It was only two years ago that Sendy Rleal was the talk of Orioles camp. Coming off a dazzling season at Double-A Bowie, the righthander emerged as the surprise of spring.
Rleal pitched 13 1/3 innings in March of 2006. He allowed just one run and, improbably, earned a spot in then-manager Sam Perlozzo’s bullpen on opening day.
Although he was blessed with a low-90s fastball and a changeup that was considered the best in the O’s organization, Rleal couldn’t carry his overwhelming spring training success into the regular season. He was decent – posting a 4.44 ERA in 42 games – but he walked more batters than he struck out and his WHIP soared to 1.52.
Rleal was sent back to the minors in July. He returned to the big leagues in September, but that proved to be his last shot in The Show.
The Dominican native’s fortunes took a turn for the worse last spring. He struggled with elbow soreness during camp and started the season on the disabled list. An MRI revealed no structural damage and he returned to the mound in May. He spent time at Single-A Frederick before returning to Bowie. Overall, his numbers were good. He sported a 3.24 ERA and allowed 38 hits in 50 innings.
The Orioles, somewhat surprisingly, gave up on Rleal in September – designating him for assignment. Even more surprisingly, Rleal couldn’t land a contract with another big-league organization. Two years after being a spring sensation, he wasn’t even invited to spring training.
The Barnstormers may have found a gem. If Rleal’s velocity remains in the low-90s, he should dominate the Atlantic League. The 6-1 righthander has proven difficult to hit at every minor-league level. Opposing batters are only hitting .229 against him in his career and he averages three walks per nine innings. His career WHIP is 1.18. There aren’t many command power pitchers at this level.
Rleal has experience as a closer. He has 32 lifetime saves, including converting 16 of 19 attempts in Bowie in 2005. He will be the anchor to the Barnstormers’ bullpen – the heir to Derrick DePriest, who has left to join the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. Lancaster will likely add one more proven righthander and another lefty to its bullpen mix, which also features righties Franklin Mendible, Derek Forbes, Ricardo Gomez and lefty Ross Peeples.
But the effectiveness of every relief corps starts with the closer. It appears the Barnstormers have landed themselves a good one.
*MLB.com is the latest to chime in about the Yankees’ crowded bullpen picture and Scott Patterson’s chances of making the opening-day roster. This is the money graph about Patterson …
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Plus, there’s the mystery of Scott Patterson, a 28-year-old with a funky delivery who has not pitched above Double-A but has done everything the Yankees have asked this spring. Patterson was 4-2 with two saves and a 1.09 ERA in 43 appearances at Trenton last season and, Girardi reasons, “I’m not a big believer that you have to have big league experience to be successful.”
No mystery. Patterson gets everyone out and has been doing it for three years. It’s only a mystery to those who haven’t paid much attention to him. Anyway, the Girardi quote is encouraging, although I still suspect Patterson ends up in Triple-A based on the way he has been used.
*The Washington Post published a story about Rleal when he was vying for a roster spot in 2006. It includes some interesting background.
*York has re-signed reliever Jason Olson. He went 6-5 with a 4.03 ERA in 42 games last season.
*Speaking of closers, ALB.com reports that Somerset’s R.D. Spiehs won’t be returning to the league.
*And more closers: This guy was released by the Buccos (as Harry Kalas would say). It would be interesting to see him in the Atlantic League, not that it’s remotely likely.
*For a look at Lancaster’s complete roster, check out the Meet the Team page.
