"This is a condition that other pitchers have pitched with. They just have to pitch to their tolerance. If it bothers them, they shouldn't pitch, but some guys have this and it doesn't bother them," MacPhail said. "If you went in and MRI'd a lot of shoulders, there's at least something in about 60 percent of these guys' shoulders that there could be a concern about. That's just the nature of our business."
MacPhail said the Orioles paid a nominal fee - and gave up no personnel - in acquiring Hill. That compensation will not change because of Hill's shoulder problem, MacPhail said.
The remainder of Hill's season is in jeopardy, but the pitcher said he won't know until he hears the test results.
Trade winds slowing
The Orioles might have lost a potential trading partner Wednesday when the Philadelphia Phillies sent four prospects to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Cliff Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco.
The Phillies dealt minor league shortstop Jason Donald and pitcher Carlos Carrasco, both of whom were targeted by the Orioles in any potential trade for closer George Sherrill. If they trade Sherrill before Friday's nonwaiver deadline, the Orioles want a corner infielder or shortstop - and the Phillies' farm system is now thin in those areas.
Eight to 10 teams, with varying interest, have contacted the Orioles about Sherrill, a baseball source said. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels are considered the mostly likely landing spots for Sherrill.
The Orioles are receiving little, if any, interest in most of their other available players. The Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies apparently are keeping tabs on reliever Mark Hendrickson, and the Chicago Cubs have some interest in outfielder-designated hitter Luke Scott.
Teams scouting Wednesday's game between the Orioles and Royals included the Dodgers, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Cubs, the Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Zaun gets call
With Tillman making his major league debut Wednesday, Trembley decided to start veteran catcher Gregg Zaun instead of rookie Matt Wieters, who caught Tillman in the minors.
Wieters caught all 11 innings of Tuesday's extra-innings loss, which played into the decision. But Trembley said he had basically made the call before Tuesday night.
"Zaun has the experience, so Zaun was going to catch [Wednesday]," Trembley said. "This sets it up a little better for me for the weekend to get Wieters in there with the other guys in the rotation."
Around the horn
Right-hander Alfredo Simon (right elbow) was transferred to the 60-day disabled list to make room for Tillman on the 40-man roster. ... Wednesday's first pitch was delayed 41 minutes because of rain.
