Relief Pitcher

AS ANY PARENT of a Little League player knows, there's nothing more stressful in life than watching your kid pitch. Here's an idea I have advocated for years: At every game, there should be a little bar set up on the sidelines expressly for the parents of the kid who's pitching. As soon as your kid takes the mound, you'd be allowed to sit at the bar and order a drink. And this drink would be on the house. Beer, wine, mixed drinks, blender drinks, whatever you want. (Actually, I haven't worked out the details of how the money for all this booze would be raised.

As Darren O'Day spoke to the media on Monday about his new two-year deal, Orioles pitching coach Rick Adair and bullpen coach Bill Castro beamed from the back row. Coaches aren't ones to sit in on news conferences often, but it showed how coveted the Orioles' sidearm reliever has become. The Orioles are making a $5.8 million investment in O'Day. He was the team's most consistent relief pitcher last season, able to work his way out of a jam, as well as hold a lead. He could come in for one batter or pitch two innings.

IT HASN'T BEEN easy going through life with a built-in nickname, but when the Seattle Mariners arrived in town, I thought I finally had found someone else who could feel my pain. The Mariners have a relief pitcher named J.J. Putz, a young right-hander who I was sure would be able to identify with my lifelong struggle to order a pizza over the phone. No such luck. J.J. claims his surname is pronounced with a slightly longer "u" - so that it sounds more like "puts" than "putts." That's his story, and he's sticking to it. "He's in denial," said Orioles play-by-play man Joe Angel.

The Orioles have, for all intents and purposes, completed deals with all of their arbitration-eligible players, agreeing to terms Saturday afternoon with the final one, right-handed reliever Darren O'Day on a two-year extension worth a guaranteed $5.8 million. The Orioles said the deal is not yet completed, but they are nearing a multiyear extension with O'Day, who was 7-1 with a 2.28 ERA in 69 games last year. “It is something he asked us to explore during the course of negotiations for a one-year deal and we are taking a look at it ... and there is work to be done,” Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette said.

Mike Palulis paced the right field warning track, then stood with hands on hips, shifting from foot to foot as he looked out over his realm - a slowly filling Camden Yards. He seemed more antsy than nervous, like something inside needed to get out. He adjusted his uniform, took some practice swings with an imaginary bat; then he paced some more. Palulis had gotten his assignment - he was to head to the bullpen in the fifth inning - and now he was taking a moment to focus. The Orioles had, after all, just lost their 15th-straight Sunday game.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- John Rocker reported to the Atlanta Braves spring training facility yesterday and attempted to cool the lingering controversy that has enveloped him since his mean-spirited diatribe against homosexuals, immigrants and minorities hit the pages of Sports Illustrated more than two months ago. The embattled relief pitcher arrived less than a day after arbitrator Shyam Das overturned the spring training ban imposed by baseball commissioner...

DETROIT - With Alan Mills still unable to throw, the Orioles' relief pitcher is expected to go on the disabled list today. Mills will see team orthopedist Michael Jacobs today in Baltimore, while the Orioles begin a three-game series against the Royals in Kansas City. Mills, who was reacquired by the Orioles on June 13, had to stop playing catch after five minutes Wednesday when he began experiencing pain again in a spot behind his right shoulder. He hasn't pitched since Friday in Tampa Bay when he allowed a three-run homer to Greg Vaughn in the eighth inning that began the Devil Rays' comeback from a 9-4 deficit.

As Darren O'Day spoke to the media on Monday about his new two-year deal, Orioles pitching coach Rick Adair and bullpen coach Bill Castro beamed from the back row. Coaches aren't ones to sit in on news conferences often, but it showed how coveted the Orioles' sidearm reliever has become. The Orioles are making a $5.8 million investment in O'Day. He was the team's most consistent relief pitcher last season, able to work his way out of a jam, as well as hold a lead. He could come in for one batter or pitch two innings.

For those of you wondering why Hayden Penn hasn't pitched for Triple-A Ottawa, it's because he remains at the minor league camp in Sarasota, Fla. The Orioles wanted him to build up more innings, and increase his arm strength, because they felt he didn't get enough work at the major league camp. Going back to the rule that allowed Chris Ray to be credited with the win Thursday night, it's Rule 10.19 c (4) Exception, stating, "Do not credit a victory to a relief pitcher who is ineffective in a brief appearance, when a succeeding relief pitcher pitches effectively in helping his team maintain the lead.

As a Baltimore native, Orioles spring training season ticket holder and longtime Jeremy Guthrie fan, I'm saddened that my favorite pitcher was traded to the Rockies ("Orioles' spring version of the show: 'As the Rotation Turns,'" Feb. 8). But the recent acquisition of relief pitcher Pat Neshek - the only known vegan player in the Majors - definitely softens the blow. I'll cheer for a vegan pitcher any day - even if he blows more than eight saves. Anyone who spares animals, helps save the environment and promotes healthy living is a champion in my book.

As a Baltimore native, Orioles spring training season ticket holder and longtime Jeremy Guthrie fan, I'm saddened that my favorite pitcher was traded to the Rockies ("Orioles' spring version of the show: 'As the Rotation Turns,'" Feb. 8). But the recent acquisition of relief pitcher Pat Neshek - the only known vegan player in the Majors - definitely softens the blow. I'll cheer for a vegan pitcher any day - even if he blows more than eight saves. Anyone who spares animals, helps save the environment and promotes healthy living is a champion in my book.

— Not wanting to take any chances with a 35-year-old who has an extensive injury history, there was a time earlier this season when the Orioles wouldn't pitch Koji Uehara on back-to-back days. But not only has Uehara's role changed — from setup man to closer — but so has his workload. Uehara pitched in six of his team's past eight games before he was given the afternoon off in the Orioles' 6-2 loss to the Detroit Tigers today. With Uehara unavailable, Orioles manager Buck Showalter never had to tip his hand on whom he would have used in a save situation because the Tigers scored five times in the eighth inning to turn a one-run deficit into a four-run lead.

There was a time earlier this season when the Orioles were content with offering would-be free agent Aubrey Huff arbitration and bringing him back for the 2010 season on a lucrative one-year deal. However, Huff's failure to come close to replicating his numbers from last year changed the organization's plan, and the first baseman was traded Monday to the Detroit Tigers for minor league reliever Brett Jacobson. Huff, who signed a three-year, $20 million deal with the Orioles in January 2007, was named the Most Valuable Oriole last season and won a Silver Slugger Award after hitting .304 with 32 home runs and 108 RBIs.

Goose Gossage entered the Hall of Fame this past weekend recognized as a pioneering relief pitcher, one of the archetypal modern bullpen firemen. But in reviews of Gossage's career from 1972 to 1994 (pitching for nine teams), an important distinction has been made between him and the star closers who have followed. Gossage's outings were, on average, for far more outs and innings than latter-day relief pitchers. For instance, while Gossage has 310 saves over 22 seasons compared with Mariano Rivera's 469 in 13-plus seasons, Gossage worked more than two innings 52 times in getting those saves.

Mike Palulis paced the right field warning track, then stood with hands on hips, shifting from foot to foot as he looked out over his realm - a slowly filling Camden Yards. He seemed more antsy than nervous, like something inside needed to get out. He adjusted his uniform, took some practice swings with an imaginary bat; then he paced some more. Palulis had gotten his assignment - he was to head to the bullpen in the fifth inning - and now he was taking a moment to focus. The Orioles had, after all, just lost their 15th-straight Sunday game.

Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz has not only been one of the most versatile pitchers in major league history, winning a Cy Young Award as a starter in 1996 and Relief Pitcher of the Year honors in 2002, but he has also had to coax two decades out of his right arm with a constant series of medical procedures and pitching approach changes. It was announced yesterday that he's facing arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder that might signal the end of his career, although he's not conceding that yet. But Smoltz has already had Tommy John surgery (ligament replacement)

Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz has not only been one of the most versatile pitchers in major league history, winning a Cy Young Award as a starter in 1996 and Relief Pitcher of the Year honors in 2002, but he has also had to coax two decades out of his right arm with a constant series of medical procedures and pitching approach changes. It was announced yesterday that he's facing arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder that might signal the end of his career, although he's not conceding that yet. But Smoltz has already had Tommy John surgery (ligament replacement)

Adam Loewen predicted yesterday that one of his best friends in baseball will win 20 games this season. It just won't happen with the Orioles. And like many of his teammates, Loewen understands why it has to be this way. A rebuilding club eventually gets back in a pennant race by making trades that will improve it in the long run. For the Orioles, that meant sending No. 1 starter Erik Bedard to the Seattle Mariners for center fielder Adam Jones, reliever...

Joseph Gordon Mueller, who spent more than a decade as a relief pitcher in professional baseball and then became a shopping center leasing executive, died of heart disease Thursday at Stella Maris Hospice. The Timonium resident was 83. An International League Oriole for portions of the 1940s and early 1950s, he played briefly in one season with the Boston Red Sox. That was in 1950, on a team that included Ted Williams. Born in Baltimore and raised on Greenmount Avenue, he was a pitcher on his parochial school ball team, Blessed Sacrament, and at City College, from which he graduated in 1940.