O’S PREVAIL AS TILLMAN OUTDUELS WEAVER

Birds Earn Season’s 1st CG Shutout

 

BALTIMORE, July 29 (AP) – Chris Tillman fired a complete game three-hit shutout, besting Jared Weaver, as the Baltimore Orioles defeated the Los Angeles Angels 2-0 at Camden Yards.  Tillman’s effort represented the Orioles’ first complete game of the year, coming in the team’s 105th game.  The Orioles were the last American League team without a complete game.  Three National League clubs have yet to post a complete game.  Weaver—recipient of the lowest run support among ERA-qualifying AL starters—was the hard luck loser and has now lost three straight starts.  Tillman has won four of his last five decisions and leads the AL in wins with 13.

 

The game consisted of few scoring opportunities.  The Orioles took the lead in the bottom of the first when Nick Markakis led off with his ninth home run of the season.  It was the last baserunner Baltimore would secure until Nick Hundley singled with one out in the sixth inning.  The Hundley base hit snapped a string of 16 consecutive batters set down by Weaver.  Hundley shocked everyone by stealing his first base of the season—just the 21st stolen base all season for the Orioles—with one out and then scored on Markakis’ base hit, giving the Orioles a 2-0 lead.

 

Tillman retired the first four hitters he faced, allowed a one-out single to Erick Aybar in the second and then retired another eight in a row before yielding another base hit, again to Aybar, leading off the fifth.  He then retired six in a row before Albert Pujols reached on shortstop J.J. Hardy’s throwing error leading off the seventh.  Pujols never advanced past first base as Tillman retired the next three batters in order.

 

In the bottom of the eighth, Efren Navarro doubled—the only Angels extra base hit of the contest—with one out.  It was the only time in the game Los Angeles would advance a runner past first.  But Tillman calmly struck out David Freese and retired pinch hitter J.B. Schuck on a routine fly ball to center to end the inning.

 

In the bottom of the eighth, Weaver issued consecutive one-out walks—the only two free passes he issued all game—to Steve Pearce and Ryan Flaherty.  Angels manager Mike Scioscia visited the mound, but apparently received the answers he was looking for as he left Weaver in the game and the right-hander rewarded him by retiring Hundley and Markakis to extinguish the threat.

 

Tillman opened the ninth by retiring Kole Calhoun on a fly to left and striking out Mike Trout.  Pujols then grounded routinely to Manny Machado at third to apparently end the game but Machado booted the ball for a rare error, bringing the potential tying run to the plate in the form of Josh Hamilton.  Tillman shrugged off the error and calmly retired Hamilton on a lazy fly ball to Markakis in left to end the game.

 

The game represented the first time in the major leagues this year that both starting pitched complete games while allowing fewer than four hits apiece.

 

 

7/29/2014, LAA14-Bal14, Oriole Park at Camden Yards

 

                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9     R  H  E   LOB DP

2014 Angels            0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0     0  3  0     4  0

2014 Orioles           1  0  0  0  0  1  0  0  x     2  3  2     2  1

 

Angels               AB  R  H BI   AVG    Orioles              AB  R  H BI   AVG

Calhoun           rf  4  0  0  0  .217    Markakis          rf  4  1  2  2  .256

Trout             cf  4  0  0  0  .317    Machado           3b  3  0  0  0  .247

Pujols            1b  4  0  0  0  .265    Jones,A           cf  3  0  0  0  .290

Hamilton,J        dh  4  0  0  0  .230    Cruz,N            lf  3  0  0  0  .301

Aybar             ss  3  0  2  0  .297     Schoop           2b  0  0  0  0  .196

Kendrick,H        2b  3  0  0  0  .279    Young,D           dh  3  0  0  0  .336

Navarro,E         lf  3  0  1  0  .269    Hardy,J           ss  3  0  0  0  .268

Freese            3b  3  0  0  0  .242    Pearce            1b  2  0  0  0  .330

Conger            c   2  0  0  0  .229    Flaherty          2b  2  0  0  0  .149

 Shuck            ph  1  0  0  0  .171     Lough            lf  0  0  0  0  .211

 Iannetta         c   0  0  0  0  .212    Hundley           c   3  1  1  0  .261

                     31  0  3  0                               26  2  3  2

 

Angels                           INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Weaver           L 5-13          8.0  3  2  2  2 10 103  67  4.36

                                 8.0  3  2  2  2 10 103  67

 

Orioles                          INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Tillman          W 13-6          9.0  3  0  0  0  5 103  66  3.60

                                 9.0  3  0  0  0  5 103  66

 

LAA: Shuck batted for Conger in the 8th

     Iannetta inserted at c in the 8th

Bal: Schoop inserted at 2b in the 9th

     Lough inserted at lf in the 9th

 

E-Machado, Hardy,J. 2B-Navarro,E(7). HR-Markakis(9). RBI-Markakis 2(37).

SB-Hundley(1). K-Trout 2, Hamilton,J, Navarro,E, Freese, Markakis, Machado 2,

Jones,A, Cruz,N, Young,D 2, Hardy,J, Pearce, Flaherty. BB-Pearce, Flaherty.

GWRBI: Markakis

Temperature: 97, Sky: clear, Wind: left to right at 3 MPH.

Attendance: 35,462

Game Time: 2:02