Reviewing Vespi's record-setting achievement with Triple-A Norfolk

Exactly one month passed before reliever Nick Vespi made his final appearance with the Orioles this season. He left after working two-thirds of an inning in Game 2 of a Sept. 5 doubleheader against the Blue Jays at Camden Yards and returned to work two-thirds of an inning in an Oct. 5 doubleheader against the Blue Jays at Camden Yards.

The symmetry in Vespi’s season was best exemplified at Triple-A Norfolk. The zeros across his earned run average.

Good at the beginning, middle and end.

In a season when some of the Orioles’ most celebrated prospects climbed the organizational ladder to reach the majors or upper levels of the system, Vespi was the grinder who flew under the radar. An 18^th-round draft pick in 2015, three years before the Orioles began to overhaul their front office, who crafted one of the most impressive streaks in recent memory.

The Orioles stalled it a few times, beginning on May 17 when his contract was selected, but it didn’t break. Vespi appeared in 26 games with Norfolk, one more than his major league total, logged 28 2/3 innings and allowed only three unearned runs and 12 hits, with five walks and 36 strikeouts.

The Triple-A season ended with Vespi possessing a 0.00 ERA and 0.593 WHIP.

“I’ve never seen that, I’ve never seen a guy put up those types of numbers in Triple-A,” said Orioles manager Brandon Hyde. “We’ve had him up here quite a bit this year and really pleased with what he’s done down there.”

Vespi registered the most innings pitched in the International League since 2005, as far back as baseball’s research portal takes us, without an earned run allowed. He passed Tides left-hander Richard Zagone, a former Orioles sixth-round draft pick who had 20 1/3 scoreless innings in 2012.

Zagone made only four appearances with Norfolk, including two starts. He pitched at three levels of the system that year, was out of affiliated baseball in 2013 and never reached the majors.

Until Vespi showed up, Zagone held the Norfolk Triple-A record for most innings without surrendering an earned run, going all the way back to 1969.

“It’s definitely exciting,” Vespi said inside the home clubhouse at Camden Yards. “It gave me something to work for anytime I’d leave this ballclub, so I’m happy it happened. That was definitely my goal, to finish up with that. It’s exciting.”

Vespi allowed a hit and walked a batter on Sept. 16, but he stranded both runners to complete a 9-0 victory over Charlotte.

Each rally had Vespi and his teammates wondering whether the streak might be in jeopardy. It wasn’t ignored within the club, though it didn’t seem to garner as much attention as deserved outside of it.

“It was definitely talked about a lot,” he said. “I can remember anytime a ball was hit off me, I could always hear the dugout kind of like, ‘Ohhh, ahhh’ It was exciting to pitch during that and have the team following that closely.”

Vespi won all five decisions with the Orioles, his victory total tying Joey Krehbiel for second among relievers behind Cionel Pérez’s seven. Pérez appeared in 66 games and Krehbiel 56.

The Orioles gave Vespi the chance to make his major league debut at age 26 and he worked the final two innings of an 8-6, 13-inning victory over the Rays. His first win was followed by his first option the next day.

Seven of Vespi’s first eight appearances with the Orioles in June also were scoreless before the ERA-killing, one-third of an inning in Seattle on the 29^th, when he was charged with six runs.

There are no fast recoveries.

Vespi surrendered a home run in back-to-back outings before the Oct. 5 finale, when he replaced starter Spenser Watkins in the fourth inning, allowed two singles and induced two ground balls to escape the jam and lower his ERA to 4.10.

“I don’t think it was necessarily difficult,” he said of the trips back and forth. “I’d definitely say it was a learning curve for me, being able to perform up here and not necessarily stay. I’d say I definitely learned a lot about myself as a player, so it’s exciting to knock that out at the beginning of my career.”

A seventh year in the minors unfolded before Vespi, who attended Palm Beach State College, finally got the call. He didn’t pitch in 2020 due to the pandemic and was left unprotected in the last Rule 5 draft despite receiving Fall Stars honors in the Arizona Fall League.

“Debuting was something I worked for for a while now, being in the minors for so long,” he said. “Being able to do that was big.”

So, too, was having the smallest ERA possible.