Amid the Orioles hitting a season-high four homers and tying their season high for runs, Manny Machado put his name in the record book again when he singled in the seventh inning.
It was his fifth straight road game with three hits or more. According to Elias, the only other player younger than 21 with a streak of four or more consecutive road games with at least three hits was Ty Cobb, who had five straight road games with at least three hits from Sept. 30-Oct. 3, 1907. Cobb was also 20 at the time, but a few weeks younger than Machado is now.
Three doubles for the kid last night, three hits to equal Cobb tonight. He's keeping good company, even without hitting a double in this game.
Meanwhile, the Orioles' homer surge continued. They entered this game with three straight three-homer games and hit four in this one. That is 13 homers over the last four games and 24 in their last 11.
The last time an Orioles club had a streak of four or more consecutive games with three or more homers was Aug. 6-10, 1996 when the O's did it five games in a row.
With lefty Sean Nolin making his major league debut, Nick Markakis and Machado led off this game with singles and J.J. Hardy followed with a three-run homer. An inning later Markakis made it 6-1 with a three-run double.
Chris Davis hit his big league-leading 16th homer, a solo shot in the third, and later that inning Danny Valencia hit a two-run shot for a 9-3 lead. Adam Jones added a solo blast, his second in two nights, in the sixth.
For Davis, that is three homers his last three games, five in the past seven, seven in his last 14 games and 11 in his last 21 games against Toronto.
A night after scoring 12 runs, Toronto added three homers of its own and chased Chris Tillman after five innings and 109 pitches.
While denied a seventh straight quality start, Tillman did allow 10 hits and three runs to get the win. He improved to 4-2 with an ERA of 3.68.
Over his last seven starts, Tillman is 4-1 with a 2.62 ERA.
The Orioles' 10 runs tied a season high set May 17 against Tampa Bay in a 12-10 loss. The Orioles' 16 hits is two shy of the season high of 18 from May 10 at Minnesota.
In the first three innings tonight, the Orioles went 10-for-18 with two doubles and three homers. They have now scored 22 runs over their last three games and 72 runs over the last 13 games.
After hitting 32 homers over 27 April games, the Orioles have now hit 34 over 21 games in May.
Every O's starter scored a run tonight, five different Orioles had RBIs and Markakis, Davis and Machado had three-hit nights.
The Orioles are now 15-10 on the road, 12-11 against the AL East and 26-22 on the season with their third win over the last 10 games.
In game three of this series, Saturday at 1:07 p.m., Freddy Garcia (0-2, 4.84 ERA) faces Toronto's R.A. Dickey (4-5, 4.50 ERA).
]]>Over the last 12 games, that offense has been humming real well with a team average of .302 and 62 runs scored with 33 doubles, three triples and 21 homers.
The Orioles averaged 3.2 extra-base hits a game during the season's first 35 games and that number is 4.8 over these last dozen games.
The downside is all those hits and runs have led to just four wins in the last 12 games. The offense has not been able to overcome a stretch where the starters were often pitching five innings or less.
Last night, the O's bullpen gave up eight runs, six walks and a grand slam in three innings. Jim Johnson suffered three blown saves in this stretch. The bullpen ERA is 7.84 since the start of that last homestand, a nine-game stretch.
Also this weekend, the O's staff is facing a suddenly hot Toronto club which has won seven of its last 10 games. During that stretch, the Blue Jays are scoring 6.4 runs per game and slugging .476. Over their first 37 games, Toronto was scoring 3.8 runs per game and slugging .397.
The O's have to figure out a way to get J.P. Arencibia out tonight. Over his last eight games against the Orioles, he is 13-for-24 (.542) with three homers and 11 RBIs. Meanwhile, Edwin Encarnacion has five homers in his last 26 at-bats versus the Orioles.
Call me crazy, but those two look a little more formidable in the middle of an order than Travis Hafner and Lyle Overbay.
Right now, those Orioles runs are going to waste in the win-loss column. The Orioles are on a good roll at bat right now, but some of the pitching struggles have made it hard to notice.
Homer barrage continues: In just the first three innings tonight, the Orioles have hit three more homers. This is the fourth straight game they have hit three homers and they now have hit 23 in the last 11 games.
J.J. Hardy hit a three-run shot in the first off Sean Nolin, who gave up six runs in just 1 1/3 innings, and the O's added two in the third off Ramon Ortiz with a Chris Davis solo shot (his 16th) and a Danny Valencia two-run shot (his first).
That offense I spoke of here has clearly continued so far tonight. The O's moved out to a 9-3 lead in the third inning as they try to even this series.
]]>At this pace the Orioles would steal 127 bases to more than double last year's total.
They are also stealing at an impressive percentage. Last year not only did they not steal many bases, but the team stolen base percentage of 67 percent tied for last in the league. They have stolen 82 percent this year to rank tied for fourth.
The Orioles top three stolen base leaders are Nate McLouth who is 15-for-16, Adam Jones at 8-for-8 and Alexi Casilla at 5-5. That is 28-for-29 between those three players for a 96.6 percent success rate. Very impressive.
The Orioles pulled off a double steal last night with McLouth and Chris Dickerson. They have stolen eight bases in the last six games.
McLouth is the AL leader with his 15 steals, two ahead of Boston's Jacoby Ellsbury. He has five more steals than Mike Trout by the way.
McLouth would set a team record if he keeps up this pace. He would finish with 59 stolen bases and break a 49-year-old mark of 57 set by Luis Aparacio in 1964.
Plus, you can combine the O's stolen base success with the fact that they lead the league in throwing out runners at 54.5 percent (getting 12-of-22), well ahead of the second place team, Minnesota, at 39.1 percent.
Buck Showalter likes to talk about trying to win games 90 feet at a time, take an extra base when you can, and keep the other team from doing it. When it comes to the stolen base stat, the Orioles are simply the best in the league right now.
They went beyond just some of the basic stats and the sheets were put there by Mike Boulanger, the Orioles second-year minor league hitting coordinator.
I asked Boulanger what this was all about.
"Part of it is peer pressure," he said. "Those are the numbers and we post them every two weeks. But if you look at some of the categories, much of that has nothing to do with batting average. The things that are listed by teams are on-base percentage, your ability to move a runner and score a runner from third. Your two-strike contact.
"The way I approach it with our guys is how many guys hit .300 in the big leagues? I think there were like 11 (actually 13 in the AL last year). To think you can go up and do that, I hope you do, hope they all are like Manny (Machado), but the majority will have to be good baseball players.
"Buck (Showalter), our skipper, wants guys who have competitive at-bats. If he needs a guy to get in that runner from third, it might not be a basehit, but the guy needs to cross home plate. Advance a runner late in the game. Can you get a sac bunt down? Those are all numbers that we keep and that's a winning player and team baseball."
The 63-year-old Boulanger is a veteran minor league manager and coach. He was in the Texas Rangers organization for nine seasons before joining the Orioles.
Not long after he was first hired, Boulanger told me about how he would track what he calls, "Productive Team Plate Appearances" in the O's minors.
On a recent Saturday at Bowie, the position players were out early for extra bunting work before batting practice.
"Buck doesn't want us to send him anybody that can't sacrifice bunt," Boulanger said. "You might be the three hole hitter in Bowie, but you might be the eight-hole hitter in the big leagues. He needs to know these kids can get the sac bunt down."
Offense in the minors this year:
*Triple-A Norfolk: 1st in International League at 246 runs, team avg. of .274 and 5.2 runs per game.
*Double-A Bowie: 1st in Eastern League with 246 runs, team avg. of .271 and 5.6 runs per game.
*Single-A Frederick: 3rd in Carolina League with 220 runs, team avg. of .242 and 4.9 runs per game.
*Single-A Delmarva: 9th in South Atlantic League with 200 runs, .256 team avg. and 4.4 runs per game.
Take on Gausman: Kevin Gausman took the loss in his major league debut but he showed the huge talent last night that he has shown in the O's minors. That is a pretty special combination of top velocity with a good changeup and slider. He showed his poise in limiting the damage in that fourth inning and a pitch up to J.P. Arencibia cost him in the fifth. Toronto is a hot-hitting team averaging 6.4 runs per game over its last 10 games.
I'm not making the decisions here but I would keep this kid in the rotation the rest of the year and let that special package of pitches finish its development at the big league level. What are your thoughts on it?
They gave Kevin Gausman an early 3-0 lead in his major league debut and Gausman kept Toronto off the board in the first three innings on just two singles.
But the Blue Jays got to the 22-year-old right-hander for four runs over the fourth and fifth innings and then Edwin Encarnacion blasted a grand slam in the sixth off Pedro Strop as Toronto beat the Orioles 12-6.
The O's fall to 25-22 in losing for the seventh time in the last nine games and the ninth time in the last 13.
After keeping Toronto off the board on 51 pitches through three, the Blue Jays scored two in the fourth against Gausman. J.P. Arencibia had an RBI double that inning and added a two-run homer in the fifth.
Over five innings, Gausman gave up seven hits and four runs, taking the loss in his big league debut. He walked two and fanned five, throwing 89 pitches, 58 for strikes. He flashed a fastball that touched 99 a few times and showed some of that talent that led the Orioles to draft him fourth overall last June.
With two outs and none on in the sixth, Troy Patton and Pedro Strop combined to walk the bases loaded ahead of Encarnacion's fifth career slam. In just 1/3 of an inning, Strop threw 22 pitches, just eight for strikes.
The Orioles hit three more homers in this game, for their third straight, three-homer night. Nick Markakis and Adam Jones went back-to-back in the eighth off starter Brandon Morrow to pull the O's within 8-6. It's the second time this year that duo hit back-to-back homers.
Manny Machado doubled in each of his first three at-bats tonight. A fourth double would have tied the Orioles and major league single game record, instead he settled for a 3-for-4, two-RBI night and he takes the AL lead with 21 doubles. He also had three doubles May 15 vs. San Diego.
Chris Davis hit a solo homer, his AL-leading 15th, in the fourth. Davis has six homers over his last 13 games. The Orioles have hit nine in their last three games and 20 in the last 10 games.
Ahead by just two, Toronto put this game away with a four-run eighth inning that was Oriole aided for sure as the Jays used a J.J. Hardy error, two walks, a passed ball charged to Matt Wieters and three singles to score four.
In the end, it was almost hard to remember the Orioles led this game 3-0 early and Gausman was looking very strong. It was an ugly loss at Rogers Centre and a tough start to a six-game road trip.
]]>Since pitching to an ERA of 5.63 over his first three starts for Double-A Bowie, the 22-year-old right-hander has pitched to an ERA of 1.78 with a batting average against of .218 over his past five starts, allowing six earned runs in 30 1/3 innings.
Gausman has fanned 17 batters in 10 2/3 innings over his last two starts.
He has that incredible strikeout-to-walks ratio of 49 to five over 46 1/3 innings. He walked just one batter over his first six Bowie starts and 35 2/3, then walked three and one in his past two starts.
Here are Gausman's pitch totals from his first start through his most recent Baysox outing: 84, 90, 92, 83, 94, 91, 93 and 90. He pitched a season high 7 2/3 innings April 28 against Harrisburg.
According to a stat the Bowie Baysox posted via Twitter, Gausman fanned 10 in his last start and these current major league pitchers never fanned 10 in either Double-A or Triple A: Stephen Strasburg, Felix Hernandez and Zach Grienke.
Some fans have wondered and been asking how many innings Gausman can pitch this season. While Dan Duquette would not provide an approximate number when asked yesterday, I've heard that number is 175, give or take a few innings.
Gausman is at 46 1/3 innings now, so that leaves about 130. If he stayed in the Baltimore rotation the rest of this season and made every start, that would be around 23 starts and if you do the math, that would be 138 innings if he went six every time out.
So it is close for him on getting through the whole season - and for the O's, hopefully, the postseason - on the innings. First he has to stay in the rotation all year, but the point is he would likely not have to be shut down at any point or end his season early due to an innings limit.
Finally one quirky thing Gausman has done in the minors involves his routine before he throws each warmup pitch every inning. He goes behind the mound and then kind of runs toward the pitching rubber where he then fires one into the catcher. Hope Matt Wieters is ready for it.
What is your take?: Last chance before the first pitch. Did the Orioles make the right move calling up Gausman now? How ready to do you believe he is for first major league start? How will he do tonight?
Jays scored two in the fourth: After Gausman shutout Toronto on 51 pitches and two singles through three innings, the Blue Jays scored two in the fourth against him, but he exited the inning with a 3-2 lead. It could have been worse as Toronto had the bases loaded and one out, down 3-1 but got just one more run. Gausman gave up an average against of just .158 with runners in scoring position at Bowie this year and he got some big outs in that inning.
Arencibia again: After he had an RBI double in the fourth, J.P. Arencibia turned around a Gausman 96 mph fastball in the last of the fifth for a two-run homer. The Jays have scored in back-to-back innings and took a 4-3 lead on that homer.
Out after five: Gausman was taken out after five innings tonight allowing seven hits and four runs with two walks and five strikeouts. He threw 89 pitches, 58 for strikes.
He could take the loss, but I thought most fans tonight got their first look at the right-hander and got to see some of the talent that we've seen on display in the O's minors.
What did you think of the kid's debut?
]]>The recovery time after the procedure is six to eight weeks, so the Orioles remain hopeful he can return to pitch this year.
Orioles orthopedist Dr. John Wilckens will perform the surgery. Kline was injured, not in a game, but during conditioning drills between starts.
Kline, from Thomas Johnson High in Frederick, was the 65th overall selection in the 2012 June draft.
This season for Single-A Delmarva, he was 1-2 with a 5.86 ERA in seven starts. Over 35 1/3 innings, he had allowed 41 hits with 14 walks and 32 strikeouts.
After the Orioles drafted him last June, his college coach at Virginia, Brian O'Connor, provided this scouting report on Kline.
Jason Hammel had pitched to an ERA of 10.43 over his previous three starts until giving the club a solid 6 2/3 innings last night. No doubt, seeing Hammel throw well was a big development for him and the team.
The Orioles have gotten a season-high four straight quality starts, which means your starter goes six innings or more and allows three earned runs or less.
Sunday: Chris Tillman allows three earned runs over six innings versus Tampa Bay
Monday: Freddy Garcia allows two earned over six innings versus the Yankees
Tuesday: Miguel Gonzalez allows two earned runs over seven innings against the Yankees
Wednesday: Hammel allows two earned runs over 6 2/3 innings against the Yankees
In that four-game stretch, the starters pitched to a 3.16 ERA. Over 25 2/3 innings, they gave up 19 hits and nine runs with five walks and 17 strikeouts.
The O's had gotten three straight quality starts three times before, but never four in a row.
OK, kid, no pressure. Now go out and make it five tonight. Actually, I think the club winning the last two and getting some good starting pitching puts a little less pressure tonight on Kevin Gausman. Now he is not out worrying about ending any losing streak or stopping the rotation from having another rough night.
Before this stretch began, the starting pitcher ERA was 7.56 over the previous seven games and just once in that stretch did an O's starter pitch more than five innings. This four-game run was badly needed.
"Guys in the rotation feed off each other, and hopefully they can get a roll going, They know that is what we need to get where we want to go," Matt Wieters said after last night's game.
We can talk about a lot of aspects of this team, but the starting pitching is likely the one area that sets the tone for everything else. The Orioles currently rank third in the American League in runs scored but ninth in team ERA. If they could reverse those two, they'd probably be happy to do it.
If Gausman pitches well, the O's rotation that looked a mess just a few days ago may suddenly have turned a corner.
Gausman will become the 11th different pitcher to make a start for the Orioles this year. They used 12 all of last year. But it's not about how many you use, but how those you use them.
The Orioles have been struggling to find the right combination of starting pitchers. With a return to that group of five by Gonzalez, Hammel's bounceback performance last night and Gausman's addition, have the Orioles now suddenly found stability with their starting pitching?
"I'd say this was probably the best outing he's had this year. They have a lot of tough lefty hitters in that lineup, and he had to locate and mix in his change-up, which was big for him tonight. That was the Hammel we saw last year," Wieters said after the right-hander gave up two runs and six hits over 6 2/3 to improve to 6-2.
It was the O's fourth straight quality start, and the starters' ERA is 3.16 in that stretch.
"Guys in the rotation feed off each other, and hopefully they can get a roll going," Wieters said. "They know that is what we need to get where we want to go."
Hammel had pitched to an ERA of 10.43 in his three starts before getting the win tonight.
"Much better," Hammel said of this outing. "I was behind the fastball. I was behind everything, really. There were a few times that I wanted to jump away from it and get going quick again, and I was able to slow myself down. But Matty called a great game. The small adjustments that I've made, it was there for the majority of the night."
Did he feel this was his best start?
"Pretty close," he said. "I still think in Oakland (on April 25) I was better, but fastball command-wise, much better. We (the starters) haven't really been pulling our weight. Once again tonight, the guys put up some runs for us and we were able to pitch with a lead, which allows us to be aggressive. That's just what they've been doing all year, and it's time for us to continue to get deeper into games. And I was able to do that tonight. We're moving in the right direction.
"It's huge (winning the series), especially after losing six in a row. To come out and play these guys toe-to-toe and come out with two out of three, I think, is pretty good."
Has the mood changed now with back-to-back wins?
"It's a long season," Hammel said. "If you sit there and dwell on a six-game losing streak that you had two, three weeks ago, we don't want to do that. We've got to move around each series, play one game at a time, the typical response. But that really is the way to go. If you start thinking about, 'Oh, we've got to string three or four together,' instead of, 'Let's win one and then get another,' it's the proper way to go."
Nick Markakis got the Orioles' offense started with a first-inning homer against Hiroki Kuroda.
"He's given us fits in the past," Markakis said. "Just looking for a ball up, something out over the plate and put a good swing on it. Just look for a good pitch to hit and don't miss it. We were in a bad spot for the past week, but it's a long season and things like that will happen."
Markakis is now batting .344 since May 15.
Chris Davis tonight went 4-for-4 with a homer, and this was his second four-hit night of the year and the fifth of his career. He hit his AL-leading 14th homer, a two-run shot, in the first. Before the game, he didn't seem to feel he'd have a good night this evening.
"I really actually felt terrible today in BP," Markakis said. "It was just one of those days where no swing I took felt right. I felt like I was all over the place.
"Nate (McLouth) picked us up last night with the walk-off, and that gave us a shot of adrenaline emotionally. It is tough to lose six in a row, and especially games that are close. Anytime a division rival comes in, you want to win the series. We avoided the snowball effect and were able to get back on track.
"I think we had a better plan this time (against Kuroda). We were a little more patient today and made him throw strikes. He is tough when he is down in the zone. We had some good swings on him today."
So now, the Orioles will try to extend a winning streak tomorrow night rather than stop a losing streak.
"The fact is was against New York, a team we feel we can compete with," Davis said. "It was huge. But we try not to get too high or too low and keep our emotions in check."
That is back-to-back wins for the Birds after a six-game slide. They have won 10 of 15 series on the year and moved to within three games of the first-place Yankees.
Hammel, who had pitched to an ERA of 10.43 over his last three starts, went 6 2/3 this time, giving up six hits and two runs. He walked two, fanned six and threw 109 pitches.
Hammel is now 6-2 with an ERA of 5.37, and the Orioles are 8-2 in his 10 starts in 2013. This was also a season-high fourth straight quality start for the Orioles, and their starters have an ERA of 3.16 in the stretch.
It was quite a different result for Kuroda this time against the Orioles after he shut them out on April 14 at New York. He gave up eight hits and five runs in two innings plus two batters. He took a ball off his right calf in the second inning and left due to that injury in the third.
With two outs in the first against the right-hander, who came into tonight with a 6-2 record and 1.99 ERA, Nick Markakis homered, Adam Jones singled and Chris Davis homered for a 3-0 lead. It was Markakis' fourth and No. 14 for Davis.
Davis went 4-for-4 for his second four-hit game of this season and fifth of his career. Over his past 12 games, Davis is batting .375 (18-for-48) with six doubles, five homers and 13 RBIs.
After Kuroda allowed a double and single in the third, he left and Preston Claiborne came on. Matt Wieters greeted the right-hander with a three-run homer for a 6-1 lead.
The four, five and six hitters in the O's lineup tonight - Jones, Davis and Wieters - went a combined 8-for-12 with two doubles, two homers, five runs and five RBIs.
The Orioles' three homers tonight gives them seven for this series, and they've hit 17 over the last nine games.
With the win, the Orioles improved to 11-12 at home, 11-10 against the AL East and 9-10 in May.
They are now 25-21 on the season and begin a six-game road trip tomorrow to Toronto and Washington. Kevin Gausman is set to his major league debut against the Blue Jays.
Kuroda is 6-2 with a 1.99 ERA on the year. He ranks second in the AL in ERA, and he's tied for fourth in wins and WHIP at 0.95.
Over his last four starts, he has pitched to an ERA of 1.21 and, in three career starts previously against the O's, he is 2-1 with a 1.85 ERA.
None of that seemed to scare off O's hitters tonight, as they homered twice in the last of the first to take an early 3-0 lead. With two outs, Nick Markakis hit one out to right for his fourth homer. After a single by Adam Jones, Chris Davis hit another homer. This two-run shot made it 3-0 Orioles. That was his 14th homer.
Coming into this start tonight, Kuroda had allowed just three homers all year in nine starts, covering 58 2/3 innings and against 230 batters. Then, the O's got two off him in one inning.
Some other Orioles and Yankees notes:
* The Orioles and Yankees have gone into extra innings in both games of the series, with each team winning once. Counting the postseason, the teams have gone into extra innings four times in their last eight meetings with each team winning twice. Since the start of 2012, the Orioles are 2-4 in extra innings against New York (including the postseason) and 19-2 against the rest of baseball.
By the way, the Orioles and Yankees have never played three straight extra-inning games against each other.
* Machado is currently fourth in the major leagues with 62 hits behind Miguel Cabrera with 69 and Joey Votto and Alex Gordon with 63 each.
* Even with losing six in a row before last night's win, the Orioles still have the best winning percentage in baseball since July 29 (.613, 65-41)
* Tonight, the Orioles are shooting to get their fourth straight quality start. Over the last three games, O's starters have allowed seven earned runs and 13 hits over 19 innings for an ERA of 3.32.
* The Orioles are now 10-12 at home and 10-10 vs. the AL East.
Update: The Orioles lead 6-1 after three innings. Matt Wieters greeted reliever Preston Claiborne with a three-run homer in the last of the third. The first two batters reached that inning before Kuroda left the game. It was an early exit and may well have been related to the comebacker he took off his right calf in the last of the second.
Kuroda tonight vs. O's: 2 IP, 8 hits, 5 R-ER, 0 BB, 0 Ks, 2 HRs
Kuroda on April 14 vs. O's: 9 IP, 5 hits, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 Ks
By the way, the Orioles have hit three homers tonight, which makes seven in this series. They have now hit 17 over their last nine games.
]]>The news doesn't sound very encouraging on Schoop. He has not played since May 12 and will see a doctor in California next week.
"It sounds like he has a stress fracture of his low back," Duquette said. "He will need a period of rest, probably six to eight weeks of rest. Dr. Watkins is in California, and John requested to see him."
In 34 games this season with the Tides, Schoop, the Orioles' 2011 minor league Player of the Year, is batting .268 with three homers and 18 RBIs.
The news that Schoop was dealing with a back injury was first reported here on MASNsports.com
Meanwhile Duquette obviously overlooked, at least for the moment, the possibility that calling up Gausman now could make him a Super Two in arbitration and give him an extra year of arbitration later, which could cost the club a few million.
"When you can add a good player to your team, I think it shows a commitment to your club to field a competitive team," Duquette said. "I think it tells the team that we want to win."
So, are the Orioles committing to now keep Gausman in the rotation?
"You know this is the big leagues, I don't know if we commit to future opportunity," Duquette said. "That future opportunity is really based upon how the player plays, but Kevin Gausman has a good future as a major league pitcher. I think he'll be very competitive."
It wasn't that long ago that Duquette was telling reporters he didn't think Gausman was coming up, but Duquette said the club did not change its stance on that one.
"I said he wasn't an immediate candidate for (last) Saturday, but that he would be a candidate for the future. So the future is now, right?" Duquette said.
"He's throwing strikes with three pitches, and he has excellent control," he said. "He's done real well his last five starts. His capability to throw strikes consistently with all his pitches, that is what we were looking for, and he's shown that capability.
"If you look at what he did in spring training and how impressive he was and you look at the quality of his pitches, you could see he had the talent to pitch in the big leagues quickly.
"He has the best stuff and the most consistent control of just about any pitcher we have in the organization. So, we thought employing his strengths for our major league team was the best way to go."
Duquette would not get pinned down on a season-innings limit for Gausman or how this call-up now might impact that as the season goes on.
"I wouldn't get ahead of us on that, but he has plenty of innings of experience last year that we can build on for this season," he said.
Duquette was asked about the timing of the call-up and if Gausman is being rushed.
"You never know how people will respond, but Kevin pitched in the SEC. He was the No. 1 pitcher for Team USA when they had big games, so he's pitched in international competition, elite conferences and high-level situations," Duquette said. "I think he'll do real well. He has all the qualities to be a good, winning major league pitcher.
"I look at the player's skill level. He has a really good fastball, an excellent delivery, a very good changeup and developing breaking ball. He has elite control, he fields his position, he holds runners. He does all the things you need to be competitive here, so he'll get his experience in the big leagues.
"This was a real possibility the day we drafted him because he was so far advanced. We were seriously looking at him as the most advanced pitcher in the draft and we thought that he could help our big league team with a little bit of experience."
]]>"Obviously, it is going to be real exciting," Gausman said. "You know, trying not to think about it too much and just keep doing what I've been doing, throwing strikes. Just try to pitch my game."
So who did he first call after getting the good news last night?
"I called my dad, and he didn't answer of course, so I called my mom," Gausman said. "My dad said she about fainted. It was pretty exciting and kind of emotional for my mom. It was definitely something I'll never forget."
The club's top pick last year is 2-4 with an ERA of 3.11 in eight starts this year for Double-A Bowie.
He got the word of his promotion to Baltimore after Bowie's game last night at Akron.
"(Director of player development) Brian Graham, (Bowie manager) Gary Kendall and (Bowie pitching coach) Blaine Beatty called me into the coaches room," Gausman said. "Didn't really know what to expect, and then Gary Kendall kind of dropped the bomb on me.
"I don't think it really hit me until today. Until my second flight here from Atlanta, then I was kind of thinking wow, I'm really here. It's crazy."
But after spending so much time with the Orioles in spring training, Gausman already has a comfort level with the Orioles and with being in a big league clubhouse.
Still, it was special when he walked in today.
"It is definitely something I'll never forget, walking in here," he said.
"In spring training, part of the reason they kept me there so long was to get used to being around these guys. I think they do a really good job of having younger prospects, guys like me and (Dylan) Bundy, around those guys a lot."
What did he work on during his eight starts this season with the Baysox?
"The biggest thing was they told me to get used to a five-man rotation, get used to pro ball," Gausman said. "I hadn't really been used to throwing every fifth day, and the travel in pro ball is different than college. It is definitely something you get used to after a while.
"I think I've definitely improved. I think the biggest thing was my slider improved more than anything. Being able to throw it in different situations. I've talked all year about learning different ways to throw it, and in different situations, and I think that is definitely something I've learned more than anything else."
He was asked if he had much knowledge of the Blue Jays' lineup he will face and what differences he expects between Double-A and the big leagues.
"I faced them a couple times in spring training, but that doesn't really mean anything," Gausman said. "When I pitched against them, I was throwing the eight or ninth (inning). I know their lineup and some of their marquee guys.
"That is a good question (about the differences). I think the hitters up here kind of have more of a plan. They are smarter and make quicker adjustments. You have to make quick adjustments as well."
Gausman has been pitching well in his recent Bowie starts. He has allowed one earned run or fewer in four of his last five starts, allowing just two earned runs in the other. He has an ERA of 1.78 in that time.
Gausman said he has worked hard all year to throw a lot of strikes, and, in 46 1/3 innings at Bowie, he walked just five and fanned 49.
"Going into spring training, I was focusing on throwing more strikes," he said. "In big league camp, I didn't want to get sent down because I didn't throw strikes. I kind of hit the ground running in spring training and going into the season tried to do the same thing."
The Orioles clearly deem Gausman ready for his first big league game. But, does he feel that same way, and when did he feel he was ready to move up?
"I don't know if I thought that. I was kind of shocked (to get called up,) and I didn't really know what happened until today," Gausman sain. "Then, I thought, "Wow, I wish I would have hugged this guy or told this guy thanks and stuff like that.' It didn't really hit me until today.
"I didn't have that one moment that sticks out. I was just trying to win ballgames. I got off to a slow start there and was leaving some balls up. Just tried to get back to what I was doing in college and win ballgames."
Hammel gave up seven runs in just 4 2/3 innings Friday against Tampa Bay. Over the past three starts, he has gone 14 2/3 innings, allowing 27 hits and 17 earned runs.
What is going on with the O's opening night starter right now? For one thing, Hammel insists his struggles are not about his delivery.
"It's not mechanical at all," he said yesterday. "You try to mess with things that are pretty sound, you'll get yourself in even more trouble."
Some feel Hammel recently has taken the burden of being the staff's No. 1 pitcher to the mound, and as the rotation began to struggle, he put too much pressure on himself. He would probably agree with that assessment.
"There are 25 great players in this room and all of us want the best for ourselves and the team," he said. "If it is not coming out and really working, it makes you want to try harder. But honestly that is kind of hurting yourself. It makes you do things out of your ability. Just need to go out and compete."
In his most recent side session, Hammel continued to work on fastball command and trying to keep his keep pitches down in the zone to begin to get more groundball outs.
"This last (side session), all I did was throw fastballs, because that is what I've been struggling with, the fastball. Sometimes you have to go back to basics," he said.
"It is not necessarily the (lack of) sink, but my pitches are up in the zone. Two-seamer has been good at times, but the misses overall with all pitches have just been too hittable up in the zone and badly executed. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with my pitches, but they've just been too hittable right now.
"The hardest part of the game is the mental side. If you start to try to do too much, you bring other things on that you may not be ready to handle. You have to simplify it and do what you did to get to that point."
So after giving up 15 earned runs in 35 2/3 innings over his first six starts, he has allowed 17 in 14 2/3 frames over the last three.
But despite those recent struggles, the Orioles are 7-2 when Hammel starts this season. If he can get back on track tonight it would be a big boost for a starting staff that got one from Miguel Gonzalez last night and could get one tomorrow night from Kevin Gausman.
]]>Last Aug. 12, I was at Aberdeen's Ripken Stadium for Gausman's second pro outing for the Orioles. He was so impressive that day for the short-season Single-A IronBirds that the organization quickly changed its initial plan for him to only pitch at Aberdeen last summer and he would make his next start for Single-A Frederick and then ended the 2012 season pitching in a playoff game for Double-A Bowie.
That day I wrote about the club's plans changing on Gausman here.
Here is a quote from that sunny Sunday from the club's director of pitching development, Rick Peterson.
"That was really special," Peterson said then outside the Aberdeen clubhouse. "When you see a guy that can pound the bottom of the strike zone, and he was even up a bit today at times, but that along with a swing-and-miss changeup, that's a fast track. That's a real fast track. The guys with fastball-changeups, they can fly through systems.
"He's got great routines, he's got great makeup. Everything about him is A-plus. He's got an A-plus fastball and changeup. The changeup, especially, you'd much rather have a young pitcher come in with fastball-changeup than fastball-plus breaking ball."
Before the Winter Meetings last Nov. 29, Roch Kubatko and I sat in Dan Duquette's office and, when questioned about Dylan Bundy and Gausman that day, Duquette didn't back down a bit from the high expectations for the duo.
In fact, he said this about the pair while acknowledging even back then the distinct possibility that both could be with the Orioles in 2013:
"They have the talent," Duquette said. "They have serious talent. They have the talent and skills to be first division major league starting pitchers. Both of them. They are going to be good, both of them."
Read that story here.
After Gausman's second start this season on April 11 for Bowie, Baysox manager Gary Kendall, an experienced minor league skipper not prone to rave about a prospect, did just that as I speculated then that Gausman was already major league-ready.
Here is that story.
I think Gausman is ready to make his major league debut tomorrow night. He can touch the high 90s with his fastball and his changeup features not only good arm action but excellent late movement. It can be a swing-and-miss pitch and it might be his best pitch. That is saying something when you can throw in the high 90s. Gausman's slider is still a developing pitch, but it is becoming a real strong one for him.
At Bowie, I have seen this kid elevate his game when he has gotten into a jam. He gave up an average of just .158 with the Baysox when pitching with runners in scoring position and an average of just .125 with RISP and two outs.
Here is another factor: Gausman may be able to pitch as many as 175 innings this year. He threw 142 last year between LSU and the minor leagues. He is at 46 1/3 innings after eight Double-A starts.
Finally, I feel Gausman could handle it if and when he has struggles at the major league level. Let's hope not, but that could begin with his first big league start. Every young pitcher has some tough nights and goes through growing pains.
If the Orioles keep Gausman in their rotation, I expect him to do well, and it won't take too long for that. He is very mature and is confident in his ability, but also respectful of his teammates and opponents. This March, the Orioles put his locker right between Jim Johnson and Darren O'Day in the spring training big league clubhouse. That was a brilliant move, and that pair and others showed the kid the ropes. He couldn't have learned from a better duo.
At this point, there is no hiding for him or the Orioles from the high expectations. But I hope fans at least try to keep those in check a bit. Be excited for his debut, but don't put everything into this one start, good or not good.
It is fun to see a young kid with talent make his major league debut. Tomorrow night will be a fun one for all of Birdland.