The Orioles this afternoon were handed their first loss in Grapefruit League action as they were beat by the Minnesota Twins, 2-0.
Lefty Brian Matusz was solid on the afternoon as he went two innings, struck out two and didn’t allow a hit to the Twins. After the game, it was revealed that Matusz will need a wart removed from his middle finger on his left hand and may miss his next scheduled Grapefruit League start.
The bullpen held its own until the eighth inning when Chroye Spoone coughed up two runs to Minnesota in the frame and decided the game right then and there.
They got scoreless innings from Kevin Gregg, Jeremy Accardo, Adrian Rosario, Josh Rupe, Wynn Pelzer and Clay Rapada.
Many of the Oriole projected regulars for 2011 were in the lineup; however, Josh Bell played first base on the afternoon. He looked decent at first and I wonder if the organization is trying to get him to be more versatile. For now, I assume he’ll be playing third if he is slotted for Norfolk. In other news, Derrek Lee was taking BP and working out at first base today. He should be ready to play on Saturday — well targeted to do so…
The offense could not get much going as they only had five hits on the day. Mark Reynolds was 2-for-3 and Nick Markakis, Josh Bell and J.J. Hardy each had hits. The Orioles had several hard hit balls on the afternoon – sadly, a lot of them went directly to Twins’ fielders.
One prospect has really stood out for me: Matt Angle. He’s certainly not the biggest guy on the field and certainly may not be called up to the big leagues in the near future; however, I really like his hustle and the way he plays.
Carl Pavano, who started for Minnesota on the mound was excellent as he pitched three scoreless innings.
For a player who was derided pretty badly as a member of Yankees years ago, he’s found a home as a Twin and has been nothing short of amazing in his time with them.
