CLEVELAND - Orioles manager Mike Hargrove has been around Sidney Ponson long enough to know not to get overly excited about one or two good starts.
But Ponson is starting to show signs of becoming the consistently strong pitcher the Orioles think he can be.
He enters his start tonight in Philadelphia coming off his first complete game of the season, a 2-1 loss Sunday to the Los Angeles Dodgers. And eight of his past 10 starts have been quality starts, meaning he pitched at least six innings and allowed three or fewer runs.
"It kind of makes your stomach tickle a little bit with the possibility that maybe the light has come on for him," Hargrove said. "We'll see."
Ponson said it has made a big difference having Orioles scout Jesus "Chu" Halabi around watching him the past two weeks. Halabi is the one who signed him out of Aruba in 1993, and the two have remained very close.
"He knows me," Ponson said, "better than anybody."
Halabi said he plans on being there tonight in Philadelphia and next week in Phoenix when Ponson will face the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Depending on how Hargrove decides to set his rotation with an off-day Monday, Ponson will likely face one of Arizona's aces, Curt Schilling or Randy Johnson.
Schilling pitches tonight against the Detroit Tigers and will likely pitch Wednesday. Johnson pitches Saturday, and will likely pitch next Thursday's series finale against the Orioles.
"He just has to be himself and listen to what the coaches tell him," Halabi said. "He has to make sure he stays focused. When I'm here, he doesn't know where I'm sitting, but he knows I'm watching him, and he knows I'll tell him when he screws up. He also knows I believe in him."
Spring training questions
The Orioles' spring training home is falling apart.
Forty-year-old Fort Lauderdale Stadium, which has housed the Orioles since 1996, has recently had chunks of concrete fall from the roof that hangs over the grandstand. A story in yesterday's South Florida Sun-Sentinel said repairs would cost about $250,000.
The newspaper said city officials are considering not renewing the city's contract to house the Orioles' spring training headquarters. The last contract expired April 30.
If no agreement can be reached, the Orioles might have to consider the site recently abandoned by the Texas Rangers in Port Charlotte, Fla.
"We haven't even explored that possibility yet," said Bill Stetka, the Orioles' director of public relations, "because we fully believe we'll be able to reach agreement with the city of Fort Lauderdale."
Gibbons sits again
Hargrove used an all right-handed hitting lineup with the Orioles facing another left-hander yesterday, Cleveland's Chuck Finley. That meant left-handed hitting Jay Gibbons was on the bench, marking the sixth time Hargrove has sat Gibbons against a left-handed starter since May 20.
Switch-hitting Gary Matthews got the start in right-field. Hargrove said Gibbons will probably start all three games in Philadelphia, with the Orioles set to face three right-handed pitchers: Robert Person, Brandon Duckworth and Terry Adams.
Hargrove acknowledged that this looks like a platoon situation, but he said it hasn't reached that point. The hope is that Gibbons, who has just three home runs since April 20, will find his groove and re-assume the everyday job in right field.
Around the bases
With their first game of the season in a National League park, the Orioles lose the designated hitter, and their pitchers will have to hit. Ponson is a career .182 hitter, tomorrow's starter Scott Erickson is a career .133 hitter, and Sunday's starter Travis Driskill has never had a major-league at-bat.