After six straight losses, the Orioles have one guarantee: a seventh straight loss won?t happen Monday.
The Orioles (58-71) received a much-needed day off before concluding a 10-game homestand with a three-game series against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (51-79) beginning Tuesday night at 7:05.
Before Sunday?s game with Minnesota (67-63), manager Dave Trembley hoped ace left-hander Erik Bedard would halt a five-game losing streak. Instead, Bedard allowed six earned runs in six innings, enabling Minnesota to sweep a four-game series with an 11-3 win before a crowd of 30,876 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Minnesota, which entered the series with just 28 victories in 61 road games, went 7-0 against Orioles this season. Minnesota swept a series from Baltimore in the Metrodome to open the season.
The Orioles have lost six in a row, and eight of the last 10. They have been out-scored 83-35 during the span.
“We?ve just got to keep fighting,” first baseman Kevin Millar said. “We?re not going to quit.”
It was Bedard?s first loss in his last 10 decisions, dating to June 12. He had been 9-0 in his last 12 starts.
Bedard (13-5) set a club record for strikeouts in a season, but he also walked five batters ? more than he did in the entire month of May.
“They showed a lot of patience when they got two strikes,” Trembley said. “He walked five, which was very uncharacteristic.”
In recording his first out Sunday, Bedard surpassed Mike Mussina?s club record with his 219th strikeout of the season. Mussina set the record in 33 starts in 1997, while Bedard is now at 221 through 28 starts.
It was Bedard?s second start of the season against Minnesota. His first came on opening night, when he allowed 10 hits and six runs in a 7-4 loss. He is 0-5 in seven career starts against the Twins.
Twins right-hander Scott Baker (7-6) scattered seven hits and three runs over six innings.
Every Minnesota starter reached base, as the Twins had 14 hits.
Freddie Bynum, starting at short for the seventh time this season, went 3-for-4 with a double and a stolen base.
Millar went 0-for-4, ending his streak of reaching base in 52 straight games.
