Mark Hendrickson, pitcher

How long can he last? Will he be back?

The Orioles released him in September, so he’ll have to scrounge for a job. It makes no logical sense for the Orioles to re-sign him, but then again the Orioles have done a lot of things that make no logical sense.

Although Hendrickson is a left-handed pitcher, he’s never been used as a lefty relief specialist, at least not for any length of time. Most of his career, he’s been either a starter or a swingman. Even in 2010 and 2011, when he made one start and fifty-nine relief appearances, he still pitched 86 innings in his 60 games (as opposed to someone like Clay Rapada). Most left-handed pitchers who hang on forever are lefthanded relief specialists.

On the other hand, Darren Oliver was able to transform himself from a so-so starter into a long relief pitcher into a lefty specialist reliever. There’s no reason why, if he wants to and is persuasive, he can’t give it a try.