Chris Tillman tries to lead Baltimore to consecutive wins on Tuesday when the Orioles kick off a much-needed eight-game homestand with the first of two games against the San Diego Padres at Camden Yards.
Baltimore took two of three from Minnesota this past weekend, winning Sunday's rubber match, 6-0, behind five solid innings from Wei-Yin Chen. Chris Davis, Adam Jones and Steve Pearce all homered in the win for the Orioles, who have won six of their last eight overall.
"We're just playing baseball ... getting hits when we need to get the hits," Baltimore's Chris Snyder said. "Just a good win today. Going into every series, you try to win the series."
Chen (3-3) allowed five hits and struck out three, but had to leave with an oblique strain which will likely land him on the disabled list.
Now, after playing 14 of their last 17 on the road, the Orioles return home, where they are just 9-6 on the season. They were 11-6 on the recent stretch.
Tillman gets the call on Thursday, as he tries for his fourth straight win. Tillman beat the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday, holding them to three runs and five hits in six innings to improve to 3-1, while lowering his ERA to 3.76.
"You get your team deep in the ballgame, you feel good about it, whether or not you featured your best stuff," Tillman said after the game. "You give your team a chance to win and get deep in the game. ... I'd like to get deeper, but you feel good about it."
San Diego, meanwhile, will counter with talented righty Andrew Cashner, who has won two of his last three starts and is 2-2 with a 3.23 ERA on the year. Cashner was brilliant against the Miami Marlins on May 6 when he limited them to four hits over 7 1/3 scoreless innings.
"I like the fact that he bounced back after a rough game last week in Chicago," Padres manager Bud Black said afterward. "He came back with a little bit of determination to prove that he's more of this type of pitcher."
San Diego enters this series on the heels of being swept by the Tampa Bay Rays over the weekend. The Padres, who had won four in a row and six of seven heading into that series, actually held the lead in all three games against the Rays, but couldn't hold on.
"Three well-played, close games that didn't go our way," Black said of his team being swept.
San Diego took two of three from the O's the last time these teams met back in 2010. This is the Padres' first visit to Baltimore, though, since 2002.
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