Orioles 3, Angels 1: Shoulda been a shutout

Brad Bergesen had all the run support he needed tonight after the top of the first inning. Brian Roberts lead off the game with a long at-bat he worked for a double, then stole third after Corey Patterson's first-pitch hack led to a weak flyout to left. Nick Markakis made up for it, though, with a single to drive in the run that gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead.

The scoreboard says the Angels got a run, but it's lying to you, because the run only scored thanks to a phantom balk called against Bergy in the bottom of the first, scoring Howie Kendrick, who was on third after two straight singles. Video replay showed the only movement he made was stepping off the rubber, which Jim Palmer noted for the remainder of the broadcast is a perfectly legal move.

The 1-1 tie lasted until the sixth inning, with Trevor Bell doing the usual out-of-nowhere-fringe-starter shutting down the Orioles thing in the meantime. Unfortunately for Trevor, he was not the best Bell on the baseball field tonight. Josh Bell entered the game after Brian Roberts left with a hip strain, pushing Julio Lugo over to second base, and Josh led off the sixth with a single and advanced to second on a Patterson bunt. He might have scored on a Nick Markakis grounder up the middle that Trevor blocked with his leg and deflected perfectly to the Angels. But Luke Scott evened out the luck ledger by getting a cheap grounder out of the infield to score Nugget, giving the Orioles a 2-1 lead that would not be relinquished.

Bergesen got through eight innings with only four hits given up, and didn't walk anyone. No wonder the game was over in 2:12, because when he's throwing strikes things move quickly. This game makes his fifth quality start in his last six starts, and hopefully is a sign that he's getting back into the promise that was such a delight for us last season.

Koji Uehara and his mysterious ninja splitter got through a drama-free ninth to record his third save. It wasn't a perfect ninth, because Alberto Callaspo did get a single, but even though the tying run was at the plate with the game over, I was confident with Koji on the mound the entire time. Maybe we've finally found the role he should have been serving with the team all along. If he looks like this for the rest of the season, I wouldn't be against seeing Koji brought back to be the closer in 2011 as well.

Tomorrow's game will see the Orioles looking to win their second straight and seal the series win behind Kevin Millwood and his 5.63 ERA. For the Angels, Scott Kazmir and his 6.33 ERA will be starting. Take the over.