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Orioles power past White Sox in Chicago
Berken surprises Guillen, South Siders with two-seamer
By Spencer Fordin / MLB.com
08/23/09 7:08 PM ET
CHICAGO -- Ozzie Guillen, meet Jason Berken.Berken performed the simplest kind of introduction on Sunday, as he pitched the Orioles to a 5-4 victory over Chicago to clinch Baltimore's first winning series in August. By doing so, Berken, who had pitched against the White Sox once before, may have finally placed himself on the Chicago manager's radar.
Guillen claimed not to know who Berken was after the game, but his hitters may have been fooled by a change in repertoire. Berken had thrown a four-seam fastball for most of the season, but he switched to a two-seamer on Sunday in order to keep the ball down and to try to minimize the impact of Chicago's powerful lineup.
"I throw the four-seam fastball in the 90-to-95 [mph] range," said Berken, who had lost 11 of his previous 12 decisions. "But when I do miss that pitch, it's over the plate. For me to be able to sink the ball and have a little more margin for error, it's a big pitch for me. I'm not a 6-foot-5 guy. I'm a 6-foot righty, and I've got to be able to keep the ball down. I have a better chance with the two-seamer of keeping the ball down than I do with the four-seamer."
And it worked to great effect. Berken (3-11) shrugged off a pair of Orioles errors in the first inning, limiting the damage to one unearned run, and he shut Chicago down from there through the fourth. Berken did allow a pair of runs in the fifth inning, but he stranded a runner on base and left in the sixth inning with a two-run lead.
Baltimore manager Dave Trembley gave Berken a lot of credit after the game, saying that the right-handed rookie showed the best command he's had in any start this season. The manager also referenced Chicago starter Mark Buehrle, who pitched into the sixth inning, allowing 11 hits en route to the loss.
"Like we were saying in the dugout before the game, it was going to be Berken against Buehrle," Trembley said. "He probably located the best he's pitched all year for us -- a lot of ground balls. He really was aggressive, had a good tempo. He outpitched Buehrle. ... This one, he'll remember. It was great for him."
The Orioles (51-73) rallied behind Berken, taking their first lead in the first inning and forging ahead for good with a three-run burst in the third. Felix Pie drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly in the third, and Nolan Reimold added two more runs on a high-arcing homer. Pie homered in the fifth to add an insurance run.
Despite his key role in the win, Pie didn't even start the game. Center fielder Adam Jones singled in a run in the first inning but wrenched his back in the process, and the Orioles removed him for precautionary reasons. Jones was diagnosed with mild mid-back muscle spasms and said after the game that he hoped to be back in the lineup on Monday.
"Even if I'm not playing, I'm ready," said Pie. "I know that sometimes they use me for defense. But it was earlier in the game today when I had to go in. When [I] see a guy like Jones get hurt, I say, 'Oh my God, I have to go in.' I've got to stay ready. I tell him, 'You know, I feel bad for you, but I thank you [because] I'm playing today.'
Chicago (63-61) pushed within two runs in the fifth inning, when Brent Lillibridge drew a two-out walk and scored on a double by Scott Podsednik. Podsednik, who had also scored in the first inning, came around on a single by Gordon Beckham. From there, Baltimore's bullpen held the White Sox down into the late innings.
The White Sox managed to rally in the ninth before falling short. Paul Konerko netted a leadoff double off closer Jim Johnson and later scored on a groundout by catcher A.J. Pierzynski. Chicago had the potential tying run standing on second with two outs, but pinch-hitter Mark Kotsay struck out to end the game.
Guillen, who had hoped for more offense, used Berken to make light of that after the game.
"I don't want these people to take this the wrong way about the pitcher," Guillen said. "I don't even know his name, but with the offense we have, we're better than this. And we're going to face the big boys in two days? Good luck."
For the Orioles, the game was about more than introducing themselves to one of the game's best teams and managers. It was about simply getting on the board and ending a 10-series streak of unfortunate results. The Orioles hadn't won a series since July 10-12 against Toronto and has experienced even more adverse results on the road.
Baltimore has only won five road series all season -- three of them against American League teams -- and is on pace to have one of the worst road records in franchise history. The Orioles are currently on pace for just 26 road wins, which would mark just the second time since the advent of the 162-game season that they haven't won 30.
"We almost forget what it was like, I guess," said Johnson. "When you win a series, that's the goal. That's how you become a better team. That's what we're trying to do, and take the momentum into next year."
"It was good for us to come in here against a team that's battling for a playoff spot and play the way we did," added leadoff man Brian Roberts. "I think that's a great sign for us. I've said earlier that it's not all about wins and losses right now. We hate losing -- everybody hates losing -- but we do have to look at the big picture. And the big picture is playing good baseball and getting these young guys some experience. Berky had a good growing day today, battled through some things and stayed in the game longer than some people would've thought."
Spencer Fordin is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
