Baltimore Orioles: Two-strike counts hurt Buck Showalter, O’s

An in-game decision by Buck Showalter impacted the Baltimore Orioles on this day, but we’ll get to that later in the article. But first off, what is it with Oriole pitchers and two-strike counts? Miguel Gonzalez gave another lackluster start this afternoon, capped off by an 0-2 pitch that hung in the middle of the plate – when it shouldn’t have. Gonzalez’s line: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 6 K.

Let’s start with the positive aspect for Gonzalez; six strikeouts in under five innings is impressive. While he did have a couple of halfway decent innings, he was never able to get into a groove. However he had the lead before even stepping onto the field, after an RBI-single by Matt Wieters and an…