Feldman to start Wednesday in rotation shuffle

CHICAGO -- New Oriole Scott Feldman is expected to join the team in Chicago on Tuesday night and make his debut for Baltimore on Wednesday as part of a rotation shuffle.

Lefty Zach Britton will now pitch Thursday's series finale, which pushes right-hander Miguel Gonzalez --originally slated for Wednesday-- to Friday's series opener in New York.

"He always seems to benefit from some extra rest," Showalter said of Gonzalez. "And it fits well. I just didn't want Scotty to sit around for a week between pitching. He's already working on some extra time."

The O's will have to clear a 25-man roster spot for Feldman, and rookie Kevin Gausman could be the guy to go. Gausman is currently in the bullpen in long relief and the O's could opt to send him to Norfolk to have him consistently start. They could also opt to send down a position player and, with a roster that closely resembles Opening Day, Chris Dickerson or Danny Valencia are two possibilities. Valencia has an option, while Dickerson does not, so he would have to clear waivers.

Feldman last pitched on June 26, and he is 4-2 with a 4.20 ERA in 14 career games (eight starts) against the White Sox. He is 2-1 with a 6.23 ERA in six games (three starts) at U.S. Cellular Field.

"He's a guy with some American League background," Showalter said of Feldman, who pitched for him with the Rangers. "Scotty is what he is. He's a competitive guy. Haven't seen him in a while. He's had a couple things in his arsenal that are a little different than when I had him. He was more of a relief pitcher there, had a little different arm angle. There's a lot of things that work in his favor. He's been in the American League. Should be a pretty seamless transition to the locker room."