Andrew Stetka: O's pitchers falling victim to longball in recent weeks

Just three weeks ago in this very space, I wrote about what a great job Orioles pitchers were doing in limiting home runs. It came right on the back of a second seven-game winning streak and strong performances by the likes of Chris Tillman and Kevin Gausman. Things have taken an unfortunate turn.

After going through the first six weeks or so of the season and sitting second in baseball with the fewest home runs allowed, the O's have now fallen out of the top 10. They were hanging around with the Mets and Cubs in that category, but have spiked up into Red Sox and Padres territory. It turns out that much of the fears coming into the season about the pitching staff are turning into nightmares.

It turns out Tillman and Gausman have been some of the biggest culprits of this downturn. After allowing just three home runs in his first 10 starts, Tillman has given up six in his last two outings. For Gausman, prior to a strong start yesterday, he too has seen the home run ball fly. He had given up six in his prior two starts. Mike Wright, whose struggles have rivaled that of Ubaldo Jimenez lately, gave up five homers in his first nine starts before giving up four in his last outing.

The weather is heating up, and while that's great for the Oriole bats, the pitchers are also seeing it impact the flight of the ball. Even the bullpen has not been exempt from the home run ball. Vance Worley and Mychal Givens have each given up a few homers, while Darren O'Day leads the way for relievers. It's obvious that O'Day's hamstring injury was causing him to pitch a bit differently, leading to some elevated pitches.

The warmer weather is any easy excuse to make for the pitchers who have been giving up homers, but further explanation is likely a simple regression to the mean. Just a few weeks back, the O's had the best home run-to-fly ball rate in the game. Now it's right around mid-pack. The Orioles weren't always going to be able to keep the ball in the park. The talent on this pitching staff just isn't there. Struggles will happen, and over the last few weeks, it would appear they've come in waves.

The Orioles will need to do something over the next few weeks and months to fix some of their pitching issues. With the offense they possess, the Orioles don't need a top 10 staff in order to get to the playoffs. They also can't struggle near the bottom. I don't think they can stand pat and think that can get them to the playoffs. Even if they do happen to end up playing in October, I can't imagine it goes far. Tillman will continue to have strong outings and starts where he struggles. Gausman will continue to develop and hopefully blossom into the top-tier pitcher many believe he can be. But beyond that, there are many questions as to how this team competes with these arms. Yovani Gallardo's return will offer some possible answers, but he didn't show great form before his shoulder injury.

I wonder if the O's will go outside the organization. One of the top trade chips on the market left yesterday when the White Sox acquired James Shields from the Padres. In Shields, it's important to remember that the O's have a similar pitcher with a large contract in Jimenez. Shields gave up 10 runs in less than three innings in his final start with San Diego. Somehow, I think the Orioles would be more likely to make a trade like the Padres made involving Jimenez than what the White Sox did. But Shields is reliable, and there are a few other candidates out there that could be traded in the coming weeks. The real question that remains is whether or not the O's have the pieces to make such a trade. There's not a stockpile of young arms in the minor leagues ready to be traded. If there were, they'd likely be knocking on the door to the majors to help this team now.

Andrew Stetka blogs about the Orioles for Eutaw Street Report. Follow him on Twitter: @AStetka. His thoughts on the O's appear here as part of MASNsports.com's continuing commitment to welcome guest bloggers to our little corner of cyberspace. All opinions expressed are those of the guest bloggers, who are not employed by MASNsports.com but are just as passionate about their baseball as our roster of writers.