Ubaldo Jimenez made another poor start Friday night, digging a hole for the Orioles offense too deep as the Astros win 8-7 after leading 8-1. The team is talking about moving Jimenez to the bullpen:

Putting Ubaldo Jimenez back in the bullpen isn’t really a solution for the reasons previously stated. He needs extra time to get loose, he tends to struggle in his first inning and he requires extended rest between outings. And there isn’t a spot for him with Miguel Castro earning an extended stay.

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For Jimenez to come out of the rotation, he may finally have to come out of the organization. But let’s not pretend that he’s the one weak link in the chain. The starters’ 5.93 ERA is a group effort.

Complicating matters is that Jimenez may be very unlucky, as his FIP numbers are somewhat better than his ERA (but still poor). And Roch Kubatko is right about the Orioles rotation. They walk too many batters, strike out too few, and don’t go deep in games.

Then again, Jimenez is long removed from being a star. He is pitching below replacement level, and maybe it’s time the Orioles gave a youngster a chance to do a little bit better than that.