Updating Bleier surgery, the Joseph brothers on being reunited

WASHINGTON - Reliever Richard Bleier underwent surgery this morning to reattach the lat muscle on his left side, a procedure that lasted about two hours. Manager Buck Showalter said he's hoping that Bleier is able to begin throwing by spring training.

Chris Davis won't be in Wednesday night's lineup against Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez and it hasn't been determined whether he'll start Thursday night against right-hander Max Scherzer. Showalter said the opposing pitcher isn't a factor.

Davis worked out Monday at Camden Yards while his teammates were off.

Chris Tillman is scheduled to pitch three innings Wednesday for short-season Single-A Aberdeen in his first rehab start. Gabriel Ynoa is supposed to work four innings tonight for Double-A Bowie, where outfielder Colby Rasmus has reported.

Tim Beckham will play nine innings at third base tonight for Triple-A Norfolk.

Putting brothers Caleb Joseph and Corban Joseph on the same Orioles roster wasn't done to provide a feel-good story, though it worked out that way. Showalter noted how they earned it.

They met with the media earlier today outside the clubhouse and talked about the thrill of being teammates again. Here's a sampling:

How cool is the experience?
Caleb: "It's unique. I think there were probably times when we weren't sure if it was going to happen. We had faith that we could both make it. What's the chances of it happening on the same team? I think the first goal was to get to the big leagues at the same time, and then to be on the same team, this is a storybook for our family. I'm sure there's a lot of people back home who are really excited and proud. So, it's pretty incredible."

Corban: "Absolutely. It's something we've always dreamed of and it actually happening, it's like a dream that you never thought would actually come true is actually panning out."

Was the demotion to Norfolk warranted?
Caleb: "When I went down, I was able to work with (hitting coach) Butch Davis. I worked with him in 2013 and we were able to do some stuff that I did when I had a big year in 2013. There's always times to reset. I wasn't producing overall the way that I have in the past and that's what happens, man. You're going to go back and figure it out, and I went back and took care of business and you just wait for another opportunity.

"That's what my brother here's been doing for five years now, right? So, the irony of just the way it's worked out is quite hilarious. I've been up for four, five years and I go down and he comes up. You can't make this stuff up. It's pretty funny."

What was the reaction when Corban came up and you were still at Norfolk?
Caleb: "I was so mad (laughs). No, you're mad and elated at the same time. Mad because you knew you were just there, not because he's going up and not me, but mad because you're like, 'You're kidding me? I have blown the chance, because if I would have just taken care of my business, he would have been up here and we would have done it earlier.' That was the anger I was feeling, but once you put that anger aside you realize, 'Man, this guy was in the minor leagues for five years.' I was in the minor leagues for 30 days and it was really, really hard.

"He has a family, too, two young girls, and he was grinding it out five years in between appearances. He didn't give up. He fought the good fight. I was so excited and so proud of his perseverance and what it took for him to get here. I knew I've got to get up there. It's going to be my fault if we don't do it. So, I'm really happy and thankful that it happened."

Can you appreciate how rare it is for brothers to be teammates?
Corban: "It's crazy. Like I said earlier, it's a dream that we thought could potentially happen. It's a goal that we set and for it to actually happen, we're still kind of trying to find our bearings in all of it. Really excited. It's a lot of fun. It's almost like a once in a million opportunity chance and we're here now to appreciate it."

How much family is here?
Caleb: "We've got quite a crew, like 10, 12 today. Hopefully, we can make it to Atlanta. That's where there could be half a stadium filled with orange and black jerseys with 'Joseph' on the back. We've got quite a few family members who live in that southern region. It is exciting here. Not wishing it to go away, but really looking forward to Atlanta, too."

How fun would it be to have the brothers together in Atlanta this weekend?
Corban: "I think it's extremely special. People who are here in the stands have all had a part of our growing up, maybe have pushed us in certain ways to be better people or be better baseball players or just helped raise us. I think it's special for everybody to experience it and be able to kind of be there as one, as a unit. The hard work, not only on our end, but mostly on their parts as well."

Any interesting stories growing up?
Caleb: "You may see I'm a little taller than Corban. He was always stout. He had a six-pack when he was like 10 years old. One time, we were playing around and I smashed his fingers in the door. We had the staircase to kind of curl back around and I smashed his fingers and I'm running downstairs, and he jumps over the staircase and jumps on top of me and bites me in the back. And I knew, this kid is a fierce kid and he's never going to give up, and by goodness, he didn't do it. He didn't give up.

"He's been that way his whole life. He's been a real fighter. You can go back to even like middle school games, basketball games, this guy, he wanted to win. The desire to win, the will to win is always there. He's been beating me up since we were like 10 or 12, so maybe we'll have a wrestling match and try and square it off here.

"This a really cool moment for both of us and a lot of our family members. Don't forget the wives and our sister and our parents and our brother and all the folks that drove us everywhere and watched all those games in the hot sun, even though they didn't want to be there, especially like my sister. Stuff like that, you don't forget about. Hopefully, this puts a smile on their face and that they can share part of the dream with us, too."

How tough is it to see how much this team has struggled while you were gone?
Caleb: "It's a unique situation. Even in Norfolk, we were winning quite a few games and it was a winning atmosphere, but you can tell the guys are wearing down a little bit, so hopefully you bring a jolt of energy. Something like this maybe jolts them a little bit. Who knows? Win a couple games, win a series and you start rolling, and that's what it takes.

"There's momentum in this game. Buck always says it's until the next guy on the mound or whatever. When it starts to go downward quickly, it can turn around. You just have to bring some energy and sometimes you can. Sometimes, you can will it into fruition, I think."

What were the minors like for you?
Caleb: "A lot of peanut butters and jellies. It's a part of my career. It's just going to be on the back of the baseball card. You don't want to go down, you never want to be demoted. Like Forrest Gump said, 'It hap-pens.' So what are you going to do? You going to go whine and quit or you going to buck up and your pull bootstraps on and try and get back? You just try and get back. Then you try and stay, hopefully not repeat."