing an intentional walk? If he's having a problem walking someone...maybe you shouldn't put him in. Maybe if Williams has trouble giving up a walk, Cabrera can give him some pointers. I like Williams, I'm not calling for his head. But I want to see less of him... a lot less. This was an embrassment. an absolute joke. We snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Maybe this is the apex of the last 8 years. In the span of a week we had Ed Rodgers have a ball in play go into a jersey and now we have Todd Williams giving up a hit on an intentional walk. I fell asleep during the cursed tenth and I awoke to "Williams blew the walk." Too bad I woke up. This is brutal. At this point, maybe it's time to bring up the same question... Is it time to trade Tejada? I say yes. The front office would be stupid not to be putting out feelers. Who'd we be talking to? The Angels for starters. The team we have now could be .500 if the breaks went their way, but let's not kid ourselves and say this is a playoff team. There's a void at first. LF is a black hole. Jay Gibbons is a DH, not a RF. There is not a 1 or 2 in the rotation. (But the starters have improved in June) Tejada can help us more at this point by being traded. His value is only going to go down because of his declining defense and B-12 connections. A lot of teams can use him, but he'd serve a contending team better than he would the O's. At this point, I say make this team younger and do an actual rebuilding. Not a patchwork job like we've had the past 8 years. No Sosas. No Raffys. No Conines. Just commit to the youth and get it over with. Here's one deal that needs to happen. Ryan Shealy is drawing interest from the O's Would Javy and a pitching prospect do? Buyers and Sellers? Let's just call it rebuilding. I guess that's it. The Nats are in town...maybe tonight will be a shame free night or maybe Luis Matos will give up an RBI by accidently swallowing a baseball that took a bad hop.

Bedard toils with my emotions again?

8 innings 2 hits 0 BB 1 HBP and 12 K's. Great game to watch, but Bedard has been Jekyll and Hyde this season. From the ESPN recap:

"It was just tremendous performance against a hot team that had won nine straight," Orioles pitching coach Leo Mazzone said. "I give all the credit to Bedard. He had the courage to go to a new changeup in the middle of a major league championship season. This was his third time out with it, and tonight he really threw it exceptionally well." "He located in such a way that there was really no way you could hit it," Perlozzo said. "That changeup he's been working on, I think that was a big part of his game tonight. When you have to look for three pitches instead of two, it makes a difference."

The pitching has been much improved this month. I think we might finally be starting to see the Mazzone effect. I don't want to declare it just yet, but I knew it was going to take time and it might be getting through now. A moment of silence and a stale pound cake for... Left-hander John Halama, who was designated for assignment Friday by the team, cleared waivers and refused an assignment to Triple-A Ottawa, and was given his outright release. Here's some O's odds and ends. Halama was 3-1 with a 5.02 ERA in 16 games with the Orioles this year. This move was long overdue. Halama gave me plenty of headaches and heartaches though he did give me one glorious performance, that start against the Mariners. Sadly, that was the apex of his Oriole career. Hey John, I hear they're hiring in KC. I'm going to the O's/Braves July 1st...so this bit of news is a huge relief and I ordered the Brian Roberts Jersey Tuesday.

hGH, Matos, and Ozzie

Been busy since I got back. Got stuff working 8 straight days at work and stayed out too late last night to top it off, so my posting will be varied for the next week, week and a half. Here's a few things I looked at today. David Seugi wants to be the hGH poster boy. Just when I thought I was rid of you, David Seugi, you come back again. Schmuck has a good column about all this. Good article on roommates Markakis and Loewen. Luis Matos isn't going away yet. I wish he'd go away. With a change of scenery he'd probably turn into Andruw Jones and then I'd dislike him more. Smoltz getting traded? It could happen. The Braves are 30-41. LAST in the East. East W L Pct GB Mets 44 26 .629 -- Phillies 35 36 .493 9.5 Marlins 30 37 .448 12.5 Nationals 32 41 .438 13.5 Braves 30 41 .423 14.5 I think the streak might end this season. I can't picture Smoltz in another uniform. I hope he retires a Brave. Speaking of the Braves, I'll be in Atlanta July 1st for the O's and Braves game. During which game I'll be wearing my Brian Roberts jersey which should be here in a few days. I am really looking forward to it. Ozzie Guillen's act is wearing thin. At first, I liked Ozzie. I thought he was a breath of fresh air. Now his ranting, name calling, and obnoxiousness is getting old. Hey, I think Jay Marrotti and his waxed eyebrows are horribly pompous. I don't care for him. If Ozzie wants to say whatever he wants to say about Marrotti, do it behind closed doors, not to a pack of reporters who are looking for a good quote.

Guillen was still talking about it Tuesday, getting defensive about a column written by Ron Cook in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Cook wrote that Guillen, "has become the biggest creep in baseball -- at least on the days Barry Bonds takes off.

I get sick of his "that's how we do things back home" or "that's how we greet friends back home." You've lived in America 25 years, dude. You should have some social common sense. If that's how you talk to your friends....I'd turn down the invitation to the Guillen Cookout. I'm officially tired of Ozzie. I'm sure he'll just get a slap on the wrist for this, but I think he should sit out a couple games to make a point to this knucklehead.

Ben's back

Back from my mini-vacation. Feels like it's too soon. While I was gone the O's took 2 out of 3 from the Mets. When I was coming back down the insanely winding roads of the Arkansas back roads, I picked up bits and pieces of game 3, but my patience wore out quickly with the reception. I tried again later, but the game was over and I listened to some of Mark Prior getting shlacked until the reception went out again, I half expected this is we were seriously in the middle of nowhere. The nearest actual town was about 30 to 40 miles away, I'm not counting those little towns that consists of a few houses and a gas station with one pump and a pickle barrel. Arkansas has some weird names for towns, I should have wrote some of them down, but my favorite was 'Toad Suck Park,' which is an actual state park. I'd like to know how that one came about, but then again maybe I wouldn't. Went through Memphis, which has a beautiful shoreline....I guess you call it a shoreline. Driving over the Missisippi River and seeing Memphis was a great sight. Went on a hike Saturday that was rough on the body. Crawling on my belly in a cave and the couple dozen times I banged my head made me sore, but seeing the chamber with the waterfall it lead to was awesome. My cousin's husband and I made mistake doing a trail adventure. We followed the dried-up river that we thought led to a smaller cave where the rest of our party would meet us....which when the river bed ended, caused some problems. Half-walking, half-tumbling down a 50% incline and a little bit of wandering, we found the trail and our party....but in retrospect it wasn't the smartest thing to do. The ride back was grueling. We left at night going there, so we made awesome time 13 hours, minus 1 for the time change..but had daytime traffic and gained an hour so it ended up being 15 on the way back. But tomorrow it's back to work..ughhh. but there could be some positive changes in store there. I'm tired and have to do the back in town stuff, so I'm keeping it simple and linking to some stuff from the O's website. Kris Benson had an awesome return to Shea didn't he? David Segui went public yesterday about his legal hGH use and his name being in the Grimsley affadavid Rodrigo gets pushed back and now he's mad. I think it's kind of funny. When he was 1-7 and getting knocked around, Perlozzo kept him in the rotation and he didn't miss a start. Now he decides to skip him and he's irrate about it. I think this means he'll be gone soon. Melvin Mora talks about his gratitude towards Steve Phillips, who was a bad GM and is equally bad on ESPN.

Ben is on Vacation

If by angle, you mean ankle...then Perlozzo will give you a start in the outfield tonight. Leaving sometime tomorrow, but I won't have time to post because of all that last minute trip stuff that I've put off. Looking forward to some time away. Won't be back til sometime early Monday, so take it easy and stay classy til then.

Fixed....

Got things pretty much back to normal. Had to re-enter all the links, if I missed anyone... lemme know. Still need to get the email back up, but it's about 90% back to norma.. I'll try to fix that tonight and be less ambious in the future.

I hate it too....

Changed templates because I wanted a change. I didn't realize that I would lose all of the links, polls, feed, and everything else. I'll try and get it right tonight, but if not, it'll get righted until I get back. but yeah.... I hate it.

Rambling....Rambling on...

I'm wondering what, if any, the Orioles will make as trade season will trade up. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few positions that the O's need addressed. 1st Base Left Field DH SP Right now at first we have the 2 headed monster of Kevin Millar/Jeff Conine. I've got few problems with Millar this point, with the exception of the occassion big strike out he'll rack up. Millar was signed more for his clubhouse prescense, not his bat. 6 HR 29 RBI .241 BA 23 BB and 25 SO (He has gotten some quality at bats lately) Anything his bat can give us is gravy. Conine though, has been a deep fried fiasco smothered in disaster gravy. Niner was brought in, like Millar, for some leadership and for a little offense. I think little would be the right word. 5 HR 17 RBI and a paltry .229 BA It's not a shocker though, last season with the Marlins, Conine had 3 HR and 33 RBI with a deceptive .304 BA. Conine's better defensively at first than Millar, but watching Conine play left at this point is like watching two trains run in head on. One train carries toxic chemical waste and the other is carrying kittens. Just like Conine's defense, it's going to be uuuuuuggghhhllleee. At this point, I want Markakis in Right. I'd rather see Gibbons moved to first or DH. Who do I want to see in leftfield? Let's start with who I don't want to see. .188 BA .258 OBP 2 HR and 5 RBI yeah, it's not Luis Matos. Brandon Fahey, Luis Terrero, Ed Rodgers, and David Newhan are the others we have to play in left. Fahey is a nice utilty guy and I'd rather have start than Matos, but I don't think he's the solution to Left. Terrero... I can't say much about Rodgers because I only saw him playing once. That was the day Johnson no-hit the O's except Tejada. Newhan will be back off the DL after the break. I like Newhan, but I think he's more of a 4th outfielder. DH Javy Lopez and his expiring 7.5 million dollar salary will more than likely be traded, which opens up DH. It would be easy just to put Gibbons here after Lopez is traded. Gibbons' defense in the outfield is a concern and a move to DH or maybe 1st would make sense. Markakis can play his regular position of right and with 2/3rds of an outfield of Patterson and Markakis, that's a good defensive outfield. SP We can always use a starting pitcher. Chen's pitched his way out of the rotation and I'm assuming Rodrigo is trade bait. The Loewens and Penns are starting to come up, but a solid veteran pitcher is always something a team can use. One thing I've gone back and forth on is the Tejada thing. Do we trade him or do we keep him? Last winter I was ready to ship him off, then when he and the O's kissed and made up, I was giddy with him again. He's having a good year offensive, but defensively....his range is looking more and more limited. Whether they trade him or keep him depends hinges on two scenarios, in my opinion. If ownership is willing to commit the money and do a big trade and the big signing this off season and build a team that can win now, then keep him. Using mlb4u here's a few select free agents that could provide a spark for the O's, or could be the equal of putting a fork in an electrical outlet. Moves I would suggest for the win-now, spend big scenario Carlos Lee- I've made my feelings known on Carlos Lee already. Jermaine Dye- one of the most underrated players in baseball ever. Yeah, he's 32. But if you're building a veteran team to make a run, Dye's a great addition. Nomar Garciaparra- I think he's staying in LA and going to make a lot of money, but you never know. Mark Mulder- A return to the AL would do him good. Barry Zito- never going to happen, but I can dream. Ray King- He's awesome. Fat relievers with a bit of mean streak are the best. Kerry Wood- Incentive laded deal based on starts, innings, and staying healthy only. maybe at this point, he might be better suited for the bullpen. Sean Casey-maybe. Moves I would not suggest for spend big. Soraino- great season yeah, but he's going to be wanting top dollar. Is he going to want to play outfield in Baltimore? He's not going near second. His attitude is one that I don't want either. Griffey Jr.- He's a walking injury risk. Great player, yes..but an injury prone 36 year old centerfielder who won't move to the corners is not what we need. Jose Gullien- Headcase. no way. Torii Hunter- good player, yes...but I think he's overrated and he'll get a lot of money..from the Yankees. Jeff Weaver- I won't be fooled again by this chump. Juan Pierre- 0 HR and 7 RBI this season. That's 2 RBI more than Matos and he barely plays, whereas Pierre plays everyday. Poking a fork in an outlet might Gary Sheffield- I have no use for this guy. Top dollar for an aging journeyman with a big bat and a nasty attitude. Hey why don't you go back to Milwaukee...oh that's right, they hate you. San Diego? Los Angeles? Atlanta? Florida? Barry Bonds- Speaking of someone everyone hates.... the day the Orioles sign him, I'll buy a Jason Varitek jersey. Preston Wilson, Rondell White, Cliff Flloyd. I'm sure the O's will sing one of this stiffs...to which I'll say collectively "PPPPFFFFHHHHTTTT!!!" If we're going to go with a youth movement that can win down the road (argh), Tejada will have to be traded. If it was to happen, I don't want a bag of magic magic beans for him, we don't need a beanstalk. We need a winner. This scenario is so much less sexy. I can't really rattle off names to sign or not to sign like I could with the big money scenario. This scenario involves trading for AAA and AA talent and signing lesser known free agents. With this scenario, if you do it right, you have a team with a young core than can win for many years, whereas the win now, you have a much shorter window. I want a team that's good for awhile, not a team that'll tease me a two good years and one really good year and that's it. Maybe playing Jay Gibbons in the outfield wasn't a smart idea now he's back on the DL. Albert Belle is still in jail. Y'know...Stuart Scott really gets under my skin with his whole "we shouldn't boo or critcize athletes and only kiss their butts" act. Quote of the week, I was out last night and I was doing a score check on my phone. The O's of course, were getting stomped, Chris asked me to check the Cubs score and it was 5-1. "Phil Nevin probably hit another worseless homer." I checked the scoring plays and indeed, Phil "too good for Baltimore" Nevin hit another worthless homer. I'm going out of town tomorrow night. There's a huge family shin-dig in Arkansas. So I'll be getting together with the family...and having a 15-16 hour drive. A lot of my family lives in Missouri and Tennesse and we've got some lodges that we're renting out in the middle of the Arkansasian wilderness. Looking forward to some time away, but not the drive.

Off Day

Monday Smorgasboard

Maybe next time you can pitch at a little league game, Rocket. I've got to rant about the big deal the media is making about Clemen's performance in A,AAA, and soon to be AAA ball. It's wearing thin with me. The Rocket would be a fine AA pitcher at least. Roger Clemens strikes out 11 in AA ball. It ties a Corpus Christi Hook's record. The AP is already pushing for Clemens' to win a CY Young..

Chalk up another record for Roger Clemens, who looks as dominant as ever less than two weeks from his scheduled return to the majors.

WHaT? No sir, I won't chalk this one up. That's the equivant of me playing kickball against middle schoolers. I'd probably set a couple of recess records in kickball that day. Honestly,Roger Clemens must really be a special pitcher to strike out 11 in AA ball. I don't get the big deal that's being made out of this. Clemens is one of the best (if not the best pitcher) in my lifetime. The fact that he struck out 11 Double AA boys, at WHATABURGER FIELD, of all places, shouldn't be a big deal. When he gets back to the majors and strikes out 11 Cardinals, Mets, or even Royals. Then we'll chalk one up for the Rocket, but for now, I won't chalk one up. I understand the fact that he's pitching to get back in game shape, but the publicity this is getting is making me sick. WHATABURGER FIELD...WHATASHAM FIELD should be more like it. I'm surprised how little love is given to the stolen base. I love the stolen base. Manufacturing runs is an art in my opinion. Everyone loves home runs, so that's what lead in the decline of the stolen base. Stealing a base is a fundamental skill in baseball and as Tim McCarver says "Fundamentals are a fundamental part of baseball." I hope Corey steals 100. With Roberts, Patterson, and Newhan (back after the break), the O's could steal a lot of bags. • ESPN.com asked 60 players, executives, managers and coaches the following question: Which active major-leaguers have the skills to be good managers one day? Here are the leading vote getters: PLAYER VOTES Jason Varitek 11 of course. Brad Ausmus 11 Mike Matheny 10 Mike Redmond 6 Julio Franco 5 By the time he retires from playing, he might be too old to manage. Luis Matos 5 Todd Pratt 5 Alex Cora 4 Sandy Alomar Jr. 4 This guy is STILL playing, with the Dodgers. Can you believe it? Mark Loretta 4 Craig Counsell 4 Tony Clark 3 Mark Sweeney 3 Scott Hatteberg 3 Paul Lo Duca 3 Greg Maddux 3 I'd be surprised if Maddux was ever a manager. He doesn't seem the type to me. Where is A-Rod, Jeter, Damon, and Ortiz on this list? Clearly this is bias. *oh yeah, I threw Matos in there myself. ha ha ha. Benson vs. Janssen....AGAIN. It's like "Groundhog Day." By the end of the season these two will have faced each other 47 times. Maybe this is a good time to take a shot at the MLB schedule. So far the O's have played about 30 games against the Jays, 40 against the Rays, 20 against BAWSTON, and 15 against the Yanks....that what it seems like anyway. Chris Ray needs more save chances. RIP Moe Drabowsky I suggest reading "Black and Blue." It has some great stories about Moe, his pranks, and his amazing World Series performance against the Dodgers. Rick Ankiel is CURSED. Can anything ever go right for this guy? I'm scared to even say his name aloud out of sheer fear. The Giants are WRETCHED on the road. You realize that the Giants are setting themselves up to be a bad bad team soon. Moise Alou, Steve Finley, Barry Bonds, Omar Vizquel...this is an old team with very little youth and limited money to spend on free agents. I'm going to say in 3 years tops, the Giants will be a cellar team. They're not exactly knocking them dead right now though. Paul Byrd and Bob Wickman got into a scuffle... ..not a fight, because if it was a fight, Wickman would have snapped Byrd in half. Seriously, Wickman is not a guy I'd chose to fight with it was Paul Bryd. Rejoice Cubbies Derek Lee is swinging a bat again. If the Cubs offense still stinks...what happens? When Lee gets back and if their starting pitching can stay steady (anything from Wood and Prior is a bonus)I think they could be this year's Houston Astros. Consider: Zambrano's a freak Maddux will give more good starts than bad starts Sean Marshall will be a good pitcher Their bullpen is pretty strong, aside from a couple of blown saves. *the pitching and bullpen was the Astros' strength last season The Cubs' offense (like Houston's offense) is spotty. With Lee coming back that can change, though. Seriously, who's going to be the Wild card? and with that, I'm out like a Misson's batter caught looking at pitch thrown by a Hall-of-Fame pitcher "tuning up" for his return to the Astros.

Let's play...DESIGNATION!

Jay Gibbons is coming off the the DL, so the question is.... who's going away? Remember, whoever wins, gets to play baseball and live in Ottawa (for home games)for an undetermined amount of time. All expenses paid... Let's meet our contestants Canidate number 1 is a medicore pitcher who's just been demoted from the starting rotation to the bullpen. He's played for as many teams as most people have fingers. This season he's 0-6 with 7.76 ERA. He's given up 18 home runs in 51 innings. Hold your nose and clap your hands for BRUCE CHEN Candiate number 2... He's started 2 games and has 2 no decisions. He's got 12 K's and 8 walks in 15 innings with a 7.80 He's faced both the Yankees and the Blue Jays and didn't lose. He's a young raw pitcher from Canada who needs to get his control down. He's Adam Loewen. Number 3 is an outfielder who's been with the club since spring training. Maybe he's been a little bit rushed into his role as the corner piece of the Orioles' outfield of the future. His defense is good, but his bat has yet to really find its rhythm in the majors. Batting only .224... Nick Markakis Number 4... Is Webster's defination of 4th outfielder. No bat. good glove....ah forget it...I'm tired of him and his smug medicority. Luis Matos. (I can dream can't I? If I could see Luis Matos designated for assignment, I'd do cartwheels in my living room. Honest I would.) Candidate number 5 elected not to attend. He's already made several trips to and from Ottawa this season. Batting .231 and appearing only in 6 games this season... It's Ed "Round Trip" Rodgers. The favorite... He is the Journey man pitcher. Last season he pitched for 4 different teams. This season, he's only pitched for one. A set-up man...who hasn't set up much for the birds. This 34-year-old has allowed 21 hits and 14 runs in his last six outings, which totaled 15 2/3 innings. His ERA during that has been 8.04 After selling his soul for a good start against the Mariners, it's John Halama And in a landslide....It's Johnnnn Halammmmaaaaaa Hope you have a passport John, you're going to need it As an added bonus, you get to share a room with none other than our last winner, Raul Chavez! Enjoy your free meal at Waffle House, Ned's Oil and Lube Duffel Bag, and a week's supply of Lance crackers, hope you like Canada. For the record, I think Markakis could benefit from playing EVERY day in AAA for a few weeks. I have faith in Nick....I just think that strong spring training maybe hurt him by having him make the team. Loewen'll probably go back when Penn gets back. I want to see him get his control down in the minors and then get a late season call up.

New Feature

I'm unveiling the Bruce Chen home run tracker. By blowing that game last night, as you can tell by the little Bruces, it's at a robust 18. Here's a joke for Bruce to tell next time.... "What's white, round, and goes about 400 feet?" "What?" "A Bruce Chen pitch." btw...I need a name for this Chen Homer tracker....any suggestions?

CLEMSON WINS

What a game. Rub the rock, Tiger! (for those of you who know nothing about Clemson, that's Howard's Rock.... named after the Legendary football coach Frank Howard. Football Players run down the hill and rub the rock before the game.) The Clemson Tigers won a complete thriller on a walk-off grand slam. I don't watch much college baseball, but as long as the Tigers are in it, I'll listen to the magical sounds of aluminum bats. It was a great game to watch. I hope they win it all. Don't judge O's draft pick Jason Berkin on his start today...a foot in the nose can mess up a pitcher's concentration by a touch. Jay Gibbons says "I'm feeling great!" I'm wondering what happens to the outfield when Jay comes back Corey's a lock in Center I like Fahey much much much much much much much better than Conine in Left. Markakis is still struggling. Do the O's send Markakis down when Jay comes back? I think he perhaps was a little rushed...I'd like to see Jay get moved to first. The only way Gibbons wins a gold glove in right, is if all the other right fielders have their hands fall off. He's ok defensively....but there's a reason you see Markakis/Matos/whoever else come in during the ninth for him in the ninth innings of close games. I like Jay and I'm glad he's on our team...but I'd like him better if he was at first base. Maybe they can just keep Markakis and release Matos or trade Matos to the any team that's in need of good fielding outfielder, with a bad bat, likes to strike out, and sports a trademark sour expression. You will never believe this... Kerry Wood is back on the DL. "Kerry Wood is hurts?" "Shocking isn't it." "Kerry Wood is a workhorse, isn't he?" "If Kerry Wood was a horse, he'd be glue." "What do you think Kerry's got in the basket?" "Band-aids and asprins." "Make sure he shares....Mark Prior's a bottle of Elmer's too, y'know." "I'm sure those two are part of the reason Carlos Zambrano punches holes in the walls of his house every day with screaming curses in Spanish." "That and he's crazy..." "He's crazy and he is GOOOOOD." "I won't argue with that." "What I'd give to have that crazy Zambrano on our staff." "True..." Quality start for Rodrigo Lopez... 100 pitches (after 7) 7 hits 3 runs (all earned) 3 BB and 6 K's. the O's lead 5-3...let's hope it sticks. It's doubtful I'm be around much this weekend. Catch you Sunday evening, more than likely.

Lopez to Lopez again

The Lopez brothers look to go 4-0 together against the Twinkies. Brad Radke has the same record as Rodrigo, that fat 4-7. Rodrigo is 4-7 with a 6.75 ERA and Radke is 4-7 with a 6.42. By the way, I've always though Radke was always a touch over rated. After last night's thriller, let's do it again tonight boys!

NBA Playoffs translated to Baseball

The NBA Playoffs have finally begun! There was a point were I was really into the the NBA. I was a huge Charlotte Hornets fan. Alonzo Mourning, Larry Johnson, Mugsy Bogues, and Dell Curry...I loved that team. After George Shinn turned out to be a real scuzbag and moved the team to New Orleans (now he's talking about moving the team again...great guy). I like Miami for awhile (on account of Mourning) but the NBA lost me. The playoff system stinks. 16 teams in playoffs? That rewards medicority. How would it apply to baseball? Using last season's final standing, I devised the MLB seeding system ala NBA style. American League East W L x-3New York 95 67 .586 - - x-4Boston 95 67 .586 - - x-8Toronto 80 82 .494 15.0 - Baltimore 74 88 .457 21.0 Tampa Bay 67 95 .414 28.0 - Central W L PCT GB x1-Chicago 99 63 .611 - - x-5Cleveland 93 69 .574 6.0 - x-7Minnesota 83 79 .512 16.0 Detroit 71 91 .438 28.0 - Kansas City 56 106 .346 43.0 West W L PCT GB x-2Los Angeles 95 67 .586 - - x-6Oakland 88 74 .543 7.0 - Texas 79 83 .488 16.0 Seattle 69 93 .426 26.0 - #8 Toronto at #1 Chicago #7 Minnesota at #2 Los Angeles #6 Oakland at #3 New York #5 Cleveland at #4 Boston National League East W L PCT GB x-2Atlanta 90 72 .556 - - x-5Philadelphia 88 74 .543 2.0 x-6Florida 83 79 .512 7.0- x-7New York 83 79 .512 7.0 x8.1-Washington 81 81 .500 9.0 - Central W L PCT GB x1-St. Louis 100 62 .617 - - x-4Houston 89 73 .549 11.0 x8.1-Milwaukee 81 81 .500 19.0 - Chicago 79 83 .488 21.0 - Cincinnati 73 89 .451 27.0- Pittsburgh 67 95 .414 33.0 - West W L PCT GB x-3San Diego 82 80 .506 - - Arizona 77 85 .475 5.0 San Francisco 75 87 .463 7.0 Los Angeles 71 91 .438 11.0 - Colorado 67 95 .414 15.0 #8 Milwaukee/Washington at #1 St.Louis #7 New York at #2 Atlanta #6 Florida at #3 San Diego #5 Philadelphia at #4 Houston "A longer post-season wouldn't that be great?" "No....that would be horrible." "Why? The more the better, right?" "Yeah...I'd be chomping at the bit to see an 80-82 Toronto team play 99 win Chicago team. That would be dramatic." "The underdog could pull it out though." "Sure. 99% of the 8 seeds in the NBA get slaughetered in the first round. One more season why the NBA is a bad product." "It's not as long as Isiah Thomas has a job." "Yes, that man is a savvy businessman and a genius." Last season, there have needed to be 10 seeds for the O's to make the play-offs. If that was the case, you might put all of them in. Lee McCall, new bullpen coach Welcome aboard. Had a short day at work, so I got to come home at watch my Clemson Tigers play host Oral Roberts in the college Super Regionals. Jason Berken, the starter for Clemson was drafted by the Orioles this week, has a rough start. He last only an inning and a third, but got kicked in the face fielding a bad throw to first. After that he gave up a 3 run shot....which might happen if you get ran over. In the 4th...4-4 tie. Pujol's trainer speaks Ex-Yankee Jim Leyrtiz fesses up to using greenies.

Looks like we got some Grimsely names

What do these names have in common? former Royals general manager Allard Baird. Sammy Sosa Chris Mihlfeld Deadspin is pretty certain they are some names from Grimsley's affidvat. Mihlfeld is Albert Pujols' personal trainer. Uh-oh...this could be BAD. Very Bad... I hope it's wrong about Pujols. But if it turns out Puljos is taking hGH? Could you imagine the enomrous blackeye it would be baseball if Albert Puljos was connected to this? I've criticized the mentioning of Pujols and illegal substances. He's just a great player, I said. The linking of him to steriods, hGh, and all the like I attributed to the fallout of Barry Bonds. Nothing good in baseball could by without the question being raised "Is he juiced? Is it steriods? hGH? the Clear?" It's troubling. very troubling. If there's one player in all of baseball that MLB has hope isn't on anything, it has to be this guy. But please remember, as Deadspin said:

We repeat: We are not claiming that Pujols has taken HGH. We are simply pointing out that Milhfeld is reportedly mentioned in the affidavit, and that he has connections to be Grimsley and Pujols. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’re going to go back to our silent screams of pain.

I'm not going to let a mention of the possibility of Tejada and greenies go without a reply. I hope it's not true. But him popping a few in the shadow of a possible Pujols hGH scandal is small potatoes. I'm not excusing it by any means, but greenies have been around a long time. If Tejada has taken them, he's not the first... practically the entire 86 Mets were on them. Read "the Bad Guys Won" if you don't believe me. About Sammy Sosa... Judging from Sosa's season last year, maybe hGH doesn't work all the time. "Sammy Sosa...illegal substances? Say it ain't so Sammy?" "Sorry kid, I don't speak english. Gimme a translator." It's hard to believe that a medicore set-up guy can create absolute mayhem in baseball. Buster Olney has this on his blog today:

A couple of years before, I had written a small story for the Baltimore Sun that Grimsley was the player who had crawled through the bowels of Comiskey Park and pilfered teammate Albert Belle's cork- filled bat from the umpires' dressing room in the midst of the 1994 season. But Grimsley had never acknowledged his participation and the story had never been fully told from a first-person point of view, so after talking with Grimsley a few times early in the spring of '99, I edged into the conversation about the Belle bat, about Feb. 20 or so. "If you happened to be the guy who allegedly took the bat from the umpires' room," I asked, "and I were to ascertain that the statute of limitations has passed [regarding what] would happen to the person who did this, would you talk about it?" "If I happened to be that guy," he said, smiling, "then that would be great." But Jason had another condition: He wanted to make sure his situation with the team was settled. Either he wanted to wait to find out whether he made the major league roster, for sure, or he wanted to wait until he was assigned to the minors. Jason Grimsley's biggest concern was that his story would not be some kind of distraction for the team. He officially was placed on the Yankees' roster at the end of spring training, and during the first week of the season, he sat down and told the story of climbing up through a ceiling tile while holding a flashlight in his mouth and doing a mission impossible to switch Belle's illegal bat during a game; Grimsley and the other Indians knew that Belle's bat was corked, so he did everything possible to save his teammate from suspension. And the only reason he didn't get away with it was that all of Belle's bats were corked, and the replacement bat left in the umpires' dressing room was a Paul Sorrento model, rather than a Belle model. I'd bump into Grimsley every once in a while after he left the Yankees, and he was as gregarious and as funny as ever, a really good and easygoing guy, chatty; we'd mostly talk about his three young boys, who seemed to have the same kind of reckless, fun-loving personality as their father.

I'm suprised that anyone would stick their neck out for Albert Belle. Grimsley does seem to be a bit of colorful guy, but Yankees Outfield Gary Sheffield is is out til September. "How many teams do you think Shef has played with?" "A player of Shef's caliber? Two...the Yankees and the team he sold out to go the Yanks." "No, 6 teams...2 stints with 2 of them." "Really?" "Yeah...and he has be rumored to be a little bit of a jerk at times." "But..he was friends with Barry Bonds. Surely, if he can befriend Bonds, he must be a jolly fellow." "Maybe they're two of a kind." *For the record, I think Shef's played his last game as a Yank. I bet his option doesn't get picked up and he signs a deal with the Blue Jays. Just want to put a plug for ArmchairGM.com. Great interactive sports site. It's free to register. Do an article...do any opinion..or post a comment. Let me get this straight... Gameboy is a gateway drug?

Tim, a gamer who is currently under treatment, agreed to discuss his addiction on condition of his last name not being used. He said he began playing video games three years ago at age 18. Soon he wouldn't leave his room for dinner. Later, he began taking drugs to stay awake and play longer. Finally he sought help and picked up other hobbies to occupy his time. Symptoms of addiction are easy to spot, Bakker says. Parents should take notice if a child neglects usual activities, spends several hours at a time with the computer and has no social life. Bakker said parents of game addicts frequently echo the words of partners of cocaine addicts: "'I knew something was wrong, but I didn't know what it was."

"Hi...my..name is..Ben..and I'm a Gameaholic." "How did it start?" "When I was 6...my parents got an Atari at a yard sale. Space Invaders. Frogger. Pac-Man. I started out on the light stuff." "What happened after that?" "They got a Nintendo. Mario Brothers. Duck Hunt. Rampage. I was hooked using that gun to shoot that duck, but I never could shot that laughing dog. Then I got the PowerPad, that triggered my downward spiral into the bowels of my gaming addiction . Living in gutters, sneaking in Best Buy to play Demos, digging quarters out of sewer drains to play arcade games.I'm not prepared emotionally to talk about Mortal Kombat." "We'll save that for the next session." I can still waste a few hours with NCAA Football, MLB, or Madden, but I lack sympathy for this. The World Cup? Apparently the entire World is excited about something that I just can't get into. Maybe it's me... I think that's enough...but

Jason Grimsley makes me worried.

I'm afraid of what will come of this whole torrid Jason Grimsley thing. I'm afraid it could possibly be Raffy 2. Here's why I'm worried.

According to the affidavit, which was uncovered by The Arizona Republic, Grimsley tells Novitzky that last season he and three other players discussed the challenge of playing without amphetamines in 2006. By using the word "his," the affidavit implies he was talking about a trio of Orioles teammates, though specific names and the word "teammate" are redacted. Grimsley also suggests in the affidavit that one Oriole "talked openly" about his amphetamine use.

On the day Palmeiro returned to the Orioles last August, Grimsley was one of the players vocally in his corner, saying: "He's my teammate. I'll go to war with him any day."

The names will come out soon. I'm going to cross my fingers and hope the only Oriole names that comes up are Raffy, Sammy Sosa, and anyone else who isn't on this team. If it is, let be Luis Matos. I can't believe that I'm going to get into this....but this is the part that bugs me. In no way am I a defender or apologist of Barry Bonds. I think I've my positions on Bonds clear. But Feds wanted Grimsley to wear a wire and use that to bust Bonds. That bothers me. What is Barry Bonds? He's a baseball player. I have a problem with the goverment going to all this trouble to nab a baseball player using steriods. I'm not saying that he should get a pass on this. The fact is, that Bonds hasn't failed a drug test yet and until that day comes, he is clean*. It just seems to me that the government and the FBI should have bigger priorities than this. I'd love to see Bonds get busted, but I think this getting into witch hunt terrority. But in the scope of the great steriod hunt, Barry Bonds is the Moby Dick. When and if he ever does get busted, I won't feel any pity for the guy. He's made his bed and he'll have to sleep in it...but if I'm stealing stuff at work, my boss will take care of it. He won't call the feds and put a sting on me. Granted I don't have the stature, acheivements, or sheer nastiness that Barry Bonds possesses, but still. It's true that baseball's drug testing has been an absolute joke until Congress put pressure on them to put some teeth in their toothless testing system. There's no test in MLB for hGH and that needs to happen. What will happen and how bad will this be for baseball? Who knows...I just hope any steriod, hGH, or whatever else user isn't still on the O's. I'm not going into doomsday scenarios until they happen. I see the cup as being six games from being half full. For the record, Grimsley has nothing but a spare part in his baseball career. But he's been a spare part for a lot of teams. The Angels, Yankees, Phillies, Royals, Indians, Diamond Backs, and..sadly..Oriole. On thing I sort of wish to edit from my post yesterday on the mockery that is the All-Star game...

“You should have voted for Damon or Manny.” “And after I do that I’ll stick a spoon in jalapeno pepper juice and then firmly plant in my left eye.”

It should read "You should have voted for Damon." I really don't have a huge problem with Manny. He's got the numbers and he'd be one of the Red YankSox that would actually belong in the All-Star game. But if there's a phrase in baseball I hate, it's the "Manny being Manny." I hate that phrase. That ranks above the whole A-Rod, I-Rod, and all abbreviated name junk. What do I hate more? Red Roof Inn Commericals on Comcast. I hate Red Roof Inn Commericals...and "MULLLTTITTASSSKING!" My ears burn even when I type that. I pretty much despise Johnny Damon. Playing for both the Red Sox AND Yankees doesn't help this guy, but the fact that he was the face of the "Idiots" and he jumped the Yankees for more dough. I do remember a regrettable moment of this past offseason, where the O's had made no moves...with the exception of the LaTroy Hawkins trade. Scuttlebutt was Damon was talking to the Red Sox, Yankees, AND Orioles. "We should just go ahead and sign Damon." I said to my friend Chris. "We have the money and haven't done notable this offseason. Why not?" I'm ashamed to have uttered these words, and it makes me lose a little respect for myself in retrospect. Translated my words would have meant: "I want the O's to make a splash in the free agent market. I want them to spend 50 million over 4 years on a medicore centerfield, with a weak arm, decent bat, and looks like a vagrant." Corey Patterson is working out find for me right now. Oriole Think Tank reviews the later draft picks. The O's lost another loss game last night and Melvin Mora made a horrible decision to tag up and try to score with two outs on Ramon's pop fly...which ended the game. Somewhere, Kris Benson is scowling.

All-Star voting is a joke

All-Star Game voting is a joke that doesn't make me laugh. I've heard it before and I'll say again...why don't we just let the Yankees and Red Sox play an exhibition for everyone. Following each category is dialogue with my non-existent intern Esmeralda Catcher 1. Jason Varitek, Red Sox 448,894 2. Ivan Rodriguez, Tigers 398,852 3. Jorge Posada, Yankees 337,969 4. A.J. Pierzynski, White Sox 256,308 5. Victor Martinez, Indians 256,148 First off, where's Ramon? If he's not leading the voting, then he should be top three. Varitek is batting .236 for the year. If Ramon was wearing a Red Sox uniform he'd have 500,000 votes right now. “You didn’t hear the news that they’re building a golden statue of Varitek outside Fenway Park?” “No. But it makes sense.” “Anyone who votes for someone other thank Tek will be sacrificed to it.” “I’d better watch my back then.” Second Base 1. Robinson Cano, Yankees 404,416 2. Mark Loretta, Red Sox 368,226 3. Tadahito Iguchi, White Sox 348,691 4. Placido Polanco, Tigers 184,928 5. Brian Roberts, Orioles 176,630 Robinson Cano?!?! What?!? I think Cano will actually be a great player and has had a pretty good season, but if he was putting those same numbers up in say...a D-Rays jersey or a Twins jersey, would he really be leading the voting? I think not. Yes, Loretta has had a good year. Iguchi and Polanco, I'm not familiar with . I voted for Roberts. Robinson Cano sounds like a dress shoe or a hiking boot. “Hey, Ben. I like those boats.” “Thanks Esmeralda , I got them at the outlet mall.” “Are those…” “Yes, they’re Robinson Cano’s.” “I am soooo jealous.” “They go great with my khaki shorts when I don’t feel like wearing my Teevas.” First Base 1. David Ortiz, Red Sox 631,787 2. Jason Giambi, Yankees 433,308 3. Paul Konerko, White Sox 295,489 4. Travis Hafner, Indians 228,758 5. Chris Shelton, Tigers 208,045 Ortiz has made some great defensive plays at first this season hasn't he? Actually, there's no DH in this game, so where will all the DH's play? Ortiz is batting .257...but has 17 HR and 51 RBI. Giambi has 16 and 47 and a .283 average. Konerko has 15 HR and 42 RBI and a .293 average, plus he plays first every day. Hafner's another DH...he's batting .308 with l6 and 51 Chris Shelton, after his torrid start, has been exposed to be a solid to average player. Do I think he deserves an All-Star nod? No. If he can put great numbers for the rest of this season to this point next time, then sure. With all the numbers being similar, I voted for Konerko. 1) He plays first everyday 2) He's not a Yankee or a Red Sox Third Base 1. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees 731,811 Why does everyone hate Rodriguez? Only 731,811? Embarrassing. An absolute DISGRACE. 2. Mike Lowell, Red Sox 317,803 3. Joe Crede, White Sox 236,260 4. Eric Chavez, Athletics 227,140 5. Troy Glaus, Blue Jays 223,636 Where is the love for A-Rod at? 13 HR and 44 RBI Lowell has 7 HR and 31 RBI But I voted for Melvin Mora. A-Rod has plenty of votes and Lowell is making good for himself too. There needs to be a little Oriole ballot box stuffing anyway. I just saw Melvin Mora make a great out on Benji Molina. That’s the clincher. “Alex…get off that ledge.” “I can’t…I’m going to end it all.” “Why? Because you’re not clutch?” “Uh..no..Because Ben voted for Melvin Mora over me.” Shortstop 1. Derek Jeter, Yankees 765,110 2. Miguel Tejada, Orioles 526,622 3. Michael Young, Rangers 197,386 4. Alex Gonzalez, Red Sox 173,307 5. Juan Uribe, White Sox 162,875 I can't bellyache over this one. Jeter's Jeter and he's a good player...and he is better defensively than Tejada. I voted for Tejada anyway. “You should have voted for Jeter.” “I could.” “Why didn’t you?” “Because he’s got plenty of votes….besides, Buck and McCarver’s man crush on him costs him my vote. Tim McCarver said Derek Jeter created baseball.” “But McCarver played baseball before Jeter was born.” “Tim McCarver is a buffoon. Ignore him and one day he’ll go away.” Outfield 1. Vladimir Guerrero, Angels 745,397 2. Manny Ramirez, Red Sox 738,168 3. Johnny Damon, Yankees 529,770 *I don't like Johnny Damon. 4. Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners 413,737 5. Vernon Wells, Blue Jays 365,466 6. Gary Sheffield, Yankees 360,973 7. Hideki Matsui, Yankees 283,312 *these two haven't played in a little while. 8. Scott Podsednik, White Sox 268,599 9. Jermaine Dye, White Sox 262,008 10. Coco Crisp, Red Sox 248,485 *he hasn't either. 11. Torii Hunter, Twins 237,308 12. Trot Nixon, Red Sox 233,099 13. Magglio Ordonez, Tigers 195,475 *I'd have him a little higher 14. Grady Sizemore, Indians 194,857 15. Jonny Gomes, Devil Rays 175,629 I voted for Vlad, Wells, and wrote in Corey Patterson. “Why Patterson?” “Why not?” I replied “You should have voted for Damon or Manny.” “And after I do that I’ll stick a spoon in jalapeno pepper juice and then firmly plant in my left eye.” There you have it. My AL All-Star ballot. In the end, though, I'm about as objective as most of the Red Sox and Yankee Fans, but I did vote for 3 non-Orioles. Hey, at least I didn't vote for Luis Matos. My NL ballot went like this. C-Michael Barrett 1st-Nomar (Albert's got plenty of votes at this point.) 2nd-Chase Utley ss-Edgar Renteria 3rd-David Wright OF Andruw Jones, Carlos Lee, and Alfonso Soriano “Where‘s Barry Bonds?” “Not on my ballot.” Ramon is cleaning up at the clean up slot. There's a shake up with the coaching staff. Lee McCall moves from Ottawa pitching coach to bullpen coach Rick Dempsey moves from bullpen coach to 1st base coach Dave Cash goes from 1st to being reassigned. Odd move to happen. But maybe it means that Dempsey is not a good bullpen coach. Orioles Think Tank breaks down the O's early draft picks.

Assorted Mess

The Draft was today. Billy Rowell was selected ninth overall by the O's. Rowell is said to have a powerful bat and will be likely play 3rd or RF. Here's the total first day recap. Notice there's a lot of infielders drafted, which good, since we have none in the farm system. Also of note, No signs of Jeffery Maier yet. There's another day tomorrow though. Let's give props to Daniel Cabrera. Nice outing. Loewen will start again. No Bruce Chen? Great. Michelle Wie threw out the first pitch tonight. Wonder if she'll try and make the team. She can't be worse than Luis Matos. Peter Gammons had this interesting chart on his blog, which shows you how the baseball draft is. Sometimes the guy who went undrafted can be better in the majors than your first round pick. It's an exact, yet very fickle, science. Where The Starting 30 Catchers Came From 1st round Mike Lieberthal, Michael Barrett*, Jason Kendall, Joe Mauer, Jason Varitek 2nd Brian McCann 3rd A.J. Pierzynski 4th Yadier Molina 5th Brian Schneider, Jason LaRue, Danny Ardoin 7th John Buck 8th Mike Matheny 9th Toby Hall 17th Russell Martin**, Mike Napoli, Johnny Estrada 20th Damian Miller 24th Jorge Posada 25th Paul Lo Duca** 48th Brad Ausmus 62nd Mike Piazza*** Undrafted Pudge Rodriguez, Bengie Molina, Miguel Olivo, Ronny Paulino, Kenji Johjima, Rod Barajas, Victor Martinez, Ramon Hernandez *Drafted as SS **Drafted as 3B ***Drafted as 1B • From 1984 to 2004, 33 different catchers were selected in the first round (Charles Johnson and Varitek each were selected twice). • Of those 33, six turned out to catch 130 games in a major-league season: Craig Biggio, Johnson, Dan Wilson, Mike Lieberthal, Jason Kendall, Mauer. • Thirteen never caught in a major-league game Gammons is solid. Even if he does wear Red Sox Pajamas. D-Backs and Former Oriole, Jason Grimsley is about to get the black ball. This is more widespread than I think most of us have thought. It's not just the Bonds, McGwires, Giambis, and Raffies doping..it's the Grimslies, Lawtons, and others on down. Get this quote:

He added that amphetamine use was prevalent in pro baseball, and that it was placed in coffee in clubhouses, marked "leaded" or "unleaded," Novitsky wrote.

Great. I'll keep that in mind if I ever join him and Raffy for breakfast. Went to Drive game tonight. It was a pretty solid game. If Chris Turner, Outfielder for the Drive, can learn to take walks and hit a single... he'll be a major leaguer. But when you have 12 homers on the season and you're batting .222, you need to develop your game a little. If he does learn and makes it, I hope it's not in Boston. Clemens pitched A ball tonight. I think the Drive play the Lexington Legends. It would have been sweet if it would have happened here...but it's not a home game. It probably would have locked the entire downtown down. Roger Clemens' Career Stats for the Lexinton Legends Innings pitched: 3 Batters faced: 13 Pitches: 62 Strikes: 41 Balls: 21 Hits: 3 Home runs: 1 Earned rums: 1 Strikeouts: 6 Walks: 0 Hit batters: 1 Maybe if he makes it the majors, they'll retire that kid's number one day. The O's and Eric Bedard lost tonight to the Jays and BJ Ryan got the save. Irony...cruel irony. Jays 6, O's 4 Bedard, you frustrate me. I'm going to order the jersey after I get back in town (June 19th),

so if you haven't voted and care about what jersey I buy, vote.

There's a tie that needs to be broken. *I'll be out of town for a big family shin-ding June 15-19th. Enough of this. I need to go to bed.

Cabrera's Back

I feel complete again. Daniel's back and I can experience his "dirty brilliance." With 5innings worth of work: 2 Hit 9 k's 5 BB 0 Runs Welcome back old friend. Some filthy filthy stuff indeed. If you shut them out, the walks mean nothing. Luis Matos has now struck out in his last 5 straight at bats and counting. UPDATE (Robert Stack Voice): The streak is over with a bunt single in the 4th. In celebration, if you're ever in greater Upstate SC area, I'll treat you to Chili-Cheese burger at Carolina Fine Foods...on me. UPDATE UPDATE (Robert Stack Voice): And now a stolen base. I'll buy you a Chili-Cheese Plate w/ a sweet tea now, Luis. If you get a 2 fer tonight, I'll give you the option of fries, onion rings, OR the half and half. The Angry Yanks tossed around Josh Beckett. 1.1 innings, 7 hits 8 runs 7 earned 2 BB 1 K 2 HR 13 batters faced. Maybe they pretended Beckett was Corey Patterson. If Larry "screwloose" Bowa did, he'd be jailed right now. After work tomorrow, I'll be attending my own mini-Yankee/Red Sox clash. The Charleston (SC) Riverdogs face the Greenville Drive. The Riverdogs are the Yanks single A team, as the Drive are the Red Sox. Everytime I see them play, I think, today I cheer team...one day I'll boo them. Tomorrow, multiply that by 2. Charlie T. Riverdog sort of looks like a llama. I'll see you all Wednesday.

How I became an O's fan

Not much happening today, so I guess this as good as time as any to tell how I became an Oriole fan. I've lived in South Carolina all of my life, so I don't have any roots in Baltimore. When I was about five, my Dad got me an Oriole hat. At the Wal-Marts in South Carolina, you always have options for hats. They have the Braves hats, the Yankee hats, the Red Sox hats, Cubs, Cardinals, and Oriole hats. In fact they still have that same selection plus those ever trendy Nats hats. I always assumed he got it there, but he may have got it at a yardsale or a sports store. I dunno. It was the old hat, with the cartoon bird, which I wish they'd have now instead of that "O's" they have now. I was only 5 or so, but I grew attached to the hat because of the cartoon bird and once I actually began to know the sport, I became be a big Cal fan. So I guess a cartoon bird hooked me to put me where I am now. Of course, the Orioles were never on television then and so I watched a lot of Braves game. I always have a soft spot for the Braves, but I won't July 2nd when I go see the O's play. So the Yankees and Red Sox play again tonight. You know...I'm getting tired of this rivalry. True, they have played some classic games against each other, but they're division rivals. They're going to play alot. Let's not make it into the World Series each time they play. I guess ESPN thinks that MLB is the Yanks, Red Sox, and everyone else. But you're talking about two of the teams that I hate the most and saying I should watch. I'll pass. If I stay home tonight, I'll watch the Orioles play the Jays. I might go end up going to the Drive game tonight, if not tonight, then tomorrow. If Perlozzo has a mental lapse and somehow decides to start Chen tonight then I'll go. I can't watch Chen pitch anymore. I can not. From the Washington Post:

Cabrera to Get Nod -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Perlozzo announced that starter Daniel Cabrera, on the DL with right shoulder inflammation, will start on Monday against the Toronto Blue Jays. Bruce Chen, scheduled to start on Monday, likely will now pitch on Thursday against the Blue Jays

I'm hoping Cabrera comes back sans his love of the walk. As for the aforementioned Bruce Chen, Loewen MUST start over Chen. Bruce may just as well start the game with his back to home and just start throwing balls over the fence. Corey PHATterson Rick Masese sends you his praises even that mental case Larry Bowa doesn't. Roch Kubatko has a better take on the Patterson/Bowa incident in his blog. Scroll down to the heading "Your 11-4 final." Mora's quote is priceless. For the record, Corey has 25 stolen bases on the season and steals in 8 straight games. If Benji Molina plays at catcher for the Jays tonight, I say Corey gets adds 2 more to that total...he'd get two off Zaun too. I love watching Patterson on base. No Bonds for the O's next year? That's an epic relief. Is Loewen here to stay? I say give him a couple more starts. He did better than Chen. Saw this on Baseball Musings and Deadspin, Former Ump Eric Gregg had a massive stroke. I remember Gregg from his umpire days, say what you will about his umpiring, but I felt bad for the guy when he was part of the group of umps who weren't allowed to get their jobs back. To do something for so long and then be told that you can't do again due to labor dispute, must be horrible. Says he worked concessions for the Phils after he couldn't get his job back. Hope he makes a full recovery.

O's BLAST Yanks

I guess we can say Rodrigo Lopez is back. Lopez went 6 and 2/3 innings gave up 7 hits 4 run all earned walked 2 struck out 2 and popped the God amongst mortals Derek Jeter on the wrist. Turns out he's bruised and nothings broken, that's good...I don't root for injuries to the other team...even if they are Yankees. Javy Lopez redeemed himself for yesterday with 2 homers and drove in 4 Kevin Millar hit a sweet 3 run homer. Brandon Fahey made everyone forget about Luis Matos (as hard as thay may be) with a 3 for 4 day (1 HR, 2 RBI) Corey Patterson went 2 for 4 and stole 2 bases (25 for the season) Glad to see Melvin Mora break out his slump with a 2 for 4 Glad to see an O's win...but too bad we couldn't have pulled the sweep...or gotten 2 out of three. RIP Grrrreenville Grrrrrrrowl The Greenville Grrrowl folded this week, that's the city's East Coast Hockey League team. I think they're affilated with the Boston Bruins. I went to one game in the 7 or so years they were here and that was this season. I'm not a big hockey guy, but I went on a date there...explaining a sport I know nothing about to a girl who knew about as much as I did. Hockey's just not for me. I tried, I've watched some parts of games on television over the years to try to like the sport. I really have tried to make the effort over the years, but it's just not for me. Gimme a baseball game or a football game anyday. Aside from my feelings about hockey,It's a shame to see another sport leave the town. We lost the NBDL (National Basketball Developmental League) Greenville Groove after their first season (which they won the championship in) and the Arena Football2 League's Greenville Rhinos after their only season here too...I think they were in the championship game. People in this town will only show for baseball, high school football, and races down at the racetrack, and that's what killed the Grrrrrrrrrrrowl. Along with the Greenville Drive, you notice that this city can't have a team with a half-decent name. Groove? Drive? Grrrrrrrrowl? Rhinos is ok, but what does a Rhino have to do with this city? I remember at the game I went to..they played the Pennsicola Ice Pilots and the Grrrowl won in a shoot-out. If you knew hockey it would have been a fun game. But there may have been a 1,000 people...maybe. A lot of them were kids. We were sitting in a section that was full of loud unsupervised kids, which added to the fun. The Drive is having about 3,000 a game lately I've read.So this it, Grrrrrrowl...I can't miss something I didn't really notice..but for the real hockey fans, I do feel bad for them, because the only way this city will see hockey again is on television. Gggggoodbye Grrrrrowl, I barely knew theeeeeeee.

NOT AGAIN!!!!

Another day, another 1 run loss to Yanks. Javy "Rally Killer" Lopez flied out with 2 on, 2 out in the bottom of the tenth to end it. Luis Matos went 0-4, with 4 K! He should have been wearing pinstripes today. Corey Patterson stole his 23rd base today. Adam Loewen made his first major league start. I was pretty happy with the results. 5 innings worth of work 6 hits 3 earned runs 4 K and 4 BB It's something solid to build on. And...unlike Bruce Chen, he did NOT give up a home run. Though I think he should spend the bulk of this season in the minors, I hope he gets a couple more starts in the majors. Shoot, what do we have to lose? Are we going to put Chen back in the rotation? Loewen's the future, so we might as well let him get a little time in now. from MLB.com...

Right-handed pitcher Daniel Cabrera was short with reporters on Friday, answering every question in a one-liner. The right-hander has spent two weeks on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation, and he said that he has no pain in the joint. He also said he doesn't know when he'll pitch next, but the Orioles are eyeing a Monday return. Cabrera threw on the side Friday and last pitched in a game on Wednesday, which was also Bruce Chen's last appearance. Chen is currently penciled in for Monday's game, but that could change. At worst, Perlozzo said that Chen would pitch a few days later -- he's not being skipped and he's not being removed from the rotation.

Please Sam...just admit that Chen is stinking it up and leave him in the pen. Jay Gibbons is on the DL ....and the hits keep on coming.

BEAT THE YANKEES

I am not kidding about this...

OH MY.... The Orioles are giving serious thought to drafting one of the most notrious villians in Oriole history....no, Sammy Sosa isn't in this year's draft....Jeffrey Maier. Yes...that one. The kid. Tony Tarasco. Dererk Jeter. Richie Garcia. Yankee Stadium. Interference. RUINED POSTSEASON. Jeffrey Maier. Irony, huh? I'm actually hoping they do. He owes us one. I was just a kid when that catch happened and I resented that kid. Being on TV and Regis and Kathy Lee, and having Regis completely drool over it all, It can make one sick. For a few days, that kid was everywhere. No one seemed to care about the fact that He interferred with the ball!!! I've gotten over it, I think it was easier since I was just a kid then. But I hated this kid for a while. The fact that here was this kid, a Yankee fan, interferring with my Orioles...ruining the game. And then, they celebrate the fact that he did. He got tickets, free Yankee stuff, got on TV, he was everywhere for a few days. Regis Philbin, you have the journalistic integrity of the Weekly World News. Actually, is this guy even considered a journalist? HAHAHAHAHHA. In the end though, I blame umpire Richie Garica more. He blew the call. After that catch, he owes the O's...and what better way to pay us back than to play for us and play against his beloved Yankees? If the kid has talent and can help us somewhere down the road. As the wise sage Peter Angelos said "To forgive is divine." And if he can help get the Orioles out of the downward spiral he helped create, why not? Now, if he gets drafted by the Yanks, then it's a completely different story. Some interesting quotes in the article.

"I wouldn't be at all opposed to [drafting Maier]. In fact, I'd say it's a very interesting development," Angelos said. "You can say the Orioles are very seriously considering him. I know this much: I was at that game, and he certainly did seem to be a heck of an outfielder. Sure, we'd take him. In fact, I like the idea more and more, the more I think about it."

"I could still be in Baltimore if that didn't happen," said Davey Johnson "It was a real big game, and we were going to win it," Johnson said. "It changed a lot of things. It got me fired -- not immediately, but it got me fired. I didn't win [it all]. I won a little bit, but not enough."

Pitcher Scott Erickson said he hopes Maier makes it to the major leagues, "just so I can drill him -- I'd like to get one shot at him."

"I don't blame the kid," Ripken said. "It was a reaction. It was not premeditated. Why harbor any resentment? If the Orioles draft him, great. I'd look at it as, 'Here's a kid trying to fulfill a dream.' "

"Sure, we'd take him. In fact, I like the idea more and more, the more I think about it." Oh man oh man... I'd never thunk up this scenario. No Bruce, that homer hurt me more than it hurt you. Bruce Chen, out the rotation? How could this be?

Chen is 0-5 with a 7.71 ERA in 11 games, with 70 hits allowed in 49 innings. The 17 home runs against him are the most in the majors.

The O's site has an article about the rotation as well. Cabrera looks ready to return and torture my emotions with his great stuff and his unpredictable control. Hope he's back in 5 days...and I hope Chen and his amazing gopher ball is in the pen. Apparently the Bruce Chen Fan Club has lost interest long long ago. Adam Loewen starts Saturday against the Yankees. If that isn't trial by fire, I don't know what it is. Now, say if he happens to do awesome tonight, what happens? Benson's safe in the rotation. Rodrigo has won two start, so I assume he's ok. Cabrera comes back soon. Bedard has been on a downward spiral for the past four starts and Chen has been Mount St. Helens with a jock....a walking disaster. Penn should be back in a week...maybe two. Of course, Loewen has to DO good Saturday for this situation to arise. In his favor, the Yanks are really banged up right now. Sheffield is back on the DL Matusi is on the DL Damon and Jeter are both banged up Posoda's hurting If there's ever a time to start against them, I guess this is it. Then again, they did crank out 12 hits and 6 runs and come 2 outs from sweeping the Tigers...while leads me too...Kyle Fansworth. Mariano Rivera is out for a few days with back spasms, so it looks like Fansworth will be the closer this weekend. I'll take having this headcase against the O's in the ninth anytime. Disgraced D-Ray Josh Hamiltion gets yet another chance. Jeff Blauser was one of my favorite Braves back in the day He might be Bobby Cox's heir in Atlanta. Speaking of the Braves, Closer Chris Retisma is the public's whipping boy for a bullpen that is struggling.

Mother Nature is a Cruel Mistress

I was pretty pumped up before the rain delay. Now I wish it would have kept raining. What happened Eric? What's happening? I'm going to link to some random stuff since this game is a downer. Gambling on the spelling bee? Then you my friend it is possible that could just MIGHT have a serious gambling problem. I could use one of these. I love this site. I have a regular gig doing resturant reviews for the city paper. Easy gig. Been doing it for over a year. They buy my food and I write a couple sentences. Sadly, I wasn't able to get to the Olive Garden this past week. Oasis' "Defiantely Maybe" was picked as the BEST ALBUM EVER. Great album, but come on. Read the article and bear in mind 95% of the vote comes from Britain, where they think Oasis created everything from peanut butter, elastic, and RC Cola. When I think of Newsweek....I think sports. It's about the good stuff in baseball. But it's an average piece. I was just surprised Newsweek had anything about sports. I'm still getting subscription offers for Newsweek at the "student rate." It's been a few years...and I don't want to spend the 10 bucks. Really need to get to the movies... X men 3 is I'm wanting to see. Really don't care about the Da Vinci Code. Haven't gotten around to reading the book...probably won't. I'm not caught up all of that. Since Tom Cruise is number 2 on my "Smite List," there's no way I'm going to see Mission Impossible 3. I'd rather eat broken glass. I didn't like the first 2 anyway. Superman Returns might be good...but it looks like one of those movies that will be good or really really bad. The worst movies of the summer? I'm betting on "Miami Vice" and "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift." I think that's enough...and enough of this game. The O's need a miracle in the ninth.

3 game WIN streak!

All right, let's try this again. Last night was a great game. What's happened to our beloved Orioles? 3 games.... 3 wins as dramatic as they come. Sunday...Chris Ray gets a double play in the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and a one run lead. Monday...Corey Patterson nabs a homer over the fence to save the game from getting tied up in the ninth. Last night...Melvin Mora drives in the winning run in the bottom of the 11th. Chen gave up homers and the bullpen...*grin*...what a job. How about that bullpen? After Bruce Chen's early exit:

The Orioles' effort reflected a stunning trend. The team's relievers had a 6.47 ERA a month ago, but they've pitched to a 3.28 clip over the last 25 games, fueled by strong performances from their youthful contingent of Britton, Birkins, Rleal and first-year closer Chris Ray

. source: MLB.com Baltimore IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Chen 4.0 6 5 5 0 0 3 7.71 Britton 1.2 2 0 0 1 0 0 1.93 Birkins 0.2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.61 Williams 0.2 0 0 0 1 2 0 4.50 Hawkins 2.0 0 0 0 1 1 0 4.30 Rleal (W, 1-1) 2.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3.38 Great performance for the pen. Chen completely frustrated me last night. Of his 72 pitches, 52 were strikes. He issued no walks...and no strike outs. I don't know what this guy's deal is. A lot here... *Luis Matos meets with Perlozzo about his playing time. I can't see how this guy could be anymore LESS in the O's plans. He's a pretty good defender, with the exception of that one catch that he didn't really pursue well last night. The outfield is crowded as it is. Patterson's not going to lose any playing time unless he reverts back to his form from last season. Jay Gibbons is not a great defensive outfielder, but his bat vs Matos' bat... well, Luis loses on that one. Markakis looks to be here to stay. I think he gets traded w/ Javy Lopez. Then this would be the outfield: LF Conine/Newhan CF Patterson RF Markakis DH Gibbons *Jay Gibbons will be back this weekend. Glad he's able to take his time. A three game win streak allows that. *The All-star voting is a joke. Here's the proof Where is Ramon Hernandez? Johnny Damon and Gary Sheffield 3rd and 5th? Alex Gonzalez...4th? *Daniel Cabrera pitched 4 no hit innings. 7 K's, 1 Unearned Run, 1 WP, 1 HBP and that one number that we all worry about with Daniel.... ready? 1 BB! He'll be back in Baltimore this weekend and Adam Loewen will be back in the minors where he should be. Corey Patterson has an article on MLB.com. I hope this would be a regular feature. How the mighty have fallen. Juan Gonzalez...will you be sharing a room with Ricky Henderson? Maybe they should hire him and bring Fred McGriff on as an assistant coach. The only part of American Idol I care about are the audition episodes. This guy has taken it way too seriously. IN MERE MOMENTS....the O's go for the sweep. Scott Kazmir vs. Eric Bedard. Kazmir is going to be a great pitcher for a long long time. If I was a Met fan, I too would hate Steve Phillips. What a horrid trade. But I hope the Bedard we saw early in the season returns and not this guy who can't get through the 3rd or 4th in his last few. I hope he hasn't been getting tips from Bruce Chen. Things seem to be good with the internet for now...it comes and goes and drives me insane.

Bad News....

Having issues with the Internet. Been on the phone with tech support for an hour after work and after dealing with the computer-voiced walk thru twice before speaking to a real person, I'm a touch ill. The cable company can't send anyone out til Tuesday. My modem is hit and miss in the extreme, so if the site isn't updated until Tuesday...well, just know that I suffering with you. btw, awesome game last night. Great job Melvin and AWESOME job Joey Gathright!