Tillman shines as Orioles top Lee in Rangers' debut

Baseball Betting Lines

07/10/2010 - Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Tillman overshadowed the much- anticipated Rangers debut of Cliff Lee with 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball, and the Baltimore Orioles recorded their first road series win of 2010 with a 6-1 victory over Texas.

Tillman (1-3), who came into the game with an 8.40 earned run average and was recalled from the minors on Saturday, carried a no-hitter into the seventh and allowed just two hits and one walk while fanning three for Baltimore, which has won the first three games of this set to record its first road series win of the season (1-13-1).

Nick Markakis, Cesar Izturis and Adam Jones all homered in the victory.

Lee (8-4) had a less than spectacular debut with his new club, giving up six runs and nine hits in a complete game effort -- his sixth of the year and fifth in seven contests. The Orioles attacked him early in the count, as evidenced by his 95 pitches thrown, 73 for strikes.

The All-Star lefty was acquired on Friday in a deal with division rival Seattle, as the Rangers make a push for their first playoff appearance since 1999. It is Lee's fourth team in two seasons, and he will head for free agency in the offseason barring a long-term agreement with Texas.

David Murphy scored the Rangers' lone run on a wild pitch, as Texas lost for the fifth time in seven games.

Lee, who didn't arrive to the ballpark until a couple hours before game-time, showed signs of fatigue early on. The first pitch he threw as a Ranger went for a double by Corey Patterson, and the next pitch was lined to right for an RBI single from Miguel Tejada.

Lee was able to settle down until the fourth, when Markakis deposited an offering into the right-field seats for a 2-0 Baltimore lead. The Orioles kept taking Texas' new ace deep, as Izturis hammered his first homer of the year -- a solo shot -- with two outs in the fifth, and Jones' two-run shot with two down in the sixth provided a 5-0 cushion.

Meanwhile, Tillman flirted with history.

The Orioles' lanky righty retired the first nine hitters he faced before walking Elvis Andrus to begin the fourth. He was able to record outs during the next three at-bats and carried a no-hitter into the seventh.

Ian Kinsler, however, broke up the bid with one out in the seventh inning, poking a ground ball through the infield's left side. Tillman recovered to retire the next two hitters to keep his shutout intact.

The whitewash attempt quickly went by the wayside in the eighth, however, as Murphy singled to center and scampered to third when the ball eluded Jones and subsequently scored on a wild pitch.

Jones scored on a double play in the ninth to account for the final margin.

Game Notes

Lee is the first Rangers player to give up three homers in his debut with the team since Ryan Snare on August 6, 2004...Texas honored Michael Young prior to the game for capturing the team's all-time hits record earlier in the season. He went 1-for-4...Tillman's allowed run was unearned...Lee struck out two and walked none, raising his strikeout-to-walk ratio to 91-to-6...Lee has historically struggled in Texas, compiling a 7.33 earned run average in eight career starts there...Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton had his 29-game home hit streak come to an end after an 0-for-4 game. The team record is 30 games, accomplished by Al Oliver in 1981.

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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