Even though Jay Payton had a pair of two-run homers, the rest of the Orioles stunk out the jernt (well, Luke Scott had two hits on his 30th birthday -- happy birthday, Luuuuuke!) and the pitching was a mess, leading to a 7-4 loss.

Brian Burres was scratched for flu-like symptoms and the like prior to the game, so Albers got the start. Albers left in the first inning, having gotten just one out. Lance Cormier came in, and he and Ryan Bukvich did their best to save the rest of the bullpen. They did as well as you could expect under the circumstances. Whole lotta things went wrong. We lost. It happens.

Dennis Sarfate walking everyone was bothersome, but Jamie Walker got a strikeout in a one-batter appearance, so hey.

Nobody's hitting much, and nobody's hitting for any power. Costanzo's K-rate is absolutely terrible. Torres came up because he hit a bunch of singles -- and also because Hernandez and Fahey are just as bad, and also because there are still maybe some problems in valuing talents within the system. There's really no reason for a veteran like Cintron to be farting around in AAA when he would be the best option for the O's at short. Moore has been horrendous since his demotion, and now he's not even getting the reps at short, with Cintron playing. So why is he down there while Fahey and Hernandez and Torres are all wasting time in Baltimore? Luis Terrero continues to be a fine minor league player, leading the Tides in OPS.

Olson has been a shining star, and the peripherals for Liz and Penn are encouraging, particularly Liz's. Leicester taking starts is a little weird, since he doesn't even average four innings per. McCrory and Cormier have anchored the bullpen, but McCrory still has his problems. If Cormier or even Alberto Castillo keep pitching well, they could wind up contributing this season when the inevitable injuries hit the 'pen. Or if not contributing, at least lending more hope than dead veterans Yan and Bukvich do.

Norfolk 8, Richmond 7 (14 innings - April 23)

The Tides were off on the 22nd, which essentially gave them three straight days off, although they probably had uniforms on the previous two before getting rained out against Durham.

This one went long, with Jon Leicester throwing 79 pitches in three innings of working before handing it over to Andy Mitchell for three. Craig Anderson threw an inning, followed by one from Roberto Novoa, two from Bob McCrory, three from Lance Cormier, and one from Ryan Bukvich, who got the W.

Alex Cintron singled Eider Torres home in the bottom of the 14th with one out and the bases loaded for the winning score. On the day, Cintron went 2-for-6 with 4 RBI. Mike Costanzo was 2-for-5 with a walk and a solo homer, his second on the season. Torres went 4-for-7 with an RBI. Scott Moore was 1-for-4.

Bowie 7, Connecticut 3 (April 22)
Bowie 3, Connecticut 2 (April 23)

In the first game, Jason Berken went 5 2/3 with eight strikeouts and a walk for the win. At the plate, Jonathan Tucker, Ben Davis and Sebastien Boucher all had two hits, and Nolan Reimold was 1-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. Davis and Tucker each had two RBI.

On the 23rd, Chris Tillman put together a five-inning start for the win (4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K), with Felix Romero, Gerardo Casadiego and Julio Manon shutting the Defenders down the rest of the night. Zach Dillon was 3-for-4 to pace the Bowie offense. Sebastien Boucher had two RBI.

Frederick 4, Wilmington 1 (April 22 - Game 1)
Frederick 2, Wilmington 1 (April 22 - Game 2)
Wilmington 4, Frederick 3 (April 23)

Wieters Watch! 1-for-7 over the three games. OH GOD.

Rowell Watch! He's back in the lineup. That's good. Rowell went 3-for-9 over the three games.

Brandon Erbe threw a complete game (7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K) in the double header. Nobody else did too much worth noting.

Lake County 7, Delmarva 1 (April 22 - Game 1)
Lake County 11, Delmarva 1 (April 22 - Game 2)
Delmarva 6, Lake County 3 (April 23)

Game one: Delmarva made seven errors.

Game two: Delmarva made four errors.

Game three: Delmarva made no errors! Matt Angle hit a homer.

I'm not doing a photo for any of the players today because there just aren't that many available, so enjoy this:

via sportsillustrated.cnn.com

[Note by SC, 04/24/08 10:07 AM EDT ]: He was never the toughest out in baseball.

Norfolk 7, Louisville 6 (11 innings)

Chris Roberson hit a three-run homer and had four RBis in the game, and Alex Cintron was 2-for-4 in his Tides debut, an 11-inning win for Norfolk in a game that both teams did their best to refuse to lose.

Norfolk jumped out to a 4-1 lead with a four-run fifth inning, but the Bats battled back and tied it up with two runs in the eighth and one more in the ninth. Norfolk took a 5-4 lead in the 10th, but Louisville tied it again. Two Tides runs scored in the top half of the 11th, but they fell short a run and left two men on in the bottom of the inning (after scoring once to cut the lead to 7-6).

Eider Torres and Oscar Salazar both went 2-for-5. Scott Moore (starting at DH) was 1-for-5, as was Mike Costanzo. Tike Redman 0-for-5'd his way another game closer to being released, probably. He's too old to be hitting .184 at Triple-A.

Craig Anderson had a good start for Norfolk, going six and giving up just one run, striking out five and walking no one. The Tides used six relievers after Anderson. Ryan Bukvich got the win and Roberto Novoa the save.

Akron 5, Bowie 1

Both teams had ten hits. Guess who took better advantage of their baserunners?

This Nolan Reimold business is starting to get a little bit bothersome. Like, really. He went 0-for-4 with another strikeout, and that brings his season line down to .167/.242/.259 with one homer and 12 whiffs in 14 games. He's been exceptionally terrible. It's not time to panic because a few good games and his numbers are turned around, but he's on the schneid in a big way (9-for-54, two extra-base hits, six walks).

Jeff Nettles was 3-for-4, and Ben Davis and Sebastien Boucher had a couple of hits each in the loss.

On the hill, Jason Berken had another good start (6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 K) but took the loss. Reliever Ryan Keefer gave up a run in two innings, and his ERA is still over 15. Berken's is 2.81.

Awesomely named Aeros outfielder Nathan Panther was 3-for-4.

Frederick 7, Winston-Salem 2

Yes, the Carolina League has a Salem and a Winston-Salem, and the Keys have played them back-to-back.

Wieters Watch! Sweet Wiet ended his horrible 0-for-3 slump with a 2-for-5 day, including his fourth home run and ninth and tenth runs batted in. He's now hitting .438/.558/.844. He is massacring the Carolina League. Miguel Abreu and Chris Amador had two hits each, and leadoff man Daniel Figueroa rapped out three singles and also reached on a walk.

Pedro Beato went seven innings, allowing two runs on six hits, with two walks and two Ks.

Delmarva 6, Hagerstown 4

The Shorebirds overcame a rough start by Luis Noel (4.1 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K) to score a come-from-behind win in this one, getting two runs in the eighth and one in the ninth.

Tyler Henson went 2-for-5, and Joseph Nowicki had a couple of steaks for Delmarva. Nowicki, Matt Angle and Joseph "Balls" Mahoney all walked two times.

RECORDS

Louisville 4, Norfolk 1

Jon Leicester got his first decision of the season, going to 0-1 on a decent performance, as he pitched five innings and allowed three earned runs (four total) on three hits and a walk. He struck out six, but also gave up a three-run, two-out homer to ex-Oriole Jerry Hairston, Jr., in the fifth inning. Leicester's ERA is now 2.92.

Reds top prospect Jay Bruce went 1-for-4.

Ryan Bukvich, Alberto Castillo and Roberto Novoa shut out the Riverbats the rest of the night, but the Tides were able to score just one run off of ex-Braves prospect turned-journeyman Matt Belisle (7 IP, 8 H, ER, 6 K, BB), veteran lefty Scott Sauerbeck and Marcus McBeth, a former kick returner for the South Carolina Gamecocks in college, who earned his second save of the season.

Shortstop Scott Moore (I love that) was 2-for-4 with a run scored, and Oscar Salazar was 2-for-4, as well. The lone Norfolk RBI came off the bat of Adam Stern. Mike Costanzo was 1-for-3 with a walk. He's now hitting just .182.

And for the Tike Redman supporters here, let it be known that Tike is hitting just .220/.277/.293. Given that he's 31, his leash should be short, even for Triple-A.

Bowie 6, Erie 5

The Baysox were able to halt a late rally from the Seawolves to hold them off after opening a 3-0 lead in the second inning that became a 6-2 lead in the top of the seventh. Erie scored twice in the eighth and once in the ninth, but fell just short.

Kennard Jones and Carlos Rojas went 0-for-10 at the top of the Bowie lineup, but Nolan Reimold, Ryan Finan and Zach Dillon had two hits apiece in the 5-6-7 spots to pick up the slack. Dillon had two RBIs and scored twice.

On the mound, Chorye Spoone struggled with his command, walking four in five innings, but got the win. He gave up just two hits and one run, and struck out four. Old fart Julio Manon saved his third game, even though he gave up a run in the ninth. The delightfully named Josh Rainwater took the loss for Erie.

Frederick 3, Salem 2 (12 innings) (recap by dkdc)

The Salem starter had a perfect game through 6 innings, but the Keys came back to tie it and Brandon Snyder scored the winning run in the 12th inning.

Bergesen had a very strong start with 6K’s and a bunch of ground balls.

Wieters was returning from a funeral in Georgia so he missed the start of the game. He got to the stadium in the middle of the game and dressed in time for the 7th inning. He had a pinch hit RBI single that tied the game and sent it to extra innings.

True story.

Delmarva 6, Hagerstown 2 (Game 1)

The first of the seven-inning games in this doubleheader. David Cash was 4-for-4 and Joseph "Balls" Mahoney hit a solo homer. Wally Crancer had two RBI to raise his season average to .350. Dude's torching the ball lately. The Shorebirds had 15 hits in the game.

John Mariotti got the win with six shutout, three-hit innings, lowering his season ERA to 2.12 and evening his season record at 1-1.

Hagerstown 5, Delmarva 0 (Game 2)

And all the Delmarva offense was apparently used up in game one, as they were able to get just four runners on base via three hits and a Kieron Pope walk. Joseph Nowicki had two of the hits, and Matt Angle had the third.

24-year old righty Zach Clark was beaten up over three and a third, giving up five earned on eight hits.

Records:

Norfolk 5-8

Bowie 5-7

Frederick 8-3

Delmarva 6-6

Indianapolis 9, Norfolk 3

The Indy Indians touched up Radhames Liz to the tune of five earned over five innings on seven hits, and were down 6-0 before a three-spot in the seventh inning. There would be no rally, though, as Indianapolis put up three more of their own in the bottom of the eighth for the runaway win.

Ryan Bukvich allowed an unearned run, and fellow journeyman Esteban Yan gave up the last three Indian scores. Liz threw 90 pitches on the night, 53 of them for strikes. Indianapolis starter Luis Munoz also threw 53 strikes, but on 81 pitches over six and two-thirds for the win.

Mike Costanzo hit his first homer of the season, a solo shot. Chris Heintz had a double and an RBI, and Luis Terrero had a steak, too.

Akron 12, Bowie 5

Jason Berken is a 24-year old righty, a Green Bay native and a Clemson alum. How about this line? 5 innings, 4 hits, 3 runs, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 8 strikeouts.

After Berken was pulled, 26-year old Bloomsburg, Penn., native Ryan Keefer took over. How about this line? One-third of an inning, 3 hits, 6 runs, 1 earned, no walks, no Ks. No fuss, no muss.

Once Keefer was out of the game, 27-year old ex-Yankee Gerardo Casadiego toed the rubber. One and two-thirds innings, 2 hits, 3 runs, 2 earned, 3 walks, no strikeouts.

The Baysox committed six errors in total, allowing the 12 Akron runs on just nine hits. Bowie actually out-hit Akron on the night, 12 to nine. Mike Rodriguez, Jeff Nettles and Blake Davis all went 2-for-5, and Ryan Finan was 3-for-5. Rodriguez had the team's only extra-base hit, a triple. Nolan Reimold was 1-for-5 with two strikeouts.

The errors came from Reimold, Rodriguez and Nettles, plus Davis, the shortstop, who had three of them in total -- one on a missed catch, one on a throw, and one on a grounder. Not a pretty game for the Baysox, but these games happen. God bless minor league baseball.

Myrtle Beach 3, Frederick 2 (11 innings)

Wieters Watch! Matt went 2-for-4 with a walk. What's the bet right now on the date for his promotion to Bowie? May 31st? Here's an interesting question, though. Do you maybe try to skip Double-A with Wieters, leaving him down at Frederick a little longer than one normally might, and then see if he can skirt all the way up to Norfolk? Ben Davis is at Bowie for a reason, believe me. It's not because Chris Heintz is a better player, it's because they want Davis working with Spoone and Tillman and the rest.

Second baseman Miguel Abreu was 1-for-4 with a double and two RBIs for the Keys, but the real standout, again, was Brandon Erbe. Erbe didn't get the win, but he was sharp for the second start in a row, going 6 1/3 with eight strikeouts and just two hits allowed for one earned run. Raise his stock back up a little bit.

The Keys held a 2-1 lead going into the bottom of the ninth, when Myrtle Beach left fielder Willie Cabrera led off with a solo homer. The winning run scored when Keys reliever Ryan Oullette hit Gorkys Hernandez with a pitch, forcing in a run. Outstanding!

Delmarva 3, Lakewood 1

The Shorebirds saved the system from going winless on the day, scoring two runs in the bottom of the seventh to take down the BlueClaws. Who doesn't love minor league team names?

Leadoff man Matt Angle was 0-for-2, but walked twice and scored a run, and catcher Wally Crancer had two hits and an RBI on the day. Brian Parker got the win in relief, and Mike Mattaliano picked up his third save. Starter Zach Britton went six strong innings, allowing just the one run and striking out four. Britton is a 20-year old lefty who's looked pretty sharp this season over his first three appearances. He might warrant a bump up shortly if he keeps it up.

Records

Norfolk 5-4
Bowie 3-6
Frederick 4-3
Delmarva 3-4

Norfolk 6, Rochester 5

The Tides faced recovering stud lefty Francisco Liriano in his second rehab start of the season, touching him up for three earned on five hits over four innings. Liriano struck out three and walked three. He'll be up with Minnesota again soon. These things aren't so much about the results as the arm strength and things of that nature.

Veteran Casey Daigle took the loss for the Red Wings. Hayden Penn got the win for Norfolk, going 5 2/3 and allowing four earned on eight scattered hits, with three strikeouts and a walk. Much better than his first disastrous start of the season. Bob McCrory got his second save, and Esteban Yan and Ryan Bukvich both pitched.

At the plate, Luis Terrero was 3-for-3 and fell a home run short of the cycle. He also walked twice and drove in three runs, but despite getting on base five times, did not score. Eider Torres scored twice. Mike Costanzo was 1-for-4 and Adam Stern went 2-for-3. Jon Knott went 3-for-4 with two RBI for Rochester.

Norfolk is now 3-3.

Bowie 8, Reading 3

The Baysox finally got their first win of the season thanks to two four-run innings and a nice start from Chris Waters. Waters went five scoreless, two-hit innings with four strikeouts and no walks. Gerardo Casadiego allowed all three Reading runs in the top of the ninth. Between them, Felix Romero threw two scoreless innings.

Second baseman Jonathan Tucker had a big game at the plate, going 2-for-4 with four RBI. Ryan Finan was 3-for-4 two doubles and an RBI. Nolan Reimold went 0-for-3 with a walk, making him 4-for-24 (.167) for the season.

Bowie is 1-5.

Frederick 8, Kinston 7

Wieters Watch! The future All-Star was 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBI.

Chris Amador and Chris Vinyard also had two hits for the Keys, and Vinyard hit his first homer of the season. Jacob Renshaw, who turns 22 on April 29, got the win with a sloppy but effective five inning start (1 H, 3 BB, 2 K, 2 ER). Jason Burch got his second save, a one-outer in the ninth.

The Keys jumped out to a 7-2 lead before having to hold off the Indians. Frederick is 3-1.

Lake County 5, Delmarva 3

The Shorebirds were able to rap out just four hits on the night, two of which came off the bat of Joseph "Balls" Mahoney. Both of Mahoney's hits were doubles. Joseph Nowicki had two RBI.

Tony Butler took the loss, but had a solid start. He went five innings, giving up three earned on three hits, with no walks and three strikeouts. He gave up a solo home run to Captains third baseman Karexon Sanchez -- great name. Delmarva is 1-3 on the year.