Hello, friends.
If you spent the Orioles off day not even thinking about them, that was probably a healthy decision on your part. You did miss some stuff, though. Yes, it's true, Brian Matusz is gone. The Orioles dumped his salary on the Braves and the Braves immediately DFA'd him. They gave up a draft pick in the process. You can read more about that here. The draft pick aspect was, uh, not popular.
Still, barring any surprising developments in the future, you will never again have to watch Matusz coming in from the bullpen for the Orioles. It's a sad thing in some ways, for what might have been and never was, but it is heartening too. If you're not carrying your weight, the O's won't keep you around, even if you're a former #4 overall pick.
By the time the next O's game rolls around tonight, it'll have been more than 48 hours since the last Orioles game ended. Off days aren't much fun in that way. Here's hoping they show up ready to play against the Astros. With the way the Red Sox are scoring runs, the O's will have to keep on winning if they're going to remain atop the division.
Check back on CC throughout the day as we have a ton of stuff lined up to talk about what's going on with the Orioles right now. In the meantime, have at these links:
Around the blogO'sphere
Family Knows Not To Interrupt Dad While He's Skimming Pool, Listening To Orioles Radio Broadcast - The Onion
It's The Onion, of course, but I suspect that all of us know someone like this in our life. You may even be this person.
The heart and soul behind the Orioles pitching staff - Yahoo Sports
Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports is here with a profile of O's pitching coach Dave Wallace. This is a great story. I really enjoy how he seems to be most proud of Brad Brach.
Pat Connaughton working out at Orioles extended spring training this week - Baltimore Sun
The Orioles' 2014 fourth rounder was in the NBA this season - no joke. He's going to do a little throwing to try to stay sharp, though he's planning to play in the NBA's summer league before too long.
Orioles acquire pitcher Franderlin Romero from Reds - School of Roch
Lost in all the Matusz excitement last night, the Orioles also picked up a minor leaguer from the Reds in exchange for a couple of international bonus slots they weren't going to use anyway. This is the same kind of trade that brought them Chris Lee last year.
Matusz and draft pick dealt to Atlanta for two minor leaguers; Tolliver to be promoted to O's - BaltimoreBaseball.com
The news in this post is that minor league grinder Ashur Tolliver is the player getting promoted to replace Matusz. Tolliver, 28, has been in the O's system since 2009. This move seems to be very popular with O's minor leaguers, I have discovered on Twitter. Must be nice to see a grinder's hard work pay off.
Royals, Phillies may be interested in Nick Markakis, per report - Talking Chop
There is a Nick Markakis trade rumor of dubious veracity floating around - and the Orioles aren't connected to it in any case. Don't tell our Facebook commenters, OK? Thanks.
Birthdays and anniversaries
Of all of the players to ever take the field for the Orioles, only one has a birthday today: the late Willy Miranda (1955-59). With a .545 OPS (53 OPS+), Miranda holds the distinction of being the worst-hitting full-time Oriole of all time.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Your other birthday buddies for today include: magnestism-studying physicist/astronomer William Gilbert (1544), temperature-namer Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686), the UK's Queen Victoria (1819), Peanut Butter Cup man H.B. Reese (1879), "Playoffs?!" rant-master Jim Mora (1935), Cheech companion Tommy Chong (1938)...
...and also Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle (1944), Pulitzer Prize and Hugo Award-winning novelist Michael Chabon (1963), and New York Mets living legend Bartolo Colon (1973).
On this day in history...
In 1218, the Fifth Crusade left Acre for Egypt. They lost.
In 1607, the first English colonists in America disembarked at Jamestown, now a part of Virginia.
In 1844, the first telegraph line was inaugurated by a message sent by Samuel Morse to his assistant in Baltimore: "What hath God wrought?"
In 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was opened to traffic. It took 14 years to build and has appeared in basically every movie ever filmed.
In 1935, the first night-time Major League Baseball game was played in Cincinnati. The Reds beat the Phillies, 2-1.
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And that's the way it is in Birdland on May 24 - at least, until something happens later. Have a safe Tuesday. Go Orioles!