World Champions 1983, 1970, 1966

American League Champions 1983, 1979, 1971, 1970, 1969, 1966 American League East Division Champions 2014, 1997, 1983, 1979, 1974, 1973, 1971, 1970, 1969

American League Wild Card 2016, 2012, 1996

Thursday, August 3, 2017

Game Stories:

Early offense helps Orioles complete sweep of Royals with 6-0 win The Sun 8/2

Hellickson's 7 strong help O's sweep Royals MLB.com 8/3

Hellickson shines in debut and Orioles sweep (with quotes) MASNsports.com 8/2

Hellickson with seven scoreless, O’s sweep K.C. (quotes added) MASNsports.com 8/2

Hellickson helps Orioles beat Royals 6-0 for 3-game sweep AP 8/2

New Orioles Jeremy Hellickson, Tim Beckham Key To Fifth Straight Win

PressBoxOnline.com 8/3

Columns:

Orioles' Joey Rickard a surprising inclusion among game's top statistical outfield

defenders The Sun 8/3

Orioles shortstop Tim Beckham making speedy impression with new club The Sun 8/3

With seven scoreless innings, Jeremy Hellickson impressive in Orioles debut The Sun 8/2

Orioles' Caleb Joseph and Welington Castillo literally splitting time at catcher The Sun

8/2

Dan Duquette explains the Orioles' frequent trades of international signing bonus slots

The Sun 8/2

Tillman hopes to find form as O's host Tigers MLB.com 8/3

Joseph has O's back with tone-setting jack MLB.com 8/3

Flaherty progressing, nearing return to O's MLB.com 8/2

Tillman’s turn in the rotation MASNsports.com 8/3

Smith garnering more consideration vs. lefties (O’s lead 3-0) MASNsports.com 8/2

Early notes on Flaherty, Santander, Rickard, catchers and more MASNsports.com 8/2

Notes and quotes after the Orioles’ sweep of Kansas City MASNsports.com 8/3

Givens on Britton staying, his big year and more MASNsports.com 8/2

Grading Orioles Executive Dan Duquette's Body Of Work Is Difficult

PressBoxOnline.com 8/2

Struggling Tillman starts Orioles' series opener vs. Tigers CBS Sports 8/3

Myriad O’s Thoughts: Burn it like Beckham; Kings of visiting Royals; Harvey to

Aberdeen BaltimoreBaseball.com 8/3

On the seven-year anniversary of his MLB debut, Hellickson throws a debut gem for O’s

BaltimoreBaseball.com 8/2

Hate thy neighbor? Nationals and Orioles have still never executed a trade. The Post 8/3

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-sp-orioles-royals-recap-20170802-

story.html

Early offense helps Orioles complete sweep of Royals with 6-

0 win

By Jon Meoli / The Baltimore Sun

August 2, 2017

With Wednesday's 6-0 win over the Kansas City Royals, the Orioles picked up their fifth straight

win and continued their miniature resurgence that coincided with the acquisition of Jeremy

Hellickson and has brought them back within 2½ games of a playoff spot, albeit in early August.

Their fifth straight victory put them one shy of their longest streak of the season, which came in

early May — as they jumped out to a major league-best 22-10 start before a two-month skid put

their season in jeopardy. That they swept a Kansas City club that had won 10 of 11 before

coming to Camden Yards made it plenty satisfying for manager Buck Showalter.

“We talked about it in the advance meeting with the pitchers and the position players that we

were facing probably as hot a team as there was in the American League, and they’re pitching

[well],” Showalter said. “I’m proud of that, knowing as we get into August and September,

knowing the opportunities to make up some ground are going to be fleeting. I don’t need to

remind them of that. But it was a good team playing well and we held our own against them.”

Now a game below .500 at 53-54, the Orioles enter a four-game series against the Detroit Tigers

to kick off a stretch of three weeks against mostly sub-.500 opponents in which they hope to

continue to ride a wave of strong starting pitching back to relevance. Over their past five starts,

Orioles starters have combined to allow three earned runs in 35 2/3 innings.

“Pitching is so hard,” Showalter said. “To put together long runs of good pitching out of five or

six guys is really a challenge. But right now they seem to be feeding off each other.”

An RBI double by newly acquired shortstop Tim Beckham and a two-run home run by catcher

Caleb Joseph in the second inning staked the Orioles to as big of a lead as they'd need thanks to

seven scoreless innings from Hellickson (7-5).

That didn't stop them from adding three insurance runs in the eighth on a two-run double by first

baseman Chris Davis and an RBI triple by Beckham.

Beckham and designated hitter Trey Mancini had two hits apiece. Beckham drove in a pair while

Mancini scored twice in the win.

Joseph said the five-game winning streak more closely mirrors the type of baseball that the

Orioles set out to play and did early, but eluded them in the middle part of the season.

“It hasn’t been exactly what we’ve wanted it to look like, but there’s still a never-quit [attitude],”

Joseph said. “I know we can say it until we’re blue in the face here, but you just never know.

With the type of team we have, with the guys in here, the power of the lineup, the way the

rotation is trending, the back end of the bullpen. We have the pieces to make a run at this, and

we’ve always believed it. it just hasn’t gone our way in the first part. but we like the additions

we’ve got, and hopefully it all jells and we can really make a run at this. We’re on a nice start,

I’d say.”

Delayed, not denied: A 35-minute rain delay sent everyone at Camden Yards scurrying in the

third inning Wednesday night, but neither pitcher seemed too impacted by the mid-game pause.

Hellickson needed a little time to get re-acclimated before getting out of the third unscathed, and

his counterpart, Jason Vargas, came out of it strong as well.

Once Hellickson completed his seven innings, right-hander Mychal Givens lowered his ERA to

1.86 with a clean eighth inning and right-hander Darren O'Day pitched scoreless ninth.

Dan Duquette explains the Orioles' frequent trades of international signing bonus slots

Talk it out: Twice early Wednesday, the newest Orioles on the field seemed to be uneasy with

what their teammates were doing defensively. In the first inning, Beckham cut off a ball up the

middle that was bound for second baseman Jonathan Schoop and eliminated the possibility of a

double play because his momentum took him past the bag.

An inning later, the Orioles were shifted toward the right side against designated hitter Mike

Moustakas with third baseman Manny Machado near the shortstop position when there was a

pop-up near the third base coaching box.

Hellickson took matters into his own hands and made the catch just above Machado's glove,

narrowly avoiding a collision. Neither did any damage, but the moments represent the growing

pains of breaking in new teammates.

Breaking the streak: Joseph's home run was the first at Camden Yards in the three-game series.

That there were two games in a row here without a home run this year was a rarity. There had

been two homerless games in the first 51 played in Baltimore before the two this week.

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/246027166/jeremy-hellickson-leads-os-to-sweep-of-

royals/?topicId=27118142

Hellickson's 7 strong help O's sweep Royals

By Jeffrey Flanagan and Mandy Bell / MLB.com

August 3, 2017

BALTIMORE -- Now, that's how you debut for your new team.

Right-hander Jeremy Hellickson, making his first start for the Orioles since being acquired from

the Phillies on Friday, threw seven strong innings in a 6-0 victory over the Royals on Wednesday

night at Camden Yards. The Orioles won their fifth straight by sweeping the three-game series.

"Last night, I had some nerves. But once I got out there, I felt fine," Hellickson said. "I've been

traded before, just not in season to a team that is playing as well as we are, that has a chance to

make the playoffs. So, just a little nervous last night, but I felt really good today."

The game was delayed 35 minutes by rain.

"Jeremy's always had that presentation from both dugouts. Not a whole lot seems to bother him.

He's always been pretty consistent with his emotions, it seems like," Orioles manager Buck

Showalter said. "Our people are real good with the rain and understanding when we're going to

play again, and how long it might be. We were fortunate they do a great job with it, the crew. It

was a good call."

Hellickson gave up five hits and one walk while striking out three. The Orioles came into the

series with an American League-worst 5.83 ERA among their starters, while the Royals had

averaged a league-best 6.4 runs over the last 14 games. The O's, though, held the Royals to two

earned runs in the series.

"They did a nice job of neutralizing the middle of our order -- 3-4-5-6 guys," manager Ned Yost

said. "That's what makes us go."

Despite the sweep, the Royals managed a 5-4 road trip. But Yost, who was ejected in the ninth

along with third baseman Mike Moustakas for arguing balls and strikes, said it didn't feel like a

good trip.

"Not when you lose the series," Yost said. "You want to come in here and win the series. I don't

care about the entire road trip right now. Hopefully we start another streak back home."

Royals starter Jason Vargas gave up four hits and three runs over five innings. He walked two

and struck out six.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Joseph goes yard: Vargas appeared ready to get out of the second inning having allowed only

one run on Tim Beckham's opposite-field RBI double when Joey Rickard lined to third for the

second out. But Caleb Joseph jumped on a 1-1 fastball and drilled a two-run homer to left field

that gave the Orioles a 3-0 lead.

"I made that mistake to Joseph," Vargas said. "I threw a fastball right over the middle. I was

trying to go in tight on the body line. It was a mistake that definitely cost us."

Stop right there: The Royals had a fantastic chance to crawl back in the game in the sixth inning.

Melky Cabrera led off with a walk, and Eric Hosmer roped a double down the right-field line.

But Salvador Perez went after Hellickson's first offering for the third straight at-bat and hit a

weak popup to first. Then, Moustakas struck out on three pitches, the last of which may have

been foul-tipped into the ground, or so the Royals argued. Jorge Bonifacio got ahead in the count

2-0, but he dribbled a soft roller to first for the third out.

"I think I got that popup, and then, I don't strike out a lot of guys, but it was nice to get strikeouts

in those situations," Hellickson said. "That was big, but just trying not to do too much. If they get

a run there, we're still ahead 3-1, and I ended up getting out of it with nothing."

QUOTABLE

"Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I know I can run, man. I can bring energy to the club, and if that hits the

right-center gap and touches the wall, I expect to be on third. Anything to bring some energy and

get my club going, man. Just doing what I can." -- Beckham, on his RBI triple in the eighth

inning

WHAT'S NEXT

Royals: Right-hander Trevor Cahill (4-3, 4.15 ERA) will make his first Royals start at home

when they return to Kauffman Stadium to open a four-game series with the Mariners on

Thursday night at 7:15 p.m. CT. Cahill allowed five runs and eight hits over four-plus innings on

Saturday against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Orioles: Right-hander Chris Tillman (1-6, 7.65) will take the mound as the Orioles open a four-

game set against the Tigers on Thursday at 7:05 p.m. ET. Last time out, he allowed eight runs on

nine hits through 4 1/3 innings against the Rangers. However, Tillman has enjoyed much success

against Detroit in his career with a 2.45 ERA in nine starts.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2017/08/hellickson-shines-in-debut-and-orioles-

sweep.html

Hellickson shines in debut and Orioles sweep (with quotes)

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

August 2, 2017

The pressure of joining a new team couldn’t fluster Jeremy Hellickson. Nor could a 35-minute

rain delay in the third inning or an opponent that, before arriving in Baltimore, was the hottest

team in baseball.

Hellickson’s debut was a rousing success, with the veteran right-hander shutting out the Royals

over seven innings to continue the rotation’s roll in a 6-0 victory at Camden Yards.

The Orioles completed the sweep and have won five in a row, their longest streak since a six-

game run from May 4-9. With a 53-54 record, they’re one game below .500 for the first time

since July 2.

Tonight’s outcome was the seventh shutout and also left the Orioles 2 ½ games back for the

second wild card.

This is the second three-game sweep of the Royals in Baltimore in the last two seasons, and it

comes amidst the criticism over the Orioles’ decision to regard themselves as contenders at the

non-waiver trade deadline.

Mychal Givens retired the side in order in the eighth and lowered his ERA to 1.86 in 53 1/3

innings.

Chris Davis’ two-run double in the bottom of the eighth and Tim Beckham’s RBI triple allowed

Zach Britton to sit down and put Darren O’Day into the game for the last three outs.

Hellickson allowed five hits, walked one, struck out three and threw 62 of 94 pitches for strikes.

He headed for cover in the third after retiring the first two batters on a strikeout and fly ball. Play

resumed and Hellickson gave up a single to Whit Merrifield and allegedly hit Melky Cabrera on

the foot, all the hopping around convincing the umpires to give him first base. Eric Hosmer flied

to left and the rally died.

The biggest jam led to the best escape act. Cabrera walked to lead off the sixth inning and

Hosmer doubled. With two runners in scoring position, Hellickson retired Salvador Perez on a

pop up to the mound, struck out Mike Moustakas and retired Jorge Bonifacio on a grounder to

first.

A standing ovation was followed by another one after Hellickson retired the Royals in order in

the seventh while Givens warmed in the bullpen.

The rotation has allowed only three earned runs in the last 35 2/3 innings.

Toting a well-earned reputation as a fly ball pitcher, Hellickson recorded 10 of his outs through

the air. He almost ran over Manny Machado to catch Moustakas’ popup in foul territory. But he

also induced a double play grounder from Alcides Escobar after Bonifacio singled.

Hellickson kept getting outs and keeping his pitch count under control. He retired the side in

order in the fourth on nine pitches and stranded a runner in the fifth to leave him at 63.

The guy can fill up a strike zone.

Royals left-hander Jason Vargas retired the side in order in the first inning, but the Orioles struck

for three runs in the second. Beckham, in his second game since Monday’s trade, doubled into

the right field corner to score Trey Mancini. Caleb Joseph homered to left field with two outs,

giving him 22 RBIs on the season.

No need to rehash last year’s total.

Adam Jones walked to lead off the third, moved up on a wild pitch and advanced to third base

with one out, but the Orioles failed to build on their lead. A two-out intentional walk to Mancini

was followed by Davis’ strikeout.

The Orioles didn’t need any more runs, though more would come later. They just needed

Hellickson to keep the rotation churning, to instill more hope that the front office made the right

decisions at the deadline.

So far so good.

So much farther to go.

Showalter on whether Hellickson came as advertised: “We hope so. We got to see him do it a lot

to us, especially at their park. You get older and get a little wiser and know more is not always

better. He had good command of all his pitches. They couldn’t take one out of play. A little

cutter here and there and located his fastball. He and Caleb worked well together. The changeup.

You’ve really almost got to add an inning to that because of the rain delay. He threw the

equivalent of probably one inning inside getting ready. Fortunately, it wasn’t a very long rain

delay.”

On whether the delay made it harder for Hellickson to maintain focus: “Jeremy’s always had that

presentation from both dugouts. Not a whole lot seems to bother him. He’s always been pretty

consistent with his emotions. It seems like. I don’t know him that well. But from watching him in

the other dugout and now watching here, it’s pretty matter of fact. He knows what he’s got to do

and who he is and what he’s not. I think as long as you communicate with him and let him know

what’s coming, all the players. Our people are real good with the rain and understanding when

we’re going to play again and how long it might be. We were fortunate they do a great job with

it, the crew. It was a good call.”

On sweeping team that had won 10 of 11: “We talked about it in the advance meeting with the

pitchers and the position players that we were facing probably as hot a team as there was in the

American League and they’re pitching ... Vargas and Jeremy are a lot alike in how they pitch.

It’s just one’s left-handed and one’s right-handed. I’m proud of that, knowing as we get into

August and September, knowing the opportunities to make up some ground are going to be

fleeting. I don’t need to remind them of that. But it was a good team playing well and we held

our own against them.”

On Beckham: “He did a good job of being under control. He made a great read early on a line

drive to third base that a lot of people get doubled up on that. Tim is 27 now, he’s starting to

grasp some of those things. We think the timing is good for him to get where he’s capable of

getting. We have obviously a good opportunity for him.”

On when he allows himself to think starters rolling again and ‘pen set up nicely: “End of

September. Pitching is so hard. To put together long runs of good pitching out of five or six guys

is really a challenge. But right now they seem to be feeding off each other. Chris (Tillman) gets a

chance tomorrow to get back where he was before he had that outing in Texas.”

Hellickson on whether he was nervous: “Last night I had some nerves, but once I got out there I

felt fine. I’ve been traded before, just not in season to a team that is playing as well as we are,

that has a chance to make the playoffs. So just a little nervous last night, but I felt really good

today.”

http://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2017/08/stunning-debut-hellickson-with-seven-

scoreless-os-sweep-kc.html

Hellickson with seven scoreless, O’s sweep K.C. (quotes

added)

By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com

August 2, 2017

Well, that was some debut. In his first game on the mound for the Orioles, right-hander Jeremy

Hellickson pitched seven scoreless innings of five-hit ball as the Orioles blanked the Royals 6-0

at Camden Yards.

This completes a stunning three days of pitching by the club, which gave up just three runs in

this series. O’s starting pitchers allowed just one earned run in 22 innings against Kansas City, as

the Orioles moved to within 2 1/2 games of the Royals for the second American League wild

card spot.

Hellickson’s night included a major escape act in the top of the sixth. He issued a leadoff walk to

Melky Cabrera, who then advanced to third on Eric Hosmer’s double to right. But Hellickson got

cleanup hitter Salvador Perez to pop out to the mound, fanned Mike Moustakas on an 0-2 pitch

and got Jorge Bonafacio to ground to first. An escape act indeed.

But he was otherwise in control. Even a 35-minute rain delay after he got the first two outs of the

third could not stop him. He walked one and fanned three, throwing 94 pitches, 62 for strikes. He

threw first-pitch strikes to 18 of 27 batters.

This was Hellickson’s second scoreless start of his 21 on the year. He threw five scoreless on

April 9 versus the Nationals. Between the Orioles and Phillies, he is now 7-5 with an ERA of

4.45.

Mychal Givens retired the side in order in the eighth and Darren O’Day pitched a scoreless ninth

to conclude the Orioles’ seventh shutout and a series in which they outscored the Royals 15-3.

Kansas City was 10-1 in its previous 11 games when this series began.

The Orioles didn’t get much going tonight off left-hander Jason Vargas. But they did strike for

three quick runs in the last of the second. Trey Mancini reached on an infield single and moved

up on a groundout. Tim Beckham doubled to right to plate Mancini and drive in his first run as

an Oriole to make it 1-0. An out later, he scored when Caleb Joseph hit a two-run homer to left.

Joseph hit No. 6 on a 1-1 fastball to make it 3-0. It was his second homer in his last three games.

Vargas had allowed two runs or less in 14 of 20 starts this year and then gave up three in a span

of five batters. He took the loss, allowing four hits and three runs over five innings. He gave up

just one hit outside of the second.

Adding on to the lead, the Orioles made it 6-0 in the eighth. That inning featured a Chris Davis

two-run double to right and Beckham’s RBI triple. He drove in two runs tonight and is 4-for-8 in

his first two games with his new team.

After an impressive three-game sweep of the Royals, the Orioles are back within a game of .500

at 53-54. Winners of five in a row and 11 of 16, they host Detroit tomorrow night to start a four-

game series.

Postgame quotes:

Hellickson on if he had any nerves tonight: “Last night I had some nerves, but once I got out

there I felt fine. You know, I’ve been traded before, just not in season to a team that’s playing as

well as we are, and that has a chance to make the playoffs. Just a little nervous last night, but I

felt really good today.”

Hellickson on if there was pressure on him tonight: “Maybe a little bit. You just have to be

confident in yourself. Me and Caleb had a good game plan, so really didn’t deviate away from

that at all. I just threw what he put down and where he put the glove and it felt good tonight.

“I think the biggest thing was the curveball tonight. I don’t think I’ve thrown that many this year.

It was good to get that over 0-0 when I needed to and I think I had a good two-strike one tonight,

too.”

Hellickson already feels part of the team: “Monday when I came in, everybody made me feel

welcome and comfortable and I felt part of the team right away. But it is always good to throw a

good one your first time out with a new team. These guys made me feel welcome from the

second I walked in here.”

Beckham on two ex-Rays leading the O’s tonight and his first days with club: “Yeah man, it’s

crazy that we ended up back on the same club. He’s a heck of a pitcher, and glad to be back with

him, and great to have him here on the hill with the Orioles and to help us win some ballgames.

“It’s been a wild one, man. Phone still hasn’t stopped going off, but I’m happy to be here, happy

they believe in me. We’ve got a great club here, great club, love the energy, love the team

camaraderie. It’s going to be a fun ride.”

Joseph on Hellickson: “It was really impressive. What a night, what a debut. It is what we

expected. It’s hard to do. It was something I know he was excited about, too. It was a lot better

being back there than at the plate trying to hit him. I’m glad he’s on our side.”

Joseph on if win streak can justify management keeping team together this week: “We try and do

that the first day of spring all the way into the season. They’ve invested a lot of money in this

team and there is a lot of faith put in this team with the fans and ownership and management. We

haven’t panicked. I know it hasn’t been exactly what we wanted it to look like, but there is still a

never quit here. We have the type of team here - the guys in here, the power of the lineup, the

way the starting pitching is trending, the back of the bullpen - to make a run at this. We’ve

always believed it. We like the additions we’ve gotten and hopefully it all jells and we can really

make a run at this.”

http://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=370802101

Hellickson helps Orioles beat Royals 6-0 for 3-game sweep

By Associated Press

August 2, 2017

BALTIMORE -- The two newest members of the Baltimore Orioles did exactly what they were

brought in to do: help the team win.

Baltimore fans can only hope Jeremy Hellickson and Tim Beckham do that consistently enough

to carry the Orioles into the postseason.

Hellickson threw seven outstanding innings in his Baltimore debut, Beckham had two extra-base

hits and two RBI and the Orioles beat the Kansas City Royals 6-0 Wednesday night to complete

a three-game sweep.

The Orioles' five-game winning streak is their longest since early May, and they now stand just 2

1/2 games behind Kansas City for the second AL wild-card slot.

Hellickson (1-0) was obtained Saturday from Philadelphia, the first of two significant trades by

the Orioles to fortify the roster for a potential playoff run. The right-hander paid immediate

returns, limiting Kansas City to five hits, issuing one walk and allowing only one runner to reach

third base.

"I've been traded before, just not in season to a team that is playing as well as we are, that has a

chance to make the playoffs," Hellickson said. "It's always good to throw a good one your first

time out with a new team."

After going 6-5 with the Phillies, Hellickson turned in his best performance of the season to earn

his second win in 12 starts since May 19.

He received offensive backing from Beckham, acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay on Monday

just before the non-waiver trade deadline expired.

"I'm happy to be here, happy they believe in me," the shortstop said. "We got a great club here,

man, great club, love the energy, love the team camaraderie. It's going to be a fun ride."

The Royals had won 10 of 11 before coming up flat at Camden Yards, scoring only three runs in

27 innings.

"We definitely didn't hit the ball well in this series," said Mike Moustakas, who came in with 30

home runs. "They pitched the ball great and we just didn't have any offense going."

The Royals showed their frustration in the ninth inning, when Moustakas was tossed after

complaining about a third-strike call and manager Ned Yost was ejected for joining the

argument.

"That pitch was nowhere close to being a strike," Yost insisted.

Baltimore went up 3-0 in the second inning against Jason Vargas (13-5) when Beckham doubled

in a run and Caleb Joseph followed with a two-out drive into the left-field seats.

After Hellickson retired the first two batters in the third, a sudden rain shower forced a 35-

minute delay. When play resumed, Hellickson gave up a single and hit a batter before retiring

Eric Hosmer on a fly ball.

It would be the only time until the sixth inning that Kansas City got a runner to second base.

In the sixth, Melky Cabrera drew a leadoff walk and went to third on a double by Hosmer.

Hellickson then caught a popup by Salvador Perez, struck out Moustakas and retired Jorge

Bonifacio on a weak grounder to first.

Baltimore made it 6-0 in the eighth when Chris Davis doubled in two runs and scored on a triple

by Beckham .

HOUSE OF PAIN

Kansas City was swept in three games at Camden Yards last year, too, and has dropped seven

straight in Baltimore since Aug. 26, 2015.

MUST BE THE SHOES

After being traded from Tampa Bay to Baltimore, Beckham had to be fitted for a uniform

Tuesday. His shoes, however, were already taken care of.

"It's funny. I don't care how many times a guy gets moved, the shoe company will catch up with

him," manager Buck Showalter said. "There were about four or five boxes there, and I'm

thinking, `Wow, that's pretty quick.' God forbid, you go out there in blue shoes on an orange and

black team."

TRAINER'S ROOM

Royals: CF Lorenzo Cain was excluded from the starting lineup after tweaking his hamstring

running for a ball in the gap Tuesday night.

Orioles: INF Ryan Flaherty (shoulder) went 2 for 4 with a walk for Class A Frederick against

Myrtle Beach on Wednesday.

UP NEXT

Royals: RHP Trevor Cahill makes his second start since being acquired in a July 23 trade with

San Diego, facing Seattle at home Thursday night. He allowed five runs over four innings in his

debut vs. Boston last Saturday.

Orioles: Chris Tillman (1-6, 7.65) helps open a four-game series against the visiting Detroit

Tigers. He's winless in 13 consecutive starts.

https://www.pressboxonline.com/2017/08/03/new-orioles-jeremy-hellickson-tim-beckham-key-

to-fifth-straight-win

New Orioles Jeremy Hellickson, Tim Beckham Key To Fifth

Straight Win

By Rich Dubroff / PressBoxOnline.com

August 3, 2017

BALTIMORE -- When the Orioles acquired right-hander Jeremy Hellickson from the

Philadelphia Phillies July 28, it was clear the team needed another starter. However, the move

puzzled many fans who thought the Orioles' modus operandi was going to be to sell off assets

rather than buy.

The Orioles ended up not only getting Hellickson, but they also added shortstop Tim Beckham

three days later. Both players played key roles in the team's fifth straight win.

Hellickson answered any concerns by tossing seven shutout innings during a 6-0 win against the

Kansas City Royals before 14,984 at Oriole Park Aug. 2.

Hellickson allowed five hits, walked one and struck out three, throwing 94 pitches in his first

start since July 22. He helped pitch the Orioles to their longest winning streak since a six-game

run from May 4-9.

"Last night I had some nerves, but once I got out there I felt fine," Hellickson said. "I've been

traded before, just not in season to a team that is playing as well as we are -- that has a chance to

make the playoffs."

At 53-54, the Orioles are now one game below .500 for the first time since July 2.

During the five-game win streak, Orioles starters have worked seven innings or longer four

times.

Hellickson said he quickly felt like a teammate.

"Monday when I came in, I mean, everybody made me feel comfortable and welcomed, so I felt

part of the team right away," Hellickson said. "But it is always good to throw a good one your

first time out with a new team. It was good to do that."

Caleb Joseph got to catch Hellickson for the first time. The night before, they talked while

watching right-hander Dylan Bundy pitch.

"We had a couple bumps throughout the game today, but I think overall it went pretty well,"

Joseph said. "He has so many weapons, and that's what you're looking for is how can I navigate

through a big league lineup? Especially, when he's behind in the count."

Joseph also had a two-run home run.

While Hellickson was stellar, so was Beckham, who drove in two runs with a double and triple,

exciting the fans, who aren't used to seeing an Oriole with terrific speed.

"I know I can run, man. I can bring energy to the club, and if that hits the right-center gap and

touches the wall, I expect to be on third," Beckham said. "Anything to bring some energy and get

my club going. Just doing what I can."

Manager Buck Showalter likes having a player with Beckham's abilities.

"He did a good job of being under control," Showalter said. "Tim is 27 now, he's starting to grasp

some of those things. We think the timing is good for him to get where he's capable of getting.

We have obviously a good opportunity for him."

While Hellickson had two days to get prepared, Beckham didn't arrive until Aug. 1, and he was

meeting teammates on the fly.

"It's been a wild one," Beckham said. "Phone still hasn't stopped going off, but I'm happy to be

here, happy they believe in me. We got a great club here, great club, love the energy, love the

team camaraderie. It's going to be a fun ride."

NOTES: This was the Orioles' seventh shutout this season, and their third in the last nine games.

… Play was delayed for 35 minutes in the third. Total rain delay time at home this year is nine

hours, 30 minutes. ... Short-season Aberdeen catcher Ben Breazeale has been named the Orioles'

Minor League Player of the Month for July. Low-A Delmarva lefty Alex Wells has been named

Pitcher of the Month for July. … Right-hander Chris Tillman (1-6, 7.65) will pitch for the

Orioles against lefty Matthew Boyd (5-5, 5.30) in the first of four games against Detroit Aug. 3.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-sp-orioles-joey-rickard-defense-20170803-

story.html

Orioles' Joey Rickard a surprising inclusion among game's

top statistical outfield defenders

By Jon Meoli / The Baltimore Sun

August 3, 2017

Texas' Globe Life Park is as good a venue as any to demonstrate how far Orioles outfielder Joey

Rickard has advanced defensively since his rookie year — and how the perception of him has

come along with him.

Last year in Arlington, Tex., Rickard was playing left field and shaded toward center field when

a high but typically catchable fly ball fell near the foul line, with just too much ground to cover

from where he was set up. Last weekend, he was manning that same left field spot and dove in

the gap to take away extra bases and likely runs in the Orioles' 10-6 win Sunday.

Rickard, the former Rule 5 pick who has settled in tidily into a platoon role this year, has made

plays like that all year for the Orioles, who appear to have a legitimate corner outfield defender

in their midst for the first time in year.

"Joey's been solid out there this year, very quietly," Showalter said."He's actually throwing better

than I've ever seen him throw. He works at it."

While defensive metrics are best considered over periods as long as three years, and year-by-year

numbers are difficult to draw conclusions from, Rickard's numbers this year are among the best

in baseball. By defensive runs saved, Rickard's 10 DRS is tied for tenth-best among those with at

least 400 innings in the outfield. [All stats according to FanGraphs.]

By UZR/150, which credits or debits a fielder for the expected run value of a batted ball hit in his

direction then extrapolates that value out to a full season, has Rickard at 21.4 — third best in

baseball behind Boston's Mookie Betts and Chicago's Jason Heyward.

That company even surprises Rickard.

"I like to think that I'm up there," he said. "I work really hard at it, so I'd like to be up there near

the top, but I know that I still have a long way to go. I have great guys ahead of me to learn

from."

Rickard credits playing next to center fielder Adam Jones whether he's in left or right field with

making things immeasurably easier for him, but can't really explain the statistical bump. In

instances like his differing performances in the field in Texas, he said a year of familiarity is

making a difference.

"A big part of it is being there before," he said. "Certain day games, you're not going to see the

ball off the bat at certain times of the day. It's very specific reasons that could cause you to get a

bad jump or miss a step, but I think being there once before helps a lot."

His improvement in defensive statistics is a big part of Rickard being worth .5 wins above

replacement (WAR), as opposed to -0.7 last year. That's all with this year's .251/.287/.356

batting line being below last year's .268/.319/.377.

Rickard and right fielder Seth Smith are the only Orioles outfielders with a positive UZR/150,

with Smith's at 1, though he's at -6 DRS. Trey Mancini has 2 DRS, and Craig Gentry has 1.

But overall, while team's stated goal was to improve outfield defense this year, their -.5.6

UZR/150 ranks 29th in baseball, though their -6 DRS is up to 20th overall. Last year, they were

last in the game with -51 DRS and -11.2 DRS.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-sp-orioles-tim-beckham-20170802-

story.html

Orioles shortstop Tim Beckham making speedy impression

with new club

By Jon Meoli / The Baltimore Sun

August 3, 2017

Tim Beckham came to the Orioles earlier this week with a good number of questions about the

27-year-old former No. 1 pick's career to this point, but there's one he simply hasn't been able to

figure on his own: how to get his helmet to stay on his head.

He joked after losing his lid twice Wednesday that extra padding didn't work with the Tampa

Bay Rays either, and that a chinstrap might be in order. But as long as the rest of his time is like

his first two games in Baltimore, someone will be more than happy to bring it to him.

With seven scoreless innings, Jeremy Hellickson impressive in Orioles debut

Beckham had a double and a triple to drive in two runs Wednesday, which gave him two straight

multihit games since the Orioles acquired him from the Rays on Monday.

His excitement to be in Baltimore has been palpable these two games, but manager Buck

Showalter said the fact that he's played under control while trying to impress these first two

games has been encouraging.

"He did a good job under control — when's the right time to [stretch a triple?]" Showalter said.

"With one out, make them make a good throw there. He made a great read early on a line drive

to third base. A lot of people get doubled off on that.

"But I think as you get older — everybody seems to think that Tim's been playing ... what is he,

27 now? You start grasping some of those things. We think the timing is good for him to get

where he's capable of getting, and we have, obviously a good opportunity for him."

Beckham said it's "been a wild one" these past few days, but things are going well in Baltimore.

"I'm happy to be here, happy they believe in me and we've got a great club here, man," he said.

"Great club. I love the energy. I love the team camaraderie in here. It's going to be a fun ride."

Given he's collected four hits in his first two games and scored twice Tuesday, it could be

expected Beckham's hot start might help him settle in. But he said he doesn't want to put much

thought in that.

"I just want to continue to see the ball, play my game and do what I can to help the club,"

Beckham said.

One of those aspects is his speed, with three extra-base hits including a rare triple in these parts.

The Orioles had six triples on the season entering Wednesday. Beckham now has four.

"I know I can run," Beckham said." I know I can bring energy to the club. And if it hits that

right-center gap and touches wall, I expect to be on third. Anything to bring some energy and get

my club going. I'm just doing what I can."

His own favorite part of playing for the Orioles so far is being flanked by third baseman Manny

Machado and second baseman Jonathan Schoop on the infield.

“It's going to be some fun, man," Beckham said. "I think the Baltimore Orioles fans have a lot to

look forward to."

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-sp-hellickson-orioles-debut-20170803-

story.html

With seven scoreless innings, Jeremy Hellickson impressive

in Orioles debut

By Eduardo A. Encina / The Baltimore Sun

August 2, 2017

Jeremy Hellickson acknowledged he experienced some anxious moments leading up to his

Orioles debut Wednesday night. He’d transitioned to a new team before, but never during the

season, and never thrown into a playoff race at the trade deadline.

The Orioles acquired Hellickson from the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday with the hope that his

veteran arm could help stabilize the team’s rotation. The Orioles’ starting pitching struggles have

been the main reason why they’ve played inconsistently since mid-May and were on the fringe

of the playoff picture not long ago.

But the Orioles rotation seems to have found its footing, and in his first start with his new team,

Hellickson did his part to continue that momentum, throwing seven scoreless innings in the

Orioles’ 6-0 win over the Kansas City Royals. The win was the Orioles’ fifth straight and

completed a three-game sweep of Kansas City.

“Last night I had some nerves,” Hellickson said. “But once I got out there, I felt fine. I’ve been

traded before, just not in season to a team that is playing as well as we are, that has a chance to

make the playoffs. So, just a little nervous last night but I felt really good today.”

Hellickson’s Orioles debut didn’t scream dominance, but frame by frame, he kept the Royals off

the base paths by pitching to contact and letting his defense work behind him — facets that have

been instrumental for Orioles starting pitchers’ success over the past several years.

His game score of 73 was his best of the season in 21 starts, besting his previous best of 69 in a

six-inning, one-run effort at the Arizona Diamondbacks on June 25.

Hellickson overcame a 35-minute rain delay with two outs in the third inning, throwing the

equivalent to an inning inside to stay warm, and after the rain, he returned with the same

composure.

“Not a whole lot seems to bother him,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. “He’s always

been pretty consistent with his emotions, it seems like. I don’t know him that well. But from

watching him in the other dugout and now watching here, it’s pretty matter of fact. He knows

what he’s got to do and who he is and what he’s not.”

Hellickson, 30, hadn’t pitched in 11 days. He was scratched from his previous scheduled start

with the Phillies on Friday before the trade became official, then got into a minor car accident on

the way to the airport.

He went from a Phillies team sitting in the National League East cellar, 23½ games out of first

place entering Wednesday, to an Orioles team that has suddenly shown renewed life and is 2½

games back of the American League’s second wild-card spot held by the Royals. He brought a

track record of success in the AL East from his early days with the Tampa Bay Rays, and a

resume of durability at his three previous career stops.

Hellickson, who will be a free agent at the end of this season, joined an Orioles rotation that

owned a collective 5.73 ERA before Wednesday’s start — worst in the AL and second worst in

the majors. But since the club acquired Hellickson, the team’s starting pitchers have allowed just

three earned runs over the Orioles’ past five games spanning 35 2/3 innings, posting a 0.76 ERA.

Hellickson continued the trend, allowing five hits — all but one were singles — while mixing a

five-pitch arsenal that varied in velocities from 74 to 91 mph, as he tried to pitch to contact.

“We got to see him do it a lot to us, especially at their park,” Showalter said, referring to

Hellickson’s early years with the division-rival Rays. “You get older and get a little wiser and

know more is not always better. He had good command of all his pitches. They couldn’t take one

out of play. A little cutter here and there and located his fastball. He and Caleb [Joseph] worked

well together. The changeup [was good].”

Hellickson retired seven of the first nine batters he faced before heavy showers arrived. He

returned after the delay and put the first two batters on base before retiring seven of the next

eight batters.

He threw 18 of 27 first-pitch strikes, working ahead in the count. But Hellickson didn’t miss

many bats, drawing just three swings and misses on the night. He had just three strikeouts and

put 20 balls in play, drawing six groundouts and seven flyouts.

“Yeah, it was really impressive,” Joseph said. “Seven innings, couple hits, no runs in itself is

impressive, but add in a rain delay. I’m not sure he’s ever pitched during a rain delay and come

back before, so what a night, what a debut. It’s what we expected. We know it’s hard to do, so

it’s something I know he was excited about too. Just being back there, it’s a lot better being back

there than being on top of the plate trying to hit him, that’s for sure. I’m glad he’s on our side.”

Hellickson’s curveball was a weapon Wednesday. He threw the pitch 24 times in his 94 pitches,

the most he has thrown it all season, and had seven called strikes — including four times on the

first pitch of an at-bat — along with two swinging strikes and five outs on the pitch.

“I think the biggest thing was the curveball tonight,” Hellickson said. “I don’t think I’ve thrown

that many this whole year, so it was good to get that over 0-0 when I needed to and I think I had

a good two-strike one tonight, too.”

He ran into his most trouble in the sixth, when a leadoff walk to Melky Cabrera and Eric

Hosmer’s ensuing double put two runners in scoring position without an out.

But Hellickson escaped the inning just seven pitches later as he induced a first-pitch pop-up from

catcher Salvador Pérez, struck out Mike Moustakas on three pitches and got an inning-ending

groundout to first from Jorge Bonifacio.

“I think I got that popup, and then, I don’t strike out a lot of guys, but it was nice to get strikeouts

in those situations,” Hellickson said. “That was big, but just trying not to do too much. If they get

a run there, we’re still ahead 3-1 and I ended up getting out of it with nothing.”

Hellickson retired the Royals in order in the seventh, walking off the mound to a warm ovation

from the Camden Yards crowd after ending his outing retiring 12 of his last 15 batters.

“He'd be the first to tell you that when you're operating like that it makes it a lot easier,”

Showalter said. “We talk about that a lot. You know that every pitch has a chance to be a strike

and every pitch has a chance to be put in play.”

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-caleb-joseph-has-earned-more-playing-

time-20170802-story.html

Orioles' Caleb Joseph and Welington Castillo literally

splitting time at catcher

By Peter Schmuck / The Baltimore Sun

August 2, 2017

When this season started, no one would have suspected that on Aug. 2 Caleb Joseph would have

played exactly the same number of games as presumptive everyday catcher Welington Castillo.

Well, guess again. When Joseph crouched behind the plate and accepted the first pitch of Jeremy

Hellickson’s Orioles career, it was his 61st game appearance of 2017, which exactly equals the

number of games Castillo has played.

Orioles' Jonathan Schoop says he's honored to be competing with Nelson Cruz for RBI lead

Sure, Castillo has been banged up at times and still has significantly more plate appearances than

Joseph, but the Orioles seem to have settled into the equivalent of a platoon situation at the

catching position.

“We’ve got two guys playing well,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said, “and catching in

especially August and July is tough and I think it makes both of them better and it makes us

better. So, I want to keep them both in the flow. We’re lucky to have two guys who can do what

they do.

“Is that by design? I guess so … a little bit. I just want to keep them both in the flow.”

Showalter added that the situation would continue to depend on the overall performance of his

two catchers, who both have been steady behind the plate and are both swinging the bat well.

“In some cases we’ll catch them back to back, but probably try to split it up as much as we can,”

Showalter said. “And if somebody’s got kind of a hot hand with a certain guy, we’ll play that

into it.”

Trumbo confident

Designated hitter-outfielder Mark Trumbo (rib cage soreness) said Wednesday that he “doesn’t

see why” he won’t be ready to go when he’s eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list.

“That’s encouraging,” Showalter said. “What is it, the last day in Anaheim? I’m hoping. The

next question once we start, is if they feel like he needs to go take a couple days’ at-bats, we’ll

see. We do not have a minor league team on the West Coast, obviously, so we’ve got to make

that decision.”

Dan Duquette explains the Orioles' frequent trades of international signing bonus slots

Flaherty update

Utility infielder Ryan Flaherty has tested his shoulder in a handful of games at Double-A Bowie

and High-A Frederick and appears close to being ready to rejoin the major league club, but his

return does not appear to be imminent.

He has to come back from his rehabilitation assignment by Aug. 15, but Showalter said he hopes

it will be sooner than that.

“I’m kind of letting [third base coach Bobby Dickerson], Ryan and [head trainer Richie

Bancells] handle that right now,” Showalter said. “Bobby talked to him before and after every

game. He’s going to come here tomorrow, because there’s no place to play.”

Showalter said that he hopes to see Flaherty play a game or two in the outfield in the minors

before returning.

Around the horn

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, shortstop Tim Beckham became the first player with

multiple hits and runs in his first career game with the Orioles after having already played for

another team that season since Brook Fordyce, who did so on July 30, 2000. ... Tuesday was the

fourth game at Camden Yards this season without a home run by either team. The Orioles are 3-1

in such games. ... Bowling Green announced this week that former Orioles outfielder Nolan

Reimold will be inducted into the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame this fall.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bs-sp-orioles-international-bonus-trades-

20170802-story.html

Dan Duquette explains the Orioles' frequent trades of

international signing bonus slots

By Jon Meoli / The Baltimore Sun

August 2, 2017

On the occasion of yet another chunk of international signing bonus slots being traded by the

Orioles, executive vice president Dan Duquette explained the rationale behind the team's

frequent deals with them.

This year’s market opened on July 2, and a month out, the Orioles have made six trades that

included international bonus money.

Duquette's trade of international bonus slots to the New York Yankees for 23-year-old right-

hander Yefry Ramírez was the team's ninth trade involving international signing bonus slots

going out this year.

While the rules changed for this year thanks to a new collective bargaining agreement, the

thought process has remained static in terms of what the Orioles plan to do with whatever

international bonus allotment the league allows them to spend.

"We've been utilizing the international slot money to help us acquire some pitching to help our

team," Duquette said. "A lot of the other clubs will invest it in pitching to help us in the future or

players to help us in the future. We use it to try to strengthen our pitching staff now while we

have a window of opportunity with the position players we have here. That's just utilizing a trade

resource to impact your team now rather than three, four, five years down the road."

Under the previous collective bargaining agreement, teams had four large signing bonus slots

that accounted for their bonus pool to use on international amateur signings, with a steep penalty

for overages.

The Orioles frequently dealt these slots, and used all four this year in trades for pitcher Damien

Magnifico from the Milwaukee Brewers on April 13, left-hander Paul Fry from the Seattle

Mariners on April 14, and left-hander Alex Katz on May 20.

Magnifico was briefly with Triple-A Norfolk before he was used to acquire minor league right-

hander Jordan Kipper in a trade. Kipper had a 5.07 ERA in Norfolk before being moved to

Double-A Bowie in late July. Fry had six straight scoreless outings to bring his ERA down to

5.21 on the season before landing on the disabled list. Katz has a good slider and is at High-A

Frederick, where he has a 4.35 ERA.

Once the rules changed, and teams were subjected with a hard cap but could trade teams any

amount they choose, the Orioles ramped it up with six trades in a shade over four weeks.

It began with Matt Wotherspoon from the New York Yankees and Jason Wheeler from the Los

Angeles Dodgers, who were acquired on July 2. Wotherspoon has 20 strikeouts in 12 1/3 innings

with a 2.92 ERA for Triple-A Norfolk, and has caught manager Buck Showalter's attention.

Wheeler has a 4.67 ERA for the Tides.

Later, they acquired shortstop Milton Ramos from the New York Mets for bonus slots. Ramos, a

former third-round pick, is batting .278/.297/.347 since joining Low-A Delmarva. Another

pitcher acquired this month, Aaron Myers, has allowed one run over three appearances for the

Shorebirds since coming over from the Milwaukee Brewers.

And then, as the deadline approached, they sent international bonus slots to the Philadelphia

Phillies along with outfielder Hyun Soo Kim and minor leaguer Garrett Cleavinger for right-

hander Jeremy Hellickson. And Monday, Ramírez came for international money.

Duquette was asked Monday if he would have used the money even if they weren't trading it.

The Orioles' have had a top-down aversion to amateurs on the international market over the last

few years.

"It's a hard cap, so you can either use the money to sign amateur free agents or you can trade it to

the clubs who will use it at that level," Duquette said. "You can either use it or trade it. We use it,

some of it, and then we've been trading some of it."

The international players they have spent highly on haven't been the teenagers from Latin

America that so much of the game's international bonus slots go to. On that front, the highest-

profile signing of late was third baseman Jomar Reyes, who received $350,000 in 2014, and

right-hander Ofelky Peralta, who signed for that amount in 2013.

Reyes and Peralta are both at High-A Frederick currently.

Otherwise, they've spent on Cubans like outfielder Henry Urrutia, outfielder-turned-pitcher

Dariel Álvarez and right-hander Lazaro Levya. Their best international prospect currently is

Australian left-hander Alexander Wells, who didn't allow a run in July. Wells, 20, has a 2.29

ERA for Low-A Delmarva and signed for $300,000.

They've also spent internationally in Asia on the likes of pitchers Wei-Yin Chen and Suk-Min

Yoon, and Kim.

It hasn't all been unsuccessful — Wells was the organization's pitcher of the month in July. But

as the rest of the league puts an emphasis on using the international market to find large groups

of possible talent to bring into their farm system each year, the Orioles are marching to their own

path.

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/245974696/boyd-aims-to-stay-hot-as-tigers-visit-

os/?topicId=26688732

Tillman hopes to find form as O's host Tigers

By Jason Beck / MLB.com

August 3, 2017

Matthew Boyd's between-starts work included diaper changes and housework after pitching for

the Tigers the day after his wife delivered their first child. But soon enough, he had to leave wife

Ashley and daughter Meira behind for the road, the first experience of the feeling every

professional athlete with a family has to get used to.

After catching up on sleep the last couple nights, Boyd will be back on the mound Thursday in

Baltimore, where his ability to keep the ball in the park will be tested against a power-heavy

Orioles lineup.

Boyd has vastly improved his home run rate, from 2.7 per nine innings in his rookie season of

2015 to 1.6 last year to 1.1 so far this season. He has given up two homers in 19 1/3 innings since

his return to the Tigers' rotation after the All-Star break, one reason why he has three quality

starts in as many turns during that stretch.

But the Orioles are responsible for Boyd's roughest start this season, a seven-run slugging over 2

1/3 innings on May 16 at Comerica Park. He gave up a home run and three doubles in that

matchup, the first of four consecutive subpar outings that knocked him out of the rotation at the

end of May.

Boyd worked his way back by pitching to his strengths rather than opposing weaknesses. He sees

no reason to stray from that now.

"I just try to focus on controlling what I can control," Boyd said.

Boyd isn't the only starter with a challenge coming. O's right-hander Chris Tillman has seen the

goodwill from his 16-win season last year disappear amid a rough 2017 campaign, including a

7.65 ERA over 14 starts for Baltimore.

Tillman gave up eight runs on nine hits over 4 1/3 innings at Texas last Friday. It's a far cry from

2016, when he tossed 13 innings of one-run ball in two starts against the Tigers -- both wins.

Three things to watch for in this game

• The Tigers are hopeful shortstop Jose Iglesias can return to their lineup after missing the past

two games with a sprained right wrist suffered on a swing Monday night against the Yankees.

• In three starts since returning to the Majors, Boyd's average exit velocity allowed is just 81.8

mph. That tied for second lowest among starters who generated at least 50 batted balls in July,

behind only Clayton Kershaw.

• Orioles infielder Ryan Flaherty remains on a Minor League rehab assignment. He hasn't played

since May 18 in Detroit, after which he went on the DL with right shoulder tendinitis.

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/246058362/caleb-josephs-homer-helps-spark-orioles-

win/?topicId=27118142

Joseph has O's back with tone-setting jack

By Mandy Bell / MLB.com

August 3, 2017

BALTIMORE -- Not every team has a backup who can provide the same production as the

starter, but reserve catcher Caleb Joseph is helping to keep fresh legs behind the plate and hot

bats in the lineup.

Prior to Wednesday night's 6-0 win over the Royals, O's manager Buck Showalter had already

made it clear that "starter" Welington Castillo and "backup" Joseph, who have both played an

equal 61 games this season, will continue to split time behind the plate.

Although Castillo was named the Opening Day starter, Joseph has continued to show there is no

drop-off in production when he steps in the box. In the second inning with a runner on second

against the Royals, Joseph barreled a two-run blast -- with an exit velocity of a 104.5 mph,

according to Statcast™ -- that put the O's up 3-0 and matched his season-high five-game hitting

streak. Joseph, who is hitting .296 overall, increased his average to .300 with runners in scoring

position with two home runs and 15 RBIs.

"[I'm] doing a lot of work with [hitting coach Scott] Coolbaugh. I can't give the guy enough

credit. You know, he's in here every day working and we've really solidified a few things,"

Joseph said. "Mainly it's just trying to see the ball, get a good pitch to hit, have a good approach.

But one of the things for me is just mechanically.

"I need to get a little bit more sound mechanically, and it's kind of showing up more consistently.

When you can put consistent swings on the ball, you can get desired results. When you have one

spot in one area that you can hit the ball, you're not going to have a lot of success in this league.

So lengthening the swing a little bit has really helped, and a lot of the credit goes to Scott."

In his previous 46 games, Joseph was hitting .341, which was the highest batting average for a

catcher in the Majors during that span (minimum of 100 at-bats) and ranked fourth among

American League hitters behind Jose Altuve (.388), Carlos Correa (.351) and Eric Hosmer

(.344).

"I wish I could bottle [my success] up and sell it," Joseph said. "I'd probably quit baseball."

Combined, Joseph and Castillo led the AL and ranked third in the Majors with a .292 average

entering Wednesday. In 61 games apiece from Castillo and Joseph, and five games from

Francisco Pena, the three catchers have combined to log 18 doubles, one triple, 16 home runs

and 51 RBIs.

"Having [Castillo and Joseph] back there, pitchers don't really care about who they throw to,"

Showalter said. "They're both on the same page and they're both offensive threats, which is

unusual for two catchers like that."

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/246027736/ryan-flaherty-nearing-return-to-orioles/

Flaherty progressing, nearing return to O's

By Mandy Bell / MLB.com

August 2, 2017

BALTIMORE -- If Orioles utility man Ryan Flaherty finishes the full 20 days of his injury rehab

assignment, he would be eligible to re-join the club on Aug. 15, but manager Buck Showalter is

hoping to get Flaherty back sooner than that.

Prior to the Orioles' series finale against the Royals on Wednesday, Flaherty, who is on the 60-

day disabled list retroactive to May 21 for right shoulder tendinitis, started at second base for

Class A Advanced Frederick. He went 2-for-4 with a walk. In his first seven rehab games,

Flaherty is hitting .217 (5-for-23).

"Kind of letting [third-base coach] Bobby [Dickerson] and Ryan, and [trainer] Richie [Bancells],

handle [how many more rehab games he should play] right now," Showalter said. "Bobby talks

to him before and after every game. He's going to come in here [Thursday]. There's no place to

play. I know he's eligible the 15th if you carry out the 20 all the way. I hope it doesn't go to the

15th. I'll find that out."

Flaherty started his assignment with Double-A Bowie, where he split time at second base and

designated hitter. After four games with the Baysox, Flaherty moved to Frederick, where, in true

utility-man fashion, he has played shortstop, third, first and second base in three games.

Showalter, who noted that Flaherty's throwing had improved in Tuesday's game, would also like

him to get some time in the outfield.

"I'd like for him to play a day or two out there, too. I'm hoping," Showalter said. "I'd contemplate

Ryan anywhere. He can catch, but I'm not comfortable with him catching. He's probably not

either."

Mark Trumbo, who was placed on the 10-day disabled list on Monday, is hoping to be cleared to

play at the conclusion of the team's series against the Angels next Wednesday.

"I'm hoping [to get Trumbo back after 10 days]," Showalter said. "The next question, once we

start, is if they feel like he needs to take a couple days of at-bats. We will see. We do not have a

Minor League team on the West Coast, obviously, so we've got to make that decision. I know he

would rather travel with us and commercially travel to the West Coast."

Like Flaherty, outfielder/first baseman Anthony Santander's rehab assignment at Bowie is also

scheduled to end on Aug. 15. He is hitting .625 (10-for-16) in six games. Santander is ranked as

the Orioles' No. 9 prospect by MLBPipeline.com.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2017/08/tillmans-turn-in-the-rotation.html

Tillman’s turn in the rotation

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

August 3, 2017

Chris Tillman will be facing the Tigers tonight on five days’ rest with Jeremy Hellickson joining

the rotation and no one coming out of it.

This can be construed as good and bad news, based on track records and history.

Let’s start off in a positive direction.

Tillman is 6-0 with a 2.45 ERA and 1.023 WHIP in nine career starts against the Tigers over 58

2/3 innings, and he was on the mound for Game 1 of the 2014 American League Division Series,

which the Orioles swept. Tillman was charged with two runs over five innings and struck out six

batters.

Only three of the nine regular season starts have come at home, most recently last year when he

tossed seven scoreless innings and struck out seven batters on May 13. The other Camden Yards

outings occurred on Oct. 1, 2010, when he allowed one run and three hits in seven innings, and

April 7, 2011, when he allowed four runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Over the past three seasons, he’s surrendered a combined two runs in 22 1/3 innings at Comerica

Park. The July 18, 2015 start was a beauty, with no runs and one hit in eight innings.

Victor Martinez is 6-for-20 (.300) with a double and home run against Tillman. Jose Iglesias is

3-for-16 (.188) with a double.

Tillman is 1-6 with a 7.65 ERA and 1.979 WHIP in 14 starts, with 96 hits allowed in 64 2/3

innings. He’s walked 32 batters and struck out 50. This isn’t how anyone wants a final season to

play out before free agency. This isn’t how anyone wants any season to play out.

A sore shoulder, the disabled list and now this, all of it conspiring to bring down Tillman, who’s

allowed 11 runs and 15 hits in his last two starts over 9 2/3 innings. The two walks and 11

strikeouts bring a modicum of comfort.

Tillman’s July 22 start against Houston, when he allowed three runs in 5 1/3 innings, marked the

only time this season that he hasn’t issued a walk.

A six-man rotation, however temporary or enduring, provides extra rest for Tillman. However,

he’s 0-3 with a 13.50 ERA and 2.518 WHIP this season in five starts over 18 2/3 innings while

working on five days’ rest.

This is the bad part that I warned you about.

In his career, Tillman has posted a 4.69 ERA in 50 starts on five days’ rest, a 4.51 ERA in 105

starts on four days and a 3.38 ERA in 37 starts on six days or more.

The Orioles are seeing another left-hander tonight in Detroit’s Matthew Boyd, who’s registered a

5.30 ERA and 1.621 WHIP this season in 14 starts over 74 2/3 innings. He’s made one career

start against the Orioles, allowing seven runs and eight hits over 2 1/3 innings on May 16 in a 13-

11 loss at Comerica Park.

J.J. Hardy homered off Boyd, but he remains on the disabled list. The active Orioles are 6-for-13

against him.

Left-handers and right-handers are batting .308 against Boyd this season.

Boyd has made three starts this month and all of them qualify as quality, with a total of nine runs

allowed 19 1/3 innings.

It’s Welington Castillo’s turn to catch tonight. Caleb Joseph was behind the plate last night and

hit a two-run homer.

Joseph has six hits in his last 17 at-bats, including two home runs. He’s batting .300 (12-for-40)

with two home runs and 15 RBIs with runners in scoring position.

“Fortunately, we’ve got really deep depth,” said manager Buck Showalter. “Having those two

guys back there, pitchers don’t really care about who they throw to. They’re both on the same

page and they’re both offensive threats, which is unusual for two catchers like that.”

Trey Mancini is batting .365 (35-for-96) with eight doubles, two home runs and 13 RBIs against

the American League Central.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2017/08/smith-garnering-more-consideration-vs-

lefties.html

Smith garnering more consideration vs. lefties (O’s lead 3-0)

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

August 2, 2017

The rain has stopped at Camden Yards, the sun is shining and the grounds crew prepared the

field for tonight’s game. You’d never know that it was pouring rain less than an hour ago.

The Orioles are in a stretch of facing four left-handed starters in the span of five games, with the

Rangers’ Martin Perez closing out the weekend series in Arlington, the Royals sending Danny

Duffy and Jason Vargas to the mound at Camden Yards and the Tigers opening their series

Thursday night with Matthew Boyd.

Seth Smith usually would be an automatic omission from the lineup due to his career numbers

against southpaws. A .207 average won’t buy you many opportunities or instill much trust in the

manager.

Smith’s reputation upon his arrival in Baltimore included solid on-base capabilities and the need

to platoon him. However, he’s 6-for-18 against left-handers this season, a relatively small sample

size that’s still worthy of praise and examination.

The six hits include three doubles and a home run, and he’s walked twice and driven in four runs.

Smith produced a two-run double last night in the fifth inning off Royals lefty reliever Scott

Alexander to extend the lead to 5-1 and he scored on Welington Castillo’s single.

Left-handers are batting .293 against Alexander, compared to the .228 average posted by right-

handers. Manager Buck Showalter knows the numbers and has been careful when to use Smith in

those situation.

“I think it’s also who you match him up against, which type of guys,” Showalter said.

There were plenty of temptations tonight to start Smith, including Smith’s brief history with

Vargas and how left-handers are batting .302, but Showalter put Joey Rickard in right field and

Craig Gentry in left while again inserting Trey Mancini into the designated hitter role.

Jeremy Hellickson’s debut with the Orioles also factored into the decision. In fact, it carried

substantial weight.

Hellickson has a 42.6 percent fly ball rate this season and a 39.7 percent rate in his career.

Showalter wanted more speed in the outfield corners and he regards Rickard and Gentry as plus

defenders.

“It was tough,” Showalter said. “I almost had him in the lineup today because he’s (3-for-5) with

a couple doubles off Vargas, but you also think about having someone on the bench they have to

defend later on and I think that’s big for us. And we want to play as good a defensive team out

there as we can with Jeremy pitching tonight, who gives up a lot of fly balls. We’re always going

to err on the side of that.

“Seth has not really followed some of the patterns that normally follow this year and that’s OK.

Sometimes, you get older and you present some things that you’re able to do better because of

your experience.”

Smith currently is batting .269/.350/.467 with 15 doubles, 11 home runs and 26 RBIs in 75

games. He has 14 hits in his last 35 at-bats, including three home runs and eight RBIs.

Note: Hunter Harvey tossed two more scoreless innings today in the Gulf Coast League. He

hasn’t allowed a run or issued a walk in five innings and he’s struck out six batters.

Harvey is moving up to short-season Single-A Aberdeen.

Update: Tim Beckham doubled in the second inning to score Mancini, his first RBI with the

Orioles, and Caleb Joseph hit a two-run homer to give the Orioles a 3-0 lead. Joseph has six

home runs and 22 RBIs this season.

http://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2017/08/early-notes-on-flaherty-santander-rickard-

catchers-and-more.html

Early notes on Flaherty, Santander, Rickard, catchers and

more

By Roch Kubatko / MASNsports.com

August 2, 2017

Not much to report this afternoon from Camden Yards as the Orioles took batting practice

beneath a threatening sky. A light rain began to fall and the tarp was unrolled at 5:03 p.m. as

players headed indoors.

Ryan Flaherty started at second base today at Single-A Frederick and went 2-for-4. Reports say

he threw much better.

Flaherty will work out with the Orioles on Thursday and likely head to Triple-A Norfolk. His

rehab assignment ends on Aug. 15, but manager Buck Showalter is hoping that Flaherty returns

earlier.

Showalter said he’d like Flaherty to play a couple of games in the outfield.

“We’re comfortable playing Ryan anywhere,” Showalter said. “He can catch, but not

comfortable with him catching.”

Rule 5 outfielder Anthony Santander served as the designated hitter today with Double-A Bowie

and was 1-for-3 with a double and walk to leave his average at .625. He collected three hits last

night, including a double and home run, and also threw out a runner at the plate.

Santander’s assignment also runs until Aug. 15 and the Orioles will likely keep him on it. They

don’t currently intend to offer him back to the Indians, which will necessitate a roster move to

create room for him.

Showalter didn’t dismiss the idea of carrying Flaherty, Tim Beckham and Rubén Tejada, but it

seems impossible without an expanded roster. A four-man bench would need to include

Santander and a back-up catcher. Also, Showalter is far more likely to trust Craig Gentry or Joey

Rickard in the outfield than Flaherty.

Rickard seems to be more comfortable this season playing in major league outfields.

“Joey’s been solid out there this year, very quietly,” Showalter said. “He’s actually throwing

better than I’ve ever seen him throw. He works at it. Wayne (Kirby) makes sure those guys

throw to a target every day.

“Joey’s played well out there. It’s comforting to have really three guys who can play center

field.”

Mark Trumbo still could be ready to come off the disabled list when eligible on Aug. 9, the final

day that the Orioles are in Anaheim. The Orioles will decide whether he needs a few at-bats in

the minors.

Showalter continues to alternate Welington Castillo and Caleb Joseph behind the plate. Joseph

gets the start tonight with Jeremy Hellickson making his Orioles debut.

“We’ve got two guys playing well and catching in August, and July is tough,” Showalter said. “I

think it makes them both better and makes us better, so I want to keep them both in the flow.

We’re lucky to have two guys who can do what they do. I guess it’s by design a little bit.”

Showalter intended to start Joseph tonight, no matter who was on the mound.

“In some cases, we’ll catch them back to back,” Showalter said. “Probably try to split it up as

much as we can. And if somebody has kind of a little hot hand with a certain guy, we’ll play that

into it. Roger (McDowell) reminds me of that, who it is. That’s a good thing.

“You can have a hot hand one week and all of a sudden it turns into a cold hand if the guy’s not

pitching well.”

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Beckham was the first Oriole last night to have multiple

hits and runs scored in his debut after playing for another club in the same season since catcher

Brook Fordyce on July 30, 2000 against the Indians.

For the Royals

Whit Merrifield 2B

Melky Cabrera LF

Eric Hosmer 1B

Salvador Perez C

Mike Moustakas DH

Jorge Bonifacio RF

Alcides Escobar Ss

Alex Gordon CF

Ramón Torres 3B

Jason Vargas LHP

http://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2017/08/notes-and-quotes-after-the-orioles-sweep-

of-kansas-city.html

Notes and quotes after the Orioles’ sweep of Kansas City

By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com

August 3, 2017

So, with an impressive three-game sweep of the hottest team in the league, the Orioles seem to

have pumped some big-time life into their 2017 season.

While they are still an under-.500 team at 53-54, they are now just 2 1/2 games back for the

second American League wild card spot. It no longer looks out of reach and they still have 55

games to play.

Their rotation, which once looked like it was going to set team records for being historically bad,

suddenly has taken a turn for the better.

In sweeping Kansas City, they beat a team that was 10-1 in its previous 11 games heading into

this series. The Royals were 14-8 against the AL East. They had scored 17 runs in three games at

Boston before coming to Oriole Park and had scored five runs or more eight times in the

previous 10 games. Then, in three games in Baltimore, they were held to three runs on 15 hits.

O’s starting pitching gave up one earned run over 22 innings.

How about this note from Fox Sports Kansas City: The Royals have scored five runs in their last

six games at Camden Yards and that is the fewest they’ve scored in any six-game span at any

venue ever.

O’s starting pitchers had a season ERA of 6.02 on July 16. But in 16 games since, the season

ERA has been reduced to 5.65, as O’s starters allowed two earned runs or less 10 times.

The rotation has an ERA of 0.76 over the past five games, 2.79 in the last nine games and 3.90

over the last 16 games.

Yep, this has been a stunning reversal, and I will assume that all fans that threw in the towel on

the season are welcome back on the bandwagon if they want back on.

The Orioles have not yet salvaged their season - not with only two good weeks of baseball. But

they have given themselves a chance to do so and it wasn’t that long ago that seemed like a pipe

dream.

Joseph’s offense: Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph continues to be productive with his bat. He hit a

big two-run homer in the second inning last night to provide Jeremy Hellickson a 3-0 lead.

Joseph is batting .296 with an OPS of .799. Since June 1, he is batting .337. Last night was his

16th multi-RBI game of the year. Last year, he had 0 RBIs in 132 at-bats. This season, he has 22

in 179 at-bats.

What has been the key to Joseph’s offensive resurgence?

“I wish I could bottle it and sell it,” he said. “I’d probably quit baseball. Doing a lot of work with

(hitting coach, Scott) Coolbaugh. I can’t give the guy enough credit. He’s in here every day

working and we’ve really solidified a few things. Mainly, it is just trying to see the ball, get a

pretty good pitch to hit, have a good approach.

“But one of the things for me is just mechanically. I needed to get more sound mechanically and

it’s kind of showing up. When you can put consistent swings on the ball, you can get desired

results. When you have one spot and one area that you can hit the ball, you are not going to have

a lot of success in this league. Lengthening the swing a little bit has really help and a lot of the

credit goes to Scott.”

For Joseph, though, defense is always job one. He was behind the plate for Hellickson’s brilliant

debut last night when he threw seven scoreless in the Orioles’ 6-0 win.

He was catching a pitcher for the first time and that had to be challenging.

“I think stuff-wise you get a feel in the bullpen for the shapes of the pitches,” he said. “It’s the

sequencing and trying to be comfortable with him that takes some time. We had a couple of

bumps throughout the game today, but I think overall it went pretty well. He has so many

weapons and that is kind of what you’re looking for. How can I navigate through a big league

lineup, especially when he is behind in the count? We did a lot of talking yesterday and that

helped. Getting out there and having success the first time is really good. It builds a little bit of

trust and you hopefully move on and continue that trust as the season progresses.”

Speaking of trust, team management showed some in the clubhouse when it kept this team

together and added to it, bringing in Hellickson and Tim Beckham. Joseph was asked if the

recent winning ways justify the decision to not sell off players.

“They’ve invested a lot of money in this team, and there is a lot of faith put in this team with the

fans and ownership and management,” Joseph said. “We haven’t panicked. I know it hasn’t been

exactly what we wanted it to look like, but there is still a never quit here. We have the type of

team here - the guys in here, the power of the lineup, the way the starting pitching is trending, the

back of the bullpen - to make a run at this. We’ve always believed it. We like the additions

we’ve gotten, and hopefully it all jells and we can really make a run at this.”

Beckham has had an impressive start with his new team, as well, going 4-for-8 the last two

games. Last night, he had an RBI double and an RBI triple.

“I don’t want to put too much thought into it, man,” he said of his good start on offense as an

Oriole. “I just want to continue to see the ball, play my game and do what I can to help the club.”

He showed off some speed on his triple.

“Oh, yeah, I know I can run, man,” Beckham said. “I can bring energy to the club, and if that hits

the right-center gap and touches the wall, I expect to be on third. Anything to bring some energy

and get my club going, man. Just doing what I can.”

http://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2017/08/mychal-givens-on-britton-staying-his-big-

year-and-more.html

Givens on Britton staying, his big year and more

By Steve Melewski / MASNsports.com

August 2, 2017

When the non-waiver trade deadline passed Monday and closer Zach Britton was still an Oriole,

his teammates were certainly pleased that he was still among them.

But not just because he is one of the best late-inning pitchers in the game. For 27-year-old right-

hander Mychal Givens, Britton has been a mentor and a friend. Someone to help him with

whatever he might need - on or off the field.

“He’s helped me deal with my transition (from position player to pitcher),” Givens said. “He had

to make adjustments going from a starter to a bullpen guy. The bullpen guys all bond together

and we work well with each other. Having Zach still here keeps that family feel we have in the

bullpen keep going. He has helped me deal with the ups and downs and sometimes failures you

have to deal with as a bullpen guy.”

Givens said he was prepared in case he would have had to say goodbye.

“It’s a business and we all knew what the situation could possibly be,” he said. “But we are like a

family out there. Even if our guys had gone to another team, we would remain close. For now,

we are very happy where we are at and we’re going to try and put some wins together.”

As for himself, Givens is having a very strong year. He is 7-0 with a 1.89 ERA over 46 games.

He has a 0.936 WHIP while averaging 2.2 walks per nine innings and 9.8 strikeouts. He is 17-2

in his career with an ERA of 2.46 since arriving in the big leagues in June 2015.

So yeah, he’s a good pitcher. One thing he is not good at is bragging on himself. He deflects

credit away elsewhere.

“Having a guy like (pitching coach) Alan Mills that came up from Double-A has helped me

through the process of getting to the majors,” Givens said. “It has just been fun. I can’t ask for a

better career path, being around guys like Brad (Brach), Darren (O’Day) and Zach and have

Millsy to help me get to where I’m at.

“He (Mills) has been through the experience of being a bullpen guy. He is just a guy that if you

have a bad game, he helps pick you up. He is like one of the guys in the bullpen and is just a

great part of our team.”

Givens has thrown 11 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings over his past 11 games. Over his past 25

games since May 26, he has an ERA of 0.62 with three walks and 36 strikeouts over 29 innings.

On Monday in an interview here about the trade deadline after it came and went, Orioles vice

president Dan Duquette referred to Givens as a “closer on the horizon.”

It should not surprise that Givens would gladly jump right in and love to get the ball in the ninth

if and when that opportunity ever came his way.

“I’d embrace anything - any role or situation,” Givens said. “I’ve had different roles in my

career. I was around Andrew Miller, who has closer stuff but had other guys in front of him. You

watched him embrace any role he got. Just go out there and compete and embrace any chance

you get.

“I actually don’t ever think about it. Like I learned from Miller - embrace any role. I will leave

those decisions to the manager and I have to control what I can control.”

https://www.pressboxonline.com/2017/08/02/grading-orioles-executive-dan-duquettes-body-of-

work-is-difficult

Grading Orioles Executive Dan Duquette's Body Of Work Is

Difficult

By Stan Charles / PressBoxOnline.com

August 2, 2017

In light of the Orioles' odd dance at the MLB trade deadline July 31, executive vice president of

baseball operations Dan Duquette has faced a lot of heat in Birdland. The outcry over Duquette's

handling of the deadline has led some to propose that his time with the organization should come

to an end -- sooner rather than later.

Well, Duquette, by all accounts, isn't planning on leaving anytime soon. He has one more year

remaining on his contract -- just as his manager, Buck Showalter, does. Owner Peter Angelos has

usually -- except in rare cases of public displays of disobedience -- let contracts play out to the

end before deciding if said person deserves another contract.

Duquette, for all intents and purposes, was rejected from the major leagues from the time

principal owner John Henry and president and CEO Larry Lucchino took over the reins of the

Boston Red Sox in 2002 until the time the Orioles threw him a lifeline in November 2011.

To say Duquette has reclaimed his reputation as a shrewd baseball executive within the industry

would be an understatement. I have seen it with my own eyes, and writers such as MLB.com's

Richard Justice and The Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo exalt his skill set every time I have them

on a show.

So where is the disconnect between fans and the reality of the fine job Duquette has done? Part

of it is the failure of the public to really see where Duquette's input begins and where Angelos

sets up certain high hurdles for Duquette to jump over to conduct business the way he wants.

For instance, most of us have applauded the re-signing of free-agents Chris Davis, Darren O'Day

and Mark Trumbo. I'll go on record and say if left to his own devices, Duquette probably would

have taken a pass on all three for that amount of money and time.

Look at the largest pitching contract in team history: right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez's four-year,

$50 million deal from February 2014. By all accounts, the contract has been a disaster. But the

one area Angelos fumes over with long-term contracts for starting pitchers is durability and

health, and Duquette can point to the fact he signed a guy who was always available to take the

ball.

We have all seen Duquette make a series of trades this season in which he has acquired pitching

prospects for international bonus slot money. That is an example of Duquette existing within the

confines he has been placed under. He takes money the owner won't spend on signing the players

or Duquette realizes he doesn't have the scouting budgets of his competitors to do the job right,

so instead he uses his scouting assets to look at players he might be able to acquire.

When the MLB trade deadline arrived at 4 p.m. July 31, the Orioles had not, in fact, made the big

trade of closer Zach Britton that so many were hoping for. Instead, Duquette, who had already

acquired right-handed pitcher Jeremy Hellickson July 28, pivoted and made an interesting

acquisition of former 2008 No. 1 overall pick, shortstop Tim Beckham from the Tampa Bay

Rays in exchange for 18-year-old right-handed pitching prospect Tobias Meyer.

Social media was flooded with the equivalent of hate mail about Duquette and how he couldn't

pull off the grand deal that would set in motion a rebuild of the Orioles. The venom was placed

at Duquette's doorstep before anyone knew who he was being offered or if in fact it was

Duquette who turned down offers from the Cleveland Indians, Houston Astros and Los Angeles

Dodgers for his closer.

A source not with the Orioles tells me Houston general manager Jeff Luhnow and Duquette, who

had talked at great lengths when the Astros were in Baltimore July 21-23, did agree on a package

of prospects for Britton. Luhnow and Duquette have a history of last-minute deals, as the two

teamed up for the Bud Norris-Josh Hader deal just minutes before the 2013 deadline.

For whatever reason, the package that I was told was presented to ownership was turned down,

and the Orioles did the quick pivot to Beckham. And that deal may have gone down even if the

O's had dealt Britton.

Life goes on. For Duquette it might not go on exactly how he'd hoped it would, but it's my take

that Duquette's greatest accomplishment may be just grinding things out with an owner he

doesn't see eye to eye with.

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/struggling-tillman-starts-orioles-series-opener-vs-tigers/

Struggling Tillman starts Orioles' series opener vs. Tigers

By STATS / CBS Sports

August 3, 2017

BALTIMORE -- The Baltimore Orioles are hoping to see Chris Tillman return to form when he

takes the mound for the opener of a four-game series against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday

night at Camden Yards.

Not much has gone right for Tillman (1-6, 7.65 ERA) this season. The right-hander missed the

first month with shoulder issues and has not found his way since returning to the rotation in early

May.

Tillman has pitched well at times, but he has never gotten past six innings and routinely runs into

trouble in the first. In his last outing, Tillman allowed two runs in the first inning and gave up

eight runs in 4 1/3 innings in an 8-2 loss at Texas.

The Orioles had looked at him as their No. 1 starter, but he has not won in 13 starts since getting

a victory his first time out this season. But Tillman is 6-0 with a 2.45 ERA in nine starts against

the Tigers, so the Orioles have some hope.

Also, Baltimore starters allowed just two runs in 22 innings in a three-game sweep of the Kansas

City Royals that the Orioles completed with a 6-0 victory Wednesday.

Orioles manager Buck Showalter hopes the good starting pitching can continue as Baltimore (53-

54) is riding a five-game winning streak.

"

To put together long runs of good pitching out of five or six guys is really a challenge," he said.

"But right now they seem to be feeding off each other. Chris gets a chance tomorrow to get back

where he was before he had that outing in Texas."

Tillman will face off against Matthew Boyd (5-5, 5.30). The left-hander has won his last three

starts since coming back to the rotation after being sent down to Triple-A Toledo (3-3 in eight

starts).

Boyd has been solid since his return, going 3-0 and giving the Tigers (49-57) a lift.

He allowed three runs on eight hits in 7 1/3 innings last Saturday in a 5-3 victory over the Astros

and will try for a fourth straight victory.

Boyd has appeared just once against Baltimore, with no record and a 27.00 ERA, having given

up seven runs in 2 1/3 innings in a start earlier this season.

The Orioles haven't been making nearly as many moves on their pitching shuttle since closer

Zach Britton returned. In fact, their bullpen is pretty well set.

Backup catcher Caleb Joseph now is getting more playing time due to his strong defense and

much-improved hitting.

He had a .296 average with six homers and 22 RBIs after the Orioles won Wednesday. Joseph hit

a two-run homer in that game.

Joseph did not drive in a run in an injury-plagued 2016.

Showalter also said they're hoping to get Mark Trumbo (rib cage strain) off the disabled list,

close to the day he's eligible (Aug. 9).

The Tigers are trying to reset their bullpen after trading closer Josh Wilson to the Chicago Cubs

earlier this week.

Shane Greene became the closer, got a five-out save Tuesday and a one-inning save Wednesday

in a 2-0 victory over the New York Yankees. The bullpen could become an issue after losing its

top gun.

The Tigers (49-57) come into this series playing better. Detroit has won four of its last five

games, including the rain-delayed win Wednesday in New York.

They won two of three games from Baltimore in the series the teams played earlier this season.

"We're playing good baseball," Detroit's Mikie Mahtook said. "Nobody in this locker room is

giving up. We're rallying around each other. We're having fun, we're playing the game and we're

getting wins."

http://www.baltimorebaseball.com/2017/08/03/myriad-os-thoughts-burn-like-beckham-kings-

visiting-royals-harvey-aberdeen/

Myriad O’s Thoughts: Burn it like Beckham; Kings of

visiting Royals; Harvey to Aberdeen

By Dan Connolly / BaltimoreBaseball.com

August 3, 2017

Maybe it’s because I haven’t seen many Orioles who can flat-out run in the past decade-plus:

Michael Bourn, Nate McLouth, Brian Roberts, maybe a few others.

But newly acquired shortstop Tim Beckham has impressed me so far with how quickly he gets

out of the batter’s box, especially from the right side. I noticed it Tuesday in his debut and, on

Wednesday, he practically flew to second base on an opposite-field double in the second.

And then, in the eighth Wednesday, he hit a ball into the right-center gap and shifted into another

gear.

Call it ‘Burn it like Beckham.’ He made it to third for an easy triple. How often have we said that

about an Oriole? An easy triple.

“Oh, yeah. I know I can run, man. I can bring energy to the club, and if that hits the right-center

gap and touches the wall, I expect to be on third,” Beckham said. “Anything to bring some

energy and get my club going, man. Just doing what I can.”

He’s been here two nights. But, yes, there’s an excitement and energy to his game that’s fun to

watch. He’s even too fast for his helmet, which invariably gets left behind on the basepaths.

“I’ve added some extra padding, and it’s still flying off,” Beckham said. “I’m going to have to

get a chinstrap or something.”

The weird thing is, Beckham’s blazing speed hasn’t translated into stolen bases in his career.

He’s just 10 of 16 in stolen-base attempts in parts of four seasons in the majors and his career

high for one season is 22 in 2010 while at High-A (and he was thrown out 14 times that year).

The Orioles obviously could use more speed on the basepaths, and Beckham is certainly an

upgrade there. Especially when you compare him to incumbent shortstop J.J. Hardy, whose

beaten-up body might make him the slowest player on the team now (thanks to Matt Wieters’

departure).

However, Beckham does offer something the Orioles have plenty of: free swingers. He struck

out twice Wednesday and once Tuesday and has now fanned 114 times this season. So, he’s not

always getting on the basepaths – or making productive outs.

And that could be problematic in a lineup of strikeout collectors. But, for now, the need for speed

trumps any deficiency in his game.

These Royals ain’t, well, royal in Charm City

That phrase is tired, and miswritten in the headline, but many of you will get the reference.

The Royals schooled the Orioles in a four-game sweep in the 2014 American League

Championship Series (when former Oriole Jeremy Guthrie wore a T-shirt paraphrasing a crass

rap song, ‘These O’s Ain’t Royal’). And the Royals swept the Orioles in three games in KC in

May, which really began the Orioles’ tailspin after a hot start.

But, in Camden Yards, the Orioles are still kings of the Royals.

Consider the Orioles have beaten the Royals in seven straight at Camden Yards dating back to

August 2015. They’ve now won 28 of their last 41 regular season games against KC in

Baltimore.

And this week’s sweep was particularly impressive because the Royals entered play Monday

winners of 10 of their last 11.

The Orioles are now 2 ½ games behind the Royals for the second Wild Card spot in the AL.

“We talked about it in the advance meeting, with the pitchers and the position players, that we

were facing probably as hot a team as there was in the American League,” Orioles manager Buck

Showalter said. “I’m proud of that, knowing, as we get into August and September, knowing the

opportunities to make up some ground are going to be fleeting. I don’t need to remind them of

that. But it was a good team playing well, and we held our own against them.”

Harvey moving on to Aberdeen

Right-hander Hunter Harvey, who returned to pitching this month after 2016 elbow ligament

surgery, threw two scoreless innings and struck out four for the Gulf Coast Orioles on Tuesday,

and will now start pitching in Maryland again.

Harvey, the Orioles’ first round pick in 2013, will make his next start next week for the

Aberdeen IronBirds at Ripken Stadium. Harvey, 22, pitched three games with the IronBirds last

season before needing surgery.

In three starts for the GCL Orioles in 2017, Harvey allowed six hits, no runs and no walks while

striking out six in five innings. He is pitching once a week, two innings at a time, until this

season ends. He likely will pitch at Low-A Delmarva and perhaps at High-A Frederick this

season. He’ll then rest in the offseason with the hope he’ll be ready for a full spring training in

2018.

Due to myriad health issues, Harvey has pitched in only 33 games since his pro debut in 2013.

With the lack of starting pitching in the Orioles’ system, getting Harvey, the son of former big

leaguer Bryan Harvey, back on the mound is key. The guess is, if all goes well, he’ll begin 2018

with Double-A Bowie.

http://www.baltimorebaseball.com/2017/08/02/seven-year-anniversary-mlb-debut-hellickson-

throws-debut-gem-os/

On the seven-year anniversary of his MLB debut, Hellickson

throws a debut gem for O’s

By Dan Connolly / BaltimoreBaseball.com

August 2, 2017

So, remember all those experts saying that newly acquired right-hander Jeremy Hellickson was a

nominal addition to a poor Orioles’ rotation?

Forget ‘em. At least for a night.

(Yeah, I was one of those so-called experts, but stay focused, people).

Hellickson, whom the Orioles acquired Friday for outfielder Hyun Soo Kim, minor leaguer

pitcher Garrett Cleavinger and international bonus slot money, made his Orioles’ debut against

the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night.

And it was his best game in more than a month.

He said he was nervous Tuesday evening, but by Wednesday, the 30-year-old was back in a

routine, and he helped his new team pick up a series sweep in a 6-0 victory against the

previously red-hot Royals.

“Last night, I had some nerves. But once I got out there, I felt fine,” said Hellickson, who

allowed five hits, one walk and struck out three in seven scoreless innings “I’ve been traded

before, just not in-season to a team that is playing as well as we are, that has a chance to make

the playoffs. So, just a little nervous last night, but I felt really good today.”

August 2 apparently contains good mojo for Hellickson.

Wednesday was the seven-year anniversary of when Hellickson made his big-league debut

against the Minnesota Twins, throwing seven innings, allowing two runs and picking up a win

for the Tampa Bay Rays as a 23-year-old. He didn’t realize the connection until informed after

the game.

“August 2, yeah, wow, that’s cool,” he said.

For a little while it looked like Hellickson’s Orioles’ debut would end in an unfortunate way.

With two outs in the top of the third, Camden Yards was pounded with a driving rainstorm that

delayed play for 35 minutes. It was just short enough to allow Hellickson to return to the mound

once the game resumed.

“I thought it was going to rain a little longer, so I was a little disappointed (about having a

delay),” Hellickson said. “But it ended up only being 30, 40 minutes, so I was OK.”

Orioles manager Buck Showalter said he wasn’t too concerned that the veteran might lose his

focus during the interruption.

“Jeremy’s always had that presentation from both dugouts. Not a whole lot seems to bother him.

He’s always been pretty consistent with his emotions, it seems like,” Showalter said. “I don’t

know him that well. But from watching him in the other dugout and now watching here, it’s

pretty matter of fact. He knows what he’s got to do and who he is and what he’s not.”

What Hellickson is is a strike thrower, a finesse guy who needs to hit his spots and mix things up

to be effective. That’s exactly what he did Wednesday. He said his curveball was working well,

and he mixed it in more than he usually does, alongside his changeup and low-90s fastball.

What his splendid start meant for the Orioles is hard to determine right now. It helped them

continue their five-game winning streak (all since his trade) and move within 2 ½ games of the

Royals for the second AL Wild Card spot.

It’s one outing. One series sweep. One winning streak that still hasn’t gotten the Orioles (53-54)

back to .500. We’ve seen good outings from each member of this rocky rotation – it’s the

consistency that is desperately needed.

But Wednesday was a heck of a debut for Hellickson. And, if you are into the “Orioles hope”

mindset, as championed by executive vice president Dan Duquette, this one certainly didn’t hurt

the cause.

“Everybody made me feel comfortable and welcomed, so I felt part of the team right away,”

Hellickson said. “But it is always good to throw a good one your first time out with a new team.

It was good to do that. But these guys made me feel welcomed from the second I walked in

here.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dc-sports-bog/wp/2017/08/03/hate-thy-neighbor-

nationals-and-orioles-have-still-never-executed-a-trade/?utm_term=.0a0ee56d3cc6

Hate thy neighbor? Nationals and Orioles have still never

executed a trade.

By Scott Allen / The Washington Post

August 3, 2017

Baseball’s nonwaiver trade deadline came and went Monday without the Nationals and Orioles

making history together. The two teams, separated by 38 miles and involved in a bitter legal

battle over TV revenue from the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, haven’t executed a trade since

baseball returned to D.C. in 2005. The last deal between the franchises came in 2001, when the

Expos sent 42-year-old Tim Raines to Baltimore.

Given the animosity between the two teams and some of the reports of what the Orioles wanted

in return for closer Zach Britton, it’s hardly surprising that the trend continued this week as

Raines was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Nationals General Manager Mike Rizzo, who worked out a deal for Twins closer Brandon

Kintzler to bolster Washington’s bullpen before the deadline, addressed the notion that the

Orioles and Nationals would “never” trade with each other during a Wednesday interview with

the Sports Junkies on 106.7 The Fan.

“I would say that it would be a bad business move for Baltimore not to trade with Washington

and Washington not to trade with Baltimore just because of a geographical proximity,” Rizzo

said. “[Orioles GM] Dan Duquette is a smart guy, I worked for him in Boston, and he’s done a

great job with the Orioles, and they know what they’re doing there. If they had a deal that they

thought would work for him, then they’d have to make it and they would make it because it’s

good business. As I’ve always said, when I talk about trades, it’s more about what I get than

what I give in a trade. If I get what I want and what I need and it helps me get to where I want to

get, then I’ve made a successful trade and I think they’d be in the same situation.”

It’s unclear that Duquette and the Orioles do know what they’re doing, or where they want to

get, this season and beyond. Conventional wisdom said that Baltimore would be a seller at the

trade deadline, and that Britton and fellow reliever Brad Brach would be shipped elsewhere to

help restock the farm system. Instead, both players stayed put, and the Orioles’ next trade with

the Nationals will be their first.

According to Baseball Reference’s trade history database, the Nationals have made 116 trades

with 28 different teams since 2005. Washington’s most common trade partner is the Athletics,

with the acquisitions of Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson last month marking the 13th deal

between the teams.

Meanwhile, the Orioles have made 144 trades with 28 teams since 2005, most often with the

Cubs (12). Baltimore’s rotation might not be as wretched this season if it had made one fewer

trade with Chicago. Four years ago, the Orioles shipped future NL Cy Young Award winner Jake

Arrieta to the Cubs for Scott Feldman and Steve Clevenger at the trade deadline. The Post’s

Barry Svrluga later reported that the Nationals were interested in the underperforming Arrieta,

but the Peter Angelos-owned Orioles were determined to deal him anywhere but D.C.

While the Orioles’ seeming aversion to trading with the Nationals might be unrivaled, deals

between teams in close geographic proximity are rare across the league. The Cubs and White

Sox completed a trade for the first time in 11 years last month, when the defending World Series

champions acquired starting pitcher Jose Quintana from their Chicago neighbors to the south.

The Dodgers and Angels have made three trades since 2005. The Mets and Yankees have made

one. The A’s and Giants haven’t done a deal since 2004. Entering this year’s trade deadline,

MLB.com reported that only two teams — the Diamondbacks and Rangers — had made at least

one trade with every other franchise over the past 10 years.