Trachsel

The Orioles place pitcher Steve Trachsel on the 15-day disabled list with a strained gluteus and call up Kurt Birkins from Triple-A Norfolk. Notebook, PG 9D

About two weeks after losing his spot in the rotation, Steve Trachsel officially lost his place on the Orioles' roster as the veteran right-hander was designated for assignment yesterday. The Orioles selected the contract of Triple-A Norfolk infielder Oscar Salazar to replace him. The Orioles now have 10 days to trade Trachsel, release him or outright him to the minors. It's unlikely Trachsel would accept a minor league assignment, meaning his days as an Oriole are probably numbered. Trachsel, 37, who was 2-5 with an 8.39 ERA in 10 games (eight starts)

The Orioles haven't announced a starter for Tuesday's game in Minnesota, another indication that they're likely to skip Steve Trachsel's turn in the rotation again and raise more uncertainty about the veteran's future in the organization. Manager Dave Trembley confirmed that Daniel Cabrera will take his normal turn Wednesday, followed by left-hander Garrett Olson. The arrangement appears to bump Trachsel, who allowed nine runs and seven hits in 1 2/3 innings in last Saturday's start against Tampa Bay. Trachsel, who is 2-5 with an 8.82 ERA in eight starts this season, was working on 14 days' rest before facing the Rays.

TORONTO -- A day after pitcher Steve Trachsel failed to close out an eight-run lead and appeared incredulous when Dave Trembley came to the mound to take him out, the Orioles' manager acknowledged that the club could make a decision shortly on the veteran's roster status. Trachsel allowed four runs (two earned) after entering in the eighth inning Saturday with the Orioles leading 9-1. He got out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth, but he was removed in the ninth without getting an out after allowing a two-run double to Kevin Mench and walking Brad Wilkerson.

About two weeks after losing his spot in the rotation, Steve Trachsel officially lost his place on the Orioles' roster as the veteran right-hander was designated for assignment yesterday. The Orioles selected the contract of Triple-A Norfolk infielder Oscar Salazar to replace him. The Orioles now have 10 days to trade Trachsel, release him or outright him to the minors. It's unlikely Trachsel would accept a minor league assignment, meaning his days as an Oriole are probably numbered. Trachsel, 37, who was 2-5 with an 8.39 ERA in 10 games (eight starts)

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Rather than sit around his house and watch television footage of pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training, Steve Trachsel decided to start making some weekend plans that didn't include baseball. He told this story yesterday during a conference call before boarding a late flight for Fort Lauderdale, where he'll begin playing baseball. Funny how this game shoves a man aside and then pulls him back. Ignored much of the winter, Trachsel drew quick interest from the Orioles on Monday after they learned Kris Benson likely would miss the entire season because of a partially torn rotator cuff.

JUPITER, Fla. -- Florida Marlins pitchers have been instructed to throw only fastballs and changeups in the early portion of the exhibition schedule, but Orioles starter Steve Trachsel wasn't working with those limitations yesterday. He used everything in his repertoire, and the Marlins couldn't do much with any of it. Trachsel threw two scoreless innings in his spring debut, allowing one hit and striking out one. Nineteen of his 29 pitches were strikes. The Marlins didn't get a ball out of the infield except for Luis Gonzalez's soft single to left field leading off the second inning.

Orioles veteran starter Steve Trachsel knows who his next opponent will be. He just isn't sure of the date of his next start. Manager Dave Trembley said yesterday that Trachsel, whose turn in the rotation was skipped twice as a result of the three days off the Orioles have had in a week's span, will start one of the games in this weekend's series against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Trachsel (2-4, 6.75 ERA) hasn't pitched since May 9, meaning whenever he pitches next, he'll be starting on at least two weeks' rest.

Three days after Orioles president Andy MacPhail stated that finding a starting pitcher was a priority in the wake of the Erik Bedard trade, he reached into the club's recent past and snatched one. The Orioles signed Steve Trachsel, 37, to a minor league contract yesterday and invited him to spring training. He'll compete for one of the two open spots in a rotation that includes Jeremy Guthrie, Adam Loewen and Daniel Cabrera after the team traded Bedard to the Seattle Mariners on Friday.

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. -- Orioles pitcher Hayden Penn twisted his left ankle while carrying boxes on stairs after Sunday's workout, a minor injury that could affect his chances of making the Opening Day roster. Penn, who has his ankle wrapped and was carrying crutches in the clubhouse, left Fort Lauderdale Stadium for X-rays that came back negative. A Grade I sprain has been diagnosed based on a magnetic resonance imaging test. The 22-year-old pitcher is considered day-to-day but will not be able to make his scheduled pitching appearance in the exhibition home opener Friday against the Florida Marlins.

The night of Sept. 6, 1995, is remembered for more than Cal Ripken Jr. playing in his 2,131st consecutive game to break Lou Gehrig's record. In Steve Trachsel's household, it also had been the date of the only regular-season relief appearance in his major league career. Now Trachsel can add yesterday's game against the Boston Red Sox, when he replaced Orioles starter Brian Burres in the fifth inning and allowed two runs, including J.D. Drew's homer, in five innings. "The first inning was kind of nerve-racking," said Trachsel, who has made 419 regular-season appearances since breaking into the majors in 1993.

The Orioles haven't announced a starter for Tuesday's game in Minnesota, another indication that they're likely to skip Steve Trachsel's turn in the rotation again and raise more uncertainty about the veteran's future in the organization. Manager Dave Trembley confirmed that Daniel Cabrera will take his normal turn Wednesday, followed by left-hander Garrett Olson. The arrangement appears to bump Trachsel, who allowed nine runs and seven hits in 1 2/3 innings in last Saturday's start against Tampa Bay. Trachsel, who is 2-5 with an 8.82 ERA in eight starts this season, was working on 14 days' rest before facing the Rays.

After sitting 14 days between his past two starts, Orioles right-hander Steve Trachsel will again take a prolonged spot on the bench. Orioles manager Dave Trembley announced his rotation for the coming Boston series and Trachsel, whose normal turn would have come on Thursday's day off, is not scheduled to pitch against the Red Sox. Daniel Cabrera, Garrett Olson, Brian Burres and Jeremy Guthrie - in that order - will face Boston and remain on four days'...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Orioles manager Dave Trembley sat down three of his regulars last night, temporary adjustments made to revive his lineup. He held a closed-door meeting with his players before batting practice, herding them into the video room across from his office. Never claiming to have all the answers, he merely tried to find a few solutions. But what is a manager supposed to do when his starting pitcher can't get out of the second inning and his team falls behind by eight runs in the amount of time it takes to count heads in the meeting?

Orioles veteran starter Steve Trachsel knows who his next opponent will be. He just isn't sure of the date of his next start. Manager Dave Trembley said yesterday that Trachsel, whose turn in the rotation was skipped twice as a result of the three days off the Orioles have had in a week's span, will start one of the games in this weekend's series against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Trachsel (2-4, 6.75 ERA) hasn't pitched since May 9, meaning whenever he pitches next, he'll be starting on at least two weeks' rest.

Orioles catcher Ramon Hernandez received a cortisone injection in his injured left wrist Monday and might not be available until the team begins its weekend series against the Washington Nationals. Third baseman Melvin Mora was scratched from the lineup last night after being hit on the right shoulder during infield drills. So much for that four-man bench. Hernandez, who hasn't played since Friday, didn't swing a bat yesterday and sat out last night's game against the Boston Red Sox. If he can't play in today's series finale, he'll receive additional time to heal with tomorrow's open date on the schedule.

Players on a fourth-place team are careful not to puff out their chests after sweeping the club below them. They don't check the wild-card standings until reaching the .500 mark. But the Orioles will bask in every achievement, no matter how modest, and they'll imagine the possibilities that exist down the road. It beats counting the days until their vacation begins. With starting pitcher Steve Trachsel unable to continue the recent run of quality starts from the rotation, the Orioles relied on an invigorated offense and a bullpen that's no longer underachieving to run their winning streak to four games with a 10-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays before an announced 22,393 at Camden Yards.

Just two days before pitchers and catchers report to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for the start of spring training, the Orioles are facing the reality that they will likely be without one of their most reliable starters for much if not all of the season. Kris Benson, expected to be the veteran anchor of a young Orioles rotation and either its No. 2 or No. 3 starter, will likely have surgery to repair a partially torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder, his agent Gregg Clifton confirmed yesterday.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It was more of a hint than a directive, but the message was sent. Orioles veteran starter Steve Trachsel needed to give the Orioles a chance to win last night after failing to accomplish that task in three of his past four starts or his rotation and roster spot would be in jeopardy. Trachsel responded, and so did the Orioles' bats, in a 7-4 win against Kansas City, the Orioles' 11th straight victory over the Royals. "I've had bad performances in more than two games in a row. I've had five or six consecutive," Trachsel, 37, said.

A recap of the Orioles' 7-4 win over the Royals last night: OFF THE BAT It wasn't a good beginning for Orioles right-hander Steve Trachsel. After getting leadoff hitter David DeJesus to fly out in the first, Trachsel allowed an 0-2 single to Mark Teahen and then watched as his second pitch to Alex Gordon was crushed into the right-field seats for a 2-0 Kansas City lead. Trachsel settled in and didn't allow a run again. He left with one out in the sixth, eventually picking up his first win since his initial start of the 2008 season on April 4. RED-HOT FREDDIE Playing in just his second game of the season, newly anointed Orioles shortstop Freddie Bynum kept up his hot hitting.