Kuzul

The Baltimore Orioles are in a tough battle with the New York Yankees in the AL East. They’ve erased a four-game deficit over the last two weeks with an 11-3 stretch.

Baseball players can be a bit superstitious, and the last thing Baltimore needed was something disrupting their momentum.

Well, perhaps the last thing they needed was having their momentum disrupted while losing one of their best offensive players.

Richard Justice of MLB.com is reporting that Nick Markakis will likely miss the next six weeks. 

Nick Markakis broken bone in thumb. Gone around six weeks pending more exam. “We lost a big part,” Buck Showalter said.

— Richard Justice (@richardjustice) September 9, 2012

He injured the thumb on a pitch from CC Sabathia.

Markakis has put together a very good season for Baltimore. He leads the team with a .298 average and has hit 13 home runs with 54 runs batted in.

He also contributes in right field, but his bat is what the Orioles will miss the most.

Markakis missed the month of June and half of July with a broken hamate bone in his right wrist. He was hitting just .263 at the time, in part due to struggling with the injury for two weeks before it broke completely, requiring surgery.

There is no word on how the Orioles will respond, but backup first baseman Chris Davis filled in for Markakis during his first absence from the lineup.

MLB.com tweeted a video of the pitch that hit Markakis.

BREAKING: @orioles RF Nick Markakis out roughly 6 weeks with broken bone in left thumb from this @cc_sabathia pitch: atmlb.com/P0nYVA

— MLB (@MLB) September 9, 2012

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The Baltimore Orioles are in need of a bat to make a playoff run, and the Philadelphia Phillies have one to spare.

Jim Thome had a good showing playing designated hitter during interleague play, making him an attractive option for American League teams, and according to a tweet from the Orioles, they jumped at the chance to acquire him:

The #Orioles have acquired DH Jim Thome from the Phillies in exchange for two minor leaguers. Thome is expected to be in uniform tomorrow.

— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) June 30, 2012

The Phillies were able to swing catcher Gabriel Lino and RHP Kyle Simon in the trade, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman.

it is indeed gabriel lino, catcher, and kyle simon, rhp, going to philly for thome, who goes to #orioles.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) June 30, 2012

Philadelphia Phillies insider Jim Salisbury first reported that the two teams were talking.

At 41 years of age, Thome hasn’t been able to be a consistent producer in the National League. He’d appeared in just 30 games, with a batting average of .242 in 62 at-bats.

However, when he stepped up against more familiar American League pitching in the DH role, Thome flourished.

In nine interleague games, he batted .333 in 36 at-bats. He hit four of his five home runs in those games while adding 14 of his 15 RBI.

The deal is expected to be finalized after the two teams finish play on Saturday.

Baltimore is playing well, but trail the New York Yankees by 4.5 games. They are in a virtual tie with the Los Angeles Angels in the wild card race.

The Orioles have struggled scoring runs this season. They are 10th in the American League in runs scored and 11th in batting average. Their most productive offensive threat is center fielder Adam Jones, hitting .297 with 19 home runs.

Mark Reynolds and Nick Johnson have been manning the DH position, but are hitting .213 and .207, respectfully. They have a combined 10 homers.

Thome should offer some power in the middle of the lineup and assist with run production.

The Baltimore Orioles are in need of a bat to make a playoff run, and the struggling Philadelphia Phillies (36-44) had one to spare.

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The 2012 MLB All-Star Game rosters will be released on Sunday. Fans are eager to see which of their favorites will make the Midsummer Classic and third base in the American League is one of the more interesting position battles.

A fan poll on ESPN.com shows third base is one of the most competitive battles. Miguel Cabrera is leading, followed by Mark Trumbo. But Adrian Beltre is a distant third at third base.

The fans are getting this contest wrong.

I have no intention of taking anything away from Cabrera or Trumbo. Both are great players having good seasons. However, Beltre is putting up the offensive numbers he needs to pair with his Gold Glove defense to earn the starting spot.

While playing with the Seattle Mariners, Beltre’s offensive output suffered. His best season produced a batting average of just .276 and 26 home runs.

However, his strong defense at the hot corner helped fans overlook his struggling bat.

The move to Boston and then Texas brought back the offensive production. His third Gold Glove, coming after the 2011 season, shows he still possesses great defense.

The same can’t be said for Cabrera or Trumbo.

Both have been moved across the diamond to get them in the lineup. Cabrera has been passable at the position, but Trumbo was so bad early in the year that the Anaheim Angels opted to bench him.

So why are they leading the ESPN.com vote?

Fans simply can’t be trusted to know who the best players are…but that is a different article.

Looking at the offensive side of the stat sheet, Beltre still holds the edge. He has the best batting average of the trio and the fewest strikeouts. While he is last in home runs and RBI, the difference isn’t material. 

The ESPN.com fan vote isn’t reflective of the official voting, as Beltre has been leading in the votes that count. He had a slim lead over Cabrera, with Alex Rodriguez a distant third.

Trumbo didn’t crack the top five.

Final rosters will be announced on Sunday. Beltre’s revived offensive production and stellar defense should make him the clear choice at third base. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com