Hello, friends.
The Orioles fell short of a bid on Wednesday night to go a season-high five games over .500, instead losing to the Red Sox, 5-1. Of course we all know on an intellectual level that it's basically impossible for a team to win every single game, or even more than about 60% of their games, but that doesn't make the reality of any given loss easier, not when we all watched the myriad ways that assorted O's flushed away Wednesday's game.
They will have a chance later today in the rubber game of their series to leave Boston winners of two out of three, and I do hope that they make the most of that chance. Before we get to that, there will be at least one roster move, since Miguel Gonzalez has to come off of the disabled list in order to start the game. One imagines that Mychal Givens, who made his MLB debut with a scoreless inning last night, will be the one to get sent down, but Dan Duquette is always capable of surprising us.
Oh, and there will be another roster move coming when they return Wei-Yin Chen to the big leagues on Friday, and it sure sounds a heck of a lot like the Orioles can basically activate Jonathan Schoop from the disabled list whenever it suits their fancy - necessitating yet another roster move.
These are the thoughts as we head into our Thursday edition of news and links...
Orioles commit two errors in Red Sox's five-run sixth, fall 5-1 - Baltimore Sun
The headline for this article on Google begins, "Chris Davis' mitt fails him..." which is definitely something that happened, but the thing that failed the most in that five-run sixth inning was Bud Norris' pitching.
School of Roch: Looking at tonight's game and the roster crunch
Our main man Roch Kubatko, who doesn't seem to have made this Boston trip, nonetheless has some thoughts about the pending roster crunch.
Should Orioles Move Adam Jones to the DL? | Baltimore Sports Report
Fellow Orioles fans over at BSR ponder whether the right move for the O's current roster situation - or at least a move to forestall the crunch for another week or so - might be to stick Adam Jones on the DL. I don't want it to be true, even if it is.
Duquette hopes first rounder is playing next week | Comcast SportsNet Baltimore
Things seem to be progressing well enough in the negotiations with Orioles first round pick D.J. Stewart that Duquette is hoping he'll be signed and playing for an affiliate some time next week.
After Early Criticism, Orioles' Offseason Decisions Starting To Pay Off (Press Box)
Camden Chat's favorite Press Box writer, PaulFolk, is here with all of the ways that some of the Orioles' offseason decisions - panned in the wider media at the time - may be starting to pay off at last.
And one last one that has nothing to do with the Orioles at all, but is amusing all the same...
What’s up with Johnny Cueto’s Instagram? - Pinstripe Alley
At first glance, this looks like nothing more than standard Yankees fan manifest destiny of claiming basically every free agent or player on the trade market ... well, it kind of is that just a little bit, but also it's funny because Johnny Cueto's Instagram is pretty weird.
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We have three former Orioles birthdays on this day: Luke Scott, Ryan Kohlmeier (59 games pitched in 2000-01), and the awesomely named Dick Drago (36 games pitched in 1977).
If today is your birthday, happy birthday! Some departed souls with whom you share this day include Louis Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India (1900); Eric Arthur Blair, better known by his pen name, George Orwell (1903); and Peyo, creator of The Smurfs (1928).
Among those still living, you've got Carly Simon (1945), who bets you think this post is about you; Justice Sonia Sotomayor (1954); chef/food traveler Anthony Bourdain (1956); basketballer Dikembe Mutombo (1966); and actress Linda Cardellini (1975), who you might have seen playing Hawkeye's wife Laura in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Some events from this day in history include...
* In 841, Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeated Lothair I of Italy and Pepin II of Aquitaine in the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye
* In 1876, George Armstrong Custer died in the Battle of Little Bighorn
* In 1940, France officially surrendered to Germany
* In 1947, Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl was first published
* In 1948, the Berlin Airlift began
* In 1950, the Korean War began
Man, this day had a lot of bad stuff happen. Let's hope nothing in 2015 gets added to that list.
And that's the way it is in Birdland on June 25 - or at least, until something happens later. Have a safe Thursday, and go Orioles.