Two weeks into the season, the Birds have already made five roster changes. The latest pair of moves came yesterday and paid immediate dividends. First, the outgoing O’s. Gone back to Norfolk is unstable pitcher #62 Radhames Liz, who thus far seems like an even worse reliever than he was a starter. He retired 4 out of 16 batters in two disastrous appearances on the recent road trip. Outfielder #2 Ryan Freel seems to be wearing out his welcome mighty quick. Given his early grumbling about playing time, and his sub-par performance in his rare starts, the club seemed almost eager to dump him onto the disabled list when he got pegged in the head with a pickoff throw on Monday.
As I said, the newest members of the 2009 Orioles made a good impression. Outfielder Lou Montanez, the AA Eastern League’s 2008 Triple Crown winner and the champion cause of numerous passionate Baltimore fans, had an RBI single last night while wearing #14. He had worn #3 during a two-month audition with the O’s last year, but Cesar Izturis trumped him this year. Lou wore #12 this spring, but backup infielder Robert Andino took it when he made the Opening Day roster via a last-minute trade.
The big story, however, is Brad Bergesen. The organization’s Jim Palmer Minor League Pitcher of the Year winner in 2008, he had an impressive spring and threw just two games at AAA Norfolk before being called upon to fill a hole in the big league rotation. Brad was a winner in his MLB debut, allowing just one earned run (three total) in five and two-thirds innings while striking out four White Sox. One of the less-heralded of the young arms in the farm system had a strong debut, which is certainly encouraging, particularly since manager Dave Trembley pointed out that the kids are going to keep coming over the next two seasons. Bergesen became the third-ever Oriole to wear #64, and all three have been B’s: Bruce (Chen), Bernie (Castro), and of course Brad. If he can last longer than six weeks, he’ll be the longest-tenured Oriole to ever wear this oddball number. I like his odds.
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