Baltimore Orioles Opening Day Countdown: Jorge Julio

Baltimore Orioles Opening Day 2019 is now just 59 days away.

Welcome to another Monday morning, Birdland. As fans in the midwest and northeast brace for another round of blistering cold weather, the Baltimore Orioles are preparing to fly south to Sarasota, Florida, where spring training kicks off in just two weeks. With FanFest now behind us, there isn’t much to look forward to between now and Opening Day, unless you’re joining the Birds in Sarasota, in which case, send plenty of pictures of warm-weather baseball by the beach.

After a six-hour round trip to Baltimore to partake in FanFest activities, I’ve had the opportunity to reflect on the interviews, conversations with both die-hard fans and the casual fan, and read the reports from Roch Kubatko, Steve Melewski, and the rest of the beat staff and I’m a little concerned.

Of the estimated 8,000 fans in attendance, I spoke with around 50, most of whom were eagerly awaiting the 2019 season, fully behind the new leadership which has been put into place. I’m on board with that. Mike Elias and Sig Mejdal both continue to say the right things and bring a major philosophical shift to a franchise in desperate need of major changes. But it was my conversations with fans and comments I overheard while spending the day walking around the Convention Center that leaves me slightly worried.

From certainty that the front office will bring in at least one surprise free agent, to a strong belief in the rebound of Mark Trumbo or Chris Davis, to even one fan who spent nearly 30 minutes trying to convince me that Ryan Mountcastle will win the third base job out of spring training and be this year’s surprise player, there seemed to be a lot of optimism. Side note, the same Ryan Mountcastle fanatic refused to believe that I had talked to Mountcastle after we walked right by him and I shook his hand and wished him luck this year.

I appreciated the optimism but just hope those same fans are as optimistic come Opening Day when that “surprise” free agent doesn’t come (or Adam Jones) or in early-June when another 100-loss season is quickly approaching.

Baltimore Orioles Opening Day: 59 days

Regardless, I’m excited for Opening Day, which is now just 59 days away. A small number of Baltimore Orioles have donned the number 59 in their career, with Mike Wright and Luis Ortiz sporting the number most recently. However, let’s revisit a former Oriole who wore 59 in their career, a man by the name of Jorge Julio.

Many of you might remember the former Orioles’ closer who brought with him a wild arm and fastball that could touch 100 mph. I remember my brother trying to imitate Julio when he pitched, unfortunately, he succeeded a little too well and was forced to move to first base for the rest of his playing career.

Julio’s 83 saves with the Orioles ranks 6th on the all-time list, sitting behind Gregg Olson (160), Zach Britton (139), Jim Johnson (122), Tippy Martinez (105), and Stu Miller (99).

Originally signed out of Venezuela by the Montreal Expos, Julio was traded to the Orioles in exchange for Ryan Minor, the now head coach of the Frederick Keys. Julio’s rookie debut was fairly successful, posting a 5-6 record with 25 saves, a 1.99 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, and one of the lowest walk-rates of his career (3.6 BB/9 IP, not a typo). He finished third behind Toronto Blue Jays’ Eric Hinske and Baltimore teammate Rodrigo Lopez in American League Rookie of the Year voting.

Julio’s second full year with the Orioles told quite a different story. His home run rate doubled, his walk rate jumped to 5 BB/9 IP, and his ERA skyrocketed from 1.99 to 4.38. He finished with an 0-7 record but did record a career-high 36 saves.

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As a member of the Baltimore Orioles, Jorge Julio threw a combined 281 games, going 11-24 with a 4.20 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, and 83 saves. He would be traded to the New York Mets after the 2005 season for starting pitcher Kris Benson and then later traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks early on in the 2006 season.

After bouncing around New York, Arizona, Florida, Colorado, Cleveland, Atlanta, Milwaukee, Tampa Bay, and Pittsburgh, Julio’s career came to a close with 17 wins, 34 losses, and 99 saves. His career walk-rate reached 11% across his nine seasons in the major leagues.

He did attempt a comeback with the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League, which proved to be unsuccessful. A then 34-year-old Julio posted a K/BB ratio of 57/22 in 55 innings with the Bluefish back in 2010, finishing with a 1.15 ERA, 28 saves, and a 1.11 WHIP. Unfortunately, Julio’s return in 2012 resulted in an ERA of 6.27. He walked 13 hitters while striking out 13, and gave up 25 hits in 18 innings.

Did you got to FanFest? What were your thoughts?