BALTIMORE (AP) -The Orioles cut ties with right-hander Paul Shuey on Tuesday, ending his comeback with Baltimore.
Shuey, signed to a minor league contract as a free agent in February, made it back to the majors for the first time since 2004 after undergoing hip surgery. He was 0-1 with one save and a 9.82 ERA in 25 games.
“We needed to make a move. We needed to try something different,” Orioles manager Dave Trembley said. “He told me that he expected it. … It’s best for the team.”
Shuey gave up nine runs in the final two innings of the Orioles’ 30-3 loss to Texas on Aug. 22, capping the first 30-run game in the majors since 1897.
“It hurt to tell him he was done with us,” Trembley said. “I thought he did so much more than just suck up some innings for us when a lot or lesser guys wouldn’t have.”
Shuey had already cleaned out his locker and departed the clubhouse before the Orioles began a three-game series with Tampa Bay on Tuesday. The Orioles have 10 days to trade, waive or send him to the minors.
Baltimore recalled left-hander Kurt Birkins from Triple-A Norfolk.
“He’s a friend of mine – playing with him early in the year at Norfolk, him helping me through some rough times early in the year,” Birkins said.
Birkins is 0-1 with a 9.95 ERA in seven relief appearances. But in 19 starts and one relief outing at Norfolk, Birkins went 8-4 with a 3.07 ERA and 98 strikeouts in 105 2-3 innings.
“The changeup has been the pitch that my success really depends on, and I’ve had trouble with it up here,” Birkins said.
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