HUNTER OFFICIALLY NAMED CLOSER
Early in the offseason, the Orioles created a void at the back of the bullpen by trading closer Jim Johnson to the Oakland Athletics. After it became clear that the Orioles were not going to add another reliever after negotiations with Fernando Rodney and Grant Balfour fell apart, many speculated that the most logical choice to close would be right handed pitcher Tommy Hunter.
This was never confirmed in the spring, but before Opening Day on Monday, manager Buck Showalter officially named Hunter the team’s closer. “If we get in that situation, Tommy will get an opportunity to do that job for us,” Showalter said. He then made good of his word by bringing Hunter into a 2-1 game in the ninth inning on Monday against the Boston Red Sox.
Hunter promptly hit Red Sox third baseman Will Middlebrooks, and after getting outfielder Daniel Nava out, allowed a single to second baseman Dustin Pedroia. With the tying run at second base, and the go-ahead run at first, Hunter induced a fly out to deep left from designated hitter David Ortiz before striking out Jackie Bradley Jr. to end the game.
Hunter wasn’t perfect, but in his first chance as closer did prove that he was capable. Meanwhile in Oakland, Johnson allowed two runs in a tie game in his first appearance as an Athletic. If Hunter can pitch at a similar level that Johnson had over the last two years in Baltimore, the O’s should be able to avoid any “closer controversy.”
LOCAL BOY IS O’S 10th MAN
Eight year old Brady Reise, a local of Bel Air Maryland, was picked to be the 10th man for the Orioles on Opening Day earlier this week. Reise ran out on the orange carpet to greet the Orioles and the sold out Opening Day crowd at Oriole Park at Camden Yards before yelling to the stadium to, “Play ball!”
Brady is in third grade, and attends Homestead Wakefield Elementary School. His mother, Carey and father, Nathan, both said that Brady was a great choice for the 10th man because the eight-year-old watches the Orioles every chance he gets.
The competition is held every Opening Day, and is designated to represent Orioles fans. Reise was selected at random. When Brady was first asked about being the 10th man at the game, he was just at the stadium with his father waiting for the game to begin.
The 10th man has been a position for the Orioles each of the last 21 seasons, and Reise got to stand and high-five the team during the pre-game activities. After the game, Brady admitted he was nervous, but added it was more excitement than anything else.
UBALDO READY TO DEBUT
While Monday was the Orioles’ season debut, this evening will become the first of many starts over the next four seasons from right handed pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez. Jimenez will not get any breaks from the get-go however. The former Colorado and Cleveland pitcher has an ERA over 11 in four career starts against the Boston Red Sox.
Jimenez has proven in the past that when he is on, he can elevate his game to be one of the best pitchers in the game. However, he has also shown that when rattled, he has trouble getting anybody out. His biggest issues are with control, as he has never had a good walk rate.
Some of it comes from his unorthodox delivery that Jimenez attributes to an injury he sustained in 2004 that led him to pitch in the way that gave him as little pain as possible. Since then, coaches trying to “fix” him, have tinkered with his delivery but something clicked in the second half of 2013, as he resembled the All-Star he was from 2010.
Jimenez has fun too however, as Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun wrote earlier this week, revealing that Jimenez loves to dance, from Latin dance, to hip-hop, to merengue. If he is able to control his pitches this season as well as he did down the stretch last year, the Orioles may well dance along with him.
MARKAKIS FELING BETTER
Despite having neck spasms last weekend, Nick Markakis played in the first game of the season, and batted in his usual leadoff spot for the Orioles Monday. Markakis has been an everyday player in every year of his career, and only missed extended time recently in 2012 when he sustained two fluke injuries.
Markakis had been thought of as “questionable” coming into the game, and playing through the injury showcases his durability, something Orioles fans have seen on display for the last eight years. He said that the spasms began last Saturday on the team flight to Norfolk, VA, per The Sun’s Eduardo Encina.
Markakis is known for his toughness, and was considering sitting out Monday to receive two additional days of rest, but decided during pregame batting practice that he would be able to play. Spraying balls all over the field in practice reassured him he was alright to go.
Markakis went 0-4 on Monday, but his presence and his ability to work pitchers as the leadoff hitter is valuable to this team, as not many of the other hitters have especially strong patience or batter’s eyes. The injury appears now to have simply been a flare up of a previous herniated disk injury from a year ago.
photo: Craig Landefeld
