Baltimore Orioles sweep Atlanta behind a strong Chris Tillman

By the time the Baltimore Orioles and starter Chris Tillman were done with Atlanta last night, people were dancing in the aisles. The O’s earned a three-game sweep of Atlanta with last night’s 2-0 victory, however more importantly they won their fifth straight game and are now within six games of first place New York. They also moved to within one game of the second wild card spot behind Minnesota.

Courtesy of Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Tillman was about as dominant as a starter could be, going about as deep into the game as he could without completing it. Tillman’s line: 8.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K. Tillman pitched to contact consistently all night long, which is why he only struck out two hitters. Much like several other starters of late, he also kept the walks to a minimum – zero in his case. That’s also a symptom of pitching to contact, somethin that the Orioles have struggled with over time. However needless to say, this start was most definitely on par with his start in Detroit a couple of weeks ago. Both were spectacular.

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Call to the Pen

Atlanta looked like a team that was beaten before they even took the field. It kind of reminded me of what we saw from the Orioles leading up to and coming out of the all-star break. One might also mention that being the final game of the series, it was “getaway day.” However if you’re an Atlanta fan you probably don’t want to hear that. Come to think of it, if you’re an Atlanta fan you probably aren’t reading this!

The game was delayed for thirty minutes at the beginning due to a passing storm, but once it began it moved quickly. For the Orioles, it came down to two solo home runs. They took a 1-0 lead in the last of the third on Jonathan Schoop’s homer, and one inning later J.J. Hardy followed suit with a solo shot of his own. And that’s your scoring summary – short and simple last night!

With the exception certainly of Tuesday night, this series actually didn’t do much to curb the myth that the Birds rely too much on home runs for their scoring. However the fact that the Orioles won the games covers that fact up. It’s all about winning games, especially as you move into late July and August. While there’s no doubt that you have to be able to manufacture runs, it all comes down to finding ways to win. The O’s have done that over the past few games.

Now winners of five straight, the O’s will open up a four-game series with Detroit tonight at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Miguel Gonzalez will get the start for the Orioles. He’ll be opposed by a former Oriole in his own right, Alfredo Simon. (As O’s fans might remember, Simon started the final game of the 2011 season against Boston – the game in which the Orioles knocked the BoSox out of the playoffs in what I still say is the “greatest closing act of all time.”) Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Next: Baltimore Orioles: How does the Troy Tulowitzski trade impact the O's?

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