We might think August came early in Birdland this year as after a bit of a promising start, the Orioles are on pace to lose near 100 games with the same old formula of plenty of offense offset by horrendous starting pitching yielding to a broken down bullpen and failure to execute on defense despite efforts to improve substantially in that department. While fans are getting a small glimpse of the future with Brad Bergesen's assent to the major league roster, he can best be described as a "work in progress" at this point having started six games, 1-2, 5.35 ERA. At times, he's looked magnificent; other times, more like a fellow who still belongs in Norfolk. However, while we're not going to get on the ax Dave Trembley bandwagon, we seriously question his handling of Bergesen in Tuesday night's game in the hostile environment of Yankee Stadium. Bergesen gave up a respectable two runs over six innings but was left in to get clobbered in the seventh inning giving up two more runs before yielding to a totally ineffective Chris Ray who gave up four more runs further complicated by a fielding lapse adding an unearned run. Last night, the teams nominal ace, Jeremy Guthrie gave up back-to-back-to-back homers in the second inning.

Add this all up, the Orioles are averaging scoring 4.93 runs a game while giving up a horrifying 6.13 runs. On a typical night, the O's would be expected to lose 6-5, while five times they've given up 10 or more runs in 40 games. Another scary sight is how many times they've given up six or more runs in games they won!

Impatient fans are starting to look for a fall guy, Dave Trembley, as talk about the skipper has turned sour in recent days on the sports talk circuit. Thinking change is better than nothing, fans are also impatiently roaring for call-ups from Norfolk as if such moves could right a sinking ship in mid course. Nolan Reimold has made the journey up the Chesapeake to fill in for injured Luke Scott while other outfielders on the roster nurse nagging hurts. The outcry to elevate Matt Wieters, last year's number one prospect in all of the minor leagues, gets louder and louder. Truth be told, though, Wieters is not smacking the ball silly in Triple AAA nursing a hamstring injury, one that is especially difficult for a catcher.

The young arms at Norfolk and Bowie continue to work their way into major league form. Is there any point in rushing them to Baltimore for the sake of minor gains?

It's a tough decision as the Orioles brass are obligated to put the closest semblance of a competitive major league team on the field. Right now, the pitching staff consists mostly of castoffs and reclamation projects not legit major league starters. With Jeremy Guthrie's miserable start to the season, Kohi Uehara still settling into life half a world away from home, and Brad Bergesen just beginning to learn life in the majors, what's left is terrifying. Perhaps, Rich Hill could provide a little stability, but to call him an established major league starter is a gross overstatement.

Appreciating the 2009 Orioles is truly a labor of love, but at what point does that love turn into pure masochism. We're still over a week away from June 1st.

Camden Yards will be an evacuation zone in August if the team doesn't start showing some major signs of being the team it is building to become. Given where the team is now, another August collapse would put them on the path to historic futility. Nobody has an appetite for that. At their current pace, they would finish 65-97. Does anybody have an appetite for that?

Our beautiful ballpark is a sad and empty place as even the MASN cameras can't hide the empty caverns of unoccupied Camden green seats. How sad it is that the fine performances of Nick Martakis, Brian Roberts, Melvin Mora, Aubrey Huff, and Adam Jones (perhaps at times making the routine look spectacular) are going largely unnoticed. Such play should promote winning, but when the pitching staff serves up at least six runs a game on an average night, what can we expect?