Jim Johnson

In a spring training camp that has been dominated by injury news, the Orioles welcomed back two key players Wednesday in an 11-5 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Neither did particularly well, but the Orioles don't care about results right now. They just want Nick Markakis and Jim Johnson healthy when the season begins. "It's a good feel for everybody to see them out there," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "You don't even get too involved at this point in the returns. " Markakis, the club's Gold Glove right fielder, played in his first game this spring after having surgery to repair abdominal tears in January.

Buck Showalter's first glimpse of closer Jim Johnson inside the Orioles clubhouse moments after his remarkable consecutive-save streak came to an sudden end Tuesday night was the sight of Johnson working up a sweat on the exercise bike in the training room. “He's grinding out on a bicycle,” the Orioles manager said, “Getting ready for [Wednesday].” Johnson's franchise-record streak of 35 consecutive converted regular-season save opportunities was snapped Tuesday night as the San Diego Padres rallied for two runs in the ninth off Johnson for a 3-2 win over the Orioles in front of an announced 19,096 at Camden Yards.

The Orioles were not a perfect team in 2012, though it's easy to get nostalgic about their first truly competitive season of this century. They were plugging holes in the starting rotation throughout the summer. They needed several months to assemble an adequate defense. And clutch hitting was always an issue. The only component of the club that was never cause for serious concern was the bullpen, which was pretty much airtight and was the main reason the Orioles put up otherworldly numbers in one-run and extra-inning games.

Orioles closer Jim Johnson has been named Major League Baseball Delivery Man of the Month for May, given every month to the top reliever in the game.   He becomes the first Orioles pitcher to win the award since it was first given out in 2005. Johnson converted all nine saves in May, pitching to a 1.42 ERA in 12 2/3 innings.  Johnson, who is tied for the AL lead with 17 saves this season, has converted his past 25 save opprtunities dating back to last season. On the season, Johnson has allowed just 2 earned runs in 12 innings, pitching to a 0.78 ERA.

Orioles right-hander Jim Johnson, the favorite to win the closer job this spring, said he believes he's no more than a week behind the other pitchers as today's first spring workouts commence Johnson is slated to have a throwing session on flat ground today as part of a “trunk stabilization” program to aid his recovery from some recent lower back pain. He said he began to experience some pain early last month. “There was no (specific) incident,” Johnson said. “I just went to see the doctor and it's no big deal.

Orioles left-hander Zach Britton is not the only pitcher who will gradually work into his spring training routine. Right-handed reliever Jim Johnson, the favorite to win the club's closer job, will ease into throwing after dealing with lower-back discomfort, Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. While pitchers begin their first workout Sunday morning, Johnson's throwing program will be different. His will include a throwing session off flat ground Sunday. Eventually, he will move to a half mound.

Orioles closer Jim Johnson may have had an historic season for the Orioles, but it wasn't enough to win him Major League Baseball's Delivery Man of the Year Award. That went to someone who made major league history. MLB announced today that Tampa Bay's Fernando Rodney was chosen for the top reliever award by a baseball panel. Rodney also won MLB's American League Comeback Player of the Year Award, with San Francisco Giants' catcher Buster Posey winning the National League's version; both comeback awards are voted on by mlb.com reporters.

We already knew Jim Johnson hadn't finished in the top 3 for the American League Cy Young Award, but the Orioles closer ended up getting some love from the Baseball Writers' Association of America voters when the results were announced Wednesday night. Of the 28 voters (two from each AL market), one had Johnson fourth and three put him fifth on their ballots for 5 total points, good for seventh place. Rays lefty David Price (153 points, 14 first-place votes) edged Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander (149, 13)

Orioles closer Jim Johnson saved his 37th game of the season Sunday aftenoon in the Orioles' 7-5 series-clinching win over the Tigers at Comerica Park with another stress-free 1-2-3 ninth inning. The save tied him with former Orioles closer Gregg Olson for second-most saves in a single-season in club history. The first-time All-Star is having a career year in his first season as the Orioles' closer. What makes Johnson's season more spectacular is his success on the road, where he's converted 23 of 24 save opportunities, including 13 straight away from Camden Yards.

BOSTON -- What has made Orioles closer Jim Johnson so good? Well, let's allow his manager and teammates explain the key to Johnson's record-breaking season. Here's what they have to say about Johnson, who set a new Orioles single-season saves mark with his 46 th save. Manager Buck Showalter "He's a pitcher, not a thrower, with good stuff. He's really good. And Jimmy's got a lot of challenges he had behind him. No where along the line did he cheat the process. When Jimmy goes out there on a given day when he's not carrying a certain pitch, he's got three weapons.