NumerOlogy

You know it’s been an unusual season in Baltimore when the O’s demote a pitcher who’s tied for the team lead in wins. That’s exactly what they did on Friday, optioning #56 Brian Burres to AAA Norfolk to make room for shortstop #13 Alex Cintron, whose gimpy ankle has finally healed. Fortunately, Garrett Olson and Jeremy Guthrie shut down the Mariners in the first two games of the weekend series, allowing them to both surpass Burres in Ws.

I also updated the roster and bio pages to include some unsung personnel: bullpen catchers #67 Ronnie Deck and #68 Ruben Felix.

Lastly, I uncovered another bit of Orioles uni number trivia while writing about former first baseman #4 Norm Siebern for one of my baseball card blogs, The Great 1965 Topps Project. The Orioles traded their previous #4, first baseman “Diamond” Jim Gentile, to the Kansas City A’s along with $25,000 to acquire Siebern. I’ve added this transaction to my “Trading Places” list on the Odds and Ends page.

Let’s hope the Birds are thinking sweep today! This is the final game of the season series against Seattle, and I miss the Mariners already.

Geez, I go to the Ocean for a week and things go topsy-turvy in Camden Yards! Since my last site update, there have been eight changes to the Baltimore roster, with #29 Adam Loewen’s shoulder injury signaling more turnover on the horizon. To sum up:

June 26: #34 Matt Albers placed on DL; #26 Fernando Cabrera recalled from rehab assignment at AAA Norfolk. The righthanded pitcher wore #23 in 2007; that number was occupied until recently by Ryan Bukvich (more on him later). Cabrera is the 36th different player to suit up in orange and black this season and the 17th to wear #26 in team history.

June 27: #19 Oscar Salazar optioned to AAA Norfolk; #12 Brandon Fahey recalled from AAA Norfolk. Why have pop on the bench when you can give Brandon another chance to prove that he’s not a major league shortstop?

June 30: #32 Jamie Walker placed on DL; #29 Adam Loewen activated from DL.Well, that was fun while it lasted.

July 1: #13 Alex Cintron placed on DL; #3 Freddie Bynum recalled from AAA Norfolk. I like Freddie as a person, but I’m really not crazy about him as a baseball player. The four-run error he committed yesterday afternoon sure isn’t helping matters.

July 5: #23 Ryan Bukvich designated for assignment; #35 Greg Aquino recalled from AAA Norfolk. Eesh. Bukvich was pretty terrible, but it’s not like Aquino was any better in his first stint in the O’s bullpen. My only question is: why not Rocky Cherry?

While I was away, I did some eBay shopping and picked up an Orioles team set of 1975 SSPC cards. Included in the set was a player I didn’t recognize, Mike Willis (pictured at left). According to the card back, he was a September callup from AAA Rochester who did not pitch in a single game during his time with the team. He’s listed as wearing #53, so I’ve added him to the roster. You never know what you’ll find when you pick up a stack of baseball cards!

That’s what I get for taking the Internet rosters at face value! It turns out Alex Cintron is wearing #13 for the Orioles, becoming the sixteenth player in team history to wear my favorite number. He joins the ranks of Steve Barber, Rodrigo Lopez, and the most recent, current Norfolk Tides outfielder Tike Redman. I’ve made the necessary fixes to the site.