Struggling southpaw/rookie Zach Britton has been placed on the 15 day disabled list with a left shoulder pain. This is yet another Oriole pitcher lost out of the rotation. That list of guys includes Brian Matusz, Jake Arrieta, and now Britton. The news that he was headed to the DL came after yet another tough loss against the Kansas City Royals. In that game, he gave up 6 runs and 12 hits in only 5.1 innings. Zach was making only his second start since coming back from his demotion to Double-A Bowie.
Britton started the season as a solid rookie of the year candidate putting up an absurd 5-2 record with a 2.93 ERA. This shoulder pain might have been the cause of his 1-6 record and 7.78 ERA since the start of June. This move was announced just minutes before the game last night. To fill Britton’s role on the club, Cesar Izturis was activated from the 60-day DL.
The Orioles rotation has been crushed by losses of inconsistent and injured players. The current group includes Jeremy Guthrie, Tommy Hunter, Alfredo Simon, and Chris Tillman. Guthrie has been the only constant, but he has a 4.34 ERA and a league leading 15 losses. Hunter was recently acquired in the trade that sent reliever Koji Uehara to Texas. He is 1-2 with 4.43 ERA after picking up the loss last night in his first start as a bird. We also received starting first baseman Chris Davis in that deal from the Rangers. Simon was promoted from the setup man to a mid-rotation starter about a month ago. He was dealing with legal issues the whole season after being the main suspect in a Dominican shooting on New Years Eve. Tillman will be recalled today to start against the Blue Jays and starter Brandon Morrow.
