BALTIMORE—Orioles left-hander Bruce Zimmermann, who’s on the 10-day injured list because of left biceps tendinitis, will remain out beyond that period, according to manager Brandon Hyde.
Zimmermann, who was scratched from last Friday’s start against Toronto, is 4-4 with a 4.83 ERA in 12 games.
“I would expect Zimm to be out two or three more weeks, possibly,” Hyde said.
Hyde said on Saturday that he didn’t expect left-hander John Means, who has a strain in his left shoulder, to pitch until around the All-Star break; the game is on July 13th. Without Means and Zimmermann, the Orioles’ rotation is made up of four right-handers — Jorge López, Thomas Eshelman, Matt Harvey and Dean Kremer — and left-hander Keegan Akin.
Sceroler experiment over: Right-hander Mac Sceroler, who was one of the Orioles’ two selections in the Rule 5 draft in December, was designated for assignment. Tyler Wells was the other Rule 5 selection.
Sceroler, who missed nearly two months because of right shoulder tendinitis, allowed three unearned runs on Monday night and had a 14.09 ERA in five games.
The nephew of Orioles broadcaster Ben McDonald, Sceroler had never pitched above High-A before this season. He was drafted from Cincinnati.
To replace him, the Orioles selected the contract of knuckleballer Mickey Jannis from Triple-A Norfolk.
The 33-year-old right-hander, who began his professional career in 2010, has never pitched in the major leagues. Jannis was 0-1 with a 2.92 ERA in seven games with the Tides.
When Jannis appears in a game, he’ll be the first Orioles knuckleballer since Danny Boone in 1990.
Valdez on the sidelines: César Valdez, who was placed on the 10-day injured list before Monday’s game because of a strained lower back, shouldn’t miss much time, Hyde said.
Valdez pitched in Sunday’s game against the Blue Jays, allowing two run on three hits.
“He went to the training room after the game, and he was getting a little bit of treatment on it,” Hyde said. “His back has been, maybe not 100 percent . He felt good enough to pitch. It ramped up on him after that last outing. I wouldn’t expect it to be too long of an IL stint, maybe 10 days to two weeks, hopefully.”
Santander sits again: Rightfielder Anthony Santander isn’t in the lineup for the second straight game. Santander, who went on the injured list for a month after hurting his left ankle, is still affected by the injury.
“He does feel a little bit better today,” Hyde said. “He should be available off the bench.”
Hyde doesn’t know if Santander will return to the injured list. The Orioles will check on him again on Wednesday.
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I can't wait to see our catchers handle a knuckleballer.
It's ABOUT TIME. A knuckleballer tossing for the O's. I've been waiting for quite a while for this. Very exciting ... very.
Thank you Mr. Elias! You got one right.
OMG ... a thought just occured to me. Who's going to catch this guy?
Adley caught him in spring training...go O’s...
Hopefully Jannis can provide some innings. Congrats to him on making the majors!
Out for 2 months, then put in during a monsoon and gets 3 UNEARNED RUNS against him. Not much of a tryout is it??
Is Ben still a game anouncer for baltimore?
Yes, Ben's away doing the College World Series.
2.870 WHIP with Baltimore
2.308 WHIP with Norfolk
1.86 WHIP during spring training
I can’t wait to see Severino catch Jannis. If he can’t catch a fastball, how’s he going to catch the knuckleball? Pudge had fun trying to catch Charlie Hough of the Rangers.
Have you been watching him catch Lopez's knuckle curve tonight?
Guess they didn’t learn their lesson with Valdez. Just another gimmick to me.. Bur I hope he does well
We don’t get to read it’s Ben McDonald’s nephew anymore? Looking forward to seeing the knuckleballer
There’s a video clip available of a pitch Jannis throws and it’s remarkable. The ball looks as if it’s just sitting there and the background is moving. It’s literally not moving at all. Fascinating.
Jannis is a nice story, but what about Wells? What about Lowther? What about Mattson? Should we find out if they can be part of a winning Os team in 2023 or if they should stay on the 40 man over the winter ? All are on the 40 man so no one needs to be pushed off.
And don't forget about our under slot pick in the draft this year, the 16th best player being picked at number 5 should be very exciting too! :(
: ) ...go Birds
I agree that the appearance of a knuckleballer right now does sound odd, desperate, incongruous or whatever.
But he hasn’t even thrown a pitch yet, and we’re knocking him. I am dubious, but hopeful. Let’s give him a chance before crucifying him.
I.F., It's not so much that he's a knuckleballer, it's that the Oriole organization is so low on talent that it has to promote a guy who spent 12 years in the low minors. Not even a full year at AAA, and apparently not one day in the majors. Wow. On the other hand, Elias's eye for talent so superhuman that we mortals cannot fully understand or appreciate it.
:)...perfectly said...go O’s...
Give him a chance. It’s gonna be like opening day - hope springs eternal. The second coming of Phil Niekro.
Orioles magic. Feel it happen….
I.f., Jannis is more like the second coming of Eddie Gamboa: a knuckler with 12 years toiling in the minors. He does have an edge on Jannis in that he made it to AAA (Norfolk), recorded13 innings of MLB pitching, and according to mlb.com spent two forgettable days on the Oriole roster in 2015. Icterus, if you really can't stop feeling what you think is the new Oriole magic, I suggest your nom de plume would more appropriately be Icarus.
WV, humor me, man. This team is abysmal and we all know it. No amount of Pollyanna eye of newt, wing of bat alchemy is going to help this year.
Just a father and son, havin’ fun together….Orioles baseball!!
Oh, and with proper deference to Greek mythology, my appellation shall remain unchanged, my learned friend….
Yes a fresh arm. Drink coke
Knuckle ball pitcher? What team uses knuckle ball pitchers anymore? O's are so desperate they're resorting to gimmickry. First Valdez' off speed junk and now this. Whatever happened to Fry? Is he still in shock from Saturday's performance? Scott--what happens to him on the mound? It's getting a little old. Hunter Harvey--getting close,now please stay healthy. And Wells--the best of the bunch. Let these pitchers bust inside once in while Holt/Hyde you'd be amazed what a difference it would make.
Just curious... how many inherited runners has Hunter Harvey let in this year?
And speaking about pitching... has anybody noticed that the wheels seemed to have fallen of at Bowie...30 runs in the last three games. And... outdoing them is Aberdeen with 33 in just the last two games? In Sunday’s game they gave up 19 runs (all earned) on 17 hits (8 home runs) and 8 walks. Their performance makes the O’s staff look good... Just saying...
If you want to talk about desperation, let's add that Mr. Jannis has been laboring in the minor leagues for 12 years without ever being good enough to pitch in the majors. I've got a feeling that he will fit right in with the O's pitching staff. The rebuild goes on...and on...
Ekim, Hunter Harvey has allowed four inherited runners to score.
That's what happens when pitchers go 'cold turkey' on any substance, and I'm not talking Spider Tack, I mean even using sunscreen and rosin mix to get a better grip on the ball....That was obvious from Fry's lack of control the other day....Thank Manfred for the exploded ERAs
I’m in the minority of most on this site, and that’s ok, in thinking Lopez has a chance to stick with this team in the future. I like his stuff and believe his ERA is much higher than his he’s actually pitched. I don’t know if stats are kept on this but it’s my guess he’s had more inherited runners score than any other pitcher on the staff. He leaves the game tonite in a 1-1 tie with a runner on 1st who promptly scores on a hit allowed by Harvey. He is tagged with the loss.
I’m also probably in the minority of those that would like to see Hyde be given a chance to stay manager once the cavalry arrives in the next 2-3 years. Having said that, I really, really wish Hyde would’ve let Lopez in the game to see how he’d have handled the rest of that inning. Maybe he gets out of it, maybe he doesn’t, but that’s how I think pitchers really learn how to pitch. The O’s are going nowhere this year, let these young guys try to pitch there way out of trouble in the 5th or even 6th inning.
I’ve backed Lopez as well. I don’t have the stats handy, but I’m guessing he hasn’t gotten run support. He pitched good enough to give the birds an opportunity to win again last night. Good movement on pitches, hitting the corners, keeping the ball down in the zone etc.
But no offense. Greinke was great and Presley got his 11th save. Winning formula.
We’re outclassed most nights.
I tooam totally psyched for Jannis. Too soon to bring up Rutschman but...