BOWIE, Md. – Most teams in pro baseball use a five-man rotation, sometimes six, but 10 is a bit much. However the Orioles like to sometimes essentially use two starting pitchers or bulk inning pitchers in one game and that has been on display often this year at Double-A Bowie.

And while the Baysox have not gotten off to a great start at 6-13, it has not been about shaky pitching. The opposite has been true. Bowie was rained out Sunday but ranks third in the Eastern League in team ERA at 3.43

But the Baysox lead the Eastern League in rotation ERA at 2.60 and also rank first among starter WHIP at 1.06 and batting average against by starting pitchers at .191.

And the Baysox have had nine different pitchers start games this year and nine times have had games where two pitchers threw three innings or more. There was another game or two where they just missed as a second pitcher went 2 2/3. And 10 pitchers on their staff have had at least one outing of three innings or more.

The "bulk innings" pitchers, my term not theirs, are getting their work in, developing their pitches and thriving on the stat sheet.

LAKELAND, Fla. – Terrin Vavra didn’t have or need much time today to get comfortable at third base. He seemed right at home, as if roaming the corner put him on familiar ground.

Vavra made two diving stops to record outs against the Tigers and singled twice to stay hot at the plate.

In his first game at third beyond a rehab inning last summer with High-A Aberdeen.

Must be a natural.

Leadoff hitter Riley Greene was robbed twice by Vavra, first on a diving backhand stop and then a lunging grab to his left.

Talk about making a nice first impression. And a second one too. On Aug. 2, the Orioles traded closer Jorge López to the Minnesota Twins for a package of four pitching prospects, the headliner of which was lefty Cade Povich.

The 22-year-old Povich was assigned to high Single-A Aberdeen. In his first IronBirds outing, he pitched six scoreless innings on one hit. In his second he threw six scoreless again, this time on three hits.

When he took the mound for Aberdeen for the first time on Aug. 6 at Ripken Stadium against Wilmington, he struck out the first five batters he faced and had a no-hitter going through 5 2/3 innings. He finished with eight strikeouts and no walks.

He went from being a bit stunned in hearing he was traded to showing his new organization they may have gotten a good one.

“It was a bit shocking,” Povich told me recently about hearing about the deal. “You think you will be one of those guys with one team your whole career and you hear that when you are younger. Kind of crazy then to be part of a trade. Once everything calms down you have to look at the bigger picture. Someone wanted you enough to trade for you and it was for a good closer, so pretty big deal.”

Most of the six new pitchers the Orioles acquired in the recent trades of Trey Mancini to Houston and Jorge López to Minnesota have gotten off to good starts for their new organization.

The Orioles added three top 30 prospects.

For Mancini they got right-hander Seth Johnson from Tampa Bay. He underwent Tommy John surgery on Aug. 3, so the Orioles won’t see him for a while, but MLBPipeline.com ranks him as the club's No. 8 prospect. Baseball America has him at No. 10. After Grayson Rodriguez and DL Hall, Johnson is now the Orioles' third highest-rated pitcher.

The O’s also added 23-year-old right-hander Chayce McDermott from Houston in that deal. He now ranks as Baltimore’s No. 12 prospect, according to MLBPipeline.com, and No. 17 in Baseball America's estimation. In two games with the Orioles' high Single-A Aberdeen team, he has allowed two runs and three hits in five innings, going 0-1 with a 3.60 ERA with one walk to 10 strikeouts.

In the deal with Minnesota, the O’s added lefty Cade Povich, also pitching at Aberdeen. In his first start for his new organization, he threw six scoreless innings on one hit last Saturday. MLBPipeline.com ranks Povich as the O’s No. 26 prospect, while Baseball America puts him at No. 29.

I have mentioned a few times lately that not all days at the ballpark are created equal. Some are more special. We keep getting days like that around Birdland lately, and Saturday was sure one of them.

To have Hall of Famers Brooks Robinson and Eddie Murray at the Yard was pretty awesome, for the fans and the Orioles team too. The ceremony for the 30th anniversary celebration of Oriole Park at Camden Yards was well done, and brought back some nice memories of some wonderful moments over the years.

Then the Orioles' winning streak continued with a 6-3 win over Pittsburgh as 41,086 cheered them on. It was awesome to see Oriole Park rocking like it was Saturday. When I headed home the fans at the Yard were still rocking at the postgame concert.

I was just excited I had recognized a few of the songs. Had set the over/under at two and I went over. Yay for me. But that just capped off a great day and night for the fans of Birdland.

The Hall of Famers, No. 33 and No. 5, spent time talking to the Orioles players before the game. And after that they talked with reporters, and Murray was asked if this current club reminds him of the 1979 team that made Oriole magic a thing.

Perhaps fueled with some momentum from the pregame ceremony and celebration of 30 years of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the current group of Birds got off to a fast start today against Pittsburgh.

Not long after the fans cheered Hall of Famers Brooks Robinson, Eddie Murray and Mike Mussina with gusto, among others that returned, the 2022 Orioles scored once in the first and twice in the second off Pirates right-hander JT Brubaker to take an early 3-0 lead.

The Pirates would close the gap but the Orioles did their part toward making the day a party and a success with a 6-3 win over the Pirates before an enthusiastic crowd of 41,086 at the ballpark. That is the second-largest crowd of the year behind opening day. 

Before the game Robinson and Murray spoke to the Orioles players. Manager Brandon Hyde said it meant so much to his team.

“Priceless day for our guys,” said Hyde. “We were so honored to have Brooks and Eddie in our clubhouse to say a few words of encouragement. Just greatness in our clubhouse. Our guys felt it, they were appreciative. The whole ceremony was fantastic. I think our whole team was out there for it to recognize some great moments here over the last 30 years and the people that were a part of it. Really impressed with everything, but the cherry on top was Brooks and Eddie being in our clubhouse.”

In a move designed to obtain future talent for a current All-Star closer, the Orioles today traded right-hander Jorge López to the Minnesota Twins for a package of four pitchers. And yes, they made this move while they are just 2 1/2 games out of the last American League playoff spot.

Here is a bit more on the four players they got from the Twins for López, a player the Orioles acquired via waivers from the Kansas City Royals on Aug. 9, 2020. This season he has recorded 19 saves with a 1.68 ERA.

The O's added left-hander Cade Povich, a third-round pick out of Nebraska in 2021 (No. 98 overall) who has pitched this year at high Single-A Cedar Rapids. He is 6-8 with a 4.46 ERA. In 78 2/3 innings, he has allowed 71 hits and nine homers with 26 walks and 107 strikeouts and a 1.23 WHIP. He has a 2.97 walk rate and 12.24 strikeout rate.

One scout I spoke with said his fastball averages in the 92 mph range but has touched 96 this season. He also throws a curveball in the high 70s, slider in the 80-81 range and a firm changeup around 84 mph. The scout liked his slider as his best secondary and described him as “polished, college lefty.” He throws a lot of strikes, especially with his fastball and slider, and mixes in the other pitches as chase and putaway offerings.

MLB.com and MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis discussed Povich on MLB Network.

ARLINGTON, Texas – The Orioles proved this morning that they weren’t done dealing. And the distance between them and the last wild card spot wouldn’t matter.

Closer Jorge López has been traded to the Twins for four minor league pitchers. Both teams announced it a few minutes ago.

The Orioles are receiving left-handers Cade Povich and Juan Rojas, and right-handers Yennier Canó and Juan Nuñez.

More talent for the pipeline. Another important member of a surprise contender, with high velocity and character, headed out the door.

López made his first All-Star team this year and led the Orioles with 19 saves while posting a 1.68 ERA and 0.972 WHIP in 44 games in his first season as closer. He struck out 54 batters in 48 1/3 innings.