Chris Jakubauskas was the hero of Tuesday night's 4-0 win against the Oakland A's, and he should have been.
In his first big league start since being hit in the head with a liner last April, Jakubauskas allowed just three hits and a walk in five shutout innings. He even took a liner off his left leg -- just above his ankle -- in the fifth and stayed in to get the third out.
The guy deserves serious props.
But perhaps the most important development for the Orioles on Tuesday night came in the fifth and the seventh, when Luke Scott drove a couple of pitches.
The fifth-inning one was a homer to right that landed on Eutaw Street beyond the flag court. He set a Camden Yards record with six career Eutaw Street blasts, one more than Rafael Palmeiro.
Incredibly, it was Scott's first homer of any kind since May 3.
In the seventh, he almost got another, but he had to settle for a double off the right-center-field wall.
"It felt great. This season has been a struggle for me personally, and I've been battling a couple tough injuries and just trying to make the best out of a difficult situation," Scott said. "It feels good to get some results."
We all know Scott can get hot, so maybe his good night shouldn't come as a surprise. But the truth is Scott isn't the same player he was last year, when he hit 27 home runs and won the Most Valuable Oriole Award.
He hadn't played since Friday. On Sunday, he had a cortisone shot, which he hoped would relieve the inferno in his shoulder. Before Tuesday's game, he said he felt better than he had all season. Then he went out and proved it.
"It was good to see him smile, feel good about himself," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "Luke's always a pleasant, upbeat guy, but you know it's kind of been wearing on him, some of the challenges he's been facing this year. He never complained. It's just not in Luke's makeup. He just keeps doing what he can do to be available. I think everybody on the club took a little happiness in Luke having a good game."
The torn labrum had not only sapped his power, but it also made it nearly impossible for him to completely lift his arm. And when you can't get extension, you can't drive a baseball.
"It's my lead shoulder, which is the most important one. Playing through pain and playing through discomfort, it was tough. Today, I think the medicine really kicked in, first time in six weeks I could do that," he said, raising his arm. "For me, that's a great victory and a blessing."
Frankly, it's a real blessing for the Orioles, too, if it can continue.
The shoulder pain doesn't just affect him as a hitter. It hurts when he throws from left field. He said he can hit the cutoff man with little problem and he is making sure he can get to balls quickly, which should help in getting the ball back to the infield.
But the truth is the Orioles don't need him as a designated hitter -- they have Vladimir Guerrero for that. And they don't need him as a first baseman now that Derrek Lee is back from injury.
They need him to play left field and hit homers. Or they need him to go on the disabled list and get his shoulder fixed.
Scott wants to keep playing -- he believes he can play through this. And the Orioles are giving him the benefit of the doubt for now.
Hopefully, for everyone involved, last night was a sign that Scott is right and that he can do what he does best: drive the ball a long way.
