The impact of losing Harvey and Sedlock

The following is in no way intended to bash two young pitching prospects - as opposed to the old and crotchety prospects - or blame them for issues out of their control or dump a historically bad season squarely in their laps. It's simply a statement of fact:

Hunter Harvey and Cody Sedlock have really hurt the Orioles.

To be more precise, their absences while relegated to the minor league disabled lists really hurt the Orioles.

Harvey, for sure, was expected to be in the majors at this point. No everyone in the organization will say it, considering time missed after ligament-reconstructive surgery and all the setbacks, but yes, he was supposed to be in the rotation. Spots have opened over the course of the summer. Lots and lots of spots.

A Dalmatian looks at the rotation and thinks, "That's a lot of spots." A 5-year-old kid with measles looks at the rotation and ...

OK, let's not fall into that trap. You get the picture.

Chris Tillman was placed on the disabled list, designated for assignment and released. Kevin Gausman was traded to the Braves. Dylan Bundy was on the disabled list with a sprained ankle. The list of starters used this season includes Yefry Ramírez, David Hess, Jimmy Yacabonis, Mike Wright Jr. and Miguel Castro. I wouldn't be surprised if Sean Gilmartin is pulling up some old video from his high school days.

Harvey would be an ideal fit right now in the rebuild. Increase his innings, evaluate him and pencil him into next year's rotation on opening day. Fans would eat it up. The organization could give itself a collective pat on the back for the drafting, development and patience that finally paid off.

Alas, Harvey has made only nine starts at Double-A Bowie, topping out at five innings, and his last appearance came on June 1 when he surrendered six earned runs in two innings against Trenton.

The start came after Harvey's shoulder popped out and back into socket as he recoiled from a line drive while leaning on the dugout railing. A totally freak accident. Nothing that he concocted while in the shower or staring at the ceiling late at night. It just happened.

The injury was termed "posterior shoulder instability," in case it comes up while you're a contestant on Jeopardy.

Harvey was throwing off a mound in Sarasota when shut down due to some stiffness in his right forearm. Nothing related to the shoulder or his Tommy John surgery in 2016. The Orioles cleared him for flat-ground work on Aug. 6 and he still hadn't returned to a mound when shut down again yesterday with tenderness in the elbow.

The Orioles will send Harvey to a specialist in Sarasota - he's down there anyway - hoping it's just some mild tendinitis and nothing that's structurally wrong.

The Orioles wanted to assign Harvey to the Arizona Fall League to get back some of the innings that he's lost. Meanwhile, and through absolutely no fault of his own, he hasn't been part of a revamped post-break rotation as the Orioles envisioned.

No one needs to point out, though I'm here to do it anyway, that a cost-conscious team intent on reducing payroll and that's especially leery of paying for pitching can't afford to swing and miss in the draft, so to speak. Which bring us to Sedlock, the first-rounder in 2016 out of the University of Illinois.

One of the perks of selected a college pitcher is the reduced time, in theory, that it takes to get him to the majors. Sedlock was advertised after the draft as someone expected to "move quickly" through the system, but he hasn't gotten past Single-A Frederick, where he started last night after coming off the disabled list.

Sedlock tossed a scoreless inning before the rain arrived in his fourth start with the Keys, the most recent in April, and his seventh this season, allowing two hits and striking out two batters while throwing 21 pitches in the opening frame. He was on the disabled list twice last summer with a right elbow flexor strain and forearm strain and again in April with a strained right shoulder. He didn't begin his injury rehab assignment until July 17 in the Gulf Coast League, where he allowed only one run and struck out 10 batters in 9 2/3 innings.

Harvey and Sedlock are only 23. They certainly have time to become two-fifths of the rotation if their bodies allow it. But the Orioles would feel a little better about the rebuild with two big blocks in it.

Keegan Akin, chosen in the second round after Sedlock, overcame his own health issue last summer and is leading the Eastern League with 14 wins, a 2.77 ERA and 135 strikeouts in his 23 starts covering 130 innings - one short of the league lead. His 1.18 WHIP is fourth.

The Orioles discussed the idea of promoting Akin earlier in the summer, but they don't seem inclined for now to put him on the 40-man roster before necessary. But he should be allowed to compete for a job in spring training with only Bundy, Alex Cobb and Andrew Cashner penciled into the rotation.

Cashner will have one more year remaining on his contract that pays $8 million. The remaining $3 million is a signing bonus that's deferred to 2020 through 2022. The deal also includes a $10 million vesting option for 340 innings pitched over his two guaranteed seasons and it becomes a player option at 360 innings.

Monday night's start in Toronto left him at 134 innings.

The Orioles could see whether a team bites on it, but they need to get innings out of starters whether contending or rebuilding. They'd have to feel confident that younger arms are ready to carry part of the load.