Yankees

NEW YORK - Minutes after the Orioles lost to the New York Yankees in Game 5 of the American League Division Series to end their wild and unexpected 2012 season, club managing partner Peter G. Angelos hugged center fielder Adam Jones and made a prognostication. “In another year, I predict you are going to be ahead of [the Yankees],” Angelos told Jones. Angelos, who rarely makes appearances, entered the clubhouse for the second time this series after making his first visit after the Orioles' Game 2 win at home on Monday.

NEW YORK - Whether the path of Nate McLouth's towering fly ball was interrupted by the right-field foul pole at Yankee Stadium will likely be discussed in Baltimore for years to come. But when it fell harmlessly into the second deck of seats as a foul ball, it was the beginning of the end to a season in which the Orioles forced the rest of baseball to take notice. The Orioles' first postseason in 15 years ended with frigid bats on a cold New York night with a 3-1 loss to the Yankees in a do-or-die Game 5 of the American League Division Series.

As J.J. Hardy's game-winning double bounced off the outfield wall in the 13th inning, it dawned on 49,307 suddenly quiet New Yorkers that the 2012 Orioles just won't go away. With their 2-1 win over the New York Yankees Thursday, the Orioles kept their season alive and set up a decisive Game 5 in the Bronx on Friday afternoon. Just as the Yankees could not shake the Orioles all season, they could not shake them through a marathon elimination game. "It's been a fight to stay ahead of this team all season, and it seems fitting," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of having to play a fifth game against the Orioles.

NEW YORK — The big news coming before Game 5 of the American League Division Series on Friday afternoon was that New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi had benched their most expensive player, third baseman Alex Rodriguez , due to Rodriguez's continued struggles at the plate. Orioles manager Buck Showalter , however, took the move in stride. "No, it didn't surprise anybody," Showalter said. "Joe is going to do what he thinks is best for his team. He knows his people better than anybody else.

NEW YORK -- Relievers are usually a different breed. They spend most of the game together in the bullpen, where they make up their own activities to keep themselves occupied. But what about when nearly all of the relievers are in the dugout going into the 13 th inning? Cameras caught Orioles players gathering in a circle in the dugout going into the 13 th inning of the Orioles' series-tying 2-1 win in game 4 last night. They later lined all of their hats in a row along the front railing of the dugout, a lineup of cartoon birds staring at the Yankees.

After a thrilling win Wednesday, the New York Yankees were right back to explaining why they can't shake the Orioles after Thursday's 13-inning loss. "If you really think about it, it's not too surprising," said Yankees captain Derek Jeter of going to a decisive Game 5 with the Orioles. "Somebody's got to win tomorrow, but yeah, it seems like we've been evenly matched pretty much the entire year. " Jeter, who managed two hits despite a bone bruise in his foot that kept him from playing shortstop, gave credit to the eight Orioles pitchers who tamed the Yankees all night long.

Baltimore Sun writers react to the Orioles' 3-1 loss to the New York Yankees in Game 5 of the ALDS: Eduardo A. Encina, Orioles beat reporter The Orioles clawed back from the brink all season long, so it's fitting that their season would be decided in Game 5 of the ALDS. They faced tremendous pitching throughout the playoffs, and had outstanding mound efforts of their own, but now that this group of Orioles has set a new bar, their next step is to know they need more clutch hits against premier pitching.

NEW YORK - The Orioles have done the improbable so many times this year that it's starting to seem commonplace, so why wouldn't they suddenly be standing on the threshold of the American League Championship Series? They managed to sneak out of the Bronx on Thursday night with another in their amazing collection of extra-inning victories and have set up the delectable possibility of another wild and crazy champagne celebration Friday in the bowels of Yankee Stadium. It's hard to imagine anything matching the full-contact free-for-all that took place at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington last Friday night, but it's also impossible to predict how an Orioles team will react if they vanquish their most storied rival in the stadium that is considered by many to be the center of the baseball universe.

Here are some quotes after the Orioles' 2-1 win in 13 innings over the New York Yankees in Game 4 of the American League Division Series: Joe Saunders on the extra-inning win: “This team has been doing that the whole year. Ever since I've come over here we've been scratching out extra-inning victories and that happened tonight. It was a good win. We needed it so we could play tomorrow. We've got a tough task ahead of us. And hopefully we can pull a victory tomorrow.” Saunders on pitching well in a do-or-die game again: “I just told myself, 'Hey, just try to minimize the walks.' I think I walked way too many guys more than I wanted to but we got some big outs there and wanted to go deeper in the game, but it didn't work out that way. I just told myself, “Hey, let's not have a repeat of what happened in 09, when I had the last game here (with the Los Angeles Angels)

Plastic tarps covered the Yankees' lockers, and the smell of champagne hung in the air after the club's 3-1 series-clinching win over the pesky Orioles. But the New Yorkers kept their celebration in check, knowing they had another game the next evening against the Detroit Tigers in the American League Championship Series. "I think everybody's taking it easy right now and not drinking too much champagne," said Game 1 hero Russell Martin, clutching a bottle of bubbly. To a man, the Yankees paid homage to an Orioles team that chased them down the stretch and put them through 52 innings of nerve-fraying baseball over the last six days.