Tony

Saunders

Saunders retired in Aug. 2000 after breaking his left arm while pitching for a second time. He’s been told that the bone he broke is twice as solid as it once was, and that he risks no permanent damage by attempting a comeback. Just 30 years old, he thinks he can make it as a reliever. “I’m going to be a bullpen guy, instead of a starter, so there will be a lot less stress,” he said. “And I’ve changed my mechanics a little bit. I throw across my body more, so I don’t put as much stress on my arm.” It’d be great to see Saunders back in the majors. He hopes to sign a minor league deal soon.

''I’m feeling better than I thought,’' Saunders said. ''I am throwing a little bit better than I thought, too.’' Saunders was once a promising young lefty, throwing 192 1/3 innings with a 4.12 ERA and 172 strikeouts as a 24-year-old in 1998. He is now about to turn 31 and nothing more than a great story and someone to root for.

Saunders, who retired in Aug. 2000 after breaking his left arm while pitching for a second time, is attempting a comeback as a lefty reliever. The Orioles are as deep there as any team in baseball, so Saunders is quite a long shot to return to the majors this season.

Saunders struck out the first batter he faced, Enrique Wilson, hit Chris Stynes with a pitch, and then got got Ed Rogers to hit into a double play to end the inning on just nine pitches. ''I felt pretty good,’' Saunders said. ''For me, being the first time out there, I think I handled it pretty well. What’s going to be the test for me is tomorrow, how I bounce back from this.’'

''I know it’s one little insignificant inning in a game, but it felt good,’' Saunders said. The left-hander will continue his comeback in Double-A at the start of the season.

He’s attempting a comeback five years after retiring and hopes to get back to the majors as a lefty specialist. It’s a longshot, but a good story.

Saunders, who retired four years after breaking his left arm while pitching for a second time, is expected to begin his comeback at Triple-A Ottawa. He’ll be used as a reliever.