It’s just a paper move, but Zach Britton was sent down to the minors Thursday after limiting the White Sox to one run in eight innings and striking out a career-high 10 batters in Baltimore’s victory.
Britton improved to 4-1 on the season. He had never fanned more than seven in 35 career starts before striking out 10 today.
Sending Britton down allows the Orioles to squeeze the newly signed Randy Wolf onto the roster prior to the Sept. 1 deadline, a move that will make him eligible for the postseason. Britton could well be in the Orioles’ postseason plans, too, depending on how he performs in September. He’s allowed a total of three runs in 21 2/3 innings in winning his last three starts.
Baltimore took three out of four games from the White Sox to move to 72-58 for the season. The Orioles are three games behind the AL East-leading Yankees entering this weekend’s series in the Bronx.