Orioles

Advertisements praising Maryland's new gun control law will appear on Baltimore-area televisions soon after the measure is signed Thursday - the first volley in a two-pronged effort to defend the legislation and the politicians who voted for it. The gun control advocates behind the ads want to bolster support among Maryland voters in case there's a referendum next year. But they also want to counter a campaign to oust lawmakers who backed the bill in the General Assembly. "We know that the other side will be attacking the legislators who voted for it, and we want people to know those legislators were doing the right thing to save lives in Maryland," said Vincent DeMarco, president of Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence.

Earlier this week, the Orioles were spiraling out of the American League East race, couldn't win at home and were watching helplessly as their staunch bullpen faltered and their starters routinely checked out early. Suddenly, after winning two straight against the division-leading New York Yankees - including Wednesday night's 6-3 victory - it's May again. There's no need for panic. For the moment, it's all Natty Bohs and roses (or Black-Eyed Susans) at Camden Yards. “I think so,” said Orioles' first baseman Chris Davis when asked if beating the Yankees in the last two games should calm the masses for a bit. “I think the fact that it was against New York, who's at the top of our division and a team we feel we can compete with, I think it was huge.

The Orioles' top position player prospect, Jonathan Schoop, was placed on the seven-day minor league disabled list Thursday with a lower back strain. The 21-year-old Schoop, who raised his stock after strong offseason performances in the Arizona Fall League and the World Baseball Classic, is hitting .268/.331/.386 with three homers and 18 RBIs in 34 games at Triple-A Norfolk. The injury isn't expected to be serious. Schoop is the Orioles' No. 3 prospect according to Baseball America behind pitchers Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman.

The clamor for Orioles top prospect Kevin Gausman began weeks ago, with fans scrutinizing every one of his starts for Double-A Bowie and manager Buck Showalter facing regular questions about when the right-hander would arrive to bolster a faltering rotation. Gausman arrived in Baltimore on Wednesday, one day ahead of his expected debut in Toronto, to find his new locker at Camden Yards surrounded by eager media members . It was an experience familiar to several of Gausman's Orioles teammates.

OK, so the Orioles have lost five straight , but it's not time to panic. Not yet. Last year's team had just one losing streak over three games, a six-game skid from May 26 to June 1.  But just four of those losses came on the road, as opposed to the five straight home losses that make up the team's current losing streak. That's not that big a deal, because we know the Orioles play well on the road. But during that six-game streak last year, Orioles manager Buck Showalter called a rare team meeting in Toronto to rally his players, to remind them that they were better than the losses showed and that staying consistent in their approach would pay off. That talk obviously worked.

In recent years, the Orioles have become accustomed to going down to the wire before signing a deal with their top draft pick. The drama really heightened on Friday afternoon, though, when the Orioles and LSU right-hander Kevin Gausman agreed to a $4.32 million signing bonus just before the 5 p.m. deadline. “It was seconds [to spare],” first-year Orioles scouting director Gary Rajsich said. The bonus - $120,000 higher than major league baseball's suggested slot for the fourth overall pick - is the third largest in Orioles history behind the $6 million given to catcher Matt Wieters in 2007 and the $5.25 million received by shortstop Manny Machado in 2011.

No Triple Crown winner this year, no first-female-jockey-to-win, no sunshine? No problem, said those who flocked to Pimlico Race Course on Saturday and waited out a midafternoon downpour to watch Oxbow leave behind Kentucky Derby winner Orb to capture the 138th Preakness Stakes. "This is always an exciting race," said Tom Meek, 59, of Phoenixville, Pa., smoking a postrace cigar. "As much as I love Orb and as much as I want a Triple Crown, this is great for Oxbow. That horse rocked.

BOWIE - On his first off day as an Orioles minor leaguer, Double-A Bowie outfielder Henry Urrutia took a trip to Baltimore, where he got a tour of Camden Yards - the place he hopes his uphill and divot-filled baseball journey reaches its pinnacle. Thursday, Urrutia checked out the Orioles clubhouse, strolled up the steps of the home dugout and walked onto the field, where he took a 360-degree look around him and soaked in what seemed impossible growing up in Cuba. It was a memorable trip for the 26-year-old Urrutia - because it was the truest sign yet that his dream of playing in the big leagues was in reach.

May 23, 1991: Mired in last place, the Orioles fire manager Frank Robinson and promote Johnny Oates, 45, the team's first base coach and a former Baltimore player. Oates will manage nearly four years here (291 wins and 270 losses) before going to Texas, where he is named 1996 American League Manager of the Year. May 25, 1985: Del Dressel's three goals lead Johns Hopkins past Syracuse, 11-4, for the NCAA lacrosse championship. The four goals by the Orangemen are the fewest allowed in a title game, a mark that will stand until 2012.

Cal Ripken Jr. stopped by The Baltimore Sun this morning as part of the promotional tour for his third children's novel, “Wild Pitch,” which came out today. The book - about a young pitcher who loses his confidence after beaning an opponent - was co-written by Sun columnist Kevin Cowherd. Before leaving on a book signing tour that will include stops in a number of spring training spots (including the Orioles' camp in Sarasota on Thursday), Ripken sat down for a quick Q&A touching on the O's, his color commentary, the late Earl Weaver and his son Ryan.

Fresh off two wins over the New York Yankees, center fielder Adam Jones and the Orioles decided to have a little fun with fashion for their late-night trip to Canada, where they play the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday. Before catching a plane after Wednesday night's 6-3 win, Jones and several Orioles players, including Manny Machado, Tommy Hunter and Brian Matusz, donned denim-on-denim outfits and posed for a couple pictures . If you have ever seen the fine film “ Super Troopers ,” the all-Levi look is jokingly called a “Canadian Tuxedo.” If you want to rock the same look, here is a helpful denim guide . Of course, the Orioles are no strangers when it comes to having fun with their wardrobes on the road (and they are certainly not the only team to play dress-up )

TORONTO -- Kevin Gausman arrived in the visiting clubhouse of the Rogers Centre on Thursday to find about $300 worth of powdered mini doughnuts stacked inside and at the base of his locker, another nice welcoming gift from center fielder Adam Jones. The 22-year-old Gausman will make his major league debut tonight against the Blue Jays. Gausman -- who was known for eating doughnuts between innings at LSU -- apparently needed to go back to his apartment near Bowie to get his passport before joining the club.

Kevin Gausman made Orioles director of pitching development Rick Peterson look like a modern-day Nostradamus. After I watched Gausman, the Orioles top choice in the 2012 draft, dazzle for the Single-A Aberdeen Ironbirds in a 3-1 win over the Connecticut Tigers last August, Peterson couldn't stop gushing about the young right-hander. Gausman threw only 30 pitches that day - 20 for strikes. But his mid-90s fastball was dancing and his back-breaking changeup had the Tigers' batters swinging seemingly before the ball was out of the kid's hand.

Leading up to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Citi Field in New York this summer, the New York Daily News is running a weekly poll to pick the best player at each position. The position this week is third baseman . So, Baltimore baseball fans, who is the greatest third baseman in major league history? As of this post, Orioles legend Brooks Robinson trails the Philadelphia Phillies' Mike Schmidt in the Daily News poll, and the Kansas City Royals' George Brett is a distant third.

You could pick a number of storylines from a sticky, summer-like Tuesday evening at Camden Yards and really not go wrong. There was the obvious, made-for-TV clip of Nate McLouth lifting a game-ending homer over the right-field wall in the bottom of the 10 th inning to give the Orioles a 3-2 victory over the New York Yankees and snap a season-worst six-game losing streak.  There was maligned closer Jim Johnson (2-4) throwing an eight-pitch, perfect 10 th inning to pick up the win after blowing three consecutive saves in the last week.

Orioles outfielder Nolan Reimold has a slight tear in his right hamstring that's causing nerve pain in his upper leg, a club source said Wednesday. Reimold, who hasn't played since May 11, had MRIs on both his lower back and hamstring. The injury could keep him out for several more weeks. Given his ongoing discomfort, manager Buck Showalter said it would be a “challenge” for Reimold to return from the disabled list when he's eligible Tuesday. Showalter said he hopes Reimold will take batting practice while the team is away for a weekend series in Toronto.

The Orioles announced today that they will wear the above patch on their jerseys throughout this season in honor of Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver, who died last month at age 82 . The team will also honor Weaver with a pregame moment of silence and video tribute before Saturday's Grapefruit League opener against the Minnesota Twins at Ed Smith Stadium. In addition, Weaver's No. 4 will be stenciled onto the grass outside of the Orioles dugout in foul territory.    

The Orioles have an interesting starting lineup in tonight's series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays, which includes Yamaico Navarro starting at second base. This could be the beginning of the Orioles taking an extended look at Navarro at the position, and it could signal that the team is about to option struggling second baseman Ryan Flaherty to Triple-A Norfolk. Navarro was hitting .303/.395/.434 with eight doubles, two homers and 13 RBIs at Triple-A Norfolk, so he definitely deserves a look.

Just last week, Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette said pitching prospect Kevin Gausman was a starting rotation option for the future, but not the immediate present. But the 22-year-old right-hander will join the Orioles this week and is expected to make his major league debut Thursday night against the Toronto Blue Jays, according to multiple industry sources. The Orioles' first-round draft pick last June - the fourth-overall selection out of LSU - will make the jump from Double-A Bowie, where he is 2-4 with a 3.11 ERA in eight starts.

Each Wednesday, blogger Matt Vensel will highlight five statistics that really mean something for the Orioles. three -- straight blown saves for Orioles closer Jim Johnson on the team's current homestand. Every Orioles fan knows that Johnson has blown three straight saves. It has definitely been out of the norm for Johnson, who was unsuccessful in just three save situations in 2012. But what makes it really unusual is that the three blown saves in 2013 came after a stretch where Johnson had converted a club-record 35 save opportunities over the past two seasons.