Rough Opener for O's, Gonzalez

What a terribly disappointing loss to start the season. I don’t think there is anything that is more demoralizing than a blown save, though despite Gonzalez coughing up a 1 run lead in the B9, it should never even have gotten to that point. The O’s had many chances to extend their lead throughout the game (1 for 12 with RISP), including in the 9th, and couldn’t get the big hit. Miggy stung the ball to LF with the bases loaded but it wasn’t meant to be. And getting three solo HR’s? Are you kidding me? There are some positives from the game, but man, it’s not what we needed to start the season. Here are some additional thoughts from the game

- Wieters has such an effortless swing, and the bomb he hit to CF in the 2nd was caught by an equally effortless Upton running it down
- Has anyone hit a longer HR at Tropicana Field than Luke Scott’s?
- Great to see, Wieters, Jones and Markakis hitting the ball the opposite way. Much like most hitters, when you are swinging the bat well you use the entire field, and Markakis double off of Shields on a breaking ball on the outside part of the plate was a fantastic piece of hitting.
- Markakis gunning Navarro out to end the 3rd was a thing of beauty, but in the 5th, F. Pie made a pretty good throw to the plate that got there in plenty of time and Wieters couldn’t handle it. TB put pressure on the O’s defense, but that was a play that has to be made. No excuses at all, and I wonder if Wieters would say that he should have made the play.
- Millwood looked pretty good (though not physically, as he seems to have put on a few lbs.), especially after his spring, but he too got away with a couple bad pitches that could have been ugly, one to Longoria. You have to be lucky in this game and get some breaks to win, and bad pitches that don’t get hit drive home the point of how difficult it is to hit a baseball.
- Albers looked like he had great movement on the ball and looked comfortable. Very nice to see
- I’ll give Gonzalez the benefit of the doubt in his first game with the O’s, and with a little luck, he could have had a much more comfortable lead than 1 run heading to the bottom of the 9th. But, he’s our closer, and we simply can’t afford to lose games like this.

I’m glad the season is here and hope Guthrie is able to throw a nice game tonight. Hitting 3 HR’s off of James Shields is no small feat, but hitting with RISP is critical for long term success, and the O’s need to improve this season. Keep working the counts and running the bases well too! Good Luck tonight O’s!