Saturday Bird Droppings

About Last Night

Orioles Offense Struggles, Fall To Mariners 5-2 " CBS Baltimore
Wade LeBlanc leblanc'd the Orioles last night with his soft-tossing lefty ways. Technically, he gave up two runs, but you get the idea.

Showalter, Gausman and Schoop after O's lose to Seattle - Steve Melewski
Kevin Gausman was asked about the pitch that Kyle Seager blasted to right for the two-run shot. It was an elevated fastball on an 0-2 count. "I mean, that is exactly where I was trying to throw it," he said. "That was one thing maybe he was kind of sitting on. I had thrown a lot of fastballs up to these guys and you know, that is how I like attacking this lineup. So, maybe he was just sitting on it. He was obviously looking for a fastball right there.

Notes on Kim's start, O'Day's injury, Britton's velocity - Steve Melewski
The O's manager gave an update on Darren O'Day. "He felt pretty good today which was a good sign. He’s not going backwards, just not going forward," Buck Showalter said. That means there is still no timetable for when O’Day can return to the Orioles or even for when his next bullpen will be.

On The Wars To Come

Splits could keep Kim in lineup - School of Roch
It's possible Hyun-Soo Kim gets another start against a LHP today, since James Paxton has reverse splits against lefty hitters. Kim went 0-for-2 while reaching on an error against LHP Wade LeBlanc last night.

Consecutive losses for Chris Tillman, Kevin Gausman highlight Orioles' precarious rotation - Baltimore Sun
Losses by Chris Tillman and Kevin Gausman put pressure on an Orioles rotation that has been among the league's worst this season. Me? How can you not feel confident of a series split with Tyler Wilson and Ubaldo Jimenez starting, am I right?

Dan Szymborski Talks MLB Future Power Rankings " CBS Baltimore
Dan Szymborski from ESPN joined the Scott Garceau Show with Jeremy Conn to discuss where the Orioles rank in his MLB Future Power Rankings. Actually, I think his ranking the O's farm system as 22nd best feels a tad optimistic.

Reports From Other Fronts

Stadium From Scratch Ready For Fort Bragg Game - BaseballAmerica.com
The temporary ballpark at Fort Bragg has taken shape nicely for Sunday's game between the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins.

From Historic Power to Duquette Magic, the Orioles Have a Blueprint for Winning | Jonah Keri
But if the Giants represent the pinnacle of even-year achievement, the O’s have done a pretty nifty job of carving their own successful path.

MLB’s biggest surprises, disappointmens from first half | Yardbarker.com
The Orioles rate as one of the biggest surprises in MLB's first half.

MLB: Can anyone catch the six division leaders? - SweetSpot- ESPN
The Orioles, Indians, Rangers, Nationals, Cubs and Giants all lead their respective divisions by five games or more. It's the first time since divisional play began in 1969 that every leader had at least a five-game lead on the first day of July.

The month in review: June home runs highlighted by Orioles - Stats & Info- ESPN
The Orioles' home runs combined for a total distance of 22,341 feet, or 4.2 miles. That's long enough to travel Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge ... nearly three times. That and more tasty tidbits!

Birthdays and History

Happy Birthday to former Oriole Pete Burnside. He's it. He shares this birthday with famous folks including Valentinian III (419), Roman emperor; 1862 William Henry Bragg, English physicist, Nobel laureate; Baltimore's own Thurgood Marshall (1908), 1st African American Supreme Court justice; Imelda Marcos (1929), Filipino politician and First Lady of the Philippines (1965-86) who famously collected over 1,000 pairs of shoes; Richard Petty (1937), American NASCAR Driver and seven-time Winston Cup series champion; Larry David (1947), actor/comedian/writer; Brett "the Hitman" Hart (1957), Canadian WWF champion; Johnny Weir (1984), American figure skater; Lindsay Lohan (1986), American actress.

On this day in Baltimore baseball history...

1901 - With Boston leading 5 - 2 over the Orioles in the 6th inning, the O's score two runs off starter George Cuppy, and he leaves with two runners on base. Reliever Ted Lewis allows the runs to score, and Baltimore goes on to win, 7 - 5. Lewis is charged with the loss under the existing rules.

1975 - In a 13 - 5 win over Detroit, Baltimore's Don Baylor homers his first three times up, giving him four consecutive home runs over two games to tie the major league record.

On this day in world history...

626 Incident at Xuanwu Gate: in fear of assassination, Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng

1776 Continental Congress resolves "these United Colonies are & of right ought to be Free & Independent States." So, technical, today should be Independence Day, but we celebrate the day the Declaration was announced publicly to all.

1823 Bahia Independence Day: the end of Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia.

1940 Hitler orders invasion of Britain (Operation Sealion)

1964 US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Civil Rights Act & Voting Rights Act into law

1990 Panic in tunnel of Mecca: 1,426 pilgrims trampled to death

Consider this your discussion space for U.S. Olympic Trials: Track and Field.