Monday, August 21, 2017

Transcription

1 World Champions 1983, 1970, 1966 American League Champions 1983, 1979, 1971, 1970, 1969, 1966 American League East Division Champions 2014, 1997, 1983, 1979, 1974, 1973, 1971, 1970, 1969 American League Wild Card 2016, 2012, 1996 Monday, August 21, 2017 Game Stories Orioles catch up and fall behind in series-deciding loss to Angels, 5-4 The Sun 8/20 Schoop drives in 2, but O's rally falls short MLB.com 8/20 Orioles drop another series with 5-4 loss to Angels (with quotes) MASNsports.com 8/20 Angels push across go-ahead run in eighth for 5-4 win MASNsports.com 8/20 Maybin's pinch-hit RBI single lifts Angels over Orioles 5-4 AP 8/20 Walks Kill Orioles' Chances In 5-4 Loss To Angels PressBoxOnline.com 8/20 Columns: Peter Schmuck's Orioles report card for the week (Aug ) The Sun 8/21 Schmuck: Chris Tillman doesn't want to wait until next year The Sun 8/20 Orioles do their playoff chances no favors with latest series loss The Sun 8/20 Orioles notes: J.J. Hardy starts rehab assignment Monday at Norfolk; reshuffling in bullpen The Sun 8/20 Tillman encouraged despite number of walks MLB.com 8/20 Hardy to play in first rehab game at Triple-A MLB.com 8/20 Miley seeks another win over Smith, A's MLB.com 8/20 Orioles retain interest in finding more pitching MASNsports.com 8/21 Orioles place Castro on bereavement list (O s trail 5-4) MASNsports.com 8/20 Potential roster move and update on Hardy s rehab assignment MASNsports.com 8/20 Tillman s struggles, falling four games under and farm notes MASNsports.com 8/21 Chris Tillman on his outing, Chris Davis on missed chances MASNsports.com 8/20 O s game blog: Tillman faces Bridwell in series finale MASNsports.com 8/20 J.J. Hardy Ready To Start Rehab Assignment PressBoxOnline.com 8/20 Orioles look to improve postseason chances vs. A's CBS Sports 8/21 Myriad Orioles Thoughts: Stalling in the wild card race; Britton s disappearing act; Simmons stardom BaltimoreBaseball.com 8/21 Chris Tillman s return to rotation provides more questions than answers BaltimoreBaseball.com 8/20

2 story.html Orioles catch up and fall behind in series-deciding loss to Angels, 5-4 By Peter Schmuck / The Baltimore Sun The Orioles hoped some home cooking would help them get back in sync for a run at one of the American League wild-card slots, but the first series of a home-heavy three-week span did not go well. After a dramatic ninth-inning comeback to win the opener, the Orioles dropped the next two games to the Los Angeles Angels, losing the Sunday finale, 5-4, before an announced 24,715 on a beautiful afternoon at Oriole Park. Not so pretty are their playoff prospects, which seem to diminish by the day. The loss dropped them four games back in a field of seven teams vying for the second wild-card berth, which the Angels held as of late Sunday afternoon. In right-hander Chris Tillman s first start since Aug. 3, he pitched into the sixth inning. But the Angels took the lead in the second on a solo home run by Kole Calhoun and added to it when Albert Pujols lined an RBI single to left field in the third. Tillman struggled with his command, walking six batters over 5 1/3 innings, and exited the game soon after allowing a two-run homer to Andrelton Simmons in the sixth. I think we walked like, what, nine guys today? manager Buck Showalter said. I think that s like turning the lineup over one complete time without earning it. You re going to have a tough time winning those kind of games, but we had a shot. We outhit them, but if you add the walks, I m surprised they only scored five runs. Former Orioles prospect Parker Bridwell pitched well for five innings but could not hold a threerun lead in the sixth, the Orioles taking advantage of an infield error to load the bases before Jonathan Schoop drove home two runs with a single and Mark Trumbo tied the game with a ground-rule double. The Angels broke the 4-4 tie in the top of the eighth when Mychal Givens surrendered a two-out RBI single to pinch hitter Cameron Maybin. The winning run was charged to right-hander Brad Brach (3-4). Right-hander Cam Bedrosian got the win for the Angels, improving his record to 3-2. Former Oriole Bud Norris pitched a dicey but scoreless ninth to record his 19th save. Davis goes deep The Orioles were down by two when Chris Davis got them on the scoreboard with an oppositefield home run to lead off the bottom of the third inning. It was his 19th home run of the season but only his second since July 20 and fifth since coming off the disabled list to start the second half. The other home run derby Over the course of a weekend highlighted by the Orioles 25th-anniversary home run derby, four players hit multiple home runs, but only one was an Oriole. Manny Machado hit three home runs Friday night, Mike Trout had one Friday and two Saturday, Luis Valbuena had two Saturday, and Calhoun had one Friday and Sunday. The Angels outhomered the Orioles in the series 11-6.

3 Schoop drives in 2, but O's rally falls short By Brittany Ghiroli and Ben Standig / MLB.com BALTIMORE -- Cameron Maybin's clutch two-out, pinch-hit single erased a frustrating day at the plate for the Angels, lifting Los Angeles to a 5-4 victory at Camden Yards and keeping the red-hot Halos right in the thick of the American League Wild Card race. The Angels, who have now won nine of their last 11 games, are since the All-Star Break and remain tied with the Minnesota Twins for the second Wild Card spot behind the Yankees. The O's, coming off a 4-6 West Coast trip, dropped to four games back after losing on back-toback nights. "To close out the series, winning the series is special against a team that's fighting for the same thing we are," said shortstop Andrelton Simmons, one of Sunday's heroes. "Once you're playing that good and seeing the light, you want to keep doing it, winning all the games. You want to close them out." After the Angels -- who drew eight walks -- squandered first and third in the seventh inning, Orioles reliever Brad Brach issued a pair of free passes to Kole Calhoun and Luis Valbuena to bring on Mychal Givens with one out in the eighth. Givens retired C.J. Cron on a pop-up before Maybin pinch-hit in for Juan Graterol. Maybin punched a ball into right field to give the Angels the lead and the decisive run. Calhoun, who reached base five times, scored three runs and also homered in the first inning off Orioles starter Chris Tillman. Simmons delivered a two-run blast off Tillman in the sixth. Tillman went 5 1/3 innings and allowed four runs on four hits and six walks in his return to the rotation. "I felt like it got better the second and third time, through [the order]," Tillman said. "Other than the one ball Simmons hit. I felt like I beat myself with the walks. They didn't put balls in play. They didn't earn it. I gave it to them." Angels rookie starter Parker Bridwell, who beat his old team earlier this month, lasted five-plus innings and was charged with four runs (two earned) on six hits and a walk, striking out three. The Angels are now 12-1 in games he has started this season. Bridwell was the victim of some bad luck in the sixth, exiting after Jonathan Schoop's two-run single. A costly error by second baseman Cliff Pennington allowed Tim Beckham on earlier in the inning, resulted in two unearned runs and erasing the Halos lead. Mark Trumbo's two-out, ground-rule double off of Keynan Middleton after that tied the game at 4. Baltimore threatened again on Angels closer Bud Norris, putting runners on first and second with one out. But Norris struck out Caleb Joseph and fielded a dribbler from Beckham to pick up his 19th save of the season. MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Simmons flashes the leather: Clinging to a 5-4 lead with a man on first, Simmons made a terrific backhanded leaping grab to rob Trey Mancini of a line-drive single in the eighth. The grab ended the eighth inning for reliever Yusmeiro Petit. "We'd like to win. If they had a different shortstop there, we would have," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Simmons. "That's why there's nobody better than him. He's special." Schoop spoils Bridwell bid: Looking to turn in the second quality start this month against his former team, Bridwell was instead lifted with no outs in the sixth inning. After a leadoff single and Pennington's error, the O's took first and second down 4-1. Manny Machado singled to load

4 it up before Schoop punched a ball into center field to score two runs and end Bridwell's afternoon. "[Bridwell] really pitched well," Angels manager Mike Scoiscia said. "As the game went on he started to lose some of the feel for his changeup. Parker did a good job, got us to a certain point in the game. Maybe if we make that play he bends a little bit, but doesn't break and holds the lead through six." More > QUOTABLE "The competition is us. It's us playing better regardless of who you're playing. Our competition is Oakland now and it's us. There's opportunity there for us." -Showalter on his team's playoff hopes "You've got to locate your fastball in different counts. You can't pitch them the same way you pitched them the first game.... I've got to execute my pitches. In certain counts I was able to do that and keep my team in it. Huge win for us." -- Bridwell, on facing the Orioles for the second time in two weeks RETURNING Maybin entered as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning after being kept out of the starting lineup for a third consecutive day with knee stiffness. His run-scoring single was his first RBI since July 8. From July 19, the outfielder missed 16 games in a row during with a sprained knee. Orioles first baseman Chris Davis homered in the third inning in his return to the lineup. Davis missed two games with illness. "Any time you're in a playoff race with one or two teams you're playing down the stretch, you want to win those games," he said. "Unfortunately we weren't able to get that one today and get the series win. But you know, we've got to find ways to score that extra run, make up that ground late in the game and really kind of close out some of these games if we really want a shot at the postseason, and if we want to do well in the postseason." WHAT'S NEXT Angels: Another series with a Wild Card contender, and this time it's an AL West rival. Tyler Skaggs (1-3, 3.63 ERA) will open the four-game home series Monday against the Texas Rangers at 7:07 p.m. PT. Skaggs, who will be removed from the bereavement list, is 0-0 with a 5.40 ERA in two starts against Texas this season. He dropped his previous start Tuesday at Washington after allowing two earned runs on seven hits over five innings. Orioles: The O's six-man rotation slots Wade Miley back against Oakland in Monday's series opener. After a strong start to the season, the lefty has struggled to go deep into games. He's 6-10 with a 5.21 ERA on the season. The A's will counter with righty Chris Smith in the 7:05 p.m. ET matchup. Orioles drop another series with 5-4 loss to Angels (with quotes) By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com If the Orioles wanted to see progress from Chris Tillman, they got it in spurts. Nothing to push them toward a full-time return to the rotation. If they wanted a win to give them the series and another shove toward the second wild card, they

5 were rejected. Tillman didn t make it through the sixth inning, burned by a lapse in control and two more home runs, and pinch-hitter Cameron Maybin singled off Mychal Givens with two outs in the eighth to score Kole Calhoun and give the Angels a 5-4 win over the Orioles before an announced crowd of 24,715 at sunny Camden Yards. The Orioles are 60-64, four games under.500 for the first time since July 30. They haven t won a series since sweeping the Royals on July 31-Aug. 2. A return home hasn t proven to be a tonic for them. They need a cure for the rotation s latest slump. Starters haven t gone more than 5 1/3 innings in the last five games. The burden again falls on the bullpen and the bats. Brad Brach tossed a scoreless seventh inning, getting a double play after a one-out single and Manny Machado error, but he walked two of the three batters he faced in the eighth. Givens retired C.J. Cron on a fly ball, but Maybin lined a single into right field. The throw from Craig Gentry, who pinch-ran for Mark Trumbo and replaced him in right, was up the line and bounced past Caleb Joseph. Joseph attempted to make a sweeping tag and didn t have the ball. For a while, it appeared that the Orioles didn t have a chance. The offense had managed only two runs since Machado s walk-off grand slam until Jonathan Schoop matched that total with a bases-loaded single off former Oriole Parker Bridwell with no outs in the sixth to reduce the lead to 4-3. Trumbo doubled with two outs to tie the game, but the ball hopped into the seats, forcing Adam Jones to go back to third base. Chris Davis struck out on three pitches. The rally included a throwing error by second baseman Cliff Pennington on a fielder s choice that left Bridwell with two earned runs and two unearned in five-plus innings. Tillman served up a leadoff home run to Calhoun in the second inning and a long two-run shot by Andrelton Simmons in the sixth, as the Angels went deep for the 11th time in the series. He walked a season-high six batters and had only one clean inning. Making his first start since Aug. 3, Tillman allowed four runs and four hits in 5 1/3 innings. He threw 99 pitches, the last to Luis Valbuena resulting in his sixth walk. Only 49 were strikes. Before today s game, Tillman had surrendered 19 runs in the first inning for an ERA. He also served up seven home runs and issued 12 walks, and opponents were batting.379. But he retired the side in order on 13 pitches, a positive sign until Calhoun led off the next inning with his shot to right field. Albert Pujols singled with two outs in the third to score Ben Revere, who had walked and stole second base. A double play ended the fourth, and another one erased Pennington after a leadoff walk in the fifth. Tillman actually lowered his ERA from 7.83 to Bridwell gave up a solo home run to Davis leading off the bottom of the third - Davis 19th of the season on his first at-bat since missing the last two games with an illness. Davis also singled in the fifth, accounting at that time for two of his club s three hits. Bridwell held the Orioles to one run over seven innings on Aug. 8. He was sharp again in the rematch until the sixth, when Joseph led off with a single, Pennington committed the error and Machado singled to fill the bases. Schoop delivered his two-run single to force Bridwell out of the game. Keynan Middleton induced a ground ball from Jones, with Simmons running toward Machado and getting him into

6 a rundown between third and home. Machado was tagged out while Schoop held at second base. Trey Mancini struck out, but Trumbo followed with his game-tying double to right-center field. Down by a run in the bottom of the eighth, the Orioles tried again to rally with Schoop lining a one-out single into left field for his third hit. Jones popped up and Mancini lined to Simmons, who made a nice backhanded grab to close the inning. Gentry led off the ninth with a single off former Oriole Bud Norris. Davis struck out, Seth Smith walked, Joseph struck out on the at-bat and Tim Beckham bounced to Norris. Mancini is 2-for-26 in his last seven games. The Orioles are four games back for the second wild card, unable to heat up on the road or at home. Manager Buck Showalter on Tillman s six walks, and the others: I think we walked, what, nine guys today? That s like turning the lineup over without earning it. You re going to have a tough time winning those games, but we had a shot. Some good things in between those. We outhit them, but the walks. I m surprised they only scored five runs. Hopefully, that will get better. Stuff, I thought, was better. A semi-step. We ll see. A lot depends on where he goes from here. But you take away the slider that Simmons hooked down there in the corner, wasn t bad. On whether he saw improvement: Somewhat, somewhat. Especially early. I thought he got through the first inning, I thought that was a good sign. Not get through it, but just pitch through it without throwing 35 pitches. The walks I m sure he d like to have back. There were some pitches that were just balls out of his hand. There s not really anything competitive you can get back with those pitches. Better than his last outing and hopefully he ll build on it. I talked to him in the dugout. Felt pretty good. I m ooking forward to seeing him pitch again and see if he can go to another level that we all know he s capable of. On whether he considered using Zach Britton in eighth: Consider? We consider everything. Fifth inning, sixth inning, seventh inning, eighth inning, all those things. But we had Mychal, who s very good at that. A lot of people available to do the job real well. We could have brought Brach in in the fifth inning, we could have brought Mychal in in the ninth inning. There s a lot of options there. More on Tillman: I thought his stuff was a little crisper. Fastball was pretty consistent, but command was a challenge for him. I m trying to look at the runs given up other than the last two. But we did give them up and we did make a pitch we d like to have back. But he did a good job with Trout and Pujols for the most part. Usually, you hold those two guys in check without a whole lot of damage, you like your chances. On whether Tillman gets another start: He ll start again. We re trying to give some guys some rest. Exactly when it is after the off-day, we re going to kind of wait and see how things go, so we won t really set things in stone until after the off-day. On ground-rule double: I think we all know 3-2 count, people running on the pitch, it s a rule that doesn t make any sense. I think both teams would agree with that. But it s one of those things, someone will say that s the way it s always been done. Well, it s always been done wrong. But today it bit us. We used to have that problem a lot when we had that synthetic warning track. On frustration of not gaining ground: You d have liked to win the series. We d have liked to win all three. We had a good opportunity today, but they pitched a little bit better than we did. The competition is us. It s us playing better regardless of who you re playing. Our competition is Oakland now and it s us. There s opportunity there for us. We d like to win. If they had a different shortstop there we would have. That s why there s nobody better than him. He s special.

7 Angels push across go-ahead run in eighth for 5-4 win By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com On a day that Orioles pitchers walked nine, two free passes in the top of the eighth proved very costly. They led to the game-winning run as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Orioles 5-4 at Oriole Park. The Angels win the series, two games to one. The Orioles have now won the opening game of four straight series without winning any of the series. They fall to and have lost eight of their past 12 games. The Orioles are four games under.500 for the first time since July 30. The O s put two on against former Oriole Bud Norris with one out in the ninth, but he fanned Caleb Joseph and got Tim Beckham to ground out back to the mound to hold on. Starting his second inning of relief, right-hander Brad Brach walked two batters around a strikeout to start the eighth of a 4-4 game and Mychal Givens came on. Cameron Maybin s pinch-hit two-out single to right scored the go-ahead run for the 5-4 lead. Earlier, after hitting nine homers in the series first two games, Kole Calhoun connected for a solo shot in the second as the Angels took a 1-0 lead. An inning later, Orioles starting pitcher Chris Tillman walked two and an Albert Pujols RBI single made it 2-0. Orioles first baseman Chris Davis, who was sick and missed the last two games, returned to the lineup with a homer to left in the third inning. He hit No. 19 on a 2-0 fastball from former Oriole Parker Bridwell and the O s trailed 2-1. Each team scored in a pretty wild sixth inning that ended in a 4-4 tie. The Angels lead grew to 4-1 when Andrelton Simmons hit No. 13, a two-run homer to left off Tillman. Tillman left a slider up and in and Simmons hit the Angels 11th homer of the series. The O s scored three runs, two of which were unearned, in the home half for the tie. Joseph led off with a single and advanced to second on an error by second baseman Cliff Pennington. Manny Machado singled to load the bases and Jonathan Schoop followed with a two-run single to center that pulled the O s within 4-3. Schoop now has 88 RBIs. Later in the inning, Mark Trumbo lined a double to right-center that would have easily scored two runs for a 5-4 lead, but it bounced over the fence, Adam Jones was sent back to first base and the score became 4-4. Tillman had a start for the Orioles where he missed the target often, tied his career high with six walks and threw 99 pitches, just 49 for strikes. He went 5 1/3 innings, allowing four hits and four runs in getting a no-decision. Tillman, making his first start since Aug. 3, had not issued six walks since Sept. 19, Orioles starters have an ERA of 9.78 over the past five games, allowing 25 runs over 23 innings. Bridwell, who had allowed two runs or less in eight of his 11 starts, went five innings plus four batters and gave up six hits and four runs (two earned) on 81 pitches. Neither starter factored in the decision. The Angels improved to 64-60, completed a 7-2 road trip and have won nine of their last 11. They are 4-2 versus the Orioles. The Orioles will now welcome Oakland to town on Monday night when lefty Wade Miley (6-10, 5.21 ERA) faces right-hander Chris Smith (0-2, 5.26 ERA).

8 Maybin's pinch-hit RBI single lifts Angels over Orioles 5-4 By Associated Press BALTIMORE -- The Los Angeles Angels have done a wonderful job of turning around a season that just two weeks ago seemed unsalvageable. Instead of basking in their accomplishment, they're far more focused on what happens next. Pinch-hitter Cameron Maybin singled in the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning, Kole Calhoun and Andrelton Simmons homered and Los Angeles beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 Sunday. The Angels have won nine of 11 to gain a tie for the second AL wild card slot and move four games over.500 (64-60) for the first time since April 11. "We can look back, but it's not going to serve much of a purpose," manager Mike Scioscia said. "We've been playing better baseball for the past couple of weeks. We need to keep going." The Angels took advantage of nine walks to win the deciding matchup of a three-game series in which they hit 11 home runs. "We walked, what, nine guys today?" Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "That's like turning the lineup over without earning it. You're going to have a tough time winning those games, but we had a shot." The Orioles still have a shot at the playoffs, too, but they're going to need an LA-like surge. Baltimore has dropped eight of 12 and hasn't won two in a row since Aug With the score 4-all in the eighth, Calhoun and Luis Valbuena drew walks from Brad Brach (3-4). With two outs, Maybin stepped in for Juan Graterol and delivered an opposite-field liner to right off Mychal Givens. Maybin missed the first two games of the series with a sore knee and was in a 5-for-27 funk since coming off the disabled list on Aug. 7. "I felt comfortable Cam was going to put the ball in play, and he had a big hit for us," Scioscia said. Cam Bedrosian (3-2) worked one hitless inning and Bud Norris got three outs for his 19th save. Calhoun hit a solo shot in the second inning, walked three times and scored three runs. Simmons' two-run homer put Los Angeles up 4-1 in the sixth. "Winning the series, it's special against a team that's fighting for the same thing we are," Simmons said. "Once you are playing that good and you are seeing the light, you want to keep going. You want to keep winning all the game." Making his first start since Aug. 3, Baltimore's Chris Tillman allowed four runs, four hits and a career-high tying six walks in 5 1/3 innings. "You cut the walks in half that's a different ball game," Tillman said. "Other than that, I thought it was OK." After going 16-6 last year, Tillman is now 1-7 with a 7.75 ERA. He was sent to the bullpen after a run of 14 straight winless starts.

9 Facing his former team for the second time in 13 days, Parker Bridwell gave up four runs, two earned, and six hits in five-plus innings. Bridwell was traded to Los Angeles from Baltimore in April for cash and a player to be named. Bridwell took a three-run lead into the sixth, but a throwing error by second baseman Cliff Pennington led to a two-run single by Jonathan Schoop and an RBI double by Mark Trumbo. Adam Jones was forced to stop at third on the ground-rule double, and Keynan Middleton struck out Chris Davis to end the inning. "I think it's kind of been the story of the whole year for us," Davis said, lamenting the missed opportunity. "I think what's going to define us this year is whether or not we can make that push and start winning some of those games." ROSTER MOVE The Orioles placed RHP Miguel Castro on the bereavement list and recalled RHP Alec Asher from Triple-A Norfolk. TRAINER'S ROOM Angels: RHP JC Ramirez was feeling better after leaving Saturday's game with a strained forearm. He will see a specialist on Monday and will likely miss his next start. Orioles: Davis returned after missing two games with the flu. He homered in the third inning.... SS J.J. Hardy (wrist) will begin a rehabilitation assignment Monday with Triple-A Norfolk. He hasn't played since June 18. UP NEXT Angels: Tyler Skaggs (1-3, 3.63) returns from the bereavement list Monday to help Los Angeles launch a four-game series against the visiting Texas Rangers. Orioles: Wade Miley (6-10, 5.21 ERA) starts Monday night in the opener of a three-game series against the visiting Oakland Athletics. Walks Kill Orioles' Chances In 5-4 Loss To Angels By Rich Dubroff / PressBoxOnline.com BALTIMORE-- It was the walks that killed the Orioles. Three pitchers combined for nine walks. Three of them scored, and the Orioles dropped further behind in the race for an American League wild-card spot. After right-hander Chris Tillman walked six in his first start since Aug. 3 and right-hander Brad Brach walked two in the eighth inning, Kole Calhoun scored on pinch hitter Cameron Maybin s single to right against right-hander Mychal Givens and the Orioles lost to the Los Angeles Angels 5-4 before 24,715 at Oriole Park Aug. 20. For the second consecutive series, the Orioles dropped two of three, and as a result, are four games below.500 for the first time since July 30. At 60-64, they trail the Angels and Minnesota Twins by four games as the times become desperate for the Orioles. Manager Buck Showalter was most frustrated about the walks.

10 That s like turning the lineup over without earning it. You re going to have a tough time winning those games, but we had a shot, Showalter said. Some good things in between those. We outhit them, but the walks. I m surprised they only scored five runs. After a series of rocky starts, the Orioles sent Tillman to the bullpen. The intention always was to put the right-hander back in the starting rotation, and after two acceptable relief appearances, he got another start. Tillman allowed four runs on four hits in 5.1 innings, becoming the first Orioles starter in the last five games to pitch at least five innings. He equaled a career-high with six walks, and gave up two home runs, to Calhoun in the second, and a two-run shot to Andrelton Simmons in the sixth. Probably should have been much better. You cut the walks in half that s a different ball game, Tillman said. That s just too many. Too many to try to pitch out of. You can t expect to win a game walking that many. Other than that, I thought it was OK. Showalter indicated that Tillman would get another start, but wouldn t say when. He ll start again. We re trying to give some guys some rest, Showalter said. Exactly when it is after the off-day, we re going to kind of wait and see how things go, so we won t really set things in stone until after the off-day. The Orioles had to face right-hander Parker Bridwell, who they traded to the Angles for cash considerations in April when they needed a roster spot. Bridwell, who limited the Orioles to a run in seven innings in an Aug. 8 start, left with a 4-4 tie because the Orioles scored three runs in the sixth. The Orioles won three straight from Aug. 5-7, and after their win against the Angels in the first game of their series in Anaheim, Calif., they were at.500 for the first time since June 29. Since Aug. 7, they re just 4-8. I think it s kind of been the story of the whole year for us," first baseman Chris Davis said. "With the exception of maybe the second month, I think there s just been games that we ve let slip away, some games we really haven t been able to close out whether its scoring a run, whether its tacking on a few runs to give us some breathing room. "I think what s going to define us this year is whether or not we can make that push and start winning some of those games. Obviously we re getting down to some pretty crucial times where we need to start winning these games and start making a move. NOTES: Davis returned after missing two games because of illness and hit his 19th home run. Left fielder Trey Mancini is hitless in his last 14 at-bats, and he s 0-for-24 against the Angels this season. The Oakland Athletics visit for three games beginning Aug. 21. Left-hander Wade Miley (6-10, 5.21) faces right-hander Chris Smith (0-2, 5.26). The Angels hit 11 home runs in the three-game series. Peter Schmuck's Orioles report card for the week (Aug ) By Peter Schmuck / The Baltimore Sun August 21, 2017 Every week of the regular season, columnist Peter Schmuck will grade the performance of the Orioles in five categories. The letter grades are not directly tied to any particular statistic, but are

11 representative of a cumulative evaluation of everything tangible or intangible that falls under that particular category. Click on the photos above for the grades. story.html Schmuck: Chris Tillman doesn't want to wait until next year By Peter Schmuck / The Baltimore Sun In a perfect world, Chris Tillman would be where he was at this time last year, sitting on 15 wins and trying not to listen to people speculating how much money he stood to make in free agency after the 2017 season. In the currently imperfect world, Tillman is just trying to find his way back there, and time is running short. I think the comeback is going to be this year. I really do, Tillman said Sunday. I feel like I m that close. This isn t about free agency or what his next contract will look like. It s about Tillman reclaiming his real self, but he couldn t really say that he did that in Sunday s 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels at Camden Yards. He thought he made some progress. He also knew that six walks over 5 1/3 innings probably obscured anyone else s evaluations. Probably should have been much better, he said. If I even cut the walks in half, that s a different ballgame. Manager Buck Showalter certainly agreed with that. He felt Tillman made some progress in his first start since being sent to the bullpen to work through his command struggles, but he knows better than to get ahead of himself after watching his erstwhile No. 1 starter struggle all year. I thought the stuff was better, he said. It was a semi-step. We ll see where it goes from here. Tillman is a positive guy, and he remained so after Sunday s game. A lot of what he said about his performance which was two outs from being a quality start before Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons spoiled it with a two-run homer he has said before. Still, there was a bit of a sigh in his voice as he talked about the walks nine in all for the Orioles that were his and his team s undoing. It s just too many too many to try to pitch out of, he said. You can t expect to win a game walking that many. He will get another chance. Maybe several. The Orioles cannot afford to give up on him, and he s not going to give up on himself. He felt as if he d figured something out during the time he spent in the bullpen and with pitching coach Roger McDowell, watching before-and-after video. Maybe he did. Showalter pointed out that he handled Angels superstar Mike Trout and 10-time All-Star Albert Pujols well, holding them to a combined 1-for-7 and striking out Trout twice. I m trying to look at the runs given up other than the last two, but we did give them up and we did make a pitch we d like to have back, Showalter said. But he did a good job with Trout and Pujols, for the most part. Usually, you hold those two guys without a whole lot of damage, you like your chances.

12 A year ago at about this time, you had to like Tillman s chances of having a big 2017 and scoring a huge multiyear contract. But shoulder discomfort slowed his roll toward 20 victories last season and recurred during the offseason. He has not been the same since. Exactly a year ago Sunday, he gave up six runs to the Houston Astros over two innings, his last start before a three-week shutdown. He was 15-5 with a 3.76 ERA at the time. After 16 starts and two relief appearances this year, he s 1-7 with a 7.75 ERA.. Which, unfortunately, leaves room to wonder whether he ll ever be the same again. Tillman does not entertain that kind of doubt. He was asked after Sunday s game whether he believes he will re-emerge as the dominant pitcher he was for all but a few weeks last season. Absolutely. I don t think it s gone anywhere, he said. I just haven t pitched well. It s still there. What I learned with those two games in the bullpen, the stuff is still there. You ve got to just relax and make pitches. Stay within yourself and try to execute as much as possible. Maybe the next time he takes the mound, it will all come together, but how many times has he jogged out there thinking that and come back wondering why it didn t happen? It s frustrating, but at the same time, if you start dwelling on that and start thinking about that, you re not going to make any progress, Tillman said. You ve got to stay focused and keep working on what you need to do and you ll start making some ground up. I m a firm believer, you stay true to who you are you ll iron this stuff out. I think we re definitely getting back to where we need to be. He ll let others speculate on his future. You would think that if there is no dramatic change, the Orioles would offer a make-good contract for next season and give him a chance to get back in a position to cash in on free agency down the road. Tillman doesn t want to hear about that. It s coming, he said of a return to form. It s only a matter of time. I d like to have it happen this year. story.html#nt=oft03a-2gp2 Orioles do their playoff chances no favors with latest series loss By Eduardo A. Encina / The Baltimore Sun Even more important than the Camden Yards-heavy portion of the next three weeks of the Orioles schedule are the teams they will play, a slate that largely features their competition for the American League s two wild-card spots. This weekend s series against the visiting Los Angeles Angels still tied with the Minnesota Twins for the second wild-card spot was a critical starting point. In a crowded field, the Orioles had a valuable opportunity to gain head-to-head ground on one of the clubs they re chasing. But the Orioles couldn t build on Friday s series-opening win, one of the team s best victories of the season. Instead, they followed Manny Machado s ninth-inning, walk-off grand slam with defeats in the final two games of the series, including Sunday s finale, a 5-4 loss that dropped them to four games under.500 for the first time since July 30. The Orioles (60-64) now have won four straight series openers but none of those series, going 4-8 since a win to start a three-game set in Anaheim, Calif., two weeks ago.

13 You'd have liked to win the series, Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. We'd have liked to win all three. We had a good opportunity today, but they pitched a little bit better than we did. The competition is us. It's us playing better, regardless of who you're playing. Our competition is Oakland [starting Monday], and it's us. There's opportunity there for us. Games like this, we'd like to win. In six games against the Angels over the past two weeks, the Orioles lost four and both series. They trail the Angels and Twins for the second wild-card spot by four games. Anytime you re in a playoff race with one or two teams you re playing down the stretch, you want to win those games, first baseman Chris Davis said. Unfortunately, we weren t able to get that one today and get the series win, but you know, we ve got to find ways to score that extra run, make up that ground late in the game, and really kind of close out some of these games if we really want to have a shot at the postseason and if we want to do well in the postseason. The Angels turned Camden Yards into their personal launching pad, hitting 11 homers, including two Sunday, in the series after coming to Baltimore ranked 25th in the majors in homers. Still, Sunday afternoon s game seemed ripe for the hosts taking, down to the last inning, when the Orioles put the tying run on base with no outs in the bottom of the ninth but couldn t break through against former Orioles starter Bud Norris, now the Angels closer. Of course, it s difficult to win any game in which a pitching staff issues nine walks. Three Angels who got a free pass scored, including Kole Calhoun, who earned a leadoff walk in the eighth against Brad Brach and came home for the winning run on pinch hitter Cameron Maybin s opposite-field, two-out RBI single off right-hander Mychal Givens. Right-hander Chris Tillman walked a career-high six batters in his start, including one just before allowing a two-run homer to Andrelton Simmons in the sixth that gave the Angels a 4-1 lead. That s like turning the lineup over without earning it, Showalter said of the nine walks. You re going to have a tough time winning those games, but we had a shot. Some good things in between those. We outhit them, but the walks I m surprised they only scored five runs. The Orioles showed moxie by rallying from the three-run deficit to tie the game at 4 in the sixth, and one bad hop could have been the difference between the even scoreline and a lead. Mark Trumbo s RBI double would have scored the go-ahead run, but instead the ball skipped off the top off the right-center-field wall and into the stands for a ground-rule double. Adam Jones was sent back to third, where he was stranded. I think we all know [on a] 3-2 count, people running on the pitch, it's a rule that doesn't make any sense, Showalter said. I think both teams would agree with that. But it's one of those things, someone will say, That's the way it's always been done. Well, it's always been done wrong. But today it bit us. The way the ball caromed off the wall and actually went into the stands on the ball Trum hit, it was kind of one of those things, said Chris Davis, who homered in the third inning but struck out after Trumbo s hit to end the frame. We gave ourselves a chance. We battled till the last out, and just got to find a way to push that run across late. The Orioles took advantage of a throwing error by Angels second baseman Cliff Pennington to fuel their sixth-inning rally. With the bases loaded and no outs, Jonathan Schoop looped a tworun single to chase former Orioles farmhand Parker Bridwell from the game. They added their fourth run on Trumbo s ground-rule double. The Orioles had another chance against Norris in the ninth, especially once the speedy Craig Gentry reached on a leadoff single. After Davis struck out, Seth Smith drew a walk to put two on. But Caleb Joseph struck out after battling Norris through a nine-pitch at-bat, and Tim Beckham hit a slow come-backer to Norris to end the game. I think it s kind of been the story of the whole year for us, Davis said. With the exception of maybe the second month, I think there s just been games that we ve let slip away, some games

14 we really haven t been able to close out, whether it s scoring a run, whether it s tacking on a few runs to give us some breathing room. As of Sunday night, 33 of the Orioles remaining 38 games are against either division leaders or teams within five games of the second wild-card spot. The other five are against the Oakland Athletics, in a three-game series starting Monday, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, in the regular season s final week. I think what s going to define us this year is whether or not we can make that push and start winning some of those games, Davis said. Obviously, we re getting down to some pretty crucial times where we need to start winning these games and start making a move. Orioles notes: J.J. Hardy starts rehab assignment Monday at Norfolk; reshuffling in bullpen By Eduardo A. Encina / The Baltimore Sun Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy will report to Triple-A Norfolk on Monday to begin a minor league rehabilitation assignment for his right wrist injury. Hardy, who has been on the disabled list since mid-june, is set to start at shortstop for the Tigers and hit fifth in the batting order, Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. Hardy told me he s going down there planning on playing nine innings, Showalter said. That s a good sign that he feels well. We ll see if that happens. Whether he plays five, seven, nine innings, it will kind of be up to him. How many games Hardy will need before he s ready to be activated is unclear. But because Hardy hasn t played in more than two months, he said he will treat the rehab as if he s getting conditioned for the season during spring training. Hardy has taken on-field batting practice for the past several days and been fielding grounders for the past six weeks, but said the biggest obstacle will be regaining arm strength. I actually think the throwing will be the biggest challenge for him, talking to him, Showalter said. That would be the only thing that would keep him waiting. Just getting his arm back in strength shoulder, elbow, wrist. Just watching him out here, that will be the last thing to come. He s looked pretty impressive in BP. He s swinging the bat well. So I think that s what he s waiting [on] to say he s ready. When Hardy returns, the Orioles will face a difficult decision at shortstop. Tim Beckham, acquired at the nonwaiver trade deadline from the Tampa Bay Rays, is hitting.467 in 18 games with the team and has provided a spark from the leadoff spot, but Hardy s leadership as the infield s quarterback, as well as his strong defense, is unquestioned. Orioles place Castro on bereavement list, recall Asher The team placed right-handed reliever Miguel Castro on the bereavement list before Sunday s game against the Los Angeles Angels after the death of a family member. The Orioles recalled right-hander Alec Asher to replace Castro, who had worked 2 1/3 scoreless innings on consecutive days and would have been unavailable Sunday. Before Sunday s game, Showalter indicated a move might be made.

15 Someone is here that we re thinking of activating, Showalter said. We re preparing for that, but we ve got some moving parts that have changed since last night. So we re waiting to see with a lot of respect for the person and their family. Asher had a 3.86 ERA over eight games with the Tides since he was optioned to Norfolk in early July. He excelled in a spot-start and relief role with the Orioles early on but dropped off once he replaced Ubaldo Jimenez in the rotation, posting a 9.87 ERA in four starts. With the Orioles struggling through some short starts, Castro had been a valuable multipleinning arm. Five of his past seven outings have been for two innings or longer. Orioles turn to Chris Tillman to help get rotation rested and back on track Bundy to start Wednesday on added rest Right-hander Dylan Bundy is scheduled to make his next start Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics, which would give him 10 days of rest between starts. Bundy s last turn through the rotation was skipped with Thursday s day off, and the addition of Chris Tillman to the rotation Sunday gave him another day. Bundy is 3-1 with a 2.52 ERA when working with six days of rest or more this season, holding opposing hitters to a.196 batting average. Two of his best outings of the second half have come on extended rest. On 11 days rest, Bundy held the Texas Rangers to one run on four hits through six innings July 18, and he allowed just one unearned run on three hits over eight innings against the Kansas City Royals on Aug. 1 after eight days rest. Left-hander Wade Miley and right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez will start the first two games against the Athletics. Davis back in lineup First baseman Chris Davis returned to the starting lineup Sunday after missing the first two games of the Angels series with an illness. Catcher Welington Castillo missed the first game of the series, also with an illness, but returned to the starting lineup Saturday. Tillman encouraged despite number of walks By Brittany Ghiroli / MLB.com BALTIMORE -- Fixed? Not quite. While the O's hope of vintage Chris Tillman appearing didn't transpire, the struggling righty -- making his first start since being demoted to the bullpen -- was still encouraged with parts of his outing in Baltimore's 5-4 loss to the Angels on Sunday afternoon. "Probably should have been much better," Tillman said of his overall performance over 5 1/3 innings. "You cut the [six] walks in half that's a different ball game. That's just too many. Too many to try to pitch out of. You can't expect to win a game walking that many. "Other than that, I thought it was OK. Made some good offspeed pitches, fastball was a little better. I still think it was a step in the right direction, minus the walks."

16 Making his first start since Aug. 3, Tillman allowed four runs on four hits and six walks in his longest outing since July 22. He gave up home runs to Kole Calhoun and Andrelton Simmons, who had a one-out, two-run homer in the sixth. Tillman exited after he walked the following batter, Luis Valbuena "Stuff, I thought, was better. A semi-step [forward]," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Tillman. "We'll see. A lot depends on where he goes from here. But you take away the slider that Simmons hooked down there in the corner, wasn't bad." Tillman has never quite found his footing since starting the season on the disabled list and missing the season's first month. After going just two innings in the Aug. 3 start against Detroit - - which extended his losing streak to seven -- he was put in the bullpen and made two scoreless relief appearances. In the interim, he worked with pitching coach Roger McDowell on refining some things. Sometimes it showed up on Sunday, sometimes it didn't. "There were random spots here and there where it kind of got away," said Tillman, who has a 7.75 ERA in 18 games (16 starts). "But it's to the point now where I feel it, I can get out of it for a little bit, get back on track, get back out of it, fight back in." Tillman will get another chance to make those adjustments stick as Showalter confirmed he'd make another start. The team re-inserted Tillman into the rotation to go to a six-man staff, helping give extra rest to guys like Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman down the stretch. "The walks I'm sure he'd like to have back," Showalter said. "There were some pitches that were just balls out of his hand. There's not really anything competitive you can get back with those pitches. Better than his last outing, and hopefully he'll build on it. I talked to him in the dugout. Felt pretty good. I'm looking forward to seeing him pitch again and see if he can go to another level that we all know he's capable of." Hardy to play in first rehab game at Triple-A By Brittany Ghiroli / MLB.com BALTIMORE -- J.J. Hardy will play for Triple-A Norfolk on Monday, and the Orioles shortstop told manager Buck Showalter he plans to play all nine innings in his first rehab game. "He'll play shortstop and hit fifth tomorrow," Showalter said of Hardy, who has been on the 60- day disabled list since June 19 with a right wrist fracture. "That's a good sign that he feels well [wanting to play the whole game]. We'll see if it happens. He and [third-base coach] Bobby [Dickerson] will be talking about how he feels each day. Whether he plays five, seven, nine innings will be up to him." Hardy is expected to stay with Triple-A during his rehab assignment. The O's haven't said how long that will be, though Hardy has missed two months and might need a few games before rejoining the team. In his absence, the Orioles traded for Tim Beckham, who has been on an offensive tear since coming from Tampa Bay. Asher recalled from Triple-A The Orioles added a fresh arm to their bullpen on Sunday, recalling Alec Asher from Triple-A prior to their series finale against the Angels. To make room on the roster, the O's placed Miguel Castro on the bereavement list due to the death of a close family member. Castro will be gone a minimum of three days, and a maximum of seven, on bereavement.