Orioles sign Saunders to minor league deal, Showalter on roster move
By Roch Kubatko
The Orioles have signed veteran left-hander Joe Saunders, part of their 2012 playoff roster, to a minor league contract.
Saunders will report to Triple-A Norfolk on Monday and initially will be used out of the bullpen. He's never pitched in relief in 229 major league games.
The Royals released Saunders, 33, after he went 1-2 with a 6.75 ERA in four starts at Triple-A Omaha. He was 0-5 with a 6.13 ERA in eight starts with the Rangers, who released him on July 4.
Saunders went 3-3 with a 3.63 ERA in seven starts with the Orioles in 2012 and won the Wild Card game in Texas.
The Tides' pitching staff is filling out. Suk-min Yoon has been activated from their disabled list and will go back into the rotation. Reliever Preston Guilmet was sent back down yesterday, and Ryan Webb will join Norfolk's bullpen after being designated off the Orioles' 25-man roster today.
The Orioles will go with four left-handers in their bullpen, but with Andrew Miller's splits, it really doesn't matter that he's a southpaw. Right-handers are hitting .180 against him and lefties are hitting .150.
Webb tossed a scoreless 12th inning last night and was charged with a run in the 13th that broke a scoreless tie. He wouldn't have been available to pitch tonight.
"That's a good thing about having an optionable bullpen," said manager Buck Showalter. "We've got four guys down there we can move. He'll be back. I think he'll use the time to get back to doing some things that he was doing for a pretty good stretch of time.
"He's very close to it now. He pitched a good inning last night. It's not failure on his part. He's been solid. I'm glad we have him, glad we have him for next year and he'll be back and continue to help us."
Brad Brach and T.J. McFarland also have options, but they've been valuable in multi-inning relief roles backing up the starters.
"We were going to send down somebody today that was a contributor and it's tough, but he'll be back," Showalter said.
"Ryan will tell you he hasn't been perfect. Nobody down there has. We all, including me, we all have hiccups. But it's tough. We haven't had many of those decisions over the last three or four years.
"We sent Brad Brach out earlier, but we all felt like he was capable. It just didn't happen for a couple (outings). This is a tough world for those relievers, when you come up and you know that you've got to cut them up right out of the chute to maybe stay.
"Brad's pretty durable. He'll probably tell us he's available today. He's pretty efficient with his pitch count."
Showalter confirmed that Ubaldo Jimenez will start Sunday night at Norfolk and accompany the team to Toronto for the three-game series that begins on Tuesday. Jimenez will meet the club in Washington on Monday for the makeup game against the Nationals.
The Orioles were hoping to avoid a night game in D.C. before traveling to Canada.
Scott McGregor is serving as pitching coach this weekend while Dave Wallace attends his daughter's wedding.
Former Orioles bullpen coach Alan Dunn is here with his son. Dunn was Kevin Gausman's pitching coach at LSU.
Showalter avoided any questions about former closer Jim Johnson, released today by the Athletics, for fear of tampering.
It's not hard to imagine the Orioles having interest in signing Johnson to a minor league deal. Showalter pointed out that Johnson was headed to his home in Sarasota, where the Orioles hold spring training.
You can see the connections without squinting.
"We like Jimmy," Showalter said. "He pitched real well for us here. He's on his way to Sarasota. I know Scotty McGregor is real close to him. And if he becomes completely available, I'm sure a lot of people would have interest in him, including us."
Johnson didn't want to leave the organization and became emotional while talking to Baltimore reporters following the trade. Living in Sarasota is an added bonus for him, but he'd most likely want to return no matter his residence.
"I think if Jim lived in Hawaii, he'd like to... well, maybe not Hawaii," Showalter said. "I don't think it's advantageous. I think the history and the success he had here... We'll see."
The Orioles will go with four left-handers in their bullpen, but with Andrew Miller's splits, it really doesn't matter that he's a southpaw. Right-handers are hitting .180 against him and lefties are hitting .150.
Webb tossed a scoreless 12th inning last night and was charged with a run in the 13th that broke a scoreless tie. He wouldn't have been available to pitch tonight.
"That's a good thing about having an optionable bullpen," said manager Buck Showalter. "We've got four guys down there we can move. He'll be back. I think he'll use the time to get back to doing some things that he was doing for a pretty good stretch of time.
"He's very close to it now. He pitched a good inning last night. It's not failure on his part. He's been solid. I'm glad we have him, glad we have him for next year and he'll be back and continue to help us."
Brad Brach and T.J. McFarland also have options, but they've been valuable in multi-inning relief roles backing up the starters.
"We were going to send down somebody today that was a contributor and it's tough, but he'll be back," Showalter said.
"Ryan will tell you he hasn't been perfect. Nobody down there has. We all, including me, we all have hiccups. But it's tough. We haven't had many of those decisions over the last three or four years.
"We sent Brad Brach out earlier, but we all felt like he was capable. It just didn't happen for a couple (outings). This is a tough world for those relievers, when you come up and you know that you've got to cut them up right out of the chute to maybe stay.
"Brad's pretty durable. He'll probably tell us he's available today. He's pretty efficient with his pitch count."
Showalter confirmed that Ubaldo Jimenez will start Sunday night at Norfolk and accompany the team to Toronto for the three-game series that begins on Tuesday. Jimenez will meet the club in Washington on Monday for the makeup game against the Nationals.
The Orioles were hoping to avoid a night game in D.C. before traveling to Canada.
Scott McGregor is serving as pitching coach this weekend while Dave Wallace attends his daughter's wedding.
Former Orioles bullpen coach Alan Dunn is here with his son. Dunn was Kevin Gausman's pitching coach at LSU.
Showalter avoided any questions about former closer Jim Johnson, released today by the Athletics, for fear of tampering.
It's not hard to imagine the Orioles having interest in signing Johnson to a minor league deal. Showalter pointed out that Johnson was headed to his home in Sarasota, where the Orioles hold spring training.
You can see the connections without squinting.
"We like Jimmy," Showalter said. "He pitched real well for us here. He's on his way to Sarasota. I know Scotty McGregor is real close to him. And if he becomes completely available, I'm sure a lot of people would have interest in him, including us."
Johnson didn't want to leave the organization and became emotional while talking to Baltimore reporters following the trade. Living in Sarasota is an added bonus for him, but he'd most likely want to return no matter his residence.
"I think if Jim lived in Hawaii, he'd like to... well, maybe not Hawaii," Showalter said. "I don't think it's advantageous. I think the history and the success he had here... We'll see."
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