Community Picks: Tampa Bay Rays 0% vs Baltimore Orioles 0%

The Orioles sent Ubaldo Jimenez to the mound to night for his 104th start for the team since he signed four years ago. It, like so many other starts he has made, did not go well. A second-inning grand slam was enough to put the Orioles in a hole from which they could not recover as the Rays went on to win 8-3. The loss is the 81st of the season for the Orioles, thus guaranteeing they will not post a winning season in 2017. If they want to go 81-81 and avoid a non-losing season, they will have to to run the table and go 7-0 to finish the season. I am going to go out on a limb and say that’s not going to happen, which is sad. Losing seasons are sad. Anyway, back to tonight’s game. Jimenez had himself Continue to Article

September 22, 2017 10:43:pm EST

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado will become eligible for free agency after the 2018 season and is likely to get a windfall. The club, however, isn’t expected to pursue trading their star at the hot corner this offseason, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Machado, 25, has been one of baseball’s best players since debuting in 2012. He had a slow start to the 2017 season, seeing his OPS nearly drop below .700 in early July, but a strong second half has made his overall numbers more than respectable. Machado is batting .264/.318/.484 with 32 home runs and 92 RBI in 651 plate appearances while playing Gold Glove-caliber defense at third base. Just because the Orioles don’t plan to move Continue to Article

September 21, 2017 4:05:pm EST

It’s not the offseason quite yet, but with the Orioles playing the way they are, no surprise that eyes are turning towards the offseason and the future beyond that. Here’s a little tidbit from FanRag’s Jon Heyman: The Orioles don’t intend to trade Manny Machado this offseason. For Orioles fans, this news inspires the same sort of reaction that you might get if there was a press conference announcing that a previously unknown asteroid will not obliterate life on Earth in two days time. That would absolutely be a good piece of news to receive, but since you weren’t sitting around worrying about the asteroid, the news that it’s not going to kill you won’t affect your plans for three days from now. Continue to Article

September 21, 2017 2:13:pm EST

MLB.com (16th; LW: 16th) Alyson Footer at MLB.com leaves the Orioles right where they were. I’m guessing a bunch of other teams must have had weeks as bad as Baltimore. Bleacher Report Power Rankings (15th; LW: 14th) Joel Reuter drops the Orioles just one spot. Seems generous to me. CBS Sports (19th; LW: 18th) Matt Synder drops the O’s another spot. “Now with seven players having at least 20 home runs, the Orioles have tied an all-time MLB record. Sadly, they won't be breaking the record, as Seth Smith would need to hit seven more homers to make that happen.” reddit’s Power Poll (18th; LW:17th) The community editors over at reddit lower the Orioles another slots. “As the O's limp to the finish Continue to Article

September 21, 2017 12:13:pm EST

BALTIMORE -- Chris Sale was at his very best - right down to his momentous last pitch - in another meaningful victory for the Boston Red Sox. Sale struck out 13 to become the first AL pitcher in 18 years to reach the 300 mark, and the Red Sox clinched a playoff berth hours after beating the Baltimore Orioles 9-0 on Wednesday night. Boston (88-64) was assured at least a wild card and its second consecutive trip to the postseason when the Los Angeles Angels lost 6-5 to the Cleveland Indians. Of course, the Red Sox are looking for much more than that. They lead the AL East by three games over the rival New York Yankees with 10 to play as Boston pursues its third division title in five years. "Given Continue to Article

September 21, 2017 12:11:am EST