There will be two newcomers in the Orioles clubhouse today when the O's open a three-game series against the Texas Rangers at Camden Yards.
The team's two non-waiver trade deadline acquisitions – left-handed starter Wade Miley and outfielder/infielder Steve Pearce – will be in uniform for tonight's game against the AL West frontrunners.
We will likely find out when Miley will make his Orioles debut today. His regular day to pitch would be Thursday, but the Orioles might push him back to this weekend's series against the White Sox in Chicago.
Miley has already seen the Rangers three times this season with the Mariners, and they've battered him around to the tune of a 7.41 ERA. He's faced the White Sox once this year, and he posted a quality start (6 1/3 innings, 3 earned runs) on July 19.
While Miley's season numbers – a 7-8 record and 4.98 ERA aren't very impressive – he's been pitching well of late. Over five July starts, Miley has four quality starts and has recorded a 3.45 ERA. He's holding opposing hitters to a .248 batting average.
The big thing to take out of that is that Miley is getting deep in games, averaging nearly 6 1/3 innings a start over that span. That's what the Orioles need right now.
As for Pearce, it's interesting because the Orioles didn't seem to have room to retain Pearce in the offseason, but right now he seems to fit as a perfect complementary piece to the Orioles roster.
The Orioles have struggled against left-handed pitching. As a team, they're hitting just .236 against lefties, which ranks 14th of 15 American League clubs.
Pearce should help. He's hitting .377/.476/.736 against left-handed pitching this season, so he fits as the perfect platoon with left-handed hitting left fielder Hyun Soo Kim or lefty designated hitter Pedro Alvarez.
He also gives the Orioles the option of giving right fielder Mark Trumbo or second baseman Jonathan Schoop a day off and not lose power punch in the lineup. Trumbo and Schoop have played all 104 games this season and have shown signs of fatigue.
I was a little surprised that the Orioles let minor-league catcher Jonah Heim go. You always have to give to get at the trade deadline, but Heim had a lot of fans within the Orioles organization, including manager Buck Showalter.
The Orioles received a lot of calls on Double-A catcher Chance Sisco – who is the top prospect in the organization if you value the Baseball America rankings. But the Orioles held on to Sisco, essentially anointing him as the top young catcher of the future, while dealing Heim.
Showalter sung Heim's praises since shortly after the Orioles made him their fourth-round pick in 2013. He likened his frame and skills behind the plate to Matt Wieters. The Orioles were still waiting for Heim, a career .216 hitter, to develop his offensive skills. And since Heim is just 21, they were willing to be patient.
Essentially, if the Orioles could have morphed Sisco's bat with Heim's ability behind the plate, they'd have one of the top prospects in the game.
There's little doubt that Sisco's hitting skills – he's hitting .317 this year at Bowie and is a career .323 hitter – can play in the majors, but he's still developing behind the plate. Sisco is just 21 as well, and they're committed to grooming him as a catcher, especially now that Heim's departure takes away the organization's top defensive catching prospect.
eencina@baltsun.com
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