A lot of news today and why not? Our friends in the press seem to be falling all over themselves to bask in the embracing glow of your first place Baltimore Orioles.

(Don't forget guys, 12:35 start today!)

Orioles 2B Roberts to begin minor league rehab assignment Wednesday - The Washington Post Kind of amazing. We'll see what happens. Video of Roberts gaggle here.

Zach Britton could be back with the Orioles next week | HardballTalk Prepare for yet another round of roster roulette.

Chronicling Nolan Reimold's Injury-Plagued Orioles Career | Baltimore Sports Report The news about Nolan Reimold is not so positive. Zach at BSR advises we don't hold our breath waiting for Reimold's return.

PressBox: The Most Valuable Oriole ... So Far No point-counterpoint here. The guys at Press Box are ALL about Adam Jones.

2012 MLB: Baltimore Orioles Are Lucky To Have AL's Best Record - The Daily Fix - WSJ Ooooo, that water's cold!

Troubled Yankees Join Troubled Red Sox In Last Place - Baseball Nation ...and Rob Neyer?

Major League Baseball 2K's Cancellation Looms on Grim News from Game's Creators Wait...do people here like video games?

The Detroit Tigers' Heather Nabozny and the Baltimore Orioles Nicole Sherry lead groundskeeping crews - espnW
In case you weren't aware, Orioles groundskeeper Nicole Sherry is kind of a bad ass.

On this day in 1963, Robin Roberts two hit the Washington Senators...he no hit Senators not named Eddie Brinkman.

Happy Birthday to Buck Showalter! It's also the birthday of Mike Gonzalez.

Of all the losses the Orioles have had this year, only two have seemed to me to be the sloppy, ugly sort that we watched so frequently last year and in the years before that. The first one was their loss to the Yankees last week, and the second was last night against the Red Sox (I know they had some big losses against the Rangers, but to me those were just Texas being Texas). Both times I've gotten worried that those losses meant more than the others, that it was the sign the Orioles were reverting to their old ways.

Well, the Orioles followed that ugly loss against the Yankees with a 5-0 win thanks in part to a brilliant game by Jake Arrieta. And tonight they came back strong against the surging Red Sox with a fantastic game from starting pitcher Brian Matusz. As a wise man once said, momentum is the next day's starting pitcher.

It's no secret that Matusz has looked better of late, and I'm starting to believe in him again. But even with his improved performance, it's tough to forget his season last year and so it's always a big relief when he doesn't fall apart. And tonight he certainly did not fall apart.

Matusz pitched 6 1/3 innings and in his six innings he was perfect in four of them. He struck out nine batters, six of which were swinging, and he got both David Ortiz and Adrian Gonzalez twice. He allowed two baserunners in the 2nd inning thanks to a single from Gonzalez and a walk to Jarrod Saltalamacchia (his only walk on the day). And he only allowed one more hit, which was unfortunately a home run by Kevin Youkilis. It was one of Brian's few really bad pitches on the night.

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Savor this sentence, for it is the truth for a second consecutive night: the first-place Baltimore Orioles are taking on the last-place Boston Red Sox tonight. The Red Sox are tied for last in the AL East with the New York Yankees, 5.5 games behind the division-leading Orioles.

The $84,102,333 question is how long this situation will last. A win tonight would see it persist for at least another day, whereas a loss would tie the O's season-high losing streak - only three games, but still - and potentially vault Boston out of the basement for the duration. That ephemeral concept, momentum, is what is on the line. Either its burgeoning emergence in favor of Boston can be hijacked or, like the horror movie villain Andrew and I contemplated on this week's Camdencast, the Red Sox, after all the beatings they have taken, will continue to come at us, perhaps with blood-stained socks.

It's Brian Matusz who stands between us and that grim fate. Although if we want to get technical, that's not true, because it's actually the entirety of the 25-man roster, as it will ultimately be applied in tonight's game by manager Buck Showalter, that stands between us and allowing the Red Sox to ascend from the depths. The starting pitcher has a lot to do with the outcome, though, so it's simplest to say it that way. Thus, Matusz. Three of his past five starts have been of the quality start (6+ IP, 3 ER or less) variety, which is three more quality starts than he had in all of last year. He is the variable I find hardest to predict on this team. Will he keep muddling along at the way-better-than-last-year-but-still-awful 5.36 ERA level? Will it balloon worse again? Will it steadily get better? We hope the steady progress continues tonight.

Boston's starter is Felix Doubront, whom they have been tenderly shepherding through the organization since signing him out of Venezuela in 2005. With 44 innings in eight starts, the lefty is not exactly eating the innings, so the potential for a shortened outing is there, if the O's can work him and capitalize. Doubront has 44 strikeouts and 21 walks in those innings, holding his ERA at 4.09 even with a WHIP of 1.48.

Tonight's game marks the return from the DL for Kevin Youkilis, much-cursed in these parts mostly because he always seems to destroy the Orioles. Youkilis is at first base tonight so Will Middlebrooks can remain at third, which has at least temporarily pushed Adrian Gonzalez out to right field. Gonzalez has played in 1,059 games at the major league level in his career, and in that time he's played right field for a total of 35 innings. Boston has kept scoring runs even with a lineup held together by duct tape and baling wire; if Youkilis comes back close to form, their lineup will only be that much more dangerous as the ship is righted.

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Who's hot and who's not for the Baltimore Orioles:

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My dear Chatters, I am here to tell you that reports of Chris Tillman's demise have been greatly exaggerated!

Okay, that in itself was a great exaggeration, but it's interesting to dig a little deeper into Tillman's numbers at Norfolk this year as collective frustration with Tommy Hunter and Dana Eveland mounts. I''ve limited my inquiry strictly to Tillman's past and current AAA performances.

Tillman has made 7 starts for Norfolk this season and has averaged a tick under 6 innings per outing. No great shakes, for sure, but it's not all doom and gloom. Tillman is posting his best K/9 since 2009 (2012: 8.49, 2009: 9.22). His BB/9 is a concern at 4.14, which while improving on last year's 4.44, is inflated by nearly two walks over his BB/9 as a 21 year old, a mere 2.42. In 2011, Tillman allowed an average of two home runs per nine innings.This year, however, Tillman's HR/9 seems to have fallen back in line with his career numbers at Norfolk (2012: .65; 2010: .74; 2009: .47).

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Roberts could start rehab stint next week | orioles.com
Second baseman Brian Roberts is nearing a rehab assignment, and the veteran infielder, who hasn't appeared in a Major League game in more than a year, acknowledged Monday that it's possible he could be back playing for a Minor League affiliate within a week.

Hot-hitting Josh Bell called up by Arizona Diamondbacks, starts at third base - Sports News from The Arizona Republic
Hopefully he's learned to take a few walks.

Baltimore Orioles pitching prospect Bundy draws crowd at Suns game - Herald-Mail
Sadly, WW was not quoted in the story.

School of Roch: Reimold undecided about second epidural
Poor Nolan.

This Week in Chat: 5/21/2012 | Dempsey's Army
DA reads the chats so that you don't have to.

The Unofficial Camden Yards Visitor's Guide - 2012 Red Sox Edition | Roar From 34
Please pass this along to your Red Sox fan acquaintances.