Jorge Julio
| G | GS | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | W | L | Hld | Sv | BS | BAA | WHIP | ERA |
| 67 | 0 | 68.0 | 55 | 22 | 15 | 5 | 27 | 55 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 25 | 6 | .213 | 1.21 | 1.99 |
Wow.
Things could not have worked out better for the development of Julio in 2002.
First, he was in the 'closing' position right out of the gate, but he really didn't pitch in anything resembling a closing situation until his seventh appearance of the season, on April 16th, when he picked up a save against the Yankees in Yankee Stadium. He blew his very next opportunity, though he did still register the win. After that, he picked up two more real saves in back-to-back games against the Red Sox, and another against Boston five days later.
May was considerably rougher; a couple of bad outings against the Devil Rays, one against the Tribe, and two whippins by the M's at the end of the month; but it was all a learning experience. From that high water mark of a 3.86 ERA, he was golden the rest of the season, with only a couple of blown saves the rest of the way.
The problem was, of course, that he had very few save chances down the stretch...OK...One after August 22, and he lost that game to the Devil Rays by giving up two runs, thus certainly costing him any chance he had of winning Rookie of the Year.
A very, very solid performance.
A few concerns. One, he didn't strike out many batters despite a 99 MPH fastball. One would assume that means it doesn't move a lot, which can end up being costly, especially the second season around. Development of yet another pitch to take a little emphasis off of it might be a good idea, or he should learn to change speeds on it better. Since he'll only be 23 at the start of the season, this is certainly possible. His control was at least average, which places him ahead of many young fireballers.
Saving 8 of 9 with a 1.32 ERA while allowing a .188 batting average after the All-Star Break certainly gives the Orioles hope that they have found their closer, the first one they have had since Randy Myers left following the 1997 season.
TO SUCCESSFULLY CONTRIBUTE IN 2003, HE SHOULD:
Learn the splitter or work on his slider to offer more of a different look. Batters this year may be more ready to drive those fastballs over the fence.
NOTES: did pitch to only a 3.38 ERA when pitching back-to-back days...did not allow a hit on an 0-2 count in 18 chances...Tropicana Field was his Field of Screams (5 appearances,5.2 IP, 10H, .370 BAA, 9.53 ERA).