--2B Brian Roberts continues to struggle at the plate. Although he had a sacrifice fly on Sunday, he still ended the day on a 2-for-24 stretch that saw his average fall to .247 after hovering near the .300 mark for the first two weeks of the season.
--RHP Chad Bradford, who has given up only one home run in each of his last three major league seasons, was touched for a two-run clout on Sunday by Johnny Damon, the first batter he faced when relieving RHP Steve Trachsel in the seventh inning. --LF Luke Scott's seven-game hitting streak was snapped with an 0-for-4 effort at the plate against the Yankees on Sunday.
--LHP Adam Loewen, scheduled to pitch on Tuesday in Seattle, may be moved back to Thursday. Manager Dave Trembley implied on Sunday that the change would be made to give Loewen time to work on regaining command of his pitches.
--SS Luis Hernandez, who made the team because of his fielding, has been in a defensive slump with three errors in the first 19 games of the season. He worked with Coach Juan Samuel on his footwork when that, more than being nervous in his first major league season, was deemed his problem making plays cleanly.
BY THE NUMBERS: 3 -- Pinch-hit singles in three consecutive games put Jay Payton in the spotlight in Baltimore. Payton ran his hitting streak to four games when he broke up Andy Pettitte's no-hitter with a fifth-inning, broken bat, infield single on Sunday
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I'm kind of surprised that we've surprised some people, to be honest with you. The wins make it easier to sell that, not to the players, but to the people that are watching, the people that love and care about the Orioles." -- Manager Dave Trembley reflecting on the Orioles' early-season success.
