Orioles place Bergy on DL
Chris Ray or Kam Mickolio?
How about both?
The Orioles placed pitcher Brad Bergesen on the 15-day disabled list with a bruised left shin, recalled Kam Mickolio from Triple-A Norfolk and returned Chris Ray from his rehab assignment at Double-A Bowie.
The next step is determining who takes Bergesen's turn in the rotation.
Mickolio didn't allow a run in three games covering 3 2/3 innings in an earlier stint with the club. He's 2-3 with a 3.35 ERA in 30 games with Norfolk, and could be called upon to help fill the set-up void.
Ray totaled three scoreless innings with Bowie, and his fastball was clocked at 95 mph. He just needs to get more movement on it and to improve his slider. Otherwise, the results aren't going to improve, no matter how his arm's feeling.
Bergesen is 7-5 with a 3.43 ERA. X-rays didn't reveal a fracture after he was hit on the shin by Billy Butler's liner yesterday, but the swelling and a deep bruise were going to prevent him from making his next start. And X-rays don't always tell the whole story. I'd go straight to an MRI.
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So does this mean:
A) that Kam is here for a couple of days until we need another starter, or;
B) that AM is already planning to have a roster spot open for another starter later today (hint, hint), or;
C) that Hendrickson's going to be a starter again (ugh!)
F me. We are cursed. Totally.
I'm less than thrilled about promoting either of Kam or Ray again. As far as the replacement for Bergy...I just hope it's not another AAAA retread like Waters. We've been subjected to that crap for way too long.
We need a guy Tuesday in Detroit and then Sunday in Toronto. With Thursday the 13th off, Bergey should be back in time to take the next turn after that. I don't think we can afford to use Hendrickson or Bass given that we have Berken, the unproven Tillman and erratic Guthrie in the rotation. Expecting Hernandez to go long into every game is probably asking too much also. If Patton or Arrieta were pitching well in AAA, I'd give one of them a shot, but they're not, especially not Patton. I guess I'd give Pauley a shot. He hasn't exactly been great at Norfolk, but probably is a safer move than prematurely bringing up one of the other two and you don't use up an option because Pauley was already optioned this year.
Thanks for the terrible news Roch.
I hope he fares better than Carlos Beltran. He has a leg bone bruise & has been out a month.
Maybe Bass goes 5 with 2 other guys finishing it? They still have a P slot to fill too.
Any chance Arrieta gets the call?
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He isn't pitching well enough to have earned it. - Roch
Poor Bergy, at least the club didn't wait till the day of his start to make the move.
I say Matusz should be given the spot start. He is the only option Arrieta isn't pitching well and everyone else is junk
I probably would've kept Ray in the minors for longer than 3 innings, since they can still send him down, and call up Miller or McCrory.
Not sure who I'd use to start in Bergesen's spot though. Pauley's out of options so he'd have to pass through waivers to go down again. I don't want to see Waters or Liz. Arrieta and Patton haven't been pitching well enough at AAA yet. Don't want to put Hendrickson back in the rotation, even if only for 2-3 starts. Albers?
I feel like I've been kicked in the b*lls.
Let's pray it is just a bruise, in his shin that is.
Any predictions from you Roch on who they call up to start? Or do you think they might plug Hendrickson or Bass in for a few games and call Ray and Kam up?
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They already called up Ray and Mickolio. Don't know about the starter. Maybe Pauley. That's one of the reasons he's in the organization, to be used in this situation instead of rushing one of the kids. And Arrieta hasn't been especially sharp. No way Patton gets the call with his inflated ERA at Triple-A. - Roch
Word on the street is that the Tigers are hot after Luke Scott.
How many more lives does Ray get? He's like Jason or Michael Myers. Everytime you think he is gone for good, he comes back for revenge.
How many more times do we have to watch him give up BP to the opposing team followed by BS excuses about his "health"?
IT GETS OLD MacSTUBBORN!
IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY.
Call up Jim Miller.
Giving Mickolio a shot as the set up guy the remainder of the season is a good idea. Not at all convinced that Chris ray is ready to return. Why not give McCrory a real oportunity the remainder of the season or Jim Miller?
Ouch! An unfortunate reminder that fans should never worry about having too many starters.
As much as we probably don't want to see Waters or Liz, I say why not bring 'em up to make the spot starts? I don't think it'd be smart to call up Arrieta or Matusz for just a start or two, plus that'd be going against what McPhail said the plan was, right? This really stinks, but hopefully Bergy's only on the DL for 15 days...
This sucks... the O's can never buy a break... of course their best pitcher would have a ball hit off his shin in his last inning of work... naturally. It's depressing.
Brian Bass is my choice. I think he gives the club the best chance to win and can probably go 4, if not 5 innings right away. Hendrickson has been good too, but too valuable as the one lefty for Trembley to go to. Albers has been good, but probably can't go more than 3 innings at this point.
BTW, nice trade by MacPhail. O's fans are not happy, Dodgers fans aren't happy either. But think it's a good trade for both clubs. Bell has excellent command of the strike zone, and that's just something you can't teach. And if Johnson can even do an imitation of his dad and come up in August and give a contending team some needed depth in the rotation he's worth it too.
No need to worry about Tuesday's starter...rain is forcast for Detroit!
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Now THAT'S a scouting report. - Roch
MLB Trade Rumors reports that Cleveland is sending Victor Martinez to Boston. Geez!
Hey Roch,
Any speculation on why Jim Miller hasn't been on the grapevine for closing duties? I don't have much information about him.
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Haven't heard any talk about him. I think he'll come up later in the summer, but I guess some other pitchers are more highly regarded, including Mickolio. - Roch
If Len is correct, we may miss Jarrod Washburn who has been traded to Detroit.
Roch,
Thanks for clearing that up w/ the move, I mis-read the first time on Ray and Kam (I thought you were just saying you thought it would happen). Isn't Pauley out of options so if we bring him up won't he have to clear waivers to go back down?
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Correct. - Roch
I like Mickolio, i think we can make him into an 8th inning guy. Ray keeps struggling but i think he'll be better. i was hoping to dump baez/hendrickson but it doesnt look like itll happen now.
Hey Roch - I realize this is slightly off topic, but we are talking about Orioles minor league pitcher's and having an opening in the rotation on Tuesday. Any chance that becomes Radhames Liz? He's actually been pretty good at Bowie as a starter. He's 4-1 with a 2.62 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and remarkably has only walked 14 in 48 innings. I believe someone said he was pretty erratic his last start, but he does have major league experience and would not lose an option since he was up earlier this year.
Something I don't understand is that when he was last sent down he was to be converted as a releiver. That lasted about a month at Norfolk and then he was sent to Bowie. What gives?
You have bruise spelled right but not bruised. That's rather impressive.
I agree with terpfan, bring up Pauley and hope to God Bergy is back in 15 days. We're pulling for you buddy.
I think the real question of who starts on tue will be determined by how deep Berken & Tillman go the two nights previous. it would be nice to not have to call up anyone else and I have no problem with Bass or Henderickson making a spot start. If we have to call someone up, my heart says Arrieta but I'd go with Pauley and just leave the young guys alone for the rest of the year. Arrieta didn't pitch that many innings last year b/c of the Olympics and Patton is still only 1 year removed from tommy john surgery. I would also be very tempted to call up Matusz since he has been so dominating but again, the future is more important than anything.
here's to a speedy recovery for Bergy
terpfan,
Pauley wasn't optioned to Norfolk - he cleared waivers during spring training and was assigned. He doesn't have options left.
I'm not disagreeing with the premise of giving him a shot, just that he'd have to be exposed to waivers again to send him back out.
Brummie you are right, "it" does get old.
Call me crazy, but what about Radhames Liz as Tuesday's starter? Since being moved down to Bowie he is 4-1, with a 2.62 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, and remarkably walked only 14 in 48 innings. He has major league experience and would not lose an option because he was in Baltimore earlier this year. he's also only needed for two starts, both on the road, possibly sparing any wrath from hometown fans.
Something I don't understand is the team's plan for him, if any. When he was sent down earlier this spring he was to be converted to relief. That lasted about a month at Norfolk and he has been a starter since being moved to Bowie. Thoughts Roch.
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Pitching well at Double-A doesn't make him a viable candidate in my book. He just moved up to Norfolk today. - Roch
Roch,
Quick question...
FoxSports is reporting the Tigers are trying to get Luke Scott now. Considering his age and streakiness...if we get a fair offer for him, not a WOW offer, do you think we should trade him.
Probably won't happen, but I'm just curious.
I think we should. Definitely helps Pie get some more looks.
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You'd have to define "fair." I think it takes a Wow offer because the Orioles aren't looking to move Scott. - Roch
Frick on a stick with a brick!
Do you think Chris Waters has hope for making a start? Even though he had some trouble last year, he had a great debut and the complete game in September...
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He'd be a candidate. Pauley or Waters seem the most logical choices, though it would be Andy Mitchell's turn. - Roch
Roch,
We came to the Orioles with George Sherrill. We've been his fans since his independent league days (my husband worked with his dad). George has always been a classy guy and we are proud to have known him and love watching his success. I found your blog when you were still at The Sun and you quickly turned us into Orioles fans - not just George fans. Being out-of-state, we rely on you to keep us in the loop. We have learned to love the Orioles - win or lose.
We were so disappointed that he was traded to the Dodgers (we really don't like Manny), but I guess we will learn to adjust. Maybe he will get some post-season play and that is cool. At least Dodgers are NL, so there is no conflict of interest. We've come too far and invested too much to quit on the Orioles now. When I told my 9 year old daughter about the trade, her first reaction was "ugh, he'll have to play with Manny?" Her next big concern was "I'm NOT giving up the Orioles! We still have to watch them everyday - even without George!"
Roch, thanks for making the Orioles players seem like family to all us fans. That is why we can hang on even through the bad games (or years). Keep up the good work and we will keep reading you and cheering for the Os.
Brummie_Oriole said:
How many more lives does Ray get? He's like Jason or Michael Myers. Everytime you think he is gone for good, he comes back for revenge.
How many more times do we have to watch him give up BP to the opposing team followed by BS excuses about his "health"?
IT GETS OLD MacSTUBBORN!
IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY.
Call up Jim Miller.
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Are you serious about this one, or just provoking people?
Maybe this is one of your clones? There's no way this is a serious post. I hope.
Nice try on the weather report for Detroit on Tuesday, Len. Problem is, I believe it's the O's last visit to Detroit (a team in contention for a playoff spot). That means if Tuesday's a wash out, a double header would follow on Wednesday. Still need a starter. I think they've already made their decision. It's going to be Bass. That creates the least amount of chaos to the roster and the young arms.
I think David Pauley is going to get the call he has been pitching well in Norfolk and has some ML experience.
I doubt this will happen, but it should be Matusz. He's polished and mature enough, IMO, to pitch in the major leagues right now. We brought Bedard up straight from AA, why not Matusz?
MRI is important. Bergy will be ok tho in the longrun. It's much more of a troubling issue if it was in a soft tissue area. Shins hurt like heck because they tend to reverberate a lot of force, but sometimes they can be all bark and less bite.
Roch, do you have any read on the body language of the coaches or managers about how ominous or minor it might be?
That really is bad news.
These deep bone bruises are are no walk in the park. Hockey players get them all the time when they get in an unprotected place by a slap shot. Often enough the bruises take 4-6 weeks to heal.
Let's hope Bergy wasn't hit flat on the bone but that his muscles absorbed most of the impact. In either case he'll be gone for awhile.
" Bell has excellent command of the strike zone, and that's just something you can't teach."
what does that even mean?
Dodgers seem very close to getting Adrian Gonzalez in a deal that may not include James Loney because Padres have Kyle Blanks for first base. Dodgers also need another starting pitcher. Guthrie and a prospect for Loney solves our first base problem. Act quickly Andy!
" Bell has excellent command of the strike zone, and that's just something you can't teach."
what does that even mean?
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He's talking about plate discipline. He knows how to work the count. His OBP is almost 100 points higher than his batting average.
Jeff, understood. I meant you wouldn't use up someone else's option. I don't think Pauley would have difficulty getting through waivers again if he came up and made two starts and didn't do well enough to stay. If he did do well enough, there are guys whose option already has been exercised (e.g. Mickolio) who could be sent back until the rosters expand.