It's the arms in the bullpen this year, though, the boost they've given this team, that are making the impact. It has turned this season 180 degrees from last year. It has made Trembley look like a better manager. It has filled Andy MacPhail's one-year report cards with A's. It has made the Miguel Tejada trade look like grand larceny, even though Albers is the second pitcher from that deal to go down with a serious arm injury and even though the Orioles are one injury or batting slump away from a "So You Think You Can Play Shortstop?" promotion at the ballpark.
Conversely, last year's bullpen very likely is what created job openings for Trembley and MacPhail. No wonder they don't want to belabor it. Along with everything else, it's cruel to Sam Perlozzo and Jim Duquette. They weren't even lucky enough to have injured former starters fall into their laps to throw middle relief when their incumbents got hurt.
The numbers tell the tale: The Orioles relievers went into last night with the fourth-best ERA among American League bullpens at 3.28, nearly 2 1/2 runs lower than the 5.71 figure that was third-worst in the AL last year. With Jamie Walker going into the DL, Chad Bradford is the only reliever left from the debacle of last season. Bradford looks like the Bradford they thought they'd picked up last season, and we now know that Walker has been pitching hurt.
Everybody else? Spectacular, unexpectedly so. Sherrill's struggles in recent weeks only accentuates how sharp he had been; otherwise, as Trembley said, "you talk about a story in Major League Baseball, it's got to be Sherrill."
Also worth singling out by the manager: Jim Johnson. "In February," Trembley said, "I didn't think Jim Johnson would play as significant a role as he has. The guy has come out of nowhere."
That fits for everybody involved. Even Loewen, although it's probably a little early to proclaim him the answer to the Albers problem. But there's no doubt that Loewen has made that problem a little easier to handle.
Nice to see the Orioles bullpen solving problems instead of causing them, isn't it?
david.steele@baltsun.com
Listen to David Steele on Wednesdays at 9 a.m. on WNST (1570 AM).
