The Orioles Were Who We Thought They Were

rickchand|published: Mon 13th August, 09:32 2007

It's Millar time! Um, actually, I'd like to apologize for calling the East for the Red Sox last week. In my defense, they were up by six and it ... hey! Who threw that brick? OK look, Boston fans; it's not the end of the world, no matter what the blogs are saying. It's just going to take Eric Gagne a few days to get acclimated.

And Kevin Millar has left town ... no need to worry about him for awhile. For those who are not Boston fans (and therefore do not have their heads in ovens right now), it was ex-Sox Millar's game-winning home run that gave the Orioles a 6-3 win over the Sox on Sunday; while Jason Giambi was homering the Yankees to a 5-3 win over the Indians. And when the dust had cleared, Boston's lead in the East had shrunk to four games. Well, time to buck up, Red Sox fans. So Joe Torre is talking serious smack,* so what? So it's Boston's smallest lead over New York since May 1, who cares? As a wise man once said, it wasn't over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor, and it ain't over now. But how about some props for the Orioles, who faced Daisuke Matsuzaka, Josh Beckett and Curt Schilling in the three-game series and took two of three? (Boston had won 11 straight series from the Orioles prior to that). And my favorite part, aside from Amanda Theoharis' wet t-shirt interview with Millar, above, is the post-game quote by Gagne, courtesy of AP: "We should have won three games out of three and I #### blew two of them,'' Gagne said in a profanity-laced rant. "They brought me in to do a job and I'm not doing it. It's ridiculous. These guys play eight great innings and I go out there and blow it. It's a shame.'' So if you want to crown 'em, crown 'em!

• Jenks Bellies Up To The Barr. Even though his team lost, Bobby Jenks pitched a perfect ninth for the White Sox on Sunday, breaking David Wells' American League record and tying the major league record of 41 straight batters retired ... giving me the opportunity to show you THIS! You are gazing on the features of former Giants hurler Jim Barr; a baseball card which I actually own, and may be worth more than ever now that Jenks has tied MLB record. Barr set the mark for San Francisco in 1972, the year after the Giants won the NL West and the year before they traded Willie Mays to the Mets. Anyway, Jeff Weaver threw his second shutout of the season and Adrian Beltre had a two-run homer to lead the Mariners on Sunday, 6-0.

• Moyer, The Ancient One. Ryan Howard's three-run moon shot led the Sillies over the Braves 5-3, making a winner of Jamie Moyer (11-8).

• Mr. Met Does The Cabbage Patch Dance. And that's good news for the Mets, who beat the Marlins 10-4 behind Moises Alou's two home runs.

• Rockies 6, Cubs 3. Man, doesn't anyone want to win the NL Central?

* = I feel compelled to point out that it's a fake interview.