It's starting to appear that Brad Bergesen's promising rookie season will come to a premature end. Bergesen, who hasn't pitched since taking a line drive off his left shin July 30, still hasn't progressed to throwing off a mound, and it now looks doubtful he'll be able to cover enough ground to return to the Orioles' rotation before late next month.
That will force the Orioles to decide whether it's worth it to have Bergesen (7-5, 3.43 ERA) come back to make just one or two starts.
"The throwing program got delayed, and the calendar is starting to work against us right now," president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said.
Bergesen, whose left shin was bruised when he was hit with a line drive from the Kansas City Royals' Billy Butler, is throwing off flat ground at the club's minor league complex in Sarasota, Fla. He said in a phone interview this week that he was still feeling some discomfort but that his condition had improved. He also said he would be "crushed" if he didn't pitch again this season.
However, the Orioles are apparently already looking at alternatives if he's unable to come back. The plan had been for Bergesen to join the club in September and for the Orioles to go with a six-man rotation to ease the burden on their young pitchers who are approaching professional-career highs in innings. But that idea was contingent on Bergesen's being healthy.
"If Bergesen doesn't figure to pitch, then we have to go to another plan," Orioles manager Dave Trembley said. "Because I could tell you [Brian] Matusz, [Chris] Tillma n, [David] Hernandez, those guys aren't throwing 115 pitches in September. They're not going into the eighth inning. It's not going to happen. We're going to protect those guys. That's why we'll get some other guys in the bullpen. "
Going the opposite way
Orioles catcher Matt Wieters long ago stopped caring where his home runs land, so he predictably offered little more than a shrug when asked about all five of his homers this year going to the opposite field.
"It's always nice to drive the ball the other way, but I think you take a homer whichever way. They all count," said Wieters, who hit a solo shot Thursday off the Cleveland Indians' Jess Todd. "It's just something that I've had some success hitting fastballs over the plate for homers the other way. I'm sure they'll adjust and I'll have to pull a couple. But any way they come, I'm fine."
