Battle of the Beltways: All Star Selection

In this addition of our review of local baseball we are talking allstars.  Without doing any actual research it is safe to say this all star game will have the highest concentration of Orioles and Nationals players ever.  So lets take a look at who made the cut and who got snubbed.

Baltimore:

• Jim Johnson: Closer, 23 saves, 1.30 ERA.
• Adam Jones: Centerfield, .300, 19 HR, 41 RBIs.
• Matt Wieters: Catcher, .249, 11 HR, 38 RBIs, 36% throwing out baserunners.

Washington:

• Gio Gonzalez:  10-3, 2.78 ERA, 108 Ks, 3 HR surrendered.
• Stephen Strasburg: 9-3, 2.81 ERA, 122 Ks.
• Ian Desmond:  .276, 13 HR, 43 RBIs.

No surprisingly there were no Orioles or Nationals voted into the starting lineup in the fan vote.

However, fear not!  There is still a chance to vote in a player from each team in the final fan vote!  Take a look at how they stack up against their biggest competition...

Nationals @ Orioles: Game Preview (6/22)

Nationals vs. Orioles

7:05 PM Orioles Park at Camden Yards

MASN and MASN2

Story Lines:  

• The Orioles have lost 3 straight games and fallen into second place in the AL East.  
• The Nationals rebounded from their 4 game losing streak with two wins against Tampa Bay.  
• Both teams are having difficulty putting up offensive numbers right now.
• The last Beltways series the Nats only won 1 game out of 3 in Washington.

Pitching Match Up:

• Jordan Zimmermann
•  3-5, 2.92 ERA
• Cannot buy a win despite solid pitching.  
• All his wins have come on the road.

• Jason Hammel
• 7-2, 2.87 ERA
• Frequently pitches deep into games, last time out he went all 9 innings.
• Has lost a No Hitter in the late innings multiple times this season.

Guys to Watch:

• Ryan Zimmerman
• Get it going!  Only hitting .125 since June 15th.
• Has faced Hammel more than any other Orioles pitcher (19 at bats).
• Bats .412 vs Hammel with 1 homerun.

• Adam Jones
• Get it going!  Hitting .250 with 0 RBIs since June 15th.
• Has faced Zimmermann the most out of any Orioles (9 at bats).
• Bats .222 vs Zimmermann with 1 homerun.

Keys to the Game:

1. J-Zimm pitches 7 innings. Get the game to Burnett/T-clip 1-2 punch.
2. Get to Hammel early.  Hammel is good, but the O's have one of the best bullpens in baseball.
3. Keep guys off base.  The O's have homerun threats up and down their lineup and J-zimm has given up the most homers on the team (10).  Limit them to solo shots.