Spring Training Comes To An End

Finally...Spring Training 2011 is over with and we're just a few days away from meaningful baseball. The Orioles finished the pre-season with a .500 record, going 15-15-2 under Buck Showalter's watch.

The Birds' 25-man roster is set, though the starting rotation could change...as of now, it looks as if the team will go with four starters until mid-April.

The buzz around Baltimore for the Orioles extended south, where the club set a franchise record for Spring Training attendance. Ten of the Birds' 16 games at Ed Smith Stadium were sold out...

Here's a quick recap of the final five contests of Spring Training 2011...

Game Twenty-Eight (Saturday 3/26/11):

• The Birds used a five-run eighth to topple the Tampa Bay Rays 7-2...Ryan Drese served up two runs through three innings, but Jason Berken and the bullpen held the Rays scoreless through the final six frames
• Brian Roberts put the O's on the board with his first homer, a solo shot in the third inning...Roberts finished 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBIs
• Vladimir Guerrero started the eighth inning scoring with a two-run blast, his fifth of the spring

Game Twenty-Nine (Sunday 3/27/11):

• The Birds dropped a split-squad game to the Toronto Blue Jays 9-5...Jeremy Guthrie turned in one of his poorest performances of the spring, allowing four runs on 12 hits in five innings, walking one and fanning three
• The Birds managed five runs on just eight hits, while the Jays banged out 20 hits
• Nick Green homered; Felix Pie doubled

Game Thirty (Sunday 3/27/11):

• The O's came from behind, scoring three runs in the eighth inning to beat the Boston Red Sox 4-3...Chris Tillman allowed all three runs on six hits and four walks in 5 2/3 innings, striking out three
• Koji Uehara, Kevin Gregg and Michael Gonzalez combined to allow just one hit over the final three frames
• Luke Scott, Adam Jones and Matt Wieters all went 2-for-4; Wieters knocked in two runs

Game Thirty-One (Monday 3/28/11):

• The O's scored 13 runs in the first three innings, cruising to a 14-9 victory over the Detroit Tigers
• Luke Scott smashed a grand slam in the first inning, followed by a three-run blast in the second...Scott's seven RBIs were one more than he had in his previous 16 games
• Jake Fox slapped his league-leading tenth homer in the second inning
• The Birds finished with 18 hits, nine went for extra-bases
• Brian Roberts went 3-for-4, scoring three runs and stealing his first base of the spring
• Zach Britton started for the O's and finished the spring with the best ERA (1.35) on the starting staff...Britton (3-0) went six innings, allowing two runs on eight hits and a walk while fanning four

Game Thirty-Two (Tuesday 3/29/11):

• The Birds dropped the final game of Spring Training, falling 7-4 to the Toronto Blue Jays
• Chris George started for the O's and allowed three runs on five hits in just two innings
• Koji Uehara, Michael Gonzalez, Kevin Gregg and Jason Berken all pitched scoreless, hitless innings of relief
• Derrek Lee had his best game of the spring, going 3-for-4 with two doubles and his first RBI as an Oriole
• Brian Roberts doubled and stole his second base in as many days

Bird Bites...

• As expected, Zach Britton will start the season at Triple-A Norfolk...he should be back up with the club sometime in late April
• Brian Matusz is still slated to start on Saturday, but that could change...

On Deck...

Opening Day! The O's take on the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg on Friday night. Jeremy Guthrie is scheduled to take the mound...here we go...Let's Go O's!!!