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Luke Jones

Teagarden, Socolovich up for Orioles; Eveland, Paulino sent out

Luke Jones

BALTIMORE — Only one game into the second half of the season, the Orioles have made more roster changes as catcher Taylor Teagarden was activated from the 60-day disabled list and Triple-A Norfolk reliever Miguel Socolovich had his contract selected prior to Saturday’s game. To clear room for both players on the 40-man roster, the Orioles have outrighted catcher Ronny Paulino to Norfolk and designated pitcher Dana Eveland for assignment. Paulino has three days to accept the assignment to Triple A or he can become a free agent. Eveland must pass through waivers and would be outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk on Monday if he clears. Teagarden was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a back injury on April 4 and transferred to the 60-day DL on May 9. He batted .250 in nine rehab games with Gulf Coast, Single-A Delmarva, and Double-A Bowie — playing three games for each affiliate. He was acquired by the Orioles from Texas on December 1, 2011. Socolovich has been one of Norfolk’s best pitchers this season, going 3-0 with a 1.77 earned run average in 45 2/3 innings of work. He walked only 11 and struck out 50 in 24 games with the

Hammel leaves Friday’s start early with knee injury

Luke Jones

BALTIMORE — Making the first start of the second half for the Orioles on Friday, Jason Hammel left the game in the top of the fourth inning with a right knee injury. Hammel appeared to land awkwardly after delivering a 1-2 pitch to Brennan Boesch. After throwing a couple practice pitches and being examined by the training staff and manager Buck Showalter, Hammel walked gingerly to the dugout and was replaced by reliever Luis Ayala. He will be evaluated further on Saturday, the club announced. The right-hander has dealt with right knee soreness for most of the season despite being the Orioles’ best starting pitcher. He entered the night with an 8-5 record and a 3.47 earned run average. According to Hammel’s brother Bill, the 29-year-old felt as though something popped in his right knee but was not experiencing much swelling in the later innings of the game. The pitcher will undergo an MRI tomorrow. Hammel and Saturday’s starter Wei-Yin Chen are the only current members of the starting rotation left from the beginning of the season after Jake Arrieta, Brian Matusz, and Tommy Hunter were optioned to Triple-A Norfolk before the All-Star break. Given the Orioles’ starting pitching woes

Britton primed for Tuesday call-up after strong Norfolk start

Luke Jones

Opportunity has been ringing like an alarm clock pitcher Zach Britton has slept through for the better part of the last five weeks. With three-fifths of the Opening Day rotation now working in Triple-A Norfolk and the Orioles needing a starter on Tuesday in Minnesota, it appears the left-hander is finally ready to answer the bell after struggling with consistency upon being activated from the disabled list. Britton pitched seven shutout innings for Triple-A Norfolk against Lehigh Valley on Thursday, putting himself in position to be recalled for the first time this season. The southpaw allowed four hits, struck out six, and walked none over his 93 pitches of work in the 7-0 victory for the Tides. He also induced 10 groundball outs compared to three fly outs and reportedly showed excellent fastball command in the lower half of the strike zone. The stellar outing improved Britton’s record to 4-1 and lowered his earned run average to 4.15. Over his last five starts, the 24-year-old has allowed 10 earned runs and 24 hits in 32 innings while striking out 23 and walking 12. The organization has wanted to see Britton improve his command while continuing to build strength in his

Orioles “poking around” at Seattle pitcher Vargas?

Luke Jones

As fans dreamed about the possibility of acquiring Milwaukee’s Zack Greinke or Cubs pitcher Matt Garza over the All-Star break, the Orioles are apparently kicking the tires on a far less intriguing and cheaper option. ESPN’s Jayson Stark reported Thursday the Orioles have cooled on the possibility of trading for Garza and are “poking around” at the possibility of trading for Seattle pitcher Jason Vargas. The first-blush numbers suggest it wouldn’t be a bad move as the left-hander has an 8-7 record with a 4.09 earned run average in 19 starts for the lowly Mariners this season. Vargas has a 1.15 WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitcher) and has struck out 86 while walking 32 in 126 innings this season. However, a deeper look at the stats suggest the soft-tossing 29-year-old is far from an ideal target to compete in the American League East. Vargas has thrived at cavernous Safeco Field this season, posting a 2-3 record with a 2.84 ERA in eight starts (57 innings), but his road numbers paint a different picture entirely. The southpaw has a 6-4 record with a 5.09 ERA and has allowed 17 home runs in 11 starts (69 innings) outside Seattle. Those

Orioles ink Cuban outfielder Henry Urrutia to minor-league contract

Luke Jones

The Orioles have signed Cuban outfielder Henry Urrutia to a minor-league deal, according to a Baseball America report. The 25-year-old reportedly received a bonus of $778,500 for signing with Baltimore. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound corner outfielder played in Cuba’s top league at least three seasons before defecting to the United States. Urrutia is a switch hitter with a line-drive stroke that’s more polished from the left side, according to several scouting reports. In his final season in Cuba, he batted .397 with a .461 on-base percentage and .597 slugging percentage in 305 at-bats with 12 home runs. The outfielder also had more walks (32) than strikeouts (23) and tied for ninth in the league in on-base percentage. Urrutia lacks the upside of recent Cuban defectors Yoenis Cespedes and Jorge Soler, but he is considered to have reasonable major-league potential. Given his age, he will likely report to one of the Orioles’ higher-level affiliates in the near future.  

Left-handed reliever Romero granted release from contract with Orioles

Luke Jones

Left-handed pitcher J.C. Romero became the latest retread to leave the Orioles’ organization when he was granted his release from Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday. Signed to a minor-league deal on May 23 after he was let go by the St. Louis Cardinals earlier in the month, the 36-year-old pitched to a 2.51 earned run average in 17 appearances for the Tides. Romero held an opt-out clause that could be triggered at the All-Star break, which the veteran elected to exercise after seeing no imminent opportunity with the Orioles. He owned a 1-0 record and struck out 13 batters while walking five in 14 1/3 innings. Romero took a brief leave of absence from the Tides recently to deal with personal matters and had struggled leading up to the break. Left-hander Zach Phillips is currently at Triple-A Norfolk, giving the Orioles another option should they choose to add a southpaw to their bullpen that already includes left-handers Troy Patton and Dana Eveland. Romero has pitched for six different clubs over his 14-year career and is now a free agent.

Orioles DH Johnson to undergo MRI on injured right wrist

Luke Jones

Plagued by injuries throughout his major league career, Orioles designated hitter Nick Johnson left Wednesday’s game with a right wrist injury and will undergo an MRI to determine its severity. After striking out in the second inning, Johnson was replaced by pinch hitter Ryan Flaherty in the bottom of the fourth inning after experiencing weakness in his right wrist. The 33-year-old has undergone multiple surgeries on the same wrist over the course of his 10-year career. “He said he was good for one swing and after that he lost a lot of the strength,” said manager Buck Showalter after the 13-1 loss to the Los Angeles Angels. “Had some pain there. I think everyone’s aware of the history, the problems he’s had there.” Johnson has experienced some soreness in the wrist at different times, mostly stemming from preexisting scar tissue from the surgical procedures. The veteran left-handed hitter said he did not experience any swelling after being lifted for Flaherty and remains optimistic that he can avoid a trip to the disabled list. However, he admitted the pain is similar to past discomfort felt in the wrist. “That one pitch got it pretty good and I lost a lot of

Blue Jays ink veteran lefty Moyer to minor league deal

Luke Jones

After deciding he longer wanted to wait for the Orioles to promote him, veteran left-hander Jamie Moyer signed a minor-league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday. The 49-year-old will report to Triple-A Las Vegas and presumably join the starting rotation. He has not received any assurances of a call-up, but the Blue Jays’ recent rash of injuries in their starting rotation increases the likelihood of Moyer receiving another chance in the big leagues. Toronto has lost starters Brandon Morrow, Kyle Drabek and Drew Hutchison to the disabled list in recent weeks and Henderson Alvarez departed from Monday’s game with elbow soreness. Moyer made three starts for Triple-A Norfolk, allowing three runs in 16 innings while striking out 16 and walking none. He requested and was granted his release on Saturday after the Orioles did not select his contract and asked him to make at least one more start for the Tides. Making 10 starts for the Colorado Rockies earlier this season, Moyer went 2-5 with a 5.70 ERA before being released in early June.

Jones falls to fifth in All-Star voting for AL outfielders

Luke Jones

With four days remaining to vote, Orioles center fielder Adam Jones is falling behind in the quest for his name to be in the starting lineup of the 2012 All-Star Game. The most recent voting results were released on Monday with Jones falling behind Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz, putting the Baltimore outfielder in fifth place. Josh Hamilton, Curtis Granderson, and Jose Bautista would be the American League starters in the outfield if voting ended today, but less than 150,000 votes separate Jones with the third-place Bautista. Matt Wieters is currently third among AL catchers, but the Rangers’ Mike Napoli leads by more than a million votes. Shortstop J.J. Hardy is third in the AL at his position while Robert Andino comes in fifth among AL second basemen. Voting for the 83rd annual All-Star Game on July 10 in Kansas City concludes at 11:59 p.m. ET on Thursday. AMERICAN LEAGUE ALL-STAR VOTING TOTALS FIRST BASE Prince Fielder, Tigers: 2,825,532 Paul Konerko, White Sox: 2,261,388 Mark Teixeira, Yankees: 1,863,873 Mitch Moreland, Rangers: 1,711,659 Albert Pujols, Angels: 1,429,154 SECOND BASE Robinson Cano, Yankees: 3,559,290 Ian Kinsler, Rangers: 3,462,367 Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox: 1,666,282 Jason Kipnis, Indians: 852,325 Robert Andino, Orioles: 714,560 THIRD BASE

Ravens offensive lineman Reid appears OK after being carted off field Thursday

Luke Jones

Aside from the off-field headline of safety Ed Reed skipping this week’s mandatory minicamp, the most concerning moment of the week came Thursday when offensive tackle Jah Reid was carted off the field with an apparent right leg injury. While coach John Harbaugh wasn’t willing to offer an update on Reid following Thursday’s workout, early indications point to it only being a calf strain. Reid worked at right tackle this week while Michael Oher worked on the left side since starting left tackle Bryant McKinnie was being held out of on-field workouts for conditioning reasons. “Why are you even asking me?” said Harbaugh when asked about Reid’s condition. “They are fine, everybody is fine.” Reid was expected to compete with rookie Kelechi Osemele for the starting left guard job, but that plan is less certain after the Ravens signed veteran Bobbie Williams to a two-year contract last week. In his second season out of Central Florida, Reid could return to his natural tackle position as the primary backup behind McKinnie and Oher. Wide receiver Jacoby Jones missed practice on Thursday after he was sidelined during the latter portion of Wednesday’s workout with an apparent leg injury. Harbaugh said Jones would

Flacco, wife welcome first child into world

Luke Jones

Quarterback Joe Flacco can now add “father” to his list of accomplishments at the age of 27. His wife Dana has given birth to Stephen Flacco, an eight-pound boy, according to Flacco’s official Twitter account. The Ravens quarterback was excused from Wednesday’s mandatory minicamp workout to meet his wife in Philadelphia when she went into labor. Flacco is not expected back for the team’s final minicamp workout on Thursday afternoon. “The labor started and Joe was high-tailing up the road to Philly to be with Dana,” coach John Harbaugh said on Wednesday. “We wish them nothing but the best. They don’t know if it’s going to be a boy or a girl, so we’re all going to find out.” Dana Flacco’s due date was this Saturday as Joe had hoped the baby wouldn’t arrive until after the conclusion of minicamp this week.

Ravens sign former St. Louis center Tony Wragge as mandatory minicamp begins

Luke Jones

Conducting their mandatory minicamp this week, the Ravens have signed veteran interior lineman Tony Wragge to add depth along the offensive line. The 32-year-old started eight games for the St. Louis Rams last season after spending the previous five years in San Francisco. Wragged has played in 82 games over his eight-year career, starting 23. An undrafted free agent from New Mexico State in 2002, Wragge began his career with the Arizona Cardinals by bouncing between the active roster and the practice squad before being released in 2004. He played in the Arena Football League with the Los Angeles Avengers in 2005 before joining the 49ers a year later. Wragge started the Rams’ final eight games of the season last year, assuming a starting role in Week 10. To create room on the 90-man off-season roster, the Ravens waived defensive lineman Elliott Henigan.

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