BALTIMORE (AP) — Brad Bergesen was removed from the Baltimore Orioles starting rotation Saturday and assigned to provide relief to an overworked bullpen.
The move was made in part because Bergesen's next scheduled start was Monday, a day off for the Orioles. So interim manager Juan Samuel, who used four relievers Friday night in an 11-0 loss to Boston, moved Bergesen to the pen.
"We don't need a starter right now and I think he could help us more in the bullpen at this point," Samuel said.
Asked how long Bergesen would remain in the bullpen, Samuel replied, "We don't know. We'll see. As days go by, we'll see what's going to happen when we will need our next (fifth) starter."
Bergesen is OK with the move, especially because it comes after he allowed six runs over 2 1-3 innings in a 9-1 defeat to the New York Yankees on Wednesday.
"I think it's kind of a combination of they need someone in the pen ... and then obviously my last start was a struggle," the right-hander said. "So they see it as an opportunity for me to just try to get a couple innings at a time."
Bergesen went 7-5 as a rookie last year, but this season he's already made a trip to the minors and is 3-4 with a 6.75 ERA. Samuel believes the problem is with Bergesen's mechanics during his delivery.
"I think it is something that can be easily fixed. He recognizes it," Samuel said. "We asked him what he thinks happened last time and he feels that he wasn't really on top of the ball like he needed to be. The No. 1 thing is he recognized it."
The hope is that Bergesen gets the problem corrected in the bullpen, then resumes pitching as he did last season.
"It's been very frustrating at times," he said. "But right now, (the bullpen) is where I'm needed, so hopefully I'll be able to do the job out there and give some relief to those guys."
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