Friday Bird Droppings

After a sweep of the lowly Red Sox, the Orioles return home for a four game series against the Yankees which kicks off with a doubleheader today. There will likely be much Jeter love on display, but I can live with that if the O's win the series.

Perched atop AL East, O's have overcome plenty | MLB.com
Emeritus MLB columnist Richard Justice is a believer...and who can blame him?

Is Orioles Manager Buck Showalter The 2014 AL Manager Of The Year?
Stan the Fan certainly seems to think so. I agree!

Five things O's need to learn before postseason | Comcast SportsNet Baltimore Win, win, win, win and win.

Joseph making most of long-awaited opportunity | orioles.com A Caleb Joseph primer.

A Minor Review of 2014: Orioles, Yankees | FanGraphs Fantasy Baseball
A snapshot of the system from Marc Hulet.

The Radar Gun Revolution | Bleacher Report
Not directly O's related (though Earl Weaver casts his influential shadow), but a pretty interesting read.

Orioles Talk: Weekly Roundtable - Baltimore Sports and Life
The guys from BSL tackle important Orioles-related issues of the day.

On this day in 1988, Eddie Murray reached the 2,000 hit plateau. In 2009, Brian Roberts hit his Orioles record 51st double of the season and also popped a grand slam in a 7-3 win over the Yankees.

It's the birthday of Keith Hughes, Mark Thurmond and Albie Pearson.