When starting 2B Brian Roberts went down with a serious concussion, they needed someone to step up and play 2B. 27-year old righty swinging Robert Andino answered that call and he played well for the O’s. Andino has played in 136 games for the Orioles so far this year and he is 118 for 445 (.265 avg, .672 OPS) with 62 runs scored, 4 homers, 32 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. He has now played in 230 games in his first three years with the Orioles and he is 180 for 704 (.256 avg, .652 OPS) with 99 runs scored, 8 homers, 48 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. It looks like Andino has found a home in Baltimore, most likely as a utility player going forward.

The Baltimore Orioles acquired 26-year old righty Pedro Strop and 25-year old lefty reliever Zach Phillips in separate deals with the Rangers this year and they are both making good first impressions. Strop has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) for the O’s so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.58 WHIP. He has only given up 3 hits in 8 2/3 innings so far this year while whiffing 11 batters and only walking 2, and those are impressive numbers. Strop has now pitched in 20 games (0 starts) overall for the Rangers and Orioles so far this year and he is 1-1 with a 1.96 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. Zach Phillips has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) for the Orioles so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. Both of these guys are making strong pushes for bullpen spots in 2012 for the Orioles.

The Orioles have shut down 24-year old righty swinging 2B Ryan Adams. Adams played in 29 games for the Orioles this year and he was 25 for 86 (.281 avg, .659 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 0 homers and 7 RBIs. This is a bad break for Adams as he was in line for more playing time. But, he needs surgery to repair a sports hernia, so he wasn’t going to help the Orioles playing with that.

25-year old switch-hitting catcher Matt Wieters has turned up the power lately for the Orioles. Since August 1st, Wieters has played in 39 games in which he is 39 for 140 (.279 avg) with 24 runs scored, 10 homers and 26 RBIs. He has now played in 131 games for the Orioles so far this year and he is 123 for 469 (.262 avg, .777 OPS) with 66 runs scored, 20 homers, 63 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Wieters has now played in 357 games in his first three years with the O’s and he is 336 for 1,269 (.265 avg, .742 OPS) with 138 runs scored, 40 homers, 161 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Orioles hope that Wieters keeps rolling along as he is a big part of the team’s future.

24-year old lefty starting pitcher Brian Matusz has been flat out pathetic for the Orioles in 2011. He has pitched in 10 games (all starts) for the Orioles so far this year and he is 1-7 with a 9.84 ERA and a 2.02 WHIP. Matusz has given up 68 hits (15 homers) and he has also walked 19 batters in his first 43 innings of the season! Matusz has now pitched in 50 games (all starts) in his first three years with the Orioles and he is 16-21 with a 5.26 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. The Orioles will give Matusz another shot to make the starting rotation next spring.