Bullpen candidates and Gausman's latest start vs. Yankees

NEW YORK - Does a day game provide ample opportunity for the Orioles to rework their bullpen?

It's a short turnaround, but the starts haven't been much longer.

Stefan Crichton has appeared on back-to-back nights and allowed five runs in 3 1/3 innings. Edwin Jackson also had pitched on consecutive nights, but he's out of minor league options.

Jackson has allowed seven runs (four earned) and 11 hits in five innings in his three appearances since the Orioles purchased his contract.

Checking on the availability of pitchers at Triple-A Norfolk, Logan Verrett most recently went two-thirds of an inning on Wednesday and Thursday and he's usually a candidate to hop aboard the shuttle. Left-hander Vidal Nuño worked in relief last night, but he was removed after only seven pitches.

Gabriel Ynoa started last night and went 4 2/3 innings. Jayson Aquino started Friday night and worked 5 1/3 innings. Chris Lee started Thursday and went six innings. Forget them as potential call-ups.

Non-roster pitcher Jimmy Yacabonis has allowed only three runs in 30 innings for a 0.90 ERA in 23 games. Isn't it time to give him a shot?

The 40-man roster isn't an issue. The Orioles have an open spot.

Kevin Gausman has managed to lower his ERA from 7.19 on May 14 to 5.86 heading into today's series finale against the Yankees. It's a tedious process that's taking him in the right direction.

"I think the biggest thing is just going deeper in the game," he said. "Obviously, I'm giving up a lot of hits, but trying to prevent those hits from scoring. A leadoff double, trying to minimize that. And I haven't been walking nearly as many guys, so that's going to help.

"I think I've gotten into some situations where I've really pitch, in situations where I'd normally try to kind of hump up. I'm just trying to be able to recognize what the hitter's trying to do against me and slow him down."

Gausman is making his fourth start against the Yankees this season and his 21st career appearance, including six in relief. There are no secrets except maybe what he ate for breakfast.

(Go for the chicken sausage and pretend that you're eating healthy.)

"I feel like even last year, I had a lot of starts against them," said Gausman, who totaled six in 2016 and posted a 1.10 ERA. "I think it benefits you because they kind of already know what they're going to get, so you do anything other than what they're expecting, I think you can kind of keep them off-guard, keep them guessing. But at the same time, they've seen everything, so there's no secret to what they're going to get.

"I didn't start throwing a knuckleball in between my last couple of starts, so like I said, they know what they're going to get. But yeah, it's definitely a little weird. But anytime you play a team in the AL East, as a starting pitcher you're going to face them a lot. You just try to mix and match, and if they feel like they have you figured out, you can try to keep them guessing and I think you might be better off."

Gausman is 1-0 with a 6.19 ERA and 2.125 WHIP in his three outings this season - four runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings on April 8, five runs and eight hits in six innings on April 28 at Yankee Stadium and two earned runs (three total) and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings on May 31.

The career numbers are more appealing. Gausman is 7-3 with a 2.63 ERA in his 20 games (14 starts) and 3-2 with a 3.02 ERA in 10 games (seven starts) in the Bronx.

Starlin Castro is 9-for-23 (.391) with two doubles against Gausman, Brett Gardner is 12-for-37 (.324) with two doubles and a home run and Didi Gregorius is 5-for-26 (.192) with a double.

Everyone is fixated on Aaron Judge, who's vying for the Triple Crown, as manager Buck Showalter pointed out when asked for this thoughts on the rookie. Showalter added that he was "jealous."

Judge is 3-for-9 with two home runs and five strikeouts against Judge.

Gausman has a career 4.19 ERA in 34 day games and a 4.23 ERA in 74 night games. He's pretty much an even-splits guy in that department. However, right-handers are hitting .367 against him, left-handers are hitting .255 and Yankees manager Joe Girardi might take it into account while writing out his lineup.

Masahiro Tanaka was supposed to start today for the Yankees, but they bumped him to Monday. They'd probably like to bump him to spring training 2018, but they'll try it this way first.

Right-hander Chad Green gets the start instead of Tanaka, his first in 2017 after seven relief appearances. He's allowed three runs and six hits in 16 2/3 innings, with four walks and 20 strikeouts.

Green has an 8.31 ERA in three career games (two starts) versus the Orioles. He's allowed eight runs and 14 hits in 8 2/3 innings.

Chris Davis is 2-for-4 with two home runs against Green. Mark Trumbo is 2-for-3 with a home run and J.J. Hardy is 2-for-4 with two doubles.