masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgIs it too early to wonder which player would represent the Orioles at the All-Star Game if Manny Machado is traded before July 17?
Kevin Gausman could make it if he stays on his roll. Otherwise, left-hander Richard Bleier has earned consideration by anyone’s standards.
There are still plenty of games left before the break, but look at Bleier today. He’s 3-0 with a 0.40 ERA in 17 appearances. One run allowed in 22 2/3 innings, and it happened on April 2 in Houston. Only three walks, and one…

Is it too early to wonder which player would represent the Orioles at the All-Star Game if Manny Machado is traded before July 17?

Kevin Gausman could make it if he stays on his roll. Otherwise, left-hander Richard Bleier has earned consideration by anyone’s standards.

Richard-Bleier-throw-orange-spring-sidebar.jpgThere are still plenty of games left before the break, but look at Bleier today. He’s 3-0 with a 0.40 ERA in 17 appearances. One run allowed in 22 2/3 innings, and it happened on April 2 in Houston. Only three walks, and one was intentional.

Bleier’s scoreless-innings streak has grown to 19 1/3 over 14 games. Miguel Castro had the longest streak last season at 16 1/3 innings.

Opponents are 1-for-22 against Bleier with runners in scoring position and 5-for-37 with runners on base. His 20 2/3 innings before last night were the third-most among left-handed relievers and his 0.44 ERA ranked second.

Oh, and he’s stranded all nine inherited runners.

Can he hit?

With Zach Britton and Darren O’Day on the disabled list, the door opens wider for Bleier to get some save opportunities – if the Orioles can carry more leads into the ninth inning. His reverse splits before last night showed left-handers batting .290 against him and right-handers hitting .163.

Left-handed hitting Jon Jay singled off him in the seventh inning and was erased on a double play. Right-handed hitting Salvador Perez dumped a one-out, broken-bat single into left field in the eighth and was erased on a double play

Bleier’s next save will be his first in the majors.

* While the Orioles were thumped 15-7 by the Royals in the series opener, Mychal Givens entered in the ninth and tossed another scoreless inning. And he keeps racking up the strikeouts.

I don’t know how many people were paying attention at that point, but Givens lowered his ERA to 3.79 in 19 innings. He allowed one hit on an infield single and struck out two batters to give him 27 strikeouts on the season.

Givens retired all six batters he faced, with five strikeouts Saturday night in Oakland, and continued his roll on Tuesday. He’s allowed two runs in his last nine appearances covering 11 1/3 innings to lower his ERA from its season-high 7.04 on April 9.

Givens seemed to be plagued by a mechanical issue during a stretch when he allowed seven runs in 7 1/3 innings. Maybe too much torque in his delivery. But Givens said he hasn’t done anything drastic.

“No, it’s just getting better results,” he said. “That’s baseball. You can go 0-for-20 hitting the ball on the screws and it’s not going your way. I just think that it was adapting, and no excuse, but we weren’t pitching well or hitting well in the cold. And I know the other teams were doing the same thing, but we were just struggling at the time. It wasn’t going our way. You could see that. And just trying to get back in the groove and get back to form.”

Mission accomplished.

* Which starter in the minors is the next man up if a change is made?

David Hess might raise both hands.

Hess, 24, is 2-0 with a 2.12 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in six starts at Triple-A Norfolk, with seven runs and 29 strikeouts in 29 2/3 innings. In his most recent outing, he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning. He’s on the 40-man roster and must be a consideration, though he probably won’t start Game 1 of Saturday’s doubleheader because he’d be working on short rest.

“Oh sure,” said manager Buck Showalter. “All our guys, that’s why they’ve been put on the roster. David’s done well so far. He’s got a track record of what you can expect. Those 10:30 games are either a great game or a bad game to pitch in. Sometimes you can ambush people. He’s been ambushing them all year, regardless of the starting time. We’re real excited about David’s progress.”

Tides manager Ron Johnson picked up his 1,700th career win on Tuesday.

“R.J. doesn’t have to pass that number to realize the impact he’s had on a lot of young men’s lives and the organization,” Showalter said. “We’re lucky to have him.”

* The doubleheader against the Rays on Saturday coincides with the date that Anthony Santander loses his Rule 5 status. Forty-four days will have passed.

The Orioles will add a 26th man who can’t be sent down between games. However, another player can be optioned.

Showalter has made it clear – and the subject keeps coming up – that Santander’s status doesn’t automatically print out a ticket to the minors. Many factors will come into play, though a .204/.253/.312 slash line before last night is included.

Santander went 1-for-4 Tuesday night and drove in his first run since April 8.

“There’s a lot of reasons,” Showalter said when asked about the considerations for keeping or optioning Santander. “What’s in the best interest, No. 1, of our team? No. 2, of his development, and what he’d be replaced with? There’s always some things to be gained by him being here. He’s been here, obviously, a lot. What’s he hitting now? Is he hitting under .200? But you can’t necessarily send down everybody who’s hitting under .200.

“He’s a good potential long-term player for us and we’re going to do what’s best for him and his development. And whatever happens, it’s been good for him to be kind of force-fed with it. He’s a smart enough guy, I think he’ll take some things and learn from it, whether he stays here or goes back down. But I’ll tell you this, if he goes down, he’ll be back at some point. I feel strongly about that.”

* Infielder Engelb Vielma has experienced a couple of bad breaks in the last two days.

Vielma was optioned to the Tides on Tuesday with second baseman Jonathan Schoop coming off the disabled list, and he was carted off the field at Durham last night with a fractured patella.

The timing makes it worse for Vielma, who goes on the minor league disabled list after coming off the Orioles’ active roster.

The Orioles could put Vielma on the 60-day disabled list if they need room on the 40-man roster.