Orioles happy to be home to face White Sox (May 05, 2017)
Describing the last week for the Baltimore Orioles as an "eventful road trip" would be a massive understatement.
There was the wild weekend in New York, featuring the bullpen blowing an eight-run lead and an extra-inning win after a disputed balk call on Darren O'Day.
Those events pale in comparison to the four games in Boston.
To review: Chris Sale threw at Manny Machado without getting ejected, prompting an expletive-filled tirade from the third baseman, Adam Jones heard racist comments from fans and Kevin Gausman was tossed for hitting Xander Bogaerts with a curveball.
So, needless to say, the Orioles are looking forward to taking the field at Camden Yards for the opener of a three-game series with the Chicago White Sox on Friday.
The Orioles (16-10) went 3-4 on the trip and concluded it with a drama-free 8-3 win in Boston on Thursday.
"Seemed like we played a baseball game tonight instead of all the drama, so we're looking forward to getting back in that flow again," manager Buck Showalter said. "Came close to winning two out of three in New York, just couldn't get it done. They're playing really well. Time to get home and get in front of some friendly faces. I know our guys are looking forward to getting back home."
"Whatever happens in between the (lines) stays in between the lines, so we've just got to go out there and control what we can control and go about our business," Machado said.
Machado performed well on the trip, going 8-for-30 with four home runs and nine RBIs. He hit a 470-foot home run last Friday in New York that left people talking, and his third of the Red Sox series also had people talking for a different reason.
In the 8-3 win on Thursday, Machado took a slow trot around the bases after slugging a 466-foot blast over the Green Monster.
"Go look at my home runs," Machado said. "I'm not a rookie. I've got 100 home runs to show. This is my team. I bleed for them."
The White Sox (15-12) are winning games, often just doing it more quietly than the Orioles. The only talk they're hearing is from pundits surprised about their decent start after Sale and Adam Eaton were traded in the offseason.
Chicago is 8-3 since losing three straight April 19-22, when the Sox batted .188 and scored once. Since the skid, the White Sox are hitting .277 with 13 home runs, have scored 65 times and boast the league's top hitter in Avisail Garcia (.371).
Chicago heads to Baltimore after getting an 8-3 win at Kansas City on Thursday. The win featured Derek Holland retiring the first 10 hitters and pitching effectively into the seventh.
"It's great we've started the way we have," Holland told reporters after helping the White Sox lower their ERA to 3.19. "That's more for us, our enjoyment. We already believe we can do this. We know we're good. We have to get everyone on the outside to believe this. Everyone is shocked the White Sox are in first place."
The victory also featured a home run by Jose Abreu, who is heating up. Abreu is 16-for-40 (.400) with four home runs and eight RBIs in his last 10 games, raising his average to .270.
Matt Davidson started in place of Todd Frazier (back stiffness) and snapped an 0-for-17 skid with a home run Thursday. Davidson likely would start again if Frazier does not play Friday.
Frazier is 6-for-21 on the trip, with a pair of home runs, and is hitting .188. He also missed time with the flu.
"In the sixth inning, (my) back tightened up yesterday," Frazier said. "I was hoping it would go away this morning and nothing really got better, so we've been doing a lot of stuff with it today. It's day-to-day, and hopefully I'll be back out there tomorrow.
Wade Miley (1-1, 2.32 ERA) will start for Baltimore after throwing 114 pitches in a no-decision Sunday at New York. Miley has not allowed more than three runs this season but has issued 19 walks, including 11 in his last two starts.
Miley is 1-3 with a 5.96 ERA in four career starts against the White Sox.
Former Oriole Miguel Gonzalez (3-1, 3.27 ERA) will start for the White Sox. Gonzalez was 39-33 with a 3.82 ERA in 101 appearances (95 starts) for Baltimore from 2012 to 2015.
In Baltimore, Gonzalez is 17-14 with a 3.94 ERA in 46 outings (43 starts). He faced the Orioles on Aug. 5 and allowed four runs and 10 hits in six innings.
Gonzalez will be looking to rebound from his worst start of the season. In a 7-3 loss at Detroit on Sunday, he allowed seven runs and 14 hits in six innings.
