Oriole rookie Zach Britton’s wicked splittah was on display last night at Camden Yards against the BoSox. And what a game it was! In the Orioles’ 4-1 victory over Boston, Britton pitched 6 innings and gave up one run over five hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Britton’s fastball is of the sinking nature, and I noticed that it was being clocked at 93-95 MPH consistently in the first three to four innings. (As we progressed into the fifth and sixth innings it started to go down to the lower 90’s, which is normal.) I’m not too bright, but I do feel that I have a good grasp on sports, and that’s impressive stuff right there if I do say so myself! Furthermore, Britton had a two out situation in the fifth where the Orioles purposely loaded the bases to bring up a lefty-lefty matchup for Britton with first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. I have to wonder if Buck Showalter would have called for that had he not had a youngster with his head so much in the ballgame on the bump at the time. Had this been a young Sidney Ponson, Garrett Olson, or perhaps even Brad Bergesen or Chris Tillman, you have to wonder how it would have been handled. Britton appears to be headstrong and calm out on the mound, and it’s very telling that Buck had the confidence in the youngster to load ‘em up.
So as per the title of the column, is Britton a potential rookie of the year candidate? In short, the answer is a resounding yes if he continues to pitch the way that he is now. The plan was always for Britton to be in the majors this season; however the Orioles wanted to hold him back for the first twenty days to delay arbitration. However circumstances being what they were (and still are) with injuries in the starting rotation, Britton was forced into the majors earlier than anticipated. And he’s here to stay folks! On the year, Britton is 4-1 on the year with an ERA of 2.84. He’s struck out 19, walked 12, and has a WHIP of 1.17. Granted we’re only talking about five starts, but if you’re going to start five games those are pretty convincing numbers!
As I said, if Britton continues on this pace he will be in the conversation for ROY. What would that mean for the Orioles? There was a stir when Adam Jones won the gold glove a few years ago. A rookie of the year might cause a parade on Pratt Street. In effect, it would legitimize much of what the Orioles have tried to do with the youth movement in recent years. Here would be a home grown player that materialized into quite a big deal. You almost feel badly that the O’s tried to keep him in the minors to start the year. I was watching MLB Networks’s Quick Pitch program this morning, and Dan Plesac was extremely complimentary of Britton. His line was that everyone should go out and immediately purchase a Zach Britton rookie card! And who am I to disagree?! Whether or not the Orioles have the next Jim Palmer on their hands is another story. The fact remains that Britton’s doing very well for himself in the big leagues, and if he continues on this pace there might be some accolades in his future. However any athlete will tell you that they’d gladly trade the personal awards for a shot at a world championship.
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