This is something the Baltimore Orioles do not have. There is nothing “regularly recurring” about the starting pitching rotation of the Birds. But maybe that doesn’t matter so much anymore in this modern era of baseball.

I am an old man for a blog writer. I can actually remember the 1971 four-man rotation of Jim Palmer, Mike Cuellar, Pat Dobson, and Dave McNally. McNally had 30 starts that year, whereas the other three posted 37 or 38. These guys averaged about 250 innings a year between 1969-1973.

May 2, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Chris Tillman (30) pitches against the Los Angeles Angels during the third inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

But the point I’m getting at here is that, in those days, you pretty much knew every fourth game who would be pitching, and by extension for the whole year. Later, when five-man rotations became the more reasonable paradigm, one could follow his team and pretty much know – with only a few exceptions – who would be rotating as a starter throughout the season. Maybe there are some modern teams out there like this, as I don’t closely follow the majority of them; but I can say for sure that the Baltimore Orioles are not, and have not in any recent memory, been one of them.

Already this year with 38 total games in the books, the Orioles lead the baseball universe by having had nine different starters. And it looks like we are only just getting started with the rotating door of the rotating pitchers of the rotation. It can make one’s head rotate as well, and it now seems almost silly to have so much pondered over spring training as to which player would be the fifth starter.

This situation is not normal. It is crazy. But it may not be deadly. And for that, Orioles fans can thank Dan Duquette who has loaded up the system with viable choices. I well remember FanFest 2012 when a year ago in January, Nick Markakis was asked about his observations upon the off season and said, “We sure seem to be stockpiling a lot of arms around here.”  Ah … yep! Some people collect stamps or coins; Dan Duquette collects pitchers.

Of the starting five pitchers this season, only Chris Tillman seems to be on solid ground at the moment. Jason Hammel has had multiple consecutive rough outings and can’t seem to command the ball (which is, by the way, a phrase never heard until recent years). Michael Gonzalez is at least briefly on the DL. Jake Arrieta is throwing the ball for Norfolk now (with word today that he has a stiff shoulder). And also today, Wei-Yin Chen had to depart early with an oblique strain – the severity of which is yet undetermined. These guys have more ups and downs than my stock portfolio … and less guarantees of ultimate reward.

I probably sound very critical, and truly I do not mean to be. Stuff happens. I’m not sure why it happens more frequently than it did 40 years ago, I can only observe that it does and we are into the mode of “the next man up.”  So really, I mean for this to be a positive blog post, because the Orioles – unlike most franchises – are able to dip into the minors and bring up the next guy and continue to win. At this moment, the Birds are on pace to win 98 games.

So who will be the next man up if indeed Chen has to shut down for a time … or to fill in one or another of a few pending holes in the rotation? I am guessing it might well be Jair Jurrjens, who right now has an ERA of 2.62 and a WHIP of 1.16. He also has a clause in his contract that releases him if he is not called up by a certain approaching date.

But will we ever see the day in Baltimore where there is a relatively “normal” rotation? And who will be the five main guys? I am guessing that we are never going to get close to such a scenario this year, and I’m honestly good with that – never expected to get there this season. But I am thinking that 2014 will feature something more regular. Thinking logically, there would seem to be two certain long-term pieces in Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman. I believe Chris Tillman is the real deal and has largely figured out what it takes to be a consistent winner. Chen looks like a long-term keeper and innings-eater (believing today’s incident to be but a bump in the road). The fifth spot is a more open question as I see it. Until recent weeks, we would all say it is Hammel. It would be great to see the Jurrjens of the past reappear, and I do not think that is impossible. Perhaps it will be Tsuyoshi Wada – who was to be the better of the two Oriental pickups from last year. It really should be Arrieta, whom I believe to be the most talented … but I see him as a reliever along the lines of Brian Matusz – guys who can be lights out for a short time but who don’t have some issue of fortitude for the starting role. And I cannot explain the Zack Britton situation … can only say that he has dropped off the radar with a current Norfolk ERA of 3.38 with a WHIP of 1.67 (Yikes! … has 12 walks in 24 innings).

Over recent years, commentators of the Orioles have looked in at the team and said that it will go as far as the starting pitching takes it. Well, that could pretty generally be said about every team. And though we have lived through some real adventures with the rotating rotations, honestly, the anemic offence has cost the team more of the losses than the starting pitching… that is, until this year. Now the offense has become a genuine strength with league stats in the top handful of every category. It is NOW true that the Orioles will go as far as the starters take them – given the run support AND the top-notch bullpen.

We have an interesting 18 months ahead to see how all of this shakes out for the Orioles. So what do you think?

When I originally compared my travel dates to the Orioles’ schedule, I was pleased to see that the bulk of games I would miss would be the dreadful west coast trip of late nights and lousy losses — especially in that terrible Oakland ballpark. My memory is full of pain from these trips, so to see the Orioles go 7-4 on the western swing is very cool. Birds fans everywhere can thank me for making this possible by being gone and not watching. (Do any of the rest of you have the common experience of turning on the game after it has started, and at that very moment everything seems to fall apart for the Orioles?)

May 7, 2013; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Orioles catcher Matt Wieters (32) congratulates pitcher Jim Johnson (43) after a game against the Kansas City Royals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The Orioles defeated the Royals 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports

In an article about a month ago, I previewed the schedule for the season by noting three major segments: an opening 1/5th of the season with 20 of 32 games on the road including the 11 out west, a final 1/5th of the season with 19 of 30 on the road, and a middle 3/5ths of 100 games with 58 of them at home. Of that first 20% of 32 games, I was hoping for 17-15 at the worst. But to actually finish this difficult stretch at 19-13 is truly excellent. To put it into a larger perspective, this is a pace to win 96 games.

This has to be heartening for Orioles fans. Though there is much to commend about the way the team has opened this season, there remain areas for expected improvement – particularly with the starting pitching. And it is reasonable to expect that Matt Wieters, Nolan Reimold, Nick Markakis, and J.J. Hardy will produce at a higher level as the year progresses. Perhaps we may also see the return of Brian Roberts and a settling of a more determined pitching staff of starters.

As a final note, after 17 days of walking past hundreds of thousands of people in places like Rome, Florence, Paris, Dresden, and Prague, I never once passed an Orioles cap or shirt. I saw probably about 20 Yankees hats, though I presume most of those folks were wearing something with the “NY” for New York, probably not actually knowing it was baseball related. Europeans are fascinated with New York City, and also with southern California — and I saw a smattering of Dodgers caps. But I have no explanation for seeing one each of the Pirates, Brewers, and Marlins.

But whatever, it is good to be back in America where is played the world’s greatest sport of baseball.

Apr 13, 2013; Bronx, NY, USA; Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado (13) chases after a ball against the New York Yankees during the eighth inning of a MLB game at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

But premature promotions seem to be the specialty for Machado. Signed out of Brito Miami Private School (Florida) a month after turning age 18, Machado was the #3 pick overall in 2010 amateur draft. And Vice President of Baseball Operations Dan Duquette surprised everyone last year (including Machado) when Manny was called up on August 9^th to take over third base for the Birds.

Having been targeted all along as a shortstop, the attitude of the Orioles in putting him at third base seemed to be, “You’ve got the talent, we’re throwing you out there, so sink or swim.” He swam quite well – solidifying the defense for the final segment of the season, while handling himself more than adequately at the plate.

Though we do not know the mind of Buck Showalter, nor may he ever reveal why he has chosen to begin the season with Manny in the two hole, the attitude again seems to be, “You’ve got the talent, we’re throwing you out there, so sink or swim.” While sinking at first, Manny now seems to have found his stroke (double entendre, pun intended!)

Though I am glad to see J.J. Hardy dropped toward the bottom of the order, I certainly would not have envisioned Machado batting second. I would put Markakis in the regular leadoff spot, with Nate McLouth second against righties and Nolan Reimold against lefties. I’d then go with Adam Jones, Chris Davis, and Matt Wieters hitting 3-4-5.

It appears that the genius of Showalter regularly reveals itself over time. I had said in a comment on another article in this blog (that questioned the second spot readiness of Machado) that though it is difficult to question Showalter’s moves, I frankly could not understand this one. I should probably have just shut up and watched it develop. Our skepticism seemed to be vindicated when Manny went but 3 for 18 in the first four games, but since then he has been 10 of 29 including the great 3-run homer that won the game in Boston on Wednesday night. And today he bunted over the leadoff double in the first inning to set up the initial run of the game. Through 11 games he is batting .277 with 2 doubles, 1 homer, and 5 RBIs.

This is a guy who is simply going to get better as he goes along. Yes, there will be times when he runs himself into the first 4-6-5-6-5-3-4 triple play in the history of the game of baseball (and is that not cool that something could happen in this sport that has never happened before?).  But make no mistake about it, Machado is on the way to being a dominant player in this game, and maybe sooner than later – especially if he gets thrown into these sink or swim situations!