Back from elbow ailment, Tillman maintains mastery of M's
Chris Tillman's elbow passed the test Monday.
The Baltimore Orioles right-hander logged a stellar performance against his former franchise in a 10-4 win over the Mariners at Seattle.
Tillman, who hadn't pitched since leaving his Sept. 2 outing with discomfort in his pitching elbow, threw 91 pitches in six innings. He allowed one run on a solo homer by Michael Saunders, one of three hits he permitted. Tillman struck out four without walking a batter.
Bouncing back from the setback was big for Tillman and the Orioles, who were in need of a solid start after losing right-hander Jason Hammel to another injury and dropping two of three in Oakland.
Throwing Tillman against the Mariners was a start.
He's 4-0 and with a 0.97 ERA in four career starts against the Mariners, who traded him to Baltimore along with Adam Jones in the deal 2008 that sent Erik Bedard to Seattle. In 27 2/3 innings against his former organization, Tillman has 21 strikeouts and six walks.
Tillman's re-emergence has been one of the most underrated storylines in Baltimore this season. The former Seattle prospect had nearly fallen out of favor in Baltimore before bouncing back this season -- so much so that he's being relied upon down the stretch.
He's 8-2 with a 3.22 ERA in 12 starts, and he's unbeaten in his past five outings.
