Relief Pitcher

Orioles center fielder Brady Anderson and closer Randy Myers beat the rush yesterday as both filed for free agency on the first possible day.It didn't take much longer for the cordial relationship between Anderson and the club to assume a sharper edge. Anderson's agent, Jeff Borris, insisted that by failing to sign his client to a contract extension during the season, the Orioles have imperiled their chances at retaining the popular outfielder.Retaining Anderson and Myers represents the off-season priority for an organization hoping to make an even stronger push for a world championship in 1998.

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Left-hander Jeff Ballard continues to give every indication that he is ready to rebound from a painful and frustrating 1990 season.Ballard pitched four innings last night, giving up one run on four hits in the Baltimore Orioles' 7-2 loss to the Texas Rangers at Ed Smith Stadium. He has given up just one run in seven innings of exhibition competition."I'll take that," Ballard said. "It was a little bit more of a struggle than the first game, but I made it through four innings."

MINNEAPOLIS -- Johnny Oates has been trying to steer clear of the more predictable sports cliches lately. He still takes them one game at a time and never looks too far ahead and figures that good pitching usually beats good hitting, but he has made an effort to be a little more quotable.That was not possible yesterday, not after almost every member of the Orioles roster contributed to a 9-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome."I think this is one of those days when you have to use the old cliche 'team effort,' " Oates said.

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...

COACH OF THE YEAR* Kevin Kelly, Atholton -- Atholton surprised a lot of people by making it to the state Class 2A championship game where it lost to Elkton, 6-5.When the season began it was a team loaded with question marks. The entire infield was new. Two outfield spots were up for grabs. The pitching was experienced with Keith Schultz and Shane Beaver, but Beaver's shoulder was sore and he couldn't pitch until midway through the season. Kelly did a nice job of bringing Beaver along slowly, pitching him just once a week so that he was ready for the playoffs where Beaver became nearly dominant enough to steal a state championship.

— 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.

Cal Ripken Jr. stopped by The Baltimore Sun this morning as part of the promotional tour for his third children's novel, “Wild Pitch,” which came out today. The book - about a young pitcher who loses his confidence after beaning an opponent - was co-written by Sun columnist Kevin Cowherd. Before leaving on a book signing tour that will include stops in a number of spring training spots (including the Orioles' camp in Sarasota on Thursday), Ripken sat down for a quick Q&A touching on the O's, his color commentary, the late Earl Weaver and his son Ryan.

CINCINNATI -- His mother, Irene, is a factory worker, and his father, Fred, is a welder. Braves reliever Mark Wohlers knew growing up that holding down a regular job would be something he would have to do his entire adult life.He washed dishes at age 14, at an Italian restaurant called Mel's, moved up to busboy, squirted condiments at a Subway shop. When the Major League Baseball Players Association went on strike, Wohlers found a job at a automobile body shop. Pay: $10 an hour."I think when I first started working there the other guys there thought I was going to be some hot shot, not really pulling my load," Wohlers said.

Orioles reliever Terry Mathews had his inflamed right wrist checked again by team orthopedist Dr. Michael Jacobs yesterday and was given permission to begin playing catch today -- the first measured step toward a return to the club.Mathews is eligible to come off the disabled list tomorrow but won't be ready for a while. He has been treating the wrist with rest and medication, and also has been doing some bending exercises with trainer Richie Bancells to test its strength. He was told by Jacobs to have the wrist taped before throwing to limit its movement.

The Orioles finally exhausted their patience with struggling reliever Ryan Kohlmeier as they optioned last season's closer to Triple-A Rochester and promoted Chad Paronto. The move confirmed what has been one of the season's biggest disappointments as Kohlmeier's choppy work schedule without a defined role combined with his susceptibility to home runs and left-handed hitting created a frustrating cycle for the pitcher and his team. Wednesday night's 6-5 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays represented a breaking point.