Schmuck

If Orioles fans are lucky, it will be this way for another 3 1/2 months. The Orioles have a chance to win their fourth series in a row if Wei-Yin Chen can pitch half as well  against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday as Jason Hammel did on Saturday night. That would be a pretty big deal after the way they struggled through late May and early June, but --  let's face it - in the American League East, you can't let down for a second. This is the division where you can win eight of your last 11 (as the Orioles have)

Baltimore Sun columnist Peter Schmuck chats about Adam Jones' defense on the latest Orioles Insider video.

News item: Orioles No. 1 starter Jeremy Guthrie got bounced around by the Texas Rangers in his most recent start and now is 3-11 with a 4.23 ERA. He is on pace to be the losingest pitcher in baseball for the second time in the past three seasons, despite a respectable career ERA and solid statistical ratios. My take: It's time to let the guy go somewhere he can have some success. He's still a valuable pitcher with a quality arm, but he's wasting away in Baltimore and he isn't going to change the outcome of this season one way or the other.

In a community ravaged by indescribable tragedy, every individual act of kindness, every unexpected moment of joy takes on a special significance that only those who are living with it can truly understand. So, when Loyola freshman Jason Crane organized a group of 14 players from the Greyhounds' defending NCAA champion men's lacrosse team to put on a youth clinic in Newtown, Conn., just three weeks after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, it may have seemed like a small gesture that would soon be lost among the big headlines and and even bigger political repercussions generated by such a horrific incident.

Remembering April 28 ... or not Asked White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen before the resumption of the suspended game if he had any recollections of the April 28 game that was finished last night. He didn't. "The only thing I remember was Alexei Ramirez's hit to win [Sunday's] game," Guillen said. "That's a lot of vodka between that game [April 28] and [Sunday's] game." (For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

On September 26, 2005 MARIE K. (nee Boehm) beloved wife of the late Frank L. Schmuck, Jr.; devoted mother of Jean M. Albrent and the late Kathleen Flury; dear sister of Catherine Gipprich, Anna Merritt and the late Margaret Klima. Christian Wake Service will be held at the family owned LILLY & ZEILER, INC. FUNERAL HOME, 700 S. Conkling Street on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church on Thursday at 10 a.m. Interment in Sacred Heart of Jesus Cemetery.

BOSTON - The Orioles arrived at Fenway Park on Friday focused on continuing their march toward the playoffs. The Boston Red Sox were waiting, their focus and motivation an open question after a season gone terribly awry. So, what exactly is anyone to expect of this three-game series or the one next weekend at Camden Yards with such important playoff implications for the Orioles and so little at stake for the Red Sox, other than the opportunity to make life less comfortable for the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last year?

The most impressive thing about yesterday's 27-9 victory over the Dolphins was the five forced turnovers. The Ravens intercepted Chad Pennington four times and recovered a fumble against a team that turned the ball over just 13 times during the regular season. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

Maybe Mark Clayton took all that T.J. Houshmandzadeh free-agent speculation personally. He sure looks like a big-play receiver right now. He also showed what a fine all-around athlete he is with that long touchdown pass to Derrick Mason in the third quarter. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

Nobody has spent more time than me over the past five years telling everyone that Daniel Cabera is just a couple of steps in the maturation process from becoming the next Randy Johnson, albeit throwing with the other arm. I finally gave up on that when Daniel came into camp last spring with a chip on his shoulder and showed no sign of the growth necessary to become a consistent winner. And that was when he was going to make $2.87 million. (For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon has seen quite enough of the rejuvenated Orioles over the past year, but he said Wednesday that he fully expects to see them playing meaningful games in September again this season. "I'm here to tell you that they aren't going away this year," Maddon said. "People are predicting the demise of Baltimore. That's absurd as far as I'm concerned. " That behind-enemy-lines assessment came a couple of hours before the Rays staged a big late-inning offensive outbreak to even the season-opening series with a walk-off 8-7 victory over the Orioles at Tropicana Field.

Colleges Terps drop series finale to N.C. State in baseball Maryland surrendered seven runs in the first two innings and lost to host North Carolina State, 9-4, in the series finale Sunday. The Terps (15-12, 4-8 Atlantic Coast Conference) were undone by nine Wolfpack hits and three errors in the first two innings. N.C. State (19-10, 5-7) recorded 18 hits compared to the Terps ' 10. Matt Bosse and Charlie White each had two hits for Maryland. Blake Schmit went 2-for-5, including a solo home run, his team-leading second of the year.

The Greater Baltimore Committee and The Baltimore Sun will be hosting a cocktail reception on March 4 to honor Orioles manager Buck Showalter, named Marylander of the Year for 2012 by The Sun. Showalter will return to Baltimore from spring training to receive his award and to participate in a Q&A session with Sun columnist Peter Schmuck, who will also be coming back from Sarasota, Fla., for the evening. The event at The Sun runs from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Cost is $65 for GBC members and Sun Readers, and $85 for non-GBD members.

No matter how pleasant it is to spend a few weeks in Florida this time of year, you can only watch so many pitchers cover first base or throw off the half-mound before you start pining for some actual competition. The players and coaches feel the same way, so everybody was happy to be out on the back fields for Wednesday's two concurrent intrasquad games at the Ed Smith Stadium spring training complex. Nobody kept score, but there were some highlights, starting with Chris Davis' opposite-field homer off teammate Tommy Hunter on the field that is built to the exact same dimensions as Camden Yards.

The fraud scheme — hiring homeless people to steal rent checks and deposit them in fake bank accounts — made a million dollars for Tavon Davis before one of his associates was caught on the job. Panicked at the notion that his man might flip, he ordered Isiah Callaway killed. Davis thought he might go to jail for decades for fraud, according to court records, and Callaway, 19, was dead before Davis realized the penalty for operating the scheme would have been much less. Davis, who now faces a likely 35 years in prison after pleading guilty to murder-conspiracy charges, told a friend that his decision to order the killing made him the "schmuck of the year," according to court filings.

Rickey Henderson is at the top of the list of first-time Hall of Fame candidates. He's a lock, considering he's the all-time leader in stolen bases and is a member of the 3,000-hit club. He's also a 10-time All-Star and one of the most exciting players ever to wear a uniform. So we'll be seeing him on stage next summer. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

BOSTON - The Orioles arrived at Fenway Park on Friday focused on continuing their march toward the playoffs. The Boston Red Sox were waiting, their focus and motivation an open question after a season gone terribly awry. So, what exactly is anyone to expect of this three-game series or the one next weekend at Camden Yards with such important playoff implications for the Orioles and so little at stake for the Red Sox, other than the opportunity to make life less comfortable for the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last year?