Oriole # 1033- Gabriel Ynoa

This post will officially catch me up on posts about the 2017 Orioles debuts (not including the two players whose autographs I still need and will wait to post about until I get their autographs).

Gabriel Ynoa has just a single Orioles appearance under his belt, but it was an impressive one to say the least. He made his debut on Friday May 5th at Camden Yards in a game agianst the White Sox. He entered the game out of the bullpen in the first inning after starter Wade Miley was knocked out of the game by getting hit on consecutive comebackers on the mound. Oddly enough, something similar happened to Miley in a Spring Training start earlier this year.

After Miley got the first two outs in the game, Ynoa entered the game and was outstanding. He pitched six innings, allowing just six hits while striking out five to earn the win in his debut with the O's.

The Orioles purchased Gabriel's contract from the Mets on February 10th, and was the second pitcher the O's got from the Mets this past offseason in return for cash or a player to be named later. (Logan Verrett came into the organization pretty much the same way back on November 30, 2016.) The Mets at least thought that they had a surplus of pitching and the Orioles will always gladly acquire optionable pitchers in return for very little as they did with these two transactions.

Ynoa made his MLB debut with the Mets in 2016 and pitched in ten games, including three starts, and was 1-0 with a 6.38 ERA.

As you can see, I had some good success with getting Ynoa to sign for me during my trip to Spring Training. He was one of the more approachable players and gladly signed each time I asked. He seemed to appreciate that I attempted to speak some of my very little Spanish with him while he was signing.

Unfortunately, Gabriel landed on the ten day DL with a right hamstring strain following his sole apperance for the O's, but he is almost ready to come back and help the team. He is yet another member of the 2017 Baltimore-Norfolk relief pitcher shuttle, but if he can pitch like he did in his debut than he certainly can help the team win a few games this year. Good luck Gabriel!

Oriole # 1031- Logan Verrett

Logan Verrett might have one of the longest, strangest trips to make his Orioles debut of anyone I can remember. He was selected by the Orioles in the 2014 Rule V draft from the Mets (the Orioles also took Jason Garcia from the Red Sox) and spent almost the entirety of spring training 2015 with the Orioles. He made nine appearances with the team that spring, and had a 1.93 ERA with two saves, but the team thought that Garcia had more upside (they were wrong) and put Verrett on waivers.

The Rangers selected him and his Rule V status off of waivers and he ended up making his MLB debut with Texas. He appeared in four games and had an ERA of 6.00 when the Rangers returned him to the Mets on May 4th. He went on to pitch in 49 games, including 16 starts, for the Mets over the 2015-16 seasons and was 4-9 with a 4.56 ERA.

The Orioles retained interest in him throughout the years and got him from the Mets on November 30, 2016 in return for cash or a player to be named later. So he was back in the fold for the Birds and destined to make his delayed debut in Baltimore. Except he didn't have so much success in Sarasota this time around, and had an 8.10 ERA over 9 appearances, which wasn't good enough to break camp with the team.

Luckily for Logan, he has options, and a relief pitcher with options is Buck Showalter's best friend, and he has become a member of the 2017 Orioles bullpen carousel. Logan finally made his Orioles debut on April 30, 2017 and pitched the tenth and eleventh innings in a wild game against the Yankees. The O's bullpen had already blown the game once and it looked like Logan might fall apart, but he kept his game together and earned the win in his O's debut. He was then sent back to AAA Norfolk before nearly the identical thing happened and he picked up another win, this time pitching the 10-12 innings against the Nationals. So he has now earned a win in each appearance he's made with the O's. Who's up for Logan pitching every game the rest of the season? This guy!

Obsessive Eagle-eyed readers might recognize the signed Old Man Cards at the top of this post from a post I wrote way back in March 2015 about possible Orioles debuts that could occur that season. I was wrong then, but Logan is finally and officially an Oriole.

Unpossible Autograph Friday- Marv Throneberry, Oriole #173

"Marvelous" Marv Throneberry played seven seasons in the Major Leagues between 1955-63 and is remembered for his occasionally inept fielding, especially during his time with the 1962 Mets, who were an all-time MLB worst 40-120 record. His nickname was a humourous knock on his play, but from all accounts, he took it all in stride, and even had a 5,000 member strong fan club.

Marv was one of the best minor league power hitters during the mid 1950's and made his MLB debut by playing in a single game for the 1955 Yankees. He returned to play for the Bronx Bombers in 1958-59 and was a part of their '58 World Series Championship team. He was traded to the Kansas City A's after the '59 season and was later flipped to the Orioles in the middle of the 1961 season. He made his Orioles debut on June 8, 1961 and played 65 games for the O's before being traded to the Mets in May 1962.

Many of the funny stories about Marvelous Marv come from his season plus with the Mets, and typically involved or were told by his manager, Casey Stengel. The most famous tale tells of a game in which Throneberry tripled but was called out for not having touched second base. When Stengel went out to argue the call, the umpire supposedly said "Don't bother arguing Casey, he missed first base, too." 

Marv's defense at first base was also an issue, and his .981 fielding percentage in 1962 was not equaled by another other Major Leaguer until Cesar Cedeno matched it in 1979. 

He retired after the 1963 season at just 29 years old, and later went on to star in commercials for Miller Lite that poked fun at his troubles on the baseball field. Here's one if you would like to check out his acting skills.

Marv's only Orioles card was his inclusion in the 1991 O's Crown set, which came out a few years before his death. It's possible that he signed a few copies before passed away, although I have yet to see one. For now, I'm pretty happy with my Orioles signed postcard/Mets baseball card combination, but I will hold out hope to come across a signed Crown card one day. 

He died of cancer on June 23, 1994; he was only 60. RIP Marv, thanks for the memories! 


To briefly explain the misspelled/made up title of these weekly posts: Every Friday, I profile a former Oriole who has passed away. I've substituted the word unpossible for impossible as an homage to a line from "The Simpsons". Young Ralph Wiggum, who is a few pennies short of a dollar, says "Me fail English? That's unpossible."