After Tillman time, it's Bundy time

From mid-June until the end of the month, Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman allowed 14 runs in 14 2/3 over three starts. Now that looks very much like a blip on a radar. Tillman allowed four or more runs in all three of those starts. He has allowed four or more in his 17 other combined starts this year. So yeah, minor bump in the road.

Now he has made three straight starts, each time allowing one run over seven innings. The latest was last night in the Orioles' 2-1 win over Tampa Bay. In 21 innings, Tillman has allowed 12 hits and three runs, lowering his ERA from 3.71 to 3.29. In this three-start run, Tillman is 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA and .169 average against. For the year, he is 13-2 with a 3.29 ERA.

Here is an impressive stat for Tillman: The Orioles are 17-3 in his 20 starts and they are 9-1 in his last 10. Texas and Seattle are the only teams to pin losses on Tillman this year, and Houston was the other team to beat the Orioles in a game started by Tillman.

The last three Orioles quality starts have been pitched by Tillman. Where would the Orioles be without this guy?

Tillman has worked seven innings or more three straight starts for the first time all year. He has done that in five of his past eight starts.

The Orioles have won four in a row and they have scored four runs or less in each game. They have held their last four opponents to eight runs. In that span, O's starters have pitched to a 2.63 ERA. Now those starters were Tillman and Yovani Gallardo. That pair started the last two games before the All-Star break and then started the first two out of the break.

The Orioles now have a record of 26-17 (.605) in games decided by two runs or less. They are 11-8 in one-run games and 15-9 in two-run games. To have a good year, you often need to fare well in the close games.

As the Orioles go for the sweep today at The Trop, Dylan Bundy makes his first major league start. Yes, it's a Bundy Sunday.

We've discussed often here - most recently in this post on Wednesday - Bundy's projected season innings limit. Now we begin to find out if the Orioles will exceed that and/or how he will be handled going forward. Will Bundy stay in the rotation after today? We don't know that answer yet.

It's exciting to see Bundy pitching well after three years of mostly rehab and very few innings. It has been a long road for him to get to this point. His outing recently at Dodger Stadium was outstanding. His velocity is up, his arm feels good.

Today, he will do what the Orioles envisioned all along since they took him fourth overall in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft: pitch in the major league rotation.