Corey Patterson

Corey Patterson, Orioles outfielder What baseball brawl do you remember most? I guess last year between the Cubs and the White Sox with [A.J.] Pierzynski and [Michael] Barrett. That was a pretty big one. ... I didn't think Michael was going to hit A.J. and he did. More so you see what happened with us [on Monday], but that one turned into a real fight.

The Orioles knew heading into their four-game, three-day series with the New York Yankees in the Bronx that it would be draining one. Sunday's 4-2 loss to the Yankees -- the Orioles' ninth loss in 10 tries this season against their American League East nemesis -- was probably the easiest to suffer through. And it lasted 3 hours, 1 minute and featured Orioles starter Jake Arrieta's painfully issuing a career-high six walks. It was that kind of trip to New York, one that ended a terrible, 7-20 July on a dismal note.

There's a certain stigma associated with the word "spoiler" in baseball. It means a team isn't good enough to be in playoff contention so it must derive satisfaction from beating successful clubs. Frankly, the Orioles haven't played well enough down the stretch in the last decade to warrant the spoiler tag, routinely stumbling in August and September against contenders. Under new manager Buck Showalter, however, the Orioles have already turned in their first winning August in 13 years and now, with their 8-7 victory over the American League Wild Card-leading Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, they seem to be inching closer toward spoiler status.

The Orioles finally broke their seemingly interminable losing streak at Rogers Centre with a 4-3 win on Thursday afternoon, but they may have lost their rotation leader to injury. Orioles right-hander Jeremy Guthrie was pitching superbly, allowing just one hit and one walk through five innings. He struck out five batters and had thrown an economical 64 pitches, 41 for strikes. But he didn't come out for the sixth inning because of a back strain. The severity of the strain was not announced during the game.

Orioles third baseman Miguel Tejada stood motionless in the bottom of the seventh inning, his glove hanging by his side, his eyes fixated on the giant video board in center field that offered a reminder of the miscue he had just made. It was Tejada who said after the Orioles' loss Sunday in Toronto that all the blame being showered on manager Dave Trembley was misdirected and it was the players who needed to step up and turn this season around. If nothing else, Tuesday night could have been a feel-good victory with young rookie Brian Matusz being rewarded for another gritty start against the New York Yankees.

Poll results It was tight all week, but closer Chris Ray pulled out a save at the end. Last week, we asked which Oriole was most primed for a bounce-back second half. And, with more than 5,000 responses, Ray nipped Corey Patterson and Aubrey Huff in our closest vote yet. The results: Chris Ray, 26.3 percent (1,315 votes) Corey Patterson, 25.4 percent (1,272 votes) Aubrey Huff, 22.7 percent (1,135 votes) Danys Baez, 11.5 percent (575 votes) Jay Gibbons, 8.1 percent (407 votes) Daniel Cabrera 6.0 percent (300 votes)

Orioles tributes Here's how the Orioles are celebrating today's 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball's color barrier: Fans at this afternoon's game against the Kansas City Royals will receive a program commemorating Robinson's accomplishments. Pre-game ceremonies will include a video tribute to Robinson and recognition of a local Jackie Robinson Foundation scholar Aurelia Michael, a senior business major at the University of Maryland. The Orioles will host 40 youths from the Baltimore Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI)

Orioles hitting coach Terry Crowley can always be found in the outdoor batting cage after spring training workouts in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., soft-tossing to guys who want to take some extra swings. He's trying to learn all the new hitters, but it's challenging with players spread out on the main field and two back fields. Crowley hasn't seen enough of Jon Knott yet to provide a thorough scouting report, but he says: "He's big and strong. From the little I've seen so far and the reports I've gotten, he looks good.

With minutes remaining before Saturday's nonwaiver trade deadline, the Orioles pulled off their second deal in three days, sending left-handed reliever Will Ohman to the Florida Marlins for Triple-A right-hander Rick VandenHurk. VandenHurk, a 25-year-old from the Netherlands who has been shuttled between Triple-A and the majors the past four seasons, will go into Triple-A Norfolk's rotation and likely will be promoted to Baltimore later this season. He is 8-9 with a 5.96 ERA in 35 major league games (32 starts)

VIERA, Fla. -- It was the same vantage point he's had for every game of his big league career, but crouching behind home plate yesterday was a bit strange for Javy Lopez. "I had caught a little early in spring training, so it didn't feel that weird," Lopez said. "But when I made my first throw to second base, I was like, `Wow. It's been a while.' " Lopez, who has caught in all but two innings of his 14-season career, is attempting to switch to first base this spring. Arriving in mid-February with pitchers and catchers, he almost immediately began taking grounders at first.

If Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Corey Patterson had to pinpoint a reason why he's had success so far this season it would be because he no longer worries about what might happen. It's a philosophy he perfected last April, when he was unemployed and working out at home. Eventually, the Orioles called and offered him a minor-league job with no promises. He accepted, made it to the big leagues in mid-May and stuck all year, playing 90 games and hitting .269 with eight homers and a team-high 21 stolen bases.

As Andy MacPhail watched the 2010 postseason unfold, the Orioles' president of baseball operations had a prevailing thought: If done right, his philosophy of "growing the arms and buying the bats" can lead to the ultimate prize. The San Francisco Giants became 2010 world champions on the strength of four homegrown starting pitchers, a homegrown closer and a stitched-together offense that mostly was rescued from baseball's scrap heap. "Grow the pitching. It's one of things we need to do well here," MacPhail said.

A look at some of the best and worst of the Orioles' 2010 season: Team MVP With his average well under .200 heading into the second week of May, designated hitter Luke Scott was only a couple of more 0-for-4s away from getting jettisoned to Triple-A Norfolk. But the 32-year-old found one of his patented hot streaks and maintained a good approach for the rest of the season. Scott, who hit .258 for his first two years with the Orioles and couldn't avoid extended slumps, batted .284 this season, bashed a career-high and team-leading 27 home runs, drove in 72 runs and compiled a .535 slugging percentage.

The fairest way to evaluate the Oriole players probably would have been to assign two different grades – a B.S. one for "Before Showalter' and a U.S. one for "Under Showalter. " The performance of so many of the players, including young starters Brad Bergesen and Brian Matusz, improved dramatically after Showalter was named the Orioles manager Aug. 2, and that made grading the club difficult. But as Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail has said several times, you have to evaluate the team on the entire season, and not just on the final two months.

There's a certain stigma associated with the word "spoiler" in baseball. It means a team isn't good enough to be in playoff contention so it must derive satisfaction from beating successful clubs. Frankly, the Orioles haven't played well enough down the stretch in the last decade to warrant the spoiler tag, routinely stumbling in August and September against contenders. Under new manager Buck Showalter, however, the Orioles have already turned in their first winning August in 13 years and now, with their 8-7 victory over the American League Wild Card-leading Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, they seem to be inching closer toward spoiler status.

Matt Garza's vow that he would "shove it down" the Orioles' throats Friday night proved to be more rhetoric than reality. The Tampa Bay Rays starter's performance was more of a gentle nudge, yet it was still plenty good enough to quiet an Orioles team that continues to struggle against the American League East. Garza allowed one earned run in 52/3 innings as the Rays dealt the Orioles their third straight defeat, a listless 4-1 decision in front of an announced 13,507 at Camden Yards.

The game was tied in the bottom of the ninth and the Orioles needed a runner in scoring position. Everybody, from the players perched on the top step of the dugout to the 26,379 fans at Camden Yards yesterday, knew that Corey Patterson was about to try to steal second base. It was just a matter of when. Patterson fully expected to see a pitchout, as did his manager, Sam Perlozzo. But one didn't come on Shawn Camp's first pitch to Kevin Millar, so Patterson decided the time had come. Devil Rays@O's Today, 1:35 p.m., Ch. 13, 1090 AM Starters: Devil Rays' J.P. Howell (0-1, 10.80)