matt wieters

Two years ago Tuesday, Tommy Hunter and Chris Davis received a set of phone calls in a Toronto hotel room: They were traded from the pennant-chasing Texas Rangers to the last-place Orioles in a move that would help alter the course of a franchise and their careers.

Former Orioles manager Dave Trembley returns to Camden Yards with the Houston Astros.

The Orioles (58-48) had dominated Boston, winning nine of their past 10 series against Boston heading into the weekend, but their bats went cold over the past two games with runners in scoring position.

Before a sold-out home crowd on Saturday night, the Orioles lost a 7-3 contest to the Boston Red Sox, a game in the standings and chunks of their visiting dugout phone.

The Orioles couldn't wait to get home after their 7-1 loss to the Royals on Thursday night. And this morning, neither can I as I sit in the Kansas City International Airport airport terminal at 4:30 a.m.

Matt Wieters' bat has sizzled coming out of the All-Star break, but the Orioles' catcher said he doesn't think the four days of rest over the break has anything to do with it.

As well as Wei-Yin Chen pitched through his first seven innings in a 4-3 loss to the Royals on Wednesday night, one of the main storylines of the night ended up being how the Orioles couldn't score more runs off Kansas City starter Ervin Santana.

Just five outs away from gaining a game on the Boston Red Sox and pulling within 2 ½ games of the American League East lead, the Orioles saw their lead quickly disappear into the Kansas City night.

Following a 2-for-4 night in the Orioles¿ 4-2 sweep-clinching win over the Rangers on Sunday, Orioles catcher Matt Wieters completed this weekend¿s three game series 6-for-12 with a homer, two RBIs and four runs scored.

The Orioles kicked off the second half this weekend with their first road sweep of the season, relying on eight strong innings from All-Star right-hander Chris Tillman, who guided the club to a 4-2 win over the Rangers on Sunday.

As the Orioles open up the unofficial second half of the season, they know that the texas Rangers could be one of the teams they end up battling for a possible playoff spot.

The Orioles began the season¿s unofficial second half with a gritty 3-1 win Friday night over the Texas Rangers in front of an announced 40,068.

Manny Machado will resume his pursuit of Earl Webb's all-time doubles record when the Orioles' unofficial second half of the season kicks off Friday night in Texas.

Agent Scott Boras, who represents Orioles first baseman Chris Davis and catcher Matt Wieters, was with some of his clients during Monday¿s media scrum and fielded questions.

The Orioles continued to use the home run to their advantage against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night, erasing a two-run deficit and building a three-run lead.

Researching the career of the young third baseman made me aware a vast conspiracy of untruths, one that I'd set up myself without knowing. How's that for a thrilling plot? Read on to see what happens.

Dan Connolly writes about Wei-Yin Chen, Brooks Robinson and other Baltimore Orioles topics.

The Orioles had waited in eager anticipation for Wei-Yin Chen to get back on the mound, hoping that his return could help stabilize the team¿s starting rotation heading into the All-Star break.

Each Wednesday, Baltimore Sun blogger Matt Vensel will highlight five statistics that really mean something for the Baltimore Orioles.

The 21-year-old star, who played in Aberdeen at beginning of his pro career, was voted onto the American League squad as a third baseman

First baseman Chris Davis, shortstop J.J. Hardy and center fielder Adam Jones were all elected by the fans for their first times in their careers and will start the annual exhibition, which will be Tuesday, July 16 at Citi Field in New York City. Orioles third baseman Manny Machado

Orioles closer Jim Johnson has walked nearly as many batters as he did all last year. But the command issues go beyond the walk numbers.

Orioles closer Jim Johnson¿s rough season continued when he blew his sixth save of the season in the Orioles¿ 3-2 loss to the New York Yankees on Friday night.

But right fielder Nick Markakis is in a battle with Toronto's Jose Bautista and Detroit's Torii Hunter for the third and final starting spot in the outfield. According to the most recent tallies, Bautista is third in the outfield with 2,679,230 votes, Markakis was fourth with 2,536,864 and Hunter had 2,390,336.

CHICAGO ¿ Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts, who has batted ninth in all six of his starts this season, is batting sixth in this afternoon¿s starting lineup.

After making a critical error that fueled the Orioles¿ comeback from a two-run deficit, White Sox first baseman Adam Dunn hit a game-winning solo homer off Orioles right-hander Tommy Hunter in the bottom of the ninth inning, sending the Orioles to a 3-2 walk-off loss in front of an announced 21,321 at U.S. Cellular Field.

New Orioles acquisition Scott Feldman wasn't spectacular Wednesday night in his O's debut, but if he can give the club outings like he did against the White Sox, the trade with the Cubs will be a win.

Weeks before the trade deadline, the Orioles bolstered their starting pitching on Tuesday, acquiring right-hander Scott Feldman from the Cubs along with catcher Steve Clevenger for right-handed pitchers Jake Arrieta and Pedro Strop.

Catcher Steve Clevenger was told to come off the field for Triple-A Iowa last night, because it looked like he was about to be traded.

The Baltimore sports scene is blessed with a bunch of talented bloggers who bring their unique perspective to the conversation. This week, we exchanged emails with Avi Miller, who blogs about the Baltimore Orioles for Baltimore Sports Report.

CHICAGO -- Orioles right fielder Nick Markakis¿ chances to make his first All-Star Game took a hit with Monday¿s latest AL fan-balloting results as Markakis slipped out of a starting spot, going from third to fourth.

Nick Markakis dropped to fourth among outfielders with the last tally coming Saturday.

Over the course of a 162-game season, some wins can get lost, but the Orioles' 4-2 victory over the Yankees on Sunday night was one that will likely resonate in the hearts of fans in Baltimore for a while.

The Orioles' 7-3 victory over featured one ridiculously weird inning that included an out that wasn't, a safe baserunner who jogged off the field, and the end of Manny Machado's consecutive-innings streak due to an ejection by an umpire making his big league debut behind the plate.

Johnson, who hadn't blown a save since May 26 in Toronto, walked off the mound to boos from some in the announced crowd of 18,082 that had braved a rain delay of 1 hour and 6 minutes before the first pitch on a sticky and soggy Baltimore night.

Through six innings Wednesday night, Cleveland Indians left-hander Scott Kazmir looked like the pitcher that posted an ERA of 3.77 or less for four straight seasons for Tampa Bay in the mid-2000s.