BALTIMORE (AP) -Any doubts Danys Baez had about whether he could effectively rebound from elbow surgery have been buried under a series of impressive performances.
Baez was 0-6 with a 6.44 ERA with the Baltimore Orioles in 2007 before going on the disabled list with an elbow injury. The right-hander underwent elbow ligament surgery in October of that year and missed the entire 2008 season.
Now he’s one of the most effective pitchers in the Baltimore bullpen. Baez did not allow a hit or a walk in three scoreless innings against Texas on Sunday, earning his first win since July 7, 2006, against San Francisco as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“Being in the bullpen, to get a win you have to be lucky. For us, it’s holds and saves,” Baez said Monday. “But it’s great to know that this is the first win after three years.”
Baez has blanked the opposition in four of his six appearances thus far this year and has 10 strikeouts in 10 1-3 innings. His ERA is 3.48 and opponents are batting just .139 against him.
ing short of exceptional,” manager Dave Trembley said.
Coming into the season, Baez had no idea whether his arm had fully healed. It felt good, but there was no way to know if the operation was a success until he faced batters in a game.
Now he knows.
“I feel super good,” Baez said. “The training I’ve been doing for a year-and-a-half helped me a lot, and I’ve been working on my mechanics with the pitching coach and with my bullpen coach, too.”
There’s no arguing the results.
“I’m not saying he’s a closer, but (Sunday) he had legitimate closer stuff,” Trembley said. “It’s surprising that he has the amount of arm speed that he has for a guy that had such major surgery. For me, it’s a testament to the amount of work he did in order to get back to where he is now.”
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