Showaltzin'

Call it coincidence, call it a fluke, I don't care. The fact of the matter is that the Baltimore Orioles are undefeated under new manager Buck Showalter. After completing a three-game sweep of the once formidable Los Angeles Angels on Thursday (and on Nick Markakis bobblehead night), it looks like O's fans can finally relish in this sparkle of light on an otherwise overcast and shadowed season. This was the first sweep of the Angels in seven years and, surprisingly, the Orioles' fourth sweep of this season (other victims include the Boston Red Sox, Washington Nationals and Texas Rangers). The O's have a dismal record of 35-73 this season. Of those 35 wins, 13 of them have come from sweeps.

It's not just that the O's have won these games, its how they've been doing it. Over the past three games, the Orioles (3-0) have brought excellent pitching to the game backed by a surprisingly potent offense. To put this into perspective (and also give an idea of how horrendous this team has been this season), over the course of this three game series the O's have scored a whopping 20 runs on 36 hits. With a league-worst 2.77 runs per game, that's more hits AND runs scored than the O's have had in the previous six games combined. The pitching was spot on as well. All three starting pitchers recorded quality starts (6+ innings pitched and 3 earned runs or less) during this series. Rookie pitcher Brian Matusz recorded his first home win in 11 starts this season, allowing one run in seven innings. Not to be outdone, fellow rookie Jake Arrieta had a perfect game going through five innings in Wednsdays 5-4 victory. Although he didn't record the win, Arrieta allowed no earned runs through 7.2 Innings, before giving up 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th and being taken out of the game. In true dramatic fashion, SS Caesar Isturis has a walk-off RBI single to end the game after the O's bullpen almost blew the victory for the second night in a row.

And now, Ol' Buck is the only undefeated manager in baseball this season. Is it safe to say that this is the best acquisition the O's have made in the last decade? I honestly think so. Not exactly the hardest call to make, given their recent struggles in Free Agent and manager signings. Since Davey Johnson stepped down as O's manager in the 2000, there has been more uncertainty with his successors qualifications than a Notre Dame coaching Job. Don't get me wrong, we had our good times with the Dave Trembly's and Sam Perlozzo's just fine, but come on...these guys were minor league B-teamers at best. With Showalter, you know exactly what to expect. Just look at the guy's track record. He took two struggling franchises (the early 90's Yankees and the late 90's Diamondbacks) to their apex. Unfortunately he was removed the year before both one their respective World Series Titles, but the fact remains, he was the one who built those teams. He also was named Manager of the Year in 2006 after taking a terrible Texas Rangers team and forming the building blocks for a squad that is looking to make a serious run in this year's playoffs. O's fans and baseball experts alike have been praising the team's farm system for the last couple of years, and now with a proven skipper at the helm in Showalter, there's a chance, albeit slim, that the Orioles once again become relevant in the baseball world.

Some statistics courtesy of Yahoo.com