As if the sting of Carlos Beltran’s walk-off home run weren’t enough on Friday night, the Orioles raised eyebrows with the decision to option right-handed pitcher Kevin Gausman to Triple-A Norfolk following the heartbreaking 5-3 loss to the New York Yankees.
Manager Buck Showalter needed another bullpen arm after long man T.J. McFarland pitched two innings in the series-opening contest at Yankee Stadium, and the Orioles recalled right-handed pitcher Brad Brach from Triple-A Norfolk to take Gausman’s spot on the 25-man roster prior to Saturday’s game. Brach has posted a 5.40 ERA in 18 1/3 innings with the Orioles this season.
The Orioles have been going with a six-man bullpen since they began using a six-man rotation, which necessitated the need to temporarily take a starting pitcher off the roster.
The good news is that the impressive 23-year-old shouldn’t be be gone for long as the Orioles can bring back Gausman as their 26th man for the split doubleheader against the Tampa Bay Rays next Friday. This essentially means the only consequence for sending him down is moving his next scheduled start from Wednesday to Friday with an off-day between those games.
Since being recalled on June 7, Gausman is 3-0 with a 0.95 ERA in three starts spanning 19 innings. The decision isn’t ideal with the current six-man rotation already providing extra rest to starters, but there’s no logical reason to believe the Orioles wouldn’t bring him back for next Friday’s start.
Of course, the Orioles can only hope they haven’t messed with the 2012 first-round pick’s good vibes as Gausman would be making his next start on eight days’ rest if he is in fact recalled next Friday.
