The Thursday night Orioles game thread: vs. Red Sox, 7:05

The Orioles enter tonight's game with a chance to have their first four-game winning streak of the season. They have a lineup that looks a lot like a major league lineup, for the most part, and they have a starting pitcher who has had 2.5 good seasons, at least before this April and May. Chris Tillman only has four quality starts in 11 tries this year. That's rough.

Tillman has a pretty good track record against the Red Sox hitters in his outings against them. I'm almost scared to bring it up for fear of jinxing it. Like, you'd think a lefty power hitter would punish Tillman, but David Ortiz only has a .648 OPS in 35 plate appearances. Don't blame me if Ortiz hits a grand slam against Tillman tonight, alright?

The last time Wade Miley started a game against the Orioles, his team ended up losing, 18-7. Miley gave up seven of the runs in 2.1 innings, six of which were earned. He's pitched a lot better since then, notching quality starts in five of his last seven outings. When you look at a 4.67 ERA you figure the Orioles should have a chance to beat him up.

He's probably better than that ERA. They should beat him up anyway because it's stupid that they haven't won four games in a row yet this year. The AL East is starting to heat up. Both the Yankees and Blue Jays have won eight out of their last ten. The Jays have won eight in a row. All of these things mean that it would be a good idea for the Orioles to sweep the hell out of the last-place Boston Red Sox. Man, I love writing that. Last-place Boston Red Sox! It's good for the soul. Try it out yourself. Your day will improve.