Troy Patton

Forget the goofy way he wears his cap - Pedro Strop has bigger issues to deal with right now. But before Orioles fans jump all over him and the Twitterverse smacks him around like a pinata for days, know this: he's probably not going anywhere. At least not right now. Not with that blazing fastball and the great arsenal of pitches that can make batters look silly when he's going well. Not with the fact that he's out of options and that the Orioles need all the relief help they can get. Yes, Strop looked awful again Wednesday in the Orioles' ugly 9-5 loss to the Los Angeles Angels.

Forget the goofy way he wears his cap - Pedro Strop has bigger issues to deal with right now. But before Orioles fans jump all over him and the Twitterverse smacks him around like a pinata for days, know this: he's probably not going anywhere. At least not right now. Not with that blazing fastball and the great arsenal of pitches that can make batters look silly when he's going well. Not with the fact that he's out of options and that the Orioles need all the relief help they can get. Yes, Strop looked awful again Wednesday in the Orioles' ugly 9-5 loss to the Los Angeles Angels.

Nicknamed "The Big Smooth" by his teammates for his unwavering calm under any circumstance, left-handed reliever Mark Hendrickson acknowledges his mettle was shaken a little in December when the Orioles decided not to pick up his 2011 option. Hendrickson's wife had a baby in late November, his other daughter is 16 and doing well in high school and he didn't want to uproot his family from York, Pa., to continue his big league career. "We didn't know what we were going to do, and we just did some heavy-duty praying and it all just sort of fell into place," said Hendrickson, who agreed with the Orioles on Monday to a minor league deal with a spring training invitation.

The way Friday night's game played out, it was the same opponent, the same deficit and the same scenario as the night “ Oriole Magic” was born. The Orioles' 7-5 walk-off win over the Tigers bore a lot of similarities to June 22, 1979. On that night, the Orioles trailed the Tigers by two runs entering the ninth inning. Ken Singleton homered to cut the lead to one. And then down to their final out, Doug DeCinces hit a walk-off two-run homer with one on and two outs off Dave Tobik to beat Detroit 6-5. That was the night the phrase “Oriole Magic” was first coined -- that Orioles team fell one game short of winning the World Series -- and Friday's Orioles win played out nearly the exact same way. Nick Markakis hit a solo homer to cut the Tigers lead to one. And with two outs in the night, Chris Dickerson turned a one-run deficit into a walk-off win with a three-run homers.

Orioles manager Buck Showalter said that lefty Troy Patton(ankle) threw to four batters -- including two lefties -- in one inning in the organization's first instructional league game Sunday in Sarasota. He will pitch again Tuesday and Wednesday or in an elongated outing Tuesday. It's still possible he could join the club in Boston for Friday's game. Designated hitter Jim Thome (herniated disk in neck) will participate in simulated games Monday and Tuesday and then play in an instructional league game Wednesday in Sarasota.

Left-handed reliever Troy Patton's five-week recovery from a sprained right ankle took much longer than he expected, but he was finally reactivated from the disabled list before Friday's game. Patton, who sprained his ankle while walking home, went on the disabled list Aug. 14. At the time, he was the Orioles' sole left-handed bullpen arm. He had pitched to a 1.05 ERA over his last 27 appearances and had an 18-game scoreless streak over 13 2/3 innings when he was sidelined. He also held left-handed hitters to a .204 batting average.

Orioles left-handed reliever Troy Patton is heading to the 15-day disabled listed after spraining his right ankle as he was walking in the parking garage of his hotel Sunday night. Patton said X-rays on the ankle were negative, but he has been wearing a large boot since the injury and has had to use crutches for going long distances. He expected to be ready to return once he's eligible to come of the DL on Aug. 28. “I just kind of caught the edge wrong and rolled my ankle,” Patton said.

Left-hander Troy Patton -- who has allowed runs in five of his last six relief outings -- has started throwing bullpen sessions, hoping that the patterned repetitions can help refine his mechanics. Relievers usually don't throw regular side sessions because they're on call on a daily basis, but Patton said he wanted to start after struggling with his fastball command. “I'm just trying to get back to what made me good,” Patton said. “I really just wanted to it to work on duplicating mechanics because my missed haven't been smaller than last year.

Assuming all goes well in Sarasota in the next two days, designated hitter Jim Thome and left-handed reliever Troy Patton will be back with the Orioles for Friday's series opener in Boston. They are expected to fly into Boston on Thursday and re-join the team. “It's not like they have been out of it since spring training. They are not that far removed,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. “Hopefully they'll just come right back, especially Troy, and pick up where they left off. There will be a little unknown for the first couple times they appear.” Patton, who was 1-0 with a 2.58 ERA in 50 games before going on the disabled list with a sprained right ankle Aug. 14, threw a two-inning simulated game in Sarasota on Tuesday.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Troy Patton will head to Baltimore this week to have an arthrogram performed on his left shoulder, an examination the pitcher and the Orioles fear will lead to season-ending surgery. Patton, a key component in the Orioles' December trade of Miguel Tejada to the Houston Astros, was examined yesterday morning by team orthopedist Dr. John Wilckens and instructed to head to Baltimore to have more extensive tests done on his shoulder. Patton said he and Wilckens discussed several options, but the pitcher, who repeatedly has downplayed the likelihood of surgery, now seems resigned that it is a distinct possibility.

Left-hander Troy Patton -- who has allowed runs in five of his last six relief outings -- has started throwing bullpen sessions, hoping that the patterned repetitions can help refine his mechanics. Relievers usually don't throw regular side sessions because they're on call on a daily basis, but Patton said he wanted to start after struggling with his fastball command. “I'm just trying to get back to what made me good,” Patton said. “I really just wanted to it to work on duplicating mechanics because my missed haven't been smaller than last year.

Some of you are wondering why manager Buck Showalter stuck with closer Jim Johnson in the ninth inning of the Orioles' 6-5 loss to Toronto on Sunday afternoon. The bottom line it that right now this Orioles bullpen is spent. This game was Johnson's to close or lose, and I think 10 times out of 10, Showalter will like his odds with Johnson against Toronto's No. 9 hitter Munenori Kawasaki. I've heard Showalter say it many times: He won't compromise the health of the bullpen. He realizes that this Orioles team will go as far as its bullpen will take it, and there's no way he will put his relievers - as he puts it - “in harm's way.” “Buck doesn't ever put you in a situation where you're overtaxed,” right-hander Tommy Hunter said.

Last season, Orioles reliever Troy Patton did a tremendous job serving as a left-handed bridge between the team's starters and late-inning relievers. But this season Patton has struggled with his control, and that fact was glaring Thursday, when he retired the first two batters he faced on four pitches, then went on to issue back-to-back walks, including one to No. 9 hitter Munenori Kawasaki. That forced right-hander Pedro Strop, who yielded a grand slam two batters later, into the game earlier than the Orioles wanted.

TORONTO - Kevin Gausman's first moments as a big league pitcher mixed a combination of rare talent with a slice of naivete needed to remind you he's just 22 and less than a year removed from being a sophomore in college. In the first inning of his major league debut Thursday night at the Rogers Centre, Gausman baffled veteran Blue Jays hitters on back-to-back at-bats, striking out Edwin Encarnacion looking on a 97-mph inside fastball and then Adam Lind swinging on an 85-mph changeup.

The Orioles trail the Twins 5-4 after six innings in today's homer opening at Camden Yards. The Twins scored the go-ahead run in the sixth inning on Brian Dozier's out-out single off reliever Troy Patton. Patton entered the game for starter Jake Arrieta, who left runners at first and second with no outs in the inning after a leadoff walk to Ryan Doumit and a single by Trevor Plouffe. The Orioles tied the game 4-4 in the fifth inning when Adam Jones hit a run-scoring double over Twins center fielder Aaron Hicks, scoring Nick Markakis from first base to cut the Orioles' deficit to one. Jones moved to third on the throw home, which skipped past catcher Ryan Doumit, and then scored on Chris Davis' sacrifice fly to center to tie the game.

In an attempt to lessen their glut of big league pitchers, the Orioles have contacted teams to let them know veteran right-handed reliever Luis Ayala is available in a trade, according to an industry source. It's unclear exactly what the Orioles are looking for in return, but the club is interested in adding players with minor league options that don't necessarily have to be placed on the 40-man roster. Its biggest need is catching depth behind starter Matt Wieters and oft-injured reserve Taylor Teagarden.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.-- No doubt, there will be some teeth-gnashing about Troy Patton, the centerpiece of the Miguel Tejada deal who will undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum and miss the entire 2008 season. Orioles president Andy MacPhail knows that, but he doesn't seem particularly worried about it. The critics will call it a screw-up - a failure of the medical evaluation process - except that Patton's sore shoulder was no secret on the day the Orioles sent their most accomplished player to the Houston Astros.

The Orioles are considering moving left-handed starter Brian Matsuz - who was sent down to Triple-A Norfolk earlier this month - to the Tides' bullpen after lefty reliever Troy Patton landed on the disabled list Tuesday with a sprained right ankle. The front office had been considering the switch for several days, but Patton's injury made the need for a left-hander who is capable of throwing multiple innings out of the bullpen more pressing. "It's something Brian has talked about before as something he would welcome if it would help us and also help him get back up to the big leagues," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said.

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Orioles right-hander Jake Arrieta and Pirates left-hander Jonathan Sanchez dueled into the late innings on Thursday night with neither starter allowing a run. Arrieta - who emerged as the front runner for the team's open No. 5 starter position - pitched six scoreless innings in an eventual scoreless 10-inning tie with Pittsburgh. Arrieta stranded five runners in scoring position and escaped two-on, one-out jams in both the fourth and fifth innings. Sanchez held the Orioles to two hits - both of them singles by third baseman Manny Machado - in five innings.

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- As the competition for the Orioles' fifth rotation spot begins to heat up, right-hander Jake Arrieta made his case Saturday afternoon, throwing 4 2/3 shutout innings in a 3-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium. Arrieta, last year's Opening Day starter, said his ability to mix his pitches Saturday was the best "since I can remember.” “Today was the best sequence day I've had from start to finish in a long time, not just the spring, but since I can remember,” Arrieta said.