Wei-Yin Chen, 2015 Donruss #57

When this unlicensed card from Panini hit the shelves last year, Wei-Yin Chen was indeed a member of the Baltimore Baseball Club, better known as the Orioles...at least to anyone who is not a sentient robot masquerading as a human. But as of yesterday, the man I call "Weentsy" is now collecting his paychecks from the Miami Baseball Club. You know, the Marlins. I'll miss his under-the-radar competence, and I'll never forget his winning effort in Game Two of the 2012 ALDS - the Birds' first home playoff win in 15 years, and the first postseason game I ever had the good fortune to see in person. Chen closes the door on his four-year Baltimore tenure with a strong 46-32 record, a 3.72 ERA (110 ERA+), and 3.18 strikeouts for every walk. Best wishes for the Taiwanese lefty...especially when he's facing the Nationals.

Wei-Yin Chen, 2015 Topps Orioles Team Set #BO-15

Wei-Yin Chen, or "Weentsy", as I (and nobody else that I know of) call him, came through in a big way for the Orioles tonight. The bullpen has been working overtime lately, as O's starting pitchers had failed to complete six innings in eight consecutive games before tonight. But Chen was equal to the task, plowing through the Phillies for eight shutout innings in a 4-0 win, the team's ninth victory in the past 11 games. The Philly batters hit only four balls out of the infield, none before the fifth inning. The big blow for the Birds was a two-out, three-run homer by Matt Wieters in the sixth inning, but it's nice to see a starter give most of the 'pen a night off. Thanks, Weentsy!

Wei-Yin Chen, 2014 Topps Heritage #86

Okay, no home run for J. J. Hardy last night, and he committed yet another error. Apparently I don't have mystical jersey-relic-related powers. Duly noted. But I did have a grand night at the ballpark with my wife and my sister, thanks in large part to Wei-Yin Chen. The 28-year-old southpaw turned in his best start of the year and one of the best in his two-plus seasons in Baltimore thus far, combining with Darren O'Day and Zach Britton to shut out the Red Sox for the second time in three games.

Chen retired the first 11 batters he faced before Dustin Pedroia laced a hit into the right field corner. But Boston's scrawny second baseman had the nerve to test Nick Markakis' throwing arm and was gunned out at second base to end the fourth inning. In innings five through seven, Chen allowed a single per frame but coaxed three double play grounders to keep the Beantowners from mounting any serious threats. He also struck out a season-high seven Red Sox batters in earning his seventh win, already matching last year's victory total in ten less starts. Meanwhile, the O's offense gave Wei-Yin an early cushion with a three-spot in the first off of young Rubby de la Rosa. A Steve Pearce walk, an Adam Jones RBI double, and a Chris Davis two-run homer did the trick. Nick Hundley chipped in with a two-out single in the fourth to plate Hardy, as the newish Oriole catcher had his first multi-hit game since arriving in a trade with the Padres last month.

After six and a half innings played under threatening skies, a thunderstorm arrived emphatically during the seventh-inning stretch. We waited out half of the ensuing one hour and 40 minute rain delay, enjoying some 1983 World Series highlights (narrated by Mel Allen!) on the center field video board. But with the clock pushing past 10:00 with no announced restart time on a Wednesday night and the Birds comfortably ahead, we decided to head home. I caught the end of the game on TV, including run-scoring walks by Jonathan Schoop and Markakis to push the advantage to 6-0 in the eighth inning. One flawless inning from Britton later, and the Orioles were in the win column, closing to within 4.5 games of first-place Toronto just in time for the Blue Jays to arrive for a four-game weekend series.

All that, and I got this excellent "Oriole Way" promotional giveaway tee!

Wei-Yin Chen, 2014 Topps Blue Parallel #138

Mercifully, today is another day. There's another game. When things look bad, I try to remember that each team gets at least 162 of these things in a season. I'll be at the ballpark in five hours, preparing to see Wei-Yin Chen throw his first pitch and try to shut down the Royals. He'll be opposed by our old pal Jeremy Guthrie, whose reputation as a pretty exemplary human being won't stop me from hoping that his ex-team lights him up like the Inner Harbor on New Year's Eve.

Wei-Yin Chen, 2013 Panini Pinnacle #77

Well, that was unpleasant. The Orioles have their first series loss of the season and their first losing streak. The Red Sox, as loath as I am to admit it, are a pretty good team. They didn't win the 2013 World Series by accident. In 27 tries over these first three games of the season, Baltimore pitchers had one 1-2-3 inning. Wei-Yin Chen suffered death by a thousand paper cuts tonight, giving up four runs on 11 singles and a double. The Birds continued their opening-series offensive torpor, scraping together three runs before being blanked in the final three innings. There's still 159 games left to go, and tomorrow's another day. Off to Detroit.

Wei-Yin Chen, 2012 Topps Chrome #188

I know that yesterday's post was a bit of a downer, and that's not a tone that I like to set around here. So let's have a little collectorly fun! Saturday afternoon my wife and I took an impromptu trip to Philadelphia to visit a good friend of hers. Along the way we stopped at the Christiana Mall in Delaware because, hey, tax-free shopping. In the mall-adjacent Target, I availed myself of four discounted packs of cards that I otherwise would not have touched with a ten-foot bat: a pack each of 2008 Upper Deck Documentary and 2012 Topps Chrome, and a couple of packs of 2012 Bowman Platinum. I didn't find much to blog home about, but a few cards have already been set aside for my long-neglected trade partners, and those that don't get redistributed will be welcomed into my collection to fill the oft-overlooked shiny quotient. Oh, and there was this Chrome rookie card of Mr. Wei-Yin Chen, who will hopefully be a bit more durable in 2014 than he was last season. No card-buying activity is ever truly a waste unless you allow it to be.

Wei-Yin Chen, 2012 Topps Heritage High Numbers #H609

Wei-Yin Chen had his game face on tonight, avoiding the late-inning lapses that have dogged him recently, and the Orioles hung on to avoid a sweep at the hands of the wild card-leading Rays. The lefty won his seventh game with seven strong innings, allowing a pair of solo home runs for Tampa Bay's only scores of the night. The O's also played a bit of long ball, with Adam Jones swatting his 26th home run and Chris Davis absolutely pulverizing a ball onto Eutaw Street for his 46th. Crush is tied with Jim Gentile for third-most homers in a single season in team history. The Jones and Davis homers provided the winning margin, as Tommy Hunter pitched out of an inherited two-on, no-out jam in the ninth inning. He earned the save when Matt Wieters gunned a low throw to second base (and J. J. Hardy applied an expert tag) to catch Kelly Johnson trying to steal. Orioles 4, Rays 2. Four and a half back of the Rays, and three back of the A's. Oakland's coming to town this weekend. It's not over yet.