Jeremy Guthrie, 2007 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH142

Now that's the way to start the season. I drove downtown yesterday evening, parked right across the street from Oriole Park, and walked over to Pickles Pub to meet up with several moderators and members of Camden Chat. The bar was packed and most of the patrons were decked out in orange and black. I wore my game-used Lou Montanez spring training jersey, with an orange Buck Showalter tee underneath for good luck. The excitement was palpable, and watching the Red Sox blow a late lead to the Rangers on ESPN provided a proper kick-off to the festivities.

There were loud cheers and high-fives when the Orioles reached Rays ace David Price for four runs, two coming on a drive to the fence by Brian Roberts that Johnny Damon hilariously turned into a triple. There were bellows of "LUUUKKKKEEEE" with every fly ball that Luke Scott tentatively tracked down in left field. But best of all, there was Jeremy Guthrie pitching one of his finest games, holding Tampa Bay to three hits and a walk while striking out six in eight shutout innings. He retired 13 batters in a row at one point, and escaped his only true jam by picking B. J. Upton off of second base in the eighth (though he did benefit from the third base umpire failing to call J. J. Hardy for interference when he collided with Upton). Jim Johnson finished the game, buckling down after a Ben Zobrist home run to strike out a pair of batters and induce a Manny Ramirez ground out. The O's began their 2011 campaign with a win in a neat two hours and eight minutes, and they're only 99 wins away from the postseason.

Okay, my tongue might be planted firmly in cheek, but you never know.

Brian Burres, 2007 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH330

The Great Northern Exodus of the 2008 Baltimore Orioles continues unabated. Adam Loewen and Brandon Fahey had already signed minor league deals with the Blue Jays, who also offered Kevin Millar a similar deal with a Spring Training invite. Now Toronto has claimed lefty Brian Burres off of waivers from the O's, who had to make room on the roster for Rich Hill. I'm not sure what the plan is for those crafty Canadians, but I thought I'd pay a bit of tribute to #56.

If you were to look at Brian Burres' stats in his 79 games with the Birds (2006-2008), you'd quickly recognize that he's a fringe player who won't be a great loss. 13 wins, 18 losses, a 5.88 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. He's a soft tosser who doesn't have the pinpoint control and movement to get away with it. But that's not to say that B.B. didn't have some great moments in his Oriole career:

September 2006: Allowed two runs in his major league debut, but did not allow a run for the rest of the season (seven and two-thirds innings total).

April 2007: In six relief appearances, compiled a 1.35 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 13 and 2/3 innings.

July 28, 2007: Defeated Roger Clemens and the Yankees with a four-hit, seven-strikeout, six-inning effort in an eventual 7-5 win. Rookie Cory Doyne gave up four runs in the ninth without recording an out before Jamie Walker slammed the door on the pinstripers.

September 14, 2007: Burres blanked Toronto over seven innings of eight-hit ball in a 6-2 O's win that brought his record to 6-5 before a three-game losing streak ended his season on a low note.

April 19, 2008: Brian combined with Jim Johnson to shut out the Yankees, 6-0. He scattered five hits and four walks in clinching a series win for the O's. Poor run support would cost him two other potential wins against the Bombers in 2008; he got no-decisions in 2-1 and 1-0 Baltimore losses.

April 26, 2008: Brian three-hit the host White Sox over eight innings, striking out four and walking none to pick up his third victory of the month, 5-1. The win kept the O's in first place.

So there you have it. One of the greatest things about baseball and its 162-game season is that there are ample opportunities for even Brian Burres and his sort to look like world-beaters now and again. Adios, you lanky Oregonian.