Brian Burres came back from a run of not-so-great starts to pitch well against the Nats. He didn't look great, but got the job done (6.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 K). The bullpen tried to give it up, with Bradford and Sarfate giving up 2 and 1 runs, respectively. It was Jim Johnson coming in with two on a two out in the eighth to try to keep the O's lead (6-4 at the time). His control was shaky, as he walked a batter and hit the next one to drive in a run (on an 0-2 pitch, no less). JJ was able to bear down and strike Austin Kearns out swinging with a great moving fastball at 95 on the inside corner. George Sherrill kept things simple with a 1-2-3 ninth to get his 17th save.
On offense, it was the top of the line-up (Roberts, Mora, Markakis, and Millar each had 2 hits, including a home run and 3 RBI for Nick), more lefty-bashing from Payton (2-run homer), and a great first start from Alex Cintron at short (4-4). The team had more walks (4) than strike-outs (3).
The win - the team's fourth in a row - moved them to 23-19 and 1.5 games back in the East.
Cintron looked pretty good to my eyes at short, showing decent range and an OK srm (stronger than Bynum's, I would say). If he can hit around his career line (278 / 316 / 402) than I think he should he able to keep the job. In any case, I doubt the Pelican will be around for all that long, with Cintron and Bynum on the roster.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
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