One day after his shortest start of the season, Orioles right-hander Mike Wright was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday to make what the team hopes are the small adjustments necessary to make him a major league starter.
"He's in the process of becoming a good pitcher for us up here," manager Buck Showalter said. "Mike's a starter. Mike's going to be a good starter for the Baltimore Orioles. That's what I feel. Today is part of the process. A lot of guys come up and they get a little better, and I'm hoping the next time Mike comes up, we won't need this move to be made. He'll contribute to our club this year as a starter. I really believe that."
Wright made the rotation out of spring training without much debate, but has regressed a bit as the season progressed. He allowed six runs on seven hits in 2 2/3 innings Wednesday, and was lifted in the fifth inning of his previous start against the Cleveland Indians.
The 26-year-old right-hander goes to Norfolk with a 2-3 record and a 5.88 ERA, and will make his first start for the Tides on Monday. After Wednesday's start, Wright lamented what the Boston Red Sox did with his mistakes — the pitches that caught too much of the plate — and Showalter said that was what hurt Wright.
"There's maybe 10 times in a game, maybe less, where you throw a pitch and we all say it: 'If you can throw that pitch every time, you never have to throw another pitch,'" Showalter said. "Hard sink, down-and-away, strike. But what are your misses like? You may throw 10 of those a game, but your misses aren't too good."
Executive vice president Dan Duquette saw the same.
"It's all about making consistently good pitches," Duquette said. "The pitches are what get the hitters out, and if you can string a number of those together, you can get the hitters out consistently. Mike needs to find what that key is. I'm sure he will."
The fact that Wright has such a successful minor league track record indicates he'll be able to adjust and return better, Showalter said. Wright spent all day Thursday at the ballpark watching tapes of his starts this season, and by the time he got the news that he'd been sent down, Showalter said he understood what was about to come.
"Mike was fine," Showalter said. "He'd rather not [go down]. He'd rather work it out up here, but by the time we got to him, he knew that … he knows when it's good enough and when it's not. He also has a lot of self-confidence that's attractive. It's a good self-confidence, not some false bravado.
"This is an ongoing thing. Mike knows what we think about him. I think he knows — when he says that he's close, it's right. That's how close it is. There's a fine line up here and some talented hitters, and he's a talented pitcher."
The Orioles added left-handed reliever Brian Duensing to the roster in his place, bringing the 40-man roster to its capacity. Duensing signed as a minor league free agent last week after opting out of his deal with the Kansas City Royals.
Showalter was asked if the starting replacement for Wright was on the roster, and he said, "We'll get to that when we get there."
Showalter said left-hander T.J. McFarland, who stretched out at Norfolk last month, was "a candidate."
Right-hander Yovani Gallardo (shoulder) was making a rehabilitation start Thursday at High-A Frederick, and Showalter said that would play a part in his decision, too.
"I really feel like he needs two [outings]," Showalter said. "Really, three, counting the sim. … Now, don't hold me to it. We may come out of something tonight. [Pitching instructor Ramon Martinez] is going over there with him, and may feel completely different about coming out of it. But it's not going to be done because of a need. This wasn't done with the idea that he's going to come back earlier."