Interleague

Brewers@Indians 7 p.m. [ESPN] It's either a cost-cutting measure (ESPN was already in Cleveland for Sunday night's game) or it's really just a light schedule in interleague play, but the Cleveland Indians are the national game two nights in a row - and they stink this season.

WASHINGTON - -Orioles reliever Danys Baez isn't sure whether he has ever scored a run before. Certainly not at the big league level. Certainly not the game-winner. And absolutely, positively, never had he scored the game-winning run in a contest in which he also picked up the victory. Not until Friday night in the Orioles' 4-2, 12-inning victory over the Washington Nationals in the first "Battle of the Beltways" interleague game of 2009. Baez's two-out slapper bounced safely down the third base line and ignited a two-run rally that essentially halted a four-game skid for the Orioles (17-25)

Baseball All-Star Game 8 p.m. [CHS. 45, 5] : Take a closer look. That's not a Red Sox-Cubs interleague game. Other teams are allowed to have players, too.

WASHINGTON -- Interleague play is officially over for 2008, and this time the Orioles might actually miss it. Heading into this season, the Orioles had the worst interleague record in the American League at 79-114. Of all major league teams, only the Pittsburgh Pirates were worse. Despite yesterday's loss to the Washington Nationals, it has been a strong interleague ride for the Orioles in 2008. They won four of their six series this year - losing only to the Milwaukee Brewers and the Nationals - and their 11-7 mark ties their club record set in 1999.

News item: The Washington Nationals created a media buzz when a female usher ordered two bare-chested men to put their shirts back on. My take: I've encountered the same kind of narrow-mindedness on occasion. Obviously, the sight of a perfectly sculpted male torso makes some people uncomfortable. News item: The NBA has demanded $1.4 million in restitution from disgraced referee Tim Donaghy. The claim is for salary accepted in bad faith and legal fees incurred by the league investigating the scandal.

The Orioles continue interleague play by going on the road starting Friday for nine straight games in National League ballparks in Milwaukee, Chicago and Washington -- which brings up the prospect of Orioles pitchers performing the unfamiliar roles of batters and base runners. Fans might chuckle over Daniel Cabrera's perfectly imperfect career batting statistics of nine at-bats and nine strikeouts, but the recent experiences of American League East foes New York and Boston give sobering pause.

The Orioles just completed a two-game sweep of the defending World Series champions, their latest attempt to prove that a rebuilding club doesn't have to hit rock bottom before bouncing back to its collective feet. Think that was tough? Now they'll try to take down the ghosts of their interleague past. Sort of makes the Boston Red Sox seem a lot less formidable. Since interleague play began in 1997, the Orioles have posted the worst record among American League teams at 79-114. "We haven't really had a good record in a lot of things the last 10 years," second baseman Brian Roberts said, "so I don't think it really matters who you're playing."

A recap of the Orioles' 6-3 victory over the Red Sox yesterday: Needed in the clutch Hitting with runners in scoring position hasn't been Nick Markakis' strength this season, but he delivered yesterday with a single to center field in the sixth inning that scored Brian Roberts from second base and reduced Boston's lead to 3-2. Markakis was hitting .212 with runners in scoring position, including .167 with fewer than two outs. His single off Red Sox starter Jon Lester came with one out, after Roberts doubled and Jay Payton produced the Orioles' first run with a grounder to shortstop that scored Guillermo Quiroz.

WASHINGTON -- Jay Gibbons always had been a proponent of interleague play until last night, his opinion altered somewhat by how it affected the Orioles' lineup against the Washington Nationals. Unlike past years, he wasn't in it. Without the use of a designated hitter under National League rules, manager Sam Perlozzo chose to start Kevin Millar at first base and Jay Payton in left field. Gibbons and Aubrey Huff began the game on a five-man bench. "I've always loved interleague until this year, I guess," Gibbons said with a smile.