ronnie belliard, four for his last 37. in his last 19, now 20 games played. >> jim p.: so he's due. >> rob: you talked about austin kearns, all he had to do was get a base hit. he did. albers, an 0 for 2 belliard against him. of course the orioles are trying to cleep it close. the nationals are taking advantage. >> bob: that was good pitch to lay off for belliard who often first pitch swings, but tonight he's getting three or four at- bats, so maybe a little more patient. it was a 3-2 pitch earlier when he hit into the double play. >> jim p.: that running fastball that matt had trouble with last night. so and you talked about it the one inning, two hits and base on balls. now you're back in the same situation where you're trying to make good pitches and you're not. you've got to aim for the middle of the plate and hope that that movement. he is a sinker baller with a curveball and a change-up. >> bob: belliard rips one at the third baseman, mora comes home and gets the force out. he was thinking double play, but he still g

belliard showing bunt again. >> johnny: hernandez can't get it.ew lease on life. >> rob: most of the time the catcher could come up with it. >> johnny: he's only playing there because he can't play. a friendly gathering around the ball park tonight. 11:42. the 0-2 from cordero to ronny belliard. high fly off the 3rd baseline. hairston up in the third row of seats. 0-2. belliard 0-9 career wise against cordero. cordero struck him out twice. dukes off 2nd, willingham off 1st. pitch outside. [cheering and applause] >> rob: he did a great job. hanrahan 7 innings, no hits. beimel no hits no runs. >> johnny: 1-2. one down. >> rob: couldn't get the job done. trying to hit behind the runner. he did a great job trying to get this to the right side. cordero after a 2 hour 10 minute rain delay, 96 miles per hour. josh bard here. a single gets you one run closer. >> johnny: gonzalez will bench hit. that will take care of the shut out. willingham winds up at 3rd base. it's a 2-1 ballgame. >> rob: if you stayed around or you're up watching right now, you'll see

a little pop fly, right side, belliard out, kearns in. ronny belliard with a basket catch on a play you'd much rather see be taken by right fielders. i've had hitters tell me if they did call more strikes, we'd probably be more aggressive, we'd be swinging more and i think the hitters would adjust. but they've not been allowed to do that. >> jim p.: years ago jay nolan came over and caught for us, he said in the national league the pitch is a strike until it becomes a ball. in the american league, it's a ball until it becomes a strike. >> bob: interesting. one a low ball league, the other a high ball league. >> jim p.: it was. >> bob: that's why bob gibson said i'll never pitch a no hitter because i'm a high ball hitter. one night he got one, but a guy like him might have had more no hitters in a different league. >> jim p.: all i know is he had a 1.12 e.r.a. for the entire year. >> rob: they had to lower the mounds. we should thank mr. gibson with that one. >> jim p.: how about mr. mclean in that same year. >> rob: martis now throwing a

belliard will be leading off next inning. there you see him spin, take at least the fastest guy off the base pads in felix pie. at least they reduce that number. >> jim p.: here's gregg zaun. ground ball towards the hole, the other way, this one gets through. gregg zaun has a three-hit game. >> jim p.: he's been around long enough to know, hey, that's how tony gwynn did it. two of those tonight. he tricked him early on. you're going pitch me away, that's where i'll hit it. he's had a pretty good night. >> jim h.: he's also able to help the orioles pitchers get out of some serious jams. >> rob: that veteran leadership behind the plate, doing his best to get the most out of pitchers. he's been a clinic at the plate. doesn't get a lot of playing time. you've got the new rookie sensation wieters in there almost every day, and he contributes with three hits. >> jim h.: may be a coincidence, maybe not. over his last five games he's now 9 for 13. >> rob: that will keep you in the big leagues. here's andino. and he takes a strike. >>

makes a good throw to belliard. belliard tries to slap the tag on. >> bob: they could have had him -- >> rob: head's up baserunning by marco scutaro. >> bob: adam dunn's eighth error of the year. nats third of the night. now you're facing the leading hit guy in the american league when you just gave the previous hitter 90 extra feet. all three nationals errors tonight on the most routine plays. the hernandez possibly, the guzman drop that cost a run and now that and aaron hill was smelling blood up there hacking. >> rob: work ahead. >> bob: these are the unforced errors by some of our veterans this year that have really hurt. aaron hill, 1-5. now we've had a balk. jesus colome balking for the second time this year. boy, he's mad. manny acta coming out to calm down his pitcher. >> rob: right before that, i almost said out loud. i was thinking it to myself that cristian guzman or ronnie belliard should just go in and say something to him. say something to him in spanish. get him to calm down. they're the veterans. he'

belliard fouls it back. last night out of the bullpen all three guys were terrific. >> rob: execution out there. now we're in a little bit of a valley offensively. tough manufacture a run. >> johnny: throw to 2nd. out at 2nd. leaned too far off, couldn't get back. he's gunned down by hanigan. dunn is out at 2nd. if you're like a lot of people, you have high blood pressure... and you have high cholesterol. you've taken steps to try and lower both your numbers. but how close are you to your goals? there may be more you can do. only caduet combines two proven medicines... in a single pill to significantly lower... high blood pressure and high cholesterol. in a clinical study of patients... with slightly elevated blood pressure and cholesterol, caduet helped 48% reach both goals in just 4 weeks. caduet is one of many treatment options, in addition to diet and exercise... that you can discuss with your doctor. caduet is not for everyone. it's not for people with liver problems... and women who are nursing, pregna

ronny belliard's first start since june 10. now for the orioles who clobbered the nationals last night 11-1, leading off will be brian roberts, hitless the last couple ballgames, after a six- game hitting streak, leads the american league in doubles, he's knocked out 25 doubles this year, he drove in a season high four runs against the phillies one week ago. the birds line-up goes this way, roberts leads off at second with a .288 batting average, then comes adam jones, he had three hits last night, as did nick markakis, aubrey huff at first base batting in the cleanup spot. nolan reimold also three hits last night. luke scott will be the dh for the o's, gregg zaun will be catching and robert andino will be batting ninth. the nationals trying to even up the series tonight at camden yards against baltimore. one of the questions i think everybody's asking, ray, as we go to nightly notes, knightly. >> the k is silent. >> yes, the k is silent. let's touch on the problems of joel hanrahan. we know he can pitch. he's proven that befor

then it would come ronny belliard. 2-0 bottom of the 9th. nationals 3-6 against the nl central.under .500. 5-7 against the national league east. that's why they play nine. you don't stop there. >> rob: absolutely. they're playing it. it's not really coming down anymore. >> johnny: last save for francisco came last night. right behind the nationals dugout, cincinnati one error. josh willingham misplayed a ball in right field. got to give him a break there. it was his first time ever in that right field area. >> rob: there's a lead off walk. very nice. that's using the old melon. at the plate right now. you've got to find a way to get willingham in however he can get on base. [cheering and applause] >> johnny: i'd love to see josh get a hold of one now. he takes a strike from cordero. 13 of the hits were extra bases, 5 doubles, 8 home runs. fouled off. 0-2. [cheering and applause] >> johnny: going back to last season, cordero converted 29 -- takes the pitch low. 14-14 this year. the 1st base umpire -- the announcer will bring the tarp on here in the bottom of the 9th. a rain delay

belliard, can't get a handle on it, but does get the force play.hen right here, a really good pitch right there to austin kearns for the orioles to turn the double play. >> jim h.: at&t, the nation's fastest 3-g network. >> jim p.: ryan zimmerman tried to deliver a home run on that swing right there. johnson better down in the strike zone. he was in the launch mode. >> jim h.: the nationals now trail by a couple. as the orioles try to make it back-to-back wins. there's a bloop to right field. markakis charging in, won't get there. plays it on a hop. >> rob: that's a couple of hits for mr. kearns tonight. actually that's ryan zimmerman, sorry. he's another guy who needs to get off the side. got to get the confidence back. >> jim p.: it's an important inning for both the nationals and the orioles. the orioles want to get to george sherrill who is 11 for his last 11 and the orioles closer. >> jim h.: adam dunn now takes inside. >> rob: this is it right here. when you have the 3, 4, 5 guys in your line-up. willingham has been on fire, then you have bar

belliard pulls it third baseline. low throw, and they turn it around the horn 5-4-3.another inning ending double play for the blue jays. their second in a row. ♪ ♪ ♪

. >> rob: belliard here, one out. bottom of the 11th inning. one away, 2-2 ballgame. .177 batting average. you have to make adjustments when you get older. i'll go back to the conversation i had today. he said as he got older, you know you're not swinging like you did when you were 25. he said your skill deteriorates with age. you always have to stand let in the count. >> johnny: not to say he doesn't have good days left because he does. great years with cleveland. .291 in 06. .284 in 05. >> rob: 17 homers and 78 driven in for 05. >> johnny: the count is full 3- 2. 12:30 at night, 3-1 pitch was a little up obviously. he's got to be swinging. you've got to recognize here. bottom of the 11th here, one out. >> johnny: he's down on strikes. >> rob: not happy about that. nice breaking ball. >> johnny: second time belliard goes down swinging. he did it in the 9th. >> rob: got to have confidence and throw the fastball, sell it with a hitter. >> johnny: austin kearns will be weight. there's two down here in the 11 11th. >> johnny: wil has done a fantas

i was thinking it to myself that cristian guzman or ronnie belliard should just go in and say something to him. say something to him in spanish. get him to calm down. they're the veterans. he's still kind of a young guy. he could be a big asset to this ball club. >> bob: flies it to center. right there is willie harris. after all that, the nats still a chance to put this game away. patterson, guzman, johnson ahead. ÷pñ)y

. >> rob: good save there by belliard.hey'll try to figure out what to do defensively here at 1st and d with no outs. villone has got get off the mound ancover so zimmermann can stay loam. stay home. >> johnny: johnson onhe grass at. >> rob: 1st. body -- goes off the glove. watch ry zimmeann re. >> johnn fastballwhat happened there, lack of communication. manny acta will come out to the mound after break. we'll be back 2-2 ballgame here in the top of the 12th. gecko: , well maybe how geico's the third-largest car insurance company in america? nice tidbit there. boss: exactly. and i've been thinking, looking a bit more businesslike might help too. gecko: oh my. uhhh, no it's, what's, what's the word... vogeico. 15 minutes could save you 15 percent or more on car insurance. >>> villone's work is done the night. jay son bergmann will come on. bruce at 3rd. gonzalez at 1st on with the error. ryan hanigan set to step in now. tough situation for jason bergmann. >> rob: yes, it is. right here you're thinking you could possib

ronnie belliard at 1st base. the nats in an enviable position to get this win and get some momentum going to florida. 3-2 they lead. joe beimel this year pitched well his last 7 games. he will face jay bruce. a breaking ball in for a strike. grounder back. zimmerman cuts it off to belliard. one down. >> rob: nice job by ryan zimmerman. >> johnny: just makes them and makes them, doesn't he rob. >> rob: what did i say after he airmailed that ball earlier in the game that a run came in on. he has been stellar ever since. as a pitcher, you have to forget the one error and think about the 9 he makes out of 10. he has made some amazing plays right there on bruce. another one on phillips. >> johnny: that is the first out here in the 9th. beimel to face alex gonzalez. breaking ball. inside for a ball. >> rob: and give him a lot of credit on zimmerman's hustle down the 1st base line even though gonzalez took out fi phillips. if he wasn't -- took out phillips. >> johnny: drifting back is guzman calling off willingham and w

but ronnie belliard is a heck of a player. that hit .290, .287 for this ball club and has done a tremendous job. the only problem is he is in a situation where he is not going to get to play much. like any hitter, the toughest thing to do is to come off the bench. if you're not getting enough at- bats to stay sharp and he is not. this year instead of staying in that mode where he is trying to hit the ball to right center field, every time he seems to pinch hit, he is trying to hit a three-run home run, but that is the tendency because you're so fired up. he just needs to play, but i don't know if he is going to get a chance to play here. >> when you're talking about playing, i don't think anyone in this ball club is playing as well on an overall extended period of time that is christian guzman. he's had seven of his last eight games, multi-hit games. he has only played 57 games this year and look at what he has done for this ball club. >> over the last 1,003 at-bats, he is hitting impressively. he was injured in 2007, 2008, .3

now 3-1 on belliard. sharply hit foul. >> rob: we see guthrie working from the windup. is that because he's uncomfortable in the stretch. is that because he thinks he has better stuff in the windup? >> jim p.: i think he's the starting pitcher and he doesn't think that the runner from third is going to steal. he's just struggling to put a pitch over. you just hope somebody hits something at somebody. to the credit of the nationals, sometimes you have those games, where you make the good pitches and they just foul them off. and you get deeper in the count, then you can't execute your pitches. all of a sudden it's kind of like a merry-go-round. look at those numbers. and this guy could swing the bat. maybe not this year, but in years past. hitting has never been a problem. >> jim h.: hit towards shortstop, andino to second, roberts at first, there's the double play and guthrie gets out of a very in-- gets out of it very inexpensively. two beers! you got it! are you insured? do you know when your beer is perfectly cold? or do you risk drinking a warm one? if you have the n

then you have the pitcher's spot and the only player available is ronnie belliard. runner going.own the line but it's hooking foul. and willie harris flirting with a long ball for the second time tonight. >> rob: willie harris. >> reporter: it looked good for a while and then it had that big hook. >> rob: there is a huge whole between first and second and a great swing right here with the toronto defense and richardson. he laid a fastball down broadway. >> bob: now, he shows bunt early. a throw to first base not even on the bag. that's ball 2. 2-1, good running count. willie not showing bunt early this time. and the count's even 2-2. now with more of a possibility of the runner going, the second base umpire has shifted from the shortstop to the second base side of the bag. there is the umpire. he was right over right between the pitcher and the shortstop before. kind of interesting to watch how they change positions and get ready for certain plays. 2-2. >> rob: if you send the runner right here, try to hit the ball to the right side, still moves the runner up. >> bob: yep. >> rob

ronnie belliard, late scratch yesterday.ck out the defense there. >> bob: one of the two double plays mcdougal made for saves. >> rob: tremendous eferts effort by our players. >> bob: anderson hernandez, a runner with speed. it's a left-handed pitcher. willie harris has stolen four bases in career -- this year without being caught. he swiped 13-16 for the nationals last year. pitcher's spot due next. there's a pinch-hitter they're the -- near the on-deck circle. willie started then stopped. ball one to hernandez who walked and been in -- rather singled tonight. there's austin kearns. rick eckstein told me austin kearns is so close to getting hits. he's really pleased with some of his at-bats this past road trip. he hit that ball last night 405 feet that brent gardener caught up against the wall injuring himself. so, eckstein is not at all reluctant to see austin kearns in there hacking. if he says so, that's good enough for me because he can tell when a hitter is just about getting back to where he should be. now it's 3-0. i

we signed sid green, belliard and pendleton, three defensive players. all of a sudden our pitching was a heck of a lot better. it is amazing how that works. believe me, we understand that connection, we are aware of that, and we are on the look out for those final pieces once we get the rotation put into place. that is why i am as excite as i am about the future and about how close we are. that is my observation, but i tell you what encourages me more. in the last two weeks, our new pitching coach was once a part of a phenomenon like this, five starters who had success in oakland. he was one of those kids. he says to me sitting in the dugout during one of our innumerable rain delays this year. he said stan, this is exacting to watch. this is exactly what we went through in oakland. two days later i was on the phone with bobby cox, who unsolicited said the same thing to me. he had never seen ross detwiler pitch. he had watched him the night before and he called me to say stan, it is really happening. and the most recent guy who said that to me was just y

. >> bob: he hits the ball extremely hard but rht at ronny belliard for the first out here in the thirduld be markakis and huff the next two hitters. >> rob: i played with reggie jackson who hit home runs in eight or nine straight games, same with don baylor, they'd get so hot, then all of ugre confidence you start expanding the strike zone and you get yourself out of that hot streak. now, this guy doesn't swing at too many balls. nick markakis, that's why he's right around .300, just about every year. >> bob: 43 strikeouts, 28 walks. that's a pretty good ratio for someone who hits with power. >> rob: markakis came ino  tonight hitting .327, five home runs on the year. >> bob: he's one of the reasons the orioles have won 12 of their last 16 interleague games in this blpark. hitting