Could Mike Baumann be pitching his way into high leverage situations?

[Tony-OH]

We know the Orioles need the 3rd high leverage guy behind Kimbrel and Cano, but could they already have him. Mike Baumann is throwing harder than last year, and showing swing and miss stuff this spring. Here's his Spring tracker info:

Tate will get some looks, but I don't trust Tate late in games even prior to his injury, so I really think Baumann could start getting those looks. The only thing is whether the Orioles like to stretch him out and let him be more of a 2-3 inning guy, which will limit the amount games he can be used in versus using him more frequently in high leverage situations. 

Either way, Baumann is looking very good this spring and with no options, he's an absolute lock for the pen.

[DirtyBird]

6 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

The only thing is whether the Orioles like to stretch him out and let him be more of a 2-3 inning guy

You know we don't use those

[Aristotelian]

Just making the team would be a good accomplishment for him. He's got a track record so we've got a pretty good idea of his baseline as well as his ceiling. I don't think he's passing Cano/Kimbrel/Coulombe/Perez/Wells (if he's in the pen) any time soon, but you never know with reliever volatility. 

[waroriole]

You don’t trust Tate, but you trust Baumann? I don’t really see Mike as a MLB pitcher. More of a AAAA guy. 

[clapdiddy]

31 minutes ago, waroriole said:

You don’t trust Tate, but you trust Baumann? I don’t really see Mike as a MLB pitcher. More of a AAAA guy. 

Baumann has better "stuff".   I think Tate is ok, but I would not want him in high-leverage situations.

[sportsfan8703]

Baumann, Webb, Tate, and McDermott, all look like they will be used in that role this season and we might just ride the hot hand. Baumann tired out last year so a fresh Baumann will get the first opportunity to the the #3/#4 guy. Ultimately, I think McDermott wins it. 

[btdart20]

Another tick on the FB helps the rest play up.  Especially the SL.

[Frobby]

22 minutes ago, clapdiddy said:

Baumann has better "stuff".   I think Tate is ok, but I would not want him in high-leverage situations.

Tate was throwing 91-92 when I saw him on Sunday.   I believe he was higher in earlier outings, but that made me nervous.  

[Hank Scorpio]

He looked excellent yesterday.

[Frobby]

Baumann has always had good stuff.  His command and poise have been issues.  Sometimes those things improve with experience.  Hopefully that happens for Baumann this year.  

[interloper]

6 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Tate was throwing 91-92 when I saw him on Sunday.   I believe he was higher in earlier outings, but that made me nervous.  

I could be wrong, but I feel like even in Tate's good season he had a lot of velocity fluctuation. One outing he'd be 91 and the next he'd pump 96. Again, I could be misremembering that, I'm not sure. Chris Tillman used to do the same thing and there was no rhyme or reason to it. 

[CaptainRedbeard]

If you look at the log of Baumann’s velo on Fangraphs, last year his velo peaked early and really wore down as the year went on. He was used a lot and it was his first year as a RP, so not surprising. Early returns are that the off-season did him a lot of good. He’s certainly got a big arm and we need somebody to step up, hope he’s able to do it. 

[RZNJ]

50 minutes ago, Hank Scorpio said:

He looked excellent yesterday.

Yeah, but still inconsistent with his fastball command.  I think he has a chance and Hyde seems to single him out.

[Fiver6565]

There have been multiple quotes from Hyde this spring about how impressed he's been w/ Baumann.  Absent a complete meltdown or physical issue these next couple weeks, he's going to pitch significant leverage innings to start the season, I have no doubt.

[Jim'sKid26]

Big Mike is one of my favs so I'm biased. He had an excellent year last year until he ran out of gas. Will he do better in high leverage situations? The stuff so far says an emphatic yes. The only way to know is to give him the ball.