SoCal MLB Preview

LA Angels (64-39) at Baltimore (48-55), 10:35 am

BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- The Baltimore Orioles aim to snap a 16-game Sunday losing streak when they wrap up a three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The Orioles, who have lost six straight overall, have not won on Sunday since April 6. Baltimore has a ways to go before reaching the major-league record of 21 straight losses on a specific day. The 1939 St. Louis Browns and 1890 Pittsburgh Innocents both did it on Tuesdays. The Orioles are having trouble winning no matter what day it is, and Garrett Olson (6-5, 6.11 ERA) is not the ideal candidate to put an end to both their streaks. The lefthander 1-4 with an 8.62 ERA in his last eight games and has not won since June 28. Olson isn't the only Baltimore starter struggling. Orioles starters have an ERA of 10.23 during their current five-game skid. On Saturday, rookie Radhames Liz was rocked for six runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings of an 11-4 loss. Los Angeles, which has won four straight, hands the ball to Ervin Santana (11-4, 3.37)., who seems to have solved his road woes, as he is 8-1 with a 3.44 ERA in 12 starts away from Angel Stadium this season. Last season, the righthander went 1-10 with an 8.38 ERA on the road.

Washington (38-66) at LA Dodgers (51-52), 1:10 pm

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Casey Blake already is having an effect on the Los Angeles Dodgers' slumping offense. Blake will try and help the Dodgers complete three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals on Sunday. The 34-year-old third baseman was acquired from Cleveland on Saturday for a pair of prospects and had two hits and scored a run in his debut, a 6-0 win. Derek Lowe tossed eight dominant innings and Matt Kemp homered for the Dodgers, who nearly matched their offensive output from the previous three games. Blake was leading Cleveland with a .289 average and 58 RBI prior to the trade. The veteran was acquired to spark an offense that ranks 24th in baseball in runs scored with 435. While the Dodgers have struggled to score, they are nowhere as bad as the Nationals. Washington was held to two hits on Saturday, and is last in baseball with 388 runs. That bodes well for rookie lefthander Clayton Kershaw (0-3, 5.18 ERA), who was knocked around on Tuesday after being recalled from Class AAA Las Vegas. The seventh overall pick of the 2006 draft, Kershaw allowed five runs and 10 hits in three innings of a 10-1 loss to Colorado on Tuesday. Washington, which has lost eight straight here, counters with Jason Bergmann (1-7, 4.21). Bergman is 0-6 with a 3.26 ERA in his last 11 starts. The Nationals have lost 15 of 19 and are owners of the worst record in baseball.