Hess: "I learned a ton on and off the field"

MINNESOTA - Of all the lessons that were thrust upon rookie pitcher David Hess this season, perhaps the clearest and most valuable to him was the idea that he deserved his spot on the 25-man roster and in the rotation, no matter how fleeting.

The Orioles optioned Hess this afternoon to Triple-A Norfolk to create room for starter Dylan Bundy, who came off the disabled list to make tonight's start against the Twins. Hess got back in his street clothes and said his goodbyes before heading out the door.

"I think really just seeing that I belong," he said. "It's a great group of guys up here. They were incredibly welcoming and I learned a ton on and off the field. Just how to go about business and how to be a professional.

"Going down there and kind of recollecting a little bit and processing through all that, I think it will be a time just to reflect and continue to get better and move forward."

Hess got off to an impressive start with the Orioles, commanding multiple pitches and showing courage and resiliency in the face of adversity. Surrender an early home run and just shrug it off and reel off scoreless innings. A youthful face and a veteran presence.

Four of Hess' first five outings were quality starts, with a total of five runs allowed in 24 2/3 innings. But he surrendered 21 runs in his next four starts over 17 2/3 innings and returns to Norfolk with a 6.06 ERA after allowing two runs in two relief innings earlier this week in Philadelphia.

Nick Williams' two-run shot was the 11th home run off Hess in 49 innings.

Hess will take an uncomplicated improvement plan back to the International League.

"I think just locating my fastball," he said. "I think especially at this level everything plays off of that. If you have good fastball command, your off-speed pitches are that much better, so really just focusing on that and just continuing to grind it out and work as hard as I can and hopefully find my way back here soon."

It's bound to happen with the Orioles routinely making adjustments to their roster and more spots expected to open up via trades later this month.

"They have a plan of what they like to do, so I think falling into that right now is a part of it," he said.

"I think no one is exempt from it. It's something you can take and move forward and kind of let it fuel you and give you a little bit more motivation to work hard and get your way back up here."