Bob Haynie: Hammel And Chen Do It Again
I've been talking--a lot--about the inconsistent nature of the Baltimore Orioles and their starting rotation. RHP Tommy Hunter has been sent to the minors (twice) and opening day starter Jake Arrieta was demoted to the bullpen after a string of horrible outings. Two guys, however, have been getting it done this season for the Birds and did it again this past weekend against the Atlanta Braves.
On Saturday, Jason Hammel took a no-hitter into the seventh inning on his way to a dominant one-hit perfomance as the Orioles shutout the Braves 5-0. With the win, Hammel improved to 7-2 on the year and lowered his ERA to 2.87. Not to be outdone, Wei-Yin Chen tossed seven shutout innings himself as Baltimore won 2-0 on Sunday. After his fine start, Chen is also 7-2 and his ERA stands at 3.36. Thanks to Hammel and Chen, the Orioles were able to win two of three in Atlanta and remain strong contenders in the AL East.
Can these two keep it up all summer? They're going to have to. Hopefully, Arrieta, Hunter and Brian Matusz can bring up their quality level too. Bring on the Mets.
BH
