Tag Archives: Steve Pearce

Finalized Opening Day roster

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The Orioles finished 19-9 this spring, second in the Grapefruit league and third best overall. (Photo courtesy of James Gordon/Baltimore Sun)

The Orioles finished 19-9 this spring, second in the Grapefruit league and third best overall. (Photo courtesy of James Gordon/Baltimore Sun)

With Spring Training coming to a close and the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros playing baseball that actually matters last night at Minute Maid Park, the MLB regular season has officially begun.

The Baltimore Orioles are in Tampa Bay, Fla. and are preparing to open the 2013 season against the hometown Tampa Bay Rays.

Below is the Orioles’ finalized 25-man roster by manager Buck Showalter:

Starting Pitchers

  1. Jason Hammel
  2. Wei-Yin Chen
  3. Miguel Gonzalez
  4. Jake Arrieta
  5. Chris Tillman

Bullpen

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Early this spring The Birdhouse speculated about the Orioles pitching rotation. It’s a bit of a surprise to see Matusz tabbed as a starter once again after he dominated out of the pen last season.

The Birdhouse posted on March 26 about Pearce and the possibility of him cracking the roster after Wilson Betemit left a Spring Training game against Boston with a knee injury. Pearce did indeed beat out Conor Jackson for that bench spot.

The Orioles and Rays kick off the season tomorrow with a 3 p.m. first pitch at Tropicana Field. Hammel gets the Opening Day start for the O’s and he will match up against David Price.

Pearce-ing the 25-man roster?

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Steve Pearce’s surprising spring stats and Wilson Betemit’s knee injury might mean Pearce will earn a roster spot. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Gross/Getty Images North America)

The old proverb says, “One man’s loss is another man’s gain.”

In yesterday’s Spring Training game between the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox, Wilson Betemit of the O’s went down in the 5th inning with an injury. After the game it was announced Betemit suffered a torn PCL in his right knee.

Betemit will be out an estimated 6-8 weeks, but that might be to the benefit of Steve Pearce.

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Orioles extend winning streak to 5-0, then fall to Minnesota

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Before Feb. 28, Baltimore (5-0), Kansas City (5-0) and the Chicago White Sox (3-0) were the only undefeated teams remaining in Spring Training. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Before Feb. 28, Baltimore (5-0), Kansas City (5-0) and the Chicago White Sox (3-0) were the only undefeated teams remaining in Spring Training. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

With two wins in split-squad action on Feb. 27, the Baltimore Orioles extended their winning streak to five games to start the 2013 Spring Training schedule.

The split-squad games were played against division rival Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. Half of the O’s played host to the Sox in a 1 o’clock game at Ed Smith Stadium, while the other half traveled to Tampa to take on the Yanks.

In the matinee match-up, Baltimore trailed Boston, 2-1, entering the sixth inning. In the bottom of the inning, Chris Davis hit his first homer of the spring to give the Orioles a 3-1 lead. The O’s would add two more in the seventh on a two-run Taylor Teagarden single. Boston would get a run back in the eighth, but the birds held on for a 5-3 victory.

Pearce, who was claimed off waivers from the Yankees on Sept. 29, leads the Orioles this spring in hits and RBIs.

Pearce, who was claimed off waivers from the Yankees on Sept. 29, leads the Orioles this spring in hits and RBIs. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

In the night cap, the Orioles scored early and often against New York starter Nik Turley. After allowing five runs in just 1/3 of an inning, Turley was relieved by Cody Eppley who would allow two more runs in the second inning. The Yankees would score four runs in the  home half of the second and would add another three in the ninth, but Baltimore would get the win 10-7.

The Oriole offense in the late game was led by Steve Pearce, who went 2-3 with a double and three RBIs. This spring, Pearce has reached base five times in seven plate appearances, driving in a team-high six runs in the process.

The Orioles winning streak would end on Feb. 28 after a 7-1 loss against the Minnesota Twins.

Jair Jurrjens made his first spring start, lasting just one inning while allowing three runs and walking three.

The Orioles would collect eight hits but only managed to score one run. Minnesota was propelled by Joe Mauer, Josh Willingham and Justin Morneau as the 3-4-5 spot hitters, respectively, went a combined 6-7, drawing two walks while recording five RBIs.

On March 1, the Orioles and Pirates are slated to face off in Sarasota, while the World Baseball Classic tournament opens with Australia and Chinese Taipei in Taichung, Taiwan.