During the Orioles' 12-2 blowout loss to the Houston Astros Aug. 20, utility man Ryan Flaherty pitched the ninth inning, a last-ditch effort by manager Buck Showalter to avoid overtaxing the Birds' bullpen even further.
Flaherty became the seventh position player in O's history to make a pitching appearance. Who were the previous six?
Larry Harlow and Elrod Hendricks, June 26, 1978
During a lopsided 24-10 defeat in Toronto, O's manager Earl Weaver was at a loss to find a pitcher who could get outs. The first three hurlers of the game -- lefty Mike Flanagan, righty Joe Kerrigan and lefty Tippy Martinez -- each allowed six or more runs and combined to toss just three innings. A desperate Weaver then went a most unconventional route. He employed not one but two position players to try to clean up the mess.
