Orioles end 7-year odyssey

By JOHN C. COTEY
Published June 19, 2007

LAND O'LAKES - He was drafted by Houston, signed and released by San Diego and St. Louis, and finally, after seven years at nine different stops in the minor leagues, promoted to the big leagues by Baltimore.

For former Land O'Lakes pitcher Cory Doyne, it was a long time coming.

Doyne pitched to two batters, walking the first and getting the second to ground out to end Saturday's game.

Called up earlier in the day, the Orioles wasted little time inserting the hard-throwing right-handed reliever into their bullpen.

Doyne, an eighth-round draft pick in 2000, became the second Gator off the heralded pitching staff that year to pitch in the majors, joining lefty Derek Thompson, a supplemental first-round pick of Cleveland that same season.

They are believed to be the first pair of pitchers from the same staff in Pasco County to throw in the major leagues. Thompson made his debut May 28, 2005, with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Doyne may not be the last Gator from the 2000 team to make the majors - Jeff Baisley is hitting .288 with nine homers and 33 RBIs at Double-A, while twin Brian is batting .341 with two homers at Class A.

Drafted by Houston, Doyne, 25, spent three years in the Astros' farm system, never advancing higher than Single-A ball before his release in 2003. He was signed by the Cardinals and put together three very good seasons, saving 19 games for Class-AA Springfield in 2005 and six in 2006 before a promotion to Triple-A Memphis put him on the cusp of his major-league debut.

But the Cardinals did not re-sign Doyne, who threw five scoreless innings at Memphis, and the Orioles signed him to a contract in November.

At Norfolk, the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate, Doyne emerged as a major-league option.

Known as much for his tattoos and Oakley glasses that are one part Eric Gagne, another part Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn from the movie Major League, the former Gator was having a breakout season when the big club called.

In 29 games, Doyne had 19 saves to lead all minor-league pitchers, a 1.99 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 31 innings pitched. Opponents are hitting just .139 off him. And his control, an issue in the past, has been super with just 10 walks allowed.

In his last 10 appearances before his callup, Doyne had not allowed a run and saved seven games.

With a fastball clocked in the high 90s and a strong breaking ball, Doyne appears ready to grab a role with the struggling Orioles. He enters a volatile situation as Baltimore has lost eight straight and on Monday fired their manager.

CLIPPARD BACK TO MINORS: Former Mitchell standout Tyler Clippard's stint as a New York Yankee has ended, for the moment.

The 22-year-old right-handed pitcher, who made his major-league debut May 20 with a victory over the Mets on ESPN, couldn't get past the fourth inning against them Saturday, guaranteeing his ticket back to Triple-A.

"Nobody wants to get sent down, " Clippard told the Hartford Courant. "But I'll take it as a big learning experience and try to get back up here as soon as I can. I remember when I came up for that first start, before (Darrel) Rasner got hurt, that was supposed to be my only start. To stay up all this time was a great learning experience."

Clippard won three games with the Yankees, but never got past the fifth inning in any of them after his debut. His ERA was 6.33 when he was sent down.

"We certainly appreciate what he did for us, " Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "And we were impressed by the way he kept coming at them, kept competing, and I told him that."

Torre said Kei Igawa likely will be the next pitcher called up, but considering the Yankees' problems with injuries this season, Clippard could see additional action in the majors by the season's end.

ALL-STATE ACCOLADES: Ridgewood pitcher Ben Koenigsfeld, the Pasco Times' Pitcher of the Year, was chosen third-team all-state by the Florida Sports Writers Association Saturday, and teammate Doug Burlett was an honorable mention.

The Rams were named along with Land O'Lakes pitchers Matt Smith and Matt Fuglesang and infielder Anthony Santa, who all earned honorable mentions.

Smith and Santa were first-team all-county selections, as was Burlett; Fuglesang was second team.

[Last modified June 18, 2007, 23:17:30]