Bright Spots

The Orioles needed a last-week winning streak to avoid the third 100-loss campaign in team history, their first since 1988. They were assured of a 12th straight losing season 3 1/2 weeks ago, even before the club dropped 13 straight September games, the longest losing streak in the major leagues in 2009 and the third longest in team history. Not only are the Orioles firmly situated in last place - they're 39 games back of the American League East-winning New York Yankees and 12 behind the fourth-place Toronto Blue Jays - they have also clinched the worst record in the AL. They were overmatched on the road (25-56)

BOSTON - -After what had transpired on this nine-game road trip, there was very little that was going to allow the Orioles to board a plane here Sunday night feeling good about themselves or the future of their organization. But over seven innings Sunday afternoon against a lineup that has doomed so many Orioles pitchers before him, rookie right-hander David Hernandez delivered the finest and longest start of his young career and provided the organization with one positive to take home from an extremely difficult trip.

No question, the job market is grim. With employers continuing to lay off workers in droves, the national unemployment rate climbed to 8.9 percent in April. But job seekers are finding some hiring bright spots amid the drumbeat of discouraging news. Industries such as education, health care and the federal government are adding jobs nationally and in Maryland. And there are signs that hiring activity is picking up in the Baltimore region, employers and recruiters say. Howard County General Hospital is looking to hire 220 health care professionals, including 140 medical nurses, patient care technicians, secretaries and other support staff for its new patient pavilion that's scheduled to open in August.

Looking for hope I'm starting to sense that many of you are resigned to a poor 2009 for the Orioles, as long as you see bright spots. I think that's the way you have to look at the coming season, and any extra is gravy (the good type). (For more, go to baltimoresun.com/cornersportsbar)

While prices might still seem painfully high in the supermarket aisles, long-suffering consumers are beginning to see a break in their grocery bills - a bit of good news amid the economic gloom. Falling raw-material costs coupled with a feeble economy have curbed soaring food inflation in recent months. Food prices fell on a month-to-month basis in February for the first time since April 2006. Last year, food and beverage prices as calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics rose 5.4 percent, the largest annual jump since 1990, because of a big run-up in commodity and energy costs.

Who will be the Adam Morrison of this version of March Madness? The Joakim Noah? The Sean May, the Emeka Okafor, the J.J. Redick, the Shane Battier ... You get the point. Some player in the NCAA tournament will either elevate himself into the heavens or ride a wave of adulation that was built pre-tournament - and by the time he lands, he will be not only a college legend, but also the talk of the run-up to the NBA draft. Except the landing will come far short of the same level of pro stardom that he enjoyed in college.

LAS VEGAS - If the economy cast a certain glumness across the enormous trade show floor at the recent International Builders Show here, one bright spot - make that a thousand bright spots - was the pervasiveness of any and all things green. Recycling and energy-conservation pitches amounted to a marketing steamroller at the trade show, where a sea of building-products manufacturers' booths pushed their latest offerings for the 60,000-some builders in attendance. From soy-based building insulation to draft-busting windows, the "green" mantle was everywhere.

Increased demand for some General Motors trucks has helped General Motors' Powertrain Baltimore Transmission Plant avert a weeklong shutdown that was to have started Monday, a local spokesman for the plant said yesterday. The spokesman, John Raut, had said last month that the plant was planning to shut down and temporarily lay off all of its hourly workers for the week. The plant employs 238 people. But demand for some company vehicles has improved, including the Chevy Silverado and Sierra pickup trucks, for which the Baltimore plant makes six-speed automatic transmissions, Raut said yesterday.

Tumbling gasoline prices gave consumers more purchasing power last month, which led to a rise in real consumer spending even as personal income slips and Americans worry about their jobs in a rapidly weakening economy. The Commerce Department reported yesterday that consumer spending, when adjusted for inflation, rose 0.6 percent in November, its largest gain in two years. The increase followed a 0.5 percent decline in October. And while the unadjusted rate of consumer spending declined 0.6 percent in November, on the heels of a 1 percent drop in October, economists suggested that the relative increase in spending was a rare piece of good news for the faltering economy.

As the economy slumps, one Maryland bank has not only stayed out of trouble but has burnished the kind of 24-karat lending record that rivals would covet even in a boom. Bowie-based Old Line Bank has lent more than $200 million to local homebuilders, hoteliers, auto repair shops, lawyers, homebuyers and landscapers. But as banks fail nationwide at the greatest rate since 1993, so far every one of Old Line's borrowers is paying interest and principal as planned. A church that was behind on payments is catching up. Other than that, Old Line has zero "nonperforming" loans, defined as at least 90 days overdue.