With Arrieta making his Major League Debut last-night, the gang is all here – at-least for the O’s rotation.

While the position players await the return of Reimold and promotion of Bell, the Orioles rotation now features each of the talented arms of Matusz, Tillman, and Arrieta. There is so much promise in each of the three, that even with just 17 wins in the first 60 games of this 2010 season you have to feel some optimism for the immediate and long-term future of this franchise.

It took all of one start to see just how filthy Arrieta’s stuff actually is. There had been plenty of talk by people over the years that his future for the O’s was as an elite Closer. In my eyes that talk has to be dead. Having him on the mound for 180-200 innings a year over the next 6 years is going to be a necessity for the O’s. The fact that he will be relatively cheap in that time frame (along with Matusz, and Tillman) will allow the O’s to allocate resources elsewhere.

Of course the other aspect of having MAT in the rotation, is that you get to maximize the talents of Hernandez, and Berken (and potentially Bergesen) in the bullpen. Hernandez earned his first Major League save last-night, pumping fastballs in at 97-98 mph. As we said all along, when he was asked to pitch an inning or so at a time, there would be a corresponding up-tick in his velocity and movement. I’m not sure how Hernandez felt about the move to the pen, but he should be happy with the decision. He has all the tools necessary to dominate in that capacity.

Chris Stoner
Chris Stoner

Owner

Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.

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