There’s frustration growing in Birdland right now. It has been a miserable series for the Orioles as they have not done much offensively against the St. Louis Cardinals, and the pitching has been very shaky.
The Orioles are now 35-42, a season-worst seven games under .500 and have fans wondering can things get better – or are they getting worse?
Vladmir Guerrero is not really hitting as a clean-up hitter should be; Derrek Lee has been disappointing, Mark Reynolds is performing as I think should be, and everyone else has been merely adequate.
Of course, the Orioles have had trouble once again getting runners home and doing the little things to win; however, you have to give kudos to Nick Markakis getting out of his awful early season slump. He has got an 18-game hit streak going on and his batting average is up to now a robust .282.
You also have to be amazed by the work J.J. Hardy has put in so far with the Orioles. Although he missed some time to injury, you have got to wonder how good his level of production is right now at the plate. Most knew that Hardy is a quality shortstop, but as an Oriole, he has done everything expected of him – and more.
At the moment, Hardy is looking like the player that he was in with the Milwaukee Brewers. He is currently batting .307 with 11 homers and 30 RBI’s.
As it is, he should get some strong consideration for the All-Star team. Hardy has been that good, and one could argue that he is one of the top five shortstops in the league right now.
Tonight, Brian Matusz tries to get out of his funk against a tough St. Louis lineup. As we all know, he has not looked good in the past few weeks on the mound.
Matusz says he is fine, and the Orioles want him to work through his issues. Let’s hope the best for him tonight.
