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Baysox' Ormond Is the Thinking Man's Middle Reliever
By Steve Argeris
Amid the knockout closer trio of Eddy Rodriguez, John Parrish and Aaron Rakers, the latter two since promoted, Rodney Ormond's steadiness largely went under the radar all season long for the Bowie Baysox.
But Ormond, 6-2 with 3.05 ERA at week's end, is developing into a fine middle reliever and beginning to draw notice. One Eastern League scout listed the former 27th-round pick as one of Bowie's most interesting arms, along with starters Dave Crouthers and Brian Forystek.
Ormond is a contact pitcher, meaning his intent is not to overpower the batter for strikeouts but rather to induce a grounder or a popup for an easy out. He pairs his mainstay, a sinker, with either a slider to right-handed hitters or a change-up to left-handed batters. He throws in the high-80s to low-90s, but the key, according to his coaches, is that he is using his head more than his arm.
"It took him two or three years to figure out that he didn't need a four-seam fastball and try to blow by guys," said Dave Schuler, the Baysox' pitching coach. "Two years ago in Delmarva, he lost three consecutive starts trying to throw a four-seam fastball away from right-handed hitters. It ended up drifting right over the middle of the plate. Three straight times. It was like beating your head against the wall."
The lesson sunk in, and under the tutelage of Tommy John in the Arizona Fall League, Ormond learned to use the four-seam grip to create spin instead of velocity.
The results have made Ormond the steadiest long reliever in the Baysox' bullpen, with only one really bad outing, when he gave up five runs in one-third of an inning on Aug. 3 in the New Britain Rock Cats' 20-4 victory. His ERA rose from 2.62 to 3.21.
"That was like the 'Twilight Zone,' " Ormond said. "Everything we were throwing they hit. As the saying goes, pressure builds character. I built a lot of character that night."
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© 2003 The Washington Post Company
By Steve Argeris
Amid the knockout closer trio of Eddy Rodriguez, John Parrish and Aaron Rakers, the latter two since promoted, Rodney Ormond's steadiness largely went under the radar all season long for the Bowie Baysox.
But Ormond, 6-2 with 3.05 ERA at week's end, is developing into a fine middle reliever and beginning to draw notice. One Eastern League scout listed the former 27th-round pick as one of Bowie's most interesting arms, along with starters Dave Crouthers and Brian Forystek.
Ormond is a contact pitcher, meaning his intent is not to overpower the batter for strikeouts but rather to induce a grounder or a popup for an easy out. He pairs his mainstay, a sinker, with either a slider to right-handed hitters or a change-up to left-handed batters. He throws in the high-80s to low-90s, but the key, according to his coaches, is that he is using his head more than his arm.
"It took him two or three years to figure out that he didn't need a four-seam fastball and try to blow by guys," said Dave Schuler, the Baysox' pitching coach. "Two years ago in Delmarva, he lost three consecutive starts trying to throw a four-seam fastball away from right-handed hitters. It ended up drifting right over the middle of the plate. Three straight times. It was like beating your head against the wall."
The lesson sunk in, and under the tutelage of Tommy John in the Arizona Fall League, Ormond learned to use the four-seam grip to create spin instead of velocity.
The results have made Ormond the steadiest long reliever in the Baysox' bullpen, with only one really bad outing, when he gave up five runs in one-third of an inning on Aug. 3 in the New Britain Rock Cats' 20-4 victory. His ERA rose from 2.62 to 3.21.
"That was like the 'Twilight Zone,' " Ormond said. "Everything we were throwing they hit. As the saying goes, pressure builds character. I built a lot of character that night."
Would you like to send this article to a friend? Go to
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/admin/emailfriend?contentId=A755-2003Aug15&sent=no&referrer=emailarticle
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Sports - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/sports/?referrer=emailarticle
Entertainment - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/eg/section/main/index.html?referrer=emailarticle
Travel - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/travel/?referrer=emailarticle
Technology - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/technology/?referrer=emailarticle
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© 2003 The Washington Post Company
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