Watch Baltimore Orioles vs Oakland Athletics Live Streaming Major League Baseball Online Radio Commentary 17 August 2011. The Baltimore Orioles missed out on a chance to piece together their first three-game winning streak in more than two months Tuesday, but hope is still alive for something nearly as rare -- a series victory. From 3:35 PM ET, August 17, 2011 O.co Coliseum, Oakland, California
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Baltimore hasn't won a series since late June, a drought it'll try to end Wednesday afternoon when it wraps up this three-game set against the Oakland Athletics at the O.co Coliseum.
The Orioles (47-73) won their ninth series of the season by taking two of three against Cincinnati from June 24-26, but it hasn't captured one since.
Baltimore has lost 12 series and split one during that stretch, and it missed a chance to cross off a few rarities Tuesday after opening a 10-game road trip with a 6-2 win Monday. But as the Orioles sought their first three-game winning streak since a four-game run June 6-10, they came up short in an 8-4 loss.
"We didn't do much offensively," manager Buck Showalter said.
They'll try again for that elusive series victory Wednesday, when they'll also attempt to capture their first season series from Oakland (54-68) since 1998. The teams have split eight meetings this year.
Baltimore will have to hope Brandon McCarthy (5-6, 3.62 ERA) follows up his latest outing with another similarly poor performance.
The right-hander was 4-0 with a 2.78 ERA in his first five starts following the All-Star break, but he ran into trouble Friday against powerful Texas. McCarthy gave up six runs in the second inning and wound up being charged with seven -- five earned -- in an ugly 9-1 loss.
He may have stayed in longer than the 3 1/3 innings he lasted in an attempt to save the bullpen, but McCarthy exited with a hard liner off his right shin.
"For some reason, I just wasn't sharp," McCarthy, who went through a routine bullpen session Monday without any discomfort. "I couldn't get any finish. Just didn't feel good at all today. Just wasn't right."
McCarthy, who's 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA in three starts versus the AL East this season, is 0-1 with a 4.70 ERA in six games -- four starts -- versus Baltimore, none since 2009.
One Oriole who hasn't fared well against McCarthy is Nick Markakis, who's 1 for 9 with four strikeouts.
Like McCarthy, Alfredo Simon (3-5, 4.35) looked good immediately after the All-Star break, going 2-2 with a 2.81 ERA in his first four starts.
His last two, however, have been a different story. After giving up six runs and 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings in a 7-2 loss to Toronto on Aug. 7, he surrendered 11 hits and four runs over 4 2/3 Friday, leaving without a decision in a 5-4 loss to Detroit.
"My starts can be better than that," the right-hander said. "I know I can do better than that. Sometime I get into trouble in the first and second inning, so I got to face that and just do better."
Simon has posted an 11.57 ERA in three relief appearances versus Oakland. Josh Willingham, who homered for the seventh time since July 29 on Tuesday, is 2 for 2 with a double against Simon.
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Baltimore hasn't won a series since late June, a drought it'll try to end Wednesday afternoon when it wraps up this three-game set against the Oakland Athletics at the O.co Coliseum.
Gameday Lineups
NO. Baltimore Oakland
1. R. Andino, 2B J. Weeks, 2B
2. J. Hardy, SS C. Crisp, CF
3. N. Markakis, RF H. Matsui, DH
4. A. Jones, CF J. Willingham, LF
5. V. Guerrero, DH B. Allen, 1B
6. M. Reynolds, 1B R. Sweeney, RF
7. N. Reimold, LF C. Pennington, SS
8. J. Bell, 3B K. Suzuki, C
9. C. Tatum, C S. Sizemore, 3B
The Orioles (47-73) won their ninth series of the season by taking two of three against Cincinnati from June 24-26, but it hasn't captured one since.
Baltimore has lost 12 series and split one during that stretch, and it missed a chance to cross off a few rarities Tuesday after opening a 10-game road trip with a 6-2 win Monday. But as the Orioles sought their first three-game winning streak since a four-game run June 6-10, they came up short in an 8-4 loss.
"We didn't do much offensively," manager Buck Showalter said.
They'll try again for that elusive series victory Wednesday, when they'll also attempt to capture their first season series from Oakland (54-68) since 1998. The teams have split eight meetings this year.
Baltimore will have to hope Brandon McCarthy (5-6, 3.62 ERA) follows up his latest outing with another similarly poor performance.
The right-hander was 4-0 with a 2.78 ERA in his first five starts following the All-Star break, but he ran into trouble Friday against powerful Texas. McCarthy gave up six runs in the second inning and wound up being charged with seven -- five earned -- in an ugly 9-1 loss.
He may have stayed in longer than the 3 1/3 innings he lasted in an attempt to save the bullpen, but McCarthy exited with a hard liner off his right shin.
"For some reason, I just wasn't sharp," McCarthy, who went through a routine bullpen session Monday without any discomfort. "I couldn't get any finish. Just didn't feel good at all today. Just wasn't right."
McCarthy, who's 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA in three starts versus the AL East this season, is 0-1 with a 4.70 ERA in six games -- four starts -- versus Baltimore, none since 2009.
One Oriole who hasn't fared well against McCarthy is Nick Markakis, who's 1 for 9 with four strikeouts.
Like McCarthy, Alfredo Simon (3-5, 4.35) looked good immediately after the All-Star break, going 2-2 with a 2.81 ERA in his first four starts.
His last two, however, have been a different story. After giving up six runs and 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings in a 7-2 loss to Toronto on Aug. 7, he surrendered 11 hits and four runs over 4 2/3 Friday, leaving without a decision in a 5-4 loss to Detroit.
"My starts can be better than that," the right-hander said. "I know I can do better than that. Sometime I get into trouble in the first and second inning, so I got to face that and just do better."
Simon has posted an 11.57 ERA in three relief appearances versus Oakland. Josh Willingham, who homered for the seventh time since July 29 on Tuesday, is 2 for 2 with a double against Simon.