Orioles rookie Jimmy Yacabonis’ transition from reliever to starter has shown signs of promise this season. He has a good mid-90s fastball that gets on hitters quickly, as well as a slider that can miss bats. But in his past three spot starts — all of them called up as the 26th man to pitch the opening game of a doubleheader — Yacabonis has struggled once a lineup gets a first look at him.
On Saturday afternoon against the New York Yankees, he yielded four runs in the third inning during his second time through the order, shifting the momentum of the game to send the Orioles to a 10-3 loss in Game 1 of a split doubleheader at Camden Yards.