A look at a pitcher who has made a huge impact for the Bowie Baysox

As the Double-A Bowie Baysox pursue their first division championship since 2008 and second playoff berth in four years, their pitching staff is being led by a veteran right-hander who is putting up very strong numbers on the field while also providing an example for younger pitchers to follow.

Terry Doyle picked up his latest win on Sunday, allowing two earned runs or less for the 10th time in 12 starts. He is 11-1 with an ERA of 2.08. In 95 innings he has allowed 81 hits with 11 walks, 79 strikeouts and a .229 average against.

Not bad for a guy who began the year in the bullpen. But he made a spot start May 10 and he's been in the Bowie rotation ever since.

At 29, Doyle is probably not a threat to make any of those top prospects lists. And he doesn't light up any radar guns. He throws a fastball between 88-90 mph along with a curve, slider and changeup.

But on a Bowie pitching staff that lost Dylan Bundy and Branden Kline to injuries and saw Tim Berry's struggles send him to the bullpen, Doyle has come up huge.

"He turns around losing streaks," Baysox manager Gary Kendall said. "He's been that important and he's been a real good influence on our team and staff. He's got a great attitude and is a real pro out there.

"He has tremendous touch and feel as a pitcher with the ability to throw any of his four pitches in any count. He has been tremendously consistent, he's pitched deep into games and been a bullpen saver."

Doyle has followed up a strong June with a strong July. In nine starts since June 1, he is 8-0 with a 1.46 ERA. Over 61 2/3 innings he has allowed 47 hits with 10 walks and 50 strikeouts. The Orioles minor league Pitcher of the Month for June, the Baysox have won his last 11 starts.

"I can't speak enough about what he has meant to this ballclub," Kendall said. "I know he is an older guy and when you look around the league, it seems every team has one of those guys. He certainly has the stuff to move to Triple-A, but he's a great fit on our ballclub.

"He does a nice job pitching down in the zone and doesn't leave many balls in the middle of the plate. He's a good guy to play behind and he holds runners and is very quick to the plate, usually 1.2 (seconds)."

Doyle is playing in his seventh pro season and his first with the Orioles organization having previously played in the Chicago (AL), Boston and Atlanta minor leagues. The Concord, Mass. native was drafted by the White Sox in the 37th round of the 2008 draft out of Boston College and has now thrown 852 career minor league innings. The Orioles acquired him as a minor league free agent in November.

"He's helping guys like (Parker) Bridwell, (Ashur) Tolliver and Berry when they watch how he executes pitches, how he thinks, how he reads swings. Just been so valuable to have him. He prepares and that helps lead to his success and it is rubbing off on a lot of guys. He was a great signing by our front office," Kendall said.

Doyle is the Eastern League leader in wins and has thrown two shutouts. He ranks fourth in WHIP (0.97), and fifth in average against and ERA. The Baysox record for wins is 15 set by Brad Bergesen in 2008 when he was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Year.

Doyle has that record in reach as he leads Bowie to wins, sets a good example for other pitchers and works to help Bowie get back to the postseason.

Notes on Stewart and Miranda: Orioles first-round draft pick, Florida State outfielder DJ Stewart, was batting just .125 in his first 13 games with short-season Single-A Aberdeen and with just two extra-base hits. But in a doubleheader Monday, Stewart went 3-for-7 with a triple and solo homers in each game of the twinbill. It was a nice breakout day for Stewart, who had been in a 1-for-25 slump his previous seven games. Stewart hit his second and third homers for Aberdeen on Monday.

Single-A Frederick left-hander Ariel Miranda has been named the Carolina League Pitcher of the Week for the time period ending Sunday. The 26-year-old Cuban-born Miranda went 1-0 with an ERA of 0.82 in two starts. Sunday he pitched six no-hit innings against Potomac, leaving the game due to pitch count. In 11 innings in the two starts, Miranda allowed five hits and one run with two walks and 13 strikeouts.

Signed by the Orioles on May 23, Miranda is 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA over five starts with Frederick since joining the club on June 28. In 22 innings, he has allowed 10 runs on 16 hits to go with eight walks and 24 strikeouts, and opponents are batting .200 against him.

Prior to joining the Orioles organization, Miranda pitched seven professional seasons in the Cuban National Series, the country's top professional league. Beginning his pro career when he was just 17 years old, Miranda went 22-25 with a 3.78 over 80 total games (64 starts). He is the Keys third weekly honoree this year following pitcher David Hess and third baseman Drew Dosch.

Meanwhile, both Frederick and Single-A Delmarva produced walk-off wins last night. The Keys beat Potomac 6-5 on Jeff Kemp's two-out, two-run single. The lead changed hands five times in the last four innings. This was Frederick's sixth walk-off win of 2015. The Keys are 45-50 overall and moved over .500 for the first time for the second half at 13-12.

Delmarva scored three in the ninth to beat Greensboro 3-2. Catcher Yermin Mercedes tied the game with a two-run triple and then scored the winning run on Elier Leyva's sac fly. Garrett Cortright pitched two perfect innings of relief to earn the win. Delmarva has won seven of nine games and all four of its home series in the second half. The Shorebirds are 47-46 overall and 14-11 in the second half.

Photo courtesy of Bert Hindman.