150

Give Jose Contreras credit for coming back from a ruptured Achilles in record time, but there's a credit crisis when it comes to his pitching this season. Last night, he was No Way Jose again, giving up six runs on seven hits and six walks in only 5.1 innings in a 10-3 loss to the Orioles. And it could have been worse. A.J. Pierzynski (who extended his hitting streak to seven games) blocked several splitters that bounced miles in front of the plate and could have resulted in wild pitches with men on base. (That may be redundant. Is it a wild pitch if there's no one on to advance? Maybe. What if it's ball four or strike three and the batter winds up on second?)

Speaking of A.J., the Orioles announcers said the Sox have not thrown out a single runner attempting to steal all season. Pitching Coach, Don Cooper, said they haven't been significant stolen bases. What does that mean? (The fact that I'm talking about the announcers should tip you off that I didn't make it up to Baltimore last night. There was a monsoon around the time I would have left and figured it would either be called off or start -- and therefore end -- late. I'll take late for $600, Alex.)

Anyway, one of the hits Contreras gave up was a mammoth home run to Aubrey Huff. The ball landed on Eutaw Street beyond the right field seats. (For those of you who aren't familiar with Orioles Park at Camden Yards, that's the closed-off street between the ballpark and the warehouse, where Boog's Barbeque is located. The aroma of meat being grilled wafts throughout the park and tantalizes fans all game long.) That was only the 49th ball to reach the street since Camden Yards opened in 1992, which means it happens about three times a season. This one looked like it was going to hit the warehouse, it was hit so hard.

One of the problems with Contreras pitching poorly is that the guys who were going to take his spot in the rotation aren't doing a whole lot better. Clayton Richard relieved Contreras last night and promptly gave up a hit that resulted in a run being charged to Jose. Richard's line was two runs, four hits in 1.2 innings pitched. Not great. And Jack Egbert, another would-be replacement in the rotation who was called up after Mike MacDougal was cut, gave up two runs on a walk and a home run (Aubrey Huff again) in one inning. Aaron Poreda, where are you?

Despite the loss, the Sox managed to hang on to first place, as KC and Detroit both lost as well. Their losses dropped the Sox Magic Number to 150. Tonight, John Danks, who's been the best starter on the team, tries to get the Good Guys back on track. Go Sox!