What a crazy game...three ejections in the seventh inning...a fan was arrested in the eighth...and the Orioles were shut out, 5-0 by Carl Pavano and his Minnesota Twins at Camden Yards.
Kevin Millwood returned to the Orioles' starting rotation on Thursday night, and promptly got welcomed back by the Twins, as Minnesota scored three runs in the first inning off a bases-loaded double. Millwood (2-9) settled down the rest of the way, but was charged with five runs and yet another loss after departing in the seventh inning.
Ahh...the seventh inning. That's when things got exciting for O's fans (sadly, when your team is the worst in all of baseball, you have to find entertainment in places other than the standings).
Ty Wigginton was the first Oriole to be ejected...after Millwood gave up a lead-off single, an attempted steal turned into an easy pick-off...Wigginton's tag on the runner at first base was ruled too late, or even non-existent,and Wiggy went off! After being tossed by the ump, and restrained by skipper Juan Samuel, play resumed...
The next batter singled off Millwood, scoring the "should have been out by a mile" runner, and pitching coach Rick Kranitz clapped loudly from the dugout...a little too loudly, considering he was the second Oriole to be ejected in a five-minute time span.
Juan Samuel had seen enough, and stormed out of the dugout, cursing and flailing his arms like a madman...Samuel was tossed, reminiscent of Earl Weaver as he threw and kicked at his cap...
Three up, three down.
In all the commotion, it was easy to miss out on the fact that Millwood was replaced by Michael Gonzalez, the O's closer in April who hadn't pitched since the first week of the season. Gonzo pitched out of trouble, had good velocity, and is certainly welcomed back with open arms to an over-worked bullpen.
The eighth inning brought even more excitement for the home crowd...a fan streaked onto the field, and after jumping the outfield fence, came back for an encore. Watching on TV, I couldn't see the on-field shenanigans, but was hoping there would be stories of a tasing in the paper today...apparently the fan was cornered by police and taken into custody.
After all the excitement though, the reality is this: the Orioles lost again. And not only did the team lose at home again, the Birds suffered a complete-game shutout. That's never pretty. The O's and Twins still have three games to go in this series, but the first game, though memorable in many ways, should be forgotten...Jeremy Guthrie takes the mound for the Birds on Friday night.
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