Baltimore Orioles accept a one-year deal with Justin Duchscherer
No one expected this to happen quickly but it seems the Baltimore Orioles were not going to waste any more time on deciding whether they wanted a premier pitcher or not.
Justin Duchscherer has signed a one year deal with the Orioles that will see him play for the club this year. The 33 year-old pitching ace has been on the recovery table following a hip injury that was discovered last season.
The player, who spent most of time last season, on the disabled list came out to showcase his pitching ability in Maryland, in front of the Orioles management team on Friday.
Now with the weekend almost over, the club has given the green light on signing the player for a year. Justin comes in with a problematic recent history.
He only pitched for the Oakland Athletics’ 5 times before he succumbed to his hip injury. With the fans already calling out for the team to perform, Justin’s signing must be on the basis of good form.
The player has been wishing to pitch in the east coast, given his son’s residence in New Jersey. The ball star was hoping for a position in New York with either the Mets or the Yankees, but that doesn’t matter now as Maryland is just as great.
The pitcher feels good at the moment and his injury isn’t a major concern either. On a phone call to MLB.com, last week, he iterated that fact clearly.
"Honestly, I feel like I've proven (that) when I'm healthy, I'm a very good Major League pitcher", he told MLB.com. "The only thing I have to prove is (whether) I can do it over the long term".
There were reports of Washington Nationals looking into the deal but that never materialized as the Orioles wasted no time in claiming the pitcher off the free agency list. Andy MacPhail, Baltimore’s President of Baseball Operations, was more than pleased
by Duchscherer’s display of athleticism in his exhibition of ball throwing recently.
"We have seen, this year, three or four guys throwing in side sessions like we saw Justin throw the other day", MacPhail said. "We've been pleased with what we have seen, but you can only learn so much in those kinds of climates".
Justin will be part of the rotation that kicks off on duties in April. It will be intriguing to know what number the player will come in to pitch on.
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