Tuesday Bird Droppings: Where you don’t have to watch Ubaldo pitch today

Hello, friends.

Things are feeling awfully grim today after getting the unabridged Ubaldo Jimenez experience - and subsequent Tyler Wilson and Stefan Crichton experiences - in Monday’s ridiculous loss to the Twins. If you missed it, you’re lucky, but make sure to check out Stacey’s rundown of the not-so-lovely totals.

The good news is that the Orioles are still in second place in the American League East and still just 1.5 games behind the division-leading Yankees, who may be better than expected but probably aren’t 100-win good. The OTHER good news is that you don’t have to watch Jimenez pitch today, which will hopefully contribute to making it a better day than yesterday, at least in baseball terms.

There was one bit of goodness in that mess of a game: Adam Jones set the record for home runs hit at Oriole Park at Camden Yards with his 125th OPACY homer. Congratulations to Adam, not that he needs our validation of his achievements. We think he’s great, though, and yes, such a proclamation requires the royal we.

Around the blogO’sphere

With latest blowup, Jimenez is forcing the Orioles to make a decision with his spot (Baltimore Baseball)
The question was asked by Orioles beat writers following Monday’s loss. Manager Buck Showalter didn’t address the speculation directly, but, well, see for yourself...

Back with Orioles, Tyler Wilson tries to earn his teammates' trust - Steve Melewski
That could have gone better. And as a result, Wilson probably won’t be back with the Orioles for very long.

Orioles Will Celebrate The 25th Anniversary Season August 18 & 19 « CBS Baltimore
There will be a mid-August celebration for the 25th anniversary of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Check out some of the cool stuff.

Orioles still welcome former draftee Pat Connaughton’s return to baseball as he considers NBA future (Baltimore Sun)
Connaughton was the Orioles fourth round pick in 2014. After a season in which he averaged fewer than two minutes per game in the NBA, it seems he’s once again thinking about baseball.

Flaherty receives PRP injection in shoulder (plus other notes) - School of Roch
One health update yesterday was on Ryan Flaherty’s shoulder, and it looks like his tendinitis is going to keep him out for at least a couple more weeks. It’s Janish time.

MLB: How have all 30 teams answered their most intriguing question? (ESPN)
The Orioles question was whether their starting rotation would be able to compete. Nobody said that the answer was going to be pretty.

Curiosity Might Kill the Home-Run Spike | FanGraphs Baseball
This article isn’t about the Orioles at all, but it is about something that pitchers might be able to do, generally, that might cause there to be fewer home runs hit in MLB, which would definitely affect the Orioles.

Birthdays and anniversaries

On this day in 1999, Brady Anderson set an American League record by being hit by pitch twice in the same inning - the first inning. The Orioles went on to win that game against the Rangers, 15-6.

One lone former Oriole has a birthday today: Mike Gonzalez, one of the several failed reliever signings of former GM Andy MacPhail. However, we do have one very special current Orioles birthday: It’s Buck Showalter’s birthday today! May the Orioles win a game for him.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Your birthday buddies for today include: father of modern taxonomy Carl Linnaeus (1707), funny man Drew Carey (1958), actress Melissa McBride (1965), singer-songwriter Jewel (1974), Jeopardy whiz Ken Jennings (1974), and WWE wrestler Bray Wyatt (1987).

On this day in history...

In 1430, Joan of Arc was captured by Burgundians while attempting to lift the Siege of Compiegne.

In 1568, Louis of Nassau’s rebel Dutchmen defeated a loyalist army in the Battle of Heiligerlee, which turned out to be the start of the Eighty Years War against the Spanish.

In 1618, the Second Defenestration of Prague took place, which turned out to be the start of the Thirty Years War that involved a whole lot more people than just the Spanish and the Dutch.

In 1934, the bank robbing duo Bonnie and Clyde was ambushed and killed by police in Louisiana.

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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on May 23 - or at least, until something happens later, which, unless it ends up raining, something probably will. Have a safe Tuesday. Go Orioles!