Friday, August 20, 2010

Matusz Nearly Goes the Distance as O's Blank Texas

Buck's O's know how to start a series off right...for the fifth consecutive series, the Orioles drew first blood, shutting out the visiting Texas Rangers 4-0 on Thursday night.

Brian Matusz started, and nearly finished, the game for the O's. Matusz turned in one of the more impressive starts of his young career, pitching eight scoreless innings while allowing just five hits, striking out six and walking one. Koji Uehara came on in the ninth, and despite allowing two hits, kept the shut-out intact.

The game was deadlocked until the offense exploded for four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. Corey Patterson, playing DH, drove in the first run of the ballgame before Brian Roberts doubled home two more runs. Nick Markakis plated Roberts before being tagged-out at second base in a run-down...

That was all the support Matusz would need, as he cruised through the eighth before being pulled in the ninth for Uehara...this marked the first time three O's starters went eight innings consecutively since 2005...Sidney Ponson was still on the roster back then. Wow...

The O's have now won five straight against Texas, and send rookie Jake Arrieta to the mound Friday night...Go O's!

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