Sunday afternoon gamethread: @ Royals, 2:15 p.m.

The Orioles are one game away from being swept by the Royals in the Battle of the Basement. You might remember that the Orioles took two out of three from the Royals earlier this year, so if the Orioles can bounce back and win today they’ll end the season 3-3 against their fellow last place team.

Enter David Hess, who is riding a streak of three straight good starts. In two games against the Blue Jays and one against Cleveland, Hess has allowed just three earned runs in 19 innings. That’s good for a 1.42 ERA. Can he keep it up against the Royals?

Of course, Hess can’t do it by himself. The Orioles will need to score at least a few runs off of starting pitcher Jorge Lopez. Given that he has a 7.90 ERA in three starts this year, that seems like it shouldn’t be difficult. But you know our Orioles. They’re always up to the task of making a mediocre pitcher look outstanding.

As of the time I’m writing this, the Orioles’ lineup has not been announced. I have to run out for a few hours before the game starts, so I don’t get a chance to add it before the 1:30 publish time, I trust you to use the resources at your disposal to find it yourself.

Go O’s!