Tillman headed to bullpen?

Although no decision has been announced on the status of Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman, it seems highly likely that he will be moved out of the club’s starting rotation and into the bullpen.

Manager Buck Showalter would not definitively say that during his pregame media briefing on Friday afternoon, but everything he did say seemed to point in that direction.

The Orioles cannot put Tillman on the disabled list because he said his shoulder is sound. They are not going to designate him for assignment and let him go because he has done too much for the organization to be thrown aside that way.

That leaves the team with two options: Send him back out for another start next week in Anaheim or send him to the bullpen to continue working to improve the command of his pitches.

“I talked to Chris some today to try to get some feedback from him — what he’s feeling … what he’s thinking,” Showalter said. “I always try to talk to guys when they’ve had a couple of starts that haven’t been what they’re capable of. Nobody understands it more than Chris. It’s been frustrating for him. He’s had like 15 starts and it’s very uncharacteristic.”

Tillman gave up seven runs (five earned) Thursday in his twoplus-inning appearance against Detroit and suffered the loss, which dropped his record to 1-7 and raised his ERA to 8.10. He’s not the only Orioles pitcher to go through an ugly stretch this season, but with the team finally having some other options, the move to the bullpen clearly seems the best option.