Rob Long: Something To Think About
Friday on the Vinny and Rob Show a caller brought up the fact that Ricky Romero was off to a sensational start to a young career just a few years ago and then fell upon hard times. Now, Romero is playing AAA ball for the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Romero went 29-20 from 2010 and 2011 had sported a 2.92 ERA in '11. The following season, Romero's ERA ballooned to 5.77 in 32 starts and has never been the same.
The Romero research sparked from trying to figure out what is going on with Chris Tillman. The difference between Romero and Tillman is that Chris had a rockier start to his career after coming to Baltimore with Adam Jones via a trade with the Seattle Mariners.
Then, in 2012 Tillman, after spending the season in Norfolk, went 9-3 with a 2.93 ERA down the stretch in the heat of a pennant race. Tillman followed up that season up with a 16-7 record in 2013. It looked as if Tillman had turned things around en route to becoming a front of the rotation starter for the Baltimore Orioles.
Now, Tillman is back to the inconsistency that got him demoted in 2011 after Thursday night's bad performance against the Texas Rangers. Tillman failed to record an out in the second inning and gave up five runs. At times, Tillman seems disconnected which leads me to wonder where his head is.
Like Romero, it's baffling to see the sudden demise of Chris Tillman. You can only hope that the solutions to his problems aren't as baffling. Tillman is important to the O's success not just because of his potential, but also because even if Kevin Gausman becomes a Big League starter, he was not projected to be Tillman's replacement, he was expected to join Tillman. It's tough to think the Birds can make it to the post-season without contributions from Chris Tillman.
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