John Stockstill comments on Simon's outing at Bowie (updated)

BOWIE, Md. - O's director of player development John Stockstill got an up-close look at Alfredo Simon's outing today here at Bowie from right behind the screen in the first few rows at Prince George's Stadium. Simon allowed five hits and three runs, all earned over five innings, throwing 94 pitches. "He was a little improved with his overall performance from the other day," Stockstill said. "Threw 94 pitches and needs to get to the point where he can put people away with that split (finger fastball). A lot of these Double-A hitters are fouling it off, giving him deeper pitch counts. But he's progressing. "He's working on a couple of things. He threw more split-fingers this time, trying to get everything set up. He's using all four pitches, which is what he needs to do. But he's working on a time frame, 10 days to two weeks, something like that." Stockstill said he registered Simon's fastball ranging from 91 to 96 mph, just where they would expect it to be. Simon is expected to return to the Dominican, perhaps for just a day or two, before he pitches again. The Orioles figure that will be either on the 16th or 17th when he takes the mound again in the minors. Stockstill said some of Simon's pitches lost some effectiveness as his outing went on today. "The other day when he threw 81 (pitches), the first 58 or so were pretty quality," Stockstill said. "Generally, there is a gap once you get a little tired. Today was probably noticeable around 70 or 75." I asked Stockstill if May 22 is the date when the Orioles need to make a decision per an agreement with Major League Baseball to bring Simon to the majors and take him off the restricted list. "I don't know if that is a firm date or not," he said. As for this game, Caleb Joseph's two-run single in the seventh has given Bowie a 6-4 lead in the last of the eighth. UPDATE: The Baysox held on for a 6-5 victory. Pedro Viola gets credit for the win, and Jose Diaz gets his league-leading 11th save. Back with more in a bit.