Mark Hendrickson: 6-5, 4.37 ERA, 1 SV, 105 IP, 16 HR, 33 BB, 61 K, 1.42 WHIP, 5.23 K/9
Hendrickson started the season in the starting rotation, but struggled in that role. In 11 starts on the year he pitched to a 2-5 record and 5.40 ERA. But he was much better coming out of the bullpen. He managed a 4-0 record and 3.44 ERA pitching in relief. His strikeout to walk ratio improved from 24-19 as a starter to 37-14 as a reliever. He was used in multiple roles – long man, situational lefty, one inning reliever. He became one of our most valuable relievers as the year wore on.
2010 Prognosis: Hendrickson is a free agent at the moment, but I fully expect him to re-up with the Orioles before long. He was simply too valuable for us to lose. He won’t cost much and we can use him in relief all year. Theres still a chance some team could come out and offer him more than we’re willing to, but Hendrickson has already expressed his desire to remain an Oriole and the Orioles have said they want to retain his services.
George Sherrill: 0-1, 2.40 ERA, 20 SV, 41.33 IP, 3 HR, 13 BB, 39 K, 1.14 WHIP, 8.49 K/9
Sherrill was very good for the Orioles in 2009. Not only was he our closer and best pitcher while he remained on the team, he potentially netted us our future cornerstone third baseman plus a pitching prospect when we traded him to the Dodgers before the July 31st trade deadline. Adding Josh Bell and Steve Johnson to the organization was a great parting gift. The trade helped both teams because Sherrill was absolutely lights out after he landed in LA. He was 1-0 with a 0.65 ERA for the Dodgers over 27.2 innings with 22 strikeouts. He was an important part of their bullpen as they made their playoff run and advanced to the NLCS.
2010 Prognosis: Sherrill will continue in his set up role for the Dodgers in 2010 in what should be another very good year for them.
Jamie Walker: 0-0, 5.11 ERA, 12.33 IP, 5 HR, 0 BB, 9 K, 1.54 WHIP, 6.57 K/9
Jamie Walker started the year as the situational lefty for the Orioles but couldn’t get out lefties, they hit a combined .458 against him. He had trouble getting anyone out and was released in early June. Walker was in the final year of his three year deal signed by the regime before MacPhail came in.
2010 Prognosis: Walker will most likely be out of baseball in 2010. Maybe he signs a minor league deal somewhere or plays independent ball.
Alberto Castillo: 0-0, 2.25 ERA, 12 IP, 0 HR, 4 BB, 8 K, 1.33 WHIP, 6 K/9
Castillo started the year in AAA Norfolk and pitched great for them. He had a 2-3 record, 13 saves, and a 2.77 ERA for the Tide over 52 innings. He got more ground balls than fly balls and struck out 54 batters. He continued his success when he was called up to the big club. He ended the season as our lefty specialist and was a rare bright spot for the bullpen in September.
2010 Prognosis: Castillo earned himself a look in spring training to make the bullpen. It depends on who the Orioles add in the offseason and how he performs in the spring whether or not he makes it. At the worst he would be a very nice backup plan/injury replacement to stick in AAA Norfolk.
Sean Henn: 0-0, 9.00 ERA, 3 IP, 0 HR, 4 BB, 6 K, 3.33 WHIP, 18 K/9
The Orioles traded for Henn in September from the Minnesota Twins. He only pitched in three innings for us and didn’t impress much. He showed the ability to strike people out, but he was much too wild. He wasn’t good in Minnesota either, pitching to a 7.15 ERA over 11.1 innings. Hes basically a AAAA player at this point, successful in the minors but not on the big stage. He had a 2.33 ERA over 38.2 innings for AAA Rochester.
2010Prognosis: Henn was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays a couple weeks ago. He’ll compete for a spot in their bullpen in spring training.
