Game Wrap and Morning Links: May 21, 2011

Don't forget today's 136th running of the Preakness

Baltimore 5, Washington 17
Box Score / Play-By-Play / AP Recap

The Orioles opened up their interleague play last night and Ryan Adams made his debut at second base.  He collected his first Major League hit, a single, and turned his first Major League double play.  The Orioles' offense also performed well by knocking out the Nationals' starter Jason Marquis after four innings.  Hmmmm . . . what else?  The rest of the game is somewhat forgettable.  Oh right . . . the Orioles pitching was outright crushed last night.  The Orioles and Nationals had the same ineffective starting pitchers, but the Nationals' pen shut the Orioles out.  The Orioles' pen gave up eleven runs, largely coming from five home runs, over 5.1 innings.  This has been a rough week on the Orioles' pen even though they had some time off.  I'm not sure why position players were not throwing from the mound some time this week.  There is little sense in wasting your pen in a lopsided game.

Stat of the game

209

The average team throws  around 145 pitches per game.  The Orioles threw 209, which means the Orioles threw enough extra pitches to cover about five extra innings.  This bullpen has been ineffective and overworked.

Orioles Game ball

Ryan Adams (1-4, first MLB hit)

MiLB game balls

Norfolk (Box) - Rhyne Hughes, 1B (3-5, 2B (8), HR (5))
Bowie (Box) - Xavier Avery, CF (2-2, 2 2B(7), 2 BB)
Frederick (Box) - Bobby Stevens, 2B-RF (1-3, HR (3), BB)
Delmarva (Box) - Kipp Schutz, LF (3-4, 3 2B (13), BB)

Three Morning Links

Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan wrote a piece noting how 2011 draft prospect and Bobby Bundy's little brother, Dylan Bundy, is asking teams not to draft him if they will interfere with his long tossing program.  Six hours later, Passan tweets that Bundy's adviser says not true.

Ex-Oriole Phil Bradley is helping Mizzou women's softball as an assistant coach.

MASN's Roch Kubatko writes that Jason Berken's next outing will be for the Norfolk Tides and troubled pitcher Alfredo Simon will be summoned for Saturday's game.

Up Next

Jeremy Guthrie (4.05 xFIP, 102 ERA+) finally gets back on the mound after a few days of rest from his impromptu relief performance.  He will face off against John Lannan (4.53 xFIP, 84 ERA+) and will try to even the series.