The Orioles have signed 31-year old side-arming righty reliever Pat Neshek to a minor league deal. Neshek pitched in 25 games (0 starts) for the Padres last year and he was 1-1 with a 4.01 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. In his first five years in the majors, Neshek has pitched in 157 games (0 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 12-7 with a 3.21 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. He has given up only 105 hits in 154 1/3 innings so far in his major league career while whiffing 171 batters as he has been nasty when healthy. Neshek will try to win a job in the Orioles’ pen this spring and I really like the signing for them.

The Orioles have signed 30-year old righty swinging catcher Ronny Paulino to a minor league deal. He played in 78 games for the Mets last year and he was 61 for 228 (.268 avg, .663 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 2 homers and 19 RBIs. Paulino has now played in 553 games in his first seven years in the majors and he is 492 of 1,804 (.273 avg, .705 OPS) with 176 runs scored, 32 homers, 211 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Paulino is going to battle Taylor Teagarden this spring for the right to back up Matt Wieters in 2012. I like the move for the Orioles as competition for jobs is never a bad thing.

The Orioles have signed 33-year old lefty swinging outfielder Cory Aldridge to a minor league deal. Aldridge didn’t play anywhere last year. He last played in 2010 with the Angels. Aldridge has played in 13 games in his first two years in the majors and he is 1 for 18 (.056 avg, .222 OPS) with 1 run scored and 1 RBI. He will likely start the year in AAA.

The Baltimore Orioles have a lot of candidates for the starting rotation this spring. They traded (Dana Eveland), signed a free agent from the States (Armando Galarraga) and they signed a couple of guys from Japan (Tsuyoshi Wada and Wei-Ying Chen) to compete for spots in the rotation. Here’s a look at how the rotation could shake up:

#1: Jeremy Guthrie: 32-year old righty Jeremy Guthrie would be an outstanding #4 or #5 starter, but he’s mis-cast as the Orioles’ ace. He pitched in 34 games (32 starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 9-17 with a 4.33 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. He has now pitched in 161 games (153 starts) in his first five years with the Orioles and he is 47-65 with a 4.12 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Guthrie’s record is a reflection of how bad the Orioles have been recently as he is a pretty solid pitcher and competitor on the mound. He has now pitched in 177 games (154 starts) in his first 8 years in the majors and he is 47-65 with a 4.19 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP.

#2: Tsuyoshi Wada: 30-year old lefty Tsuyoshi Wada didn’t come cheap, so the Orioles are likely going to give him a spot in the rotation when the 2012 season begins. He pitched in 26 games (all starts) in Japan last year and he was 16-5 with a 1.51 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He pitched in 116 games (114 starts) in his five years in Japan and he was 57-36 with a 2.88 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. Wada had impressive numbers in Japan but he’s a junkballer type.

#3, #4 and #5: Zach Britton: 24-year old lefty Zach Britton was up and down for the Orioles as a rookie last year. He pitched in 28 games (all starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 11-11 with a 4.61 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. If Britton can re-adjust to major league batters and pitch like he did early last year, he will win a spot in the starting rotation.

Jake Arrieta: 25-year old righty Jake Arrieta had injury problems last year. If he is healthy this spring, he will likely win a job in the Orioles’ rotation in 2012. He pitched in 22 games (all starts) for the O’s last year and he was 10-8 with a 5.05 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. Arrieta has now pitched in 40 games (all starts) in his first two years with the Orioles and he is 16-14 with a 4.88 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP. Arrieta has a nice upside.

Tommy Hunter: 25-year old righty Tommy Hunter came over in the Koji Uehara deal with the Rangers last year. He pitched in 20 games (11 starts) for the Orioles & Rangers last year and he was 4-4 with a 4.68 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Hunter has now pitched in 65 games (55 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 26-16 with a 4.50 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. He is a pretty decent pitcher when he’s healthy.

Dana Eveland: 28-year old lefty Dana Eveland came to the Orioles over the winter in a deal with the Dodgers. He pitched in 5 games (all starts) for the Dodgers last year and he was 3-2 with a 3.03 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. Eveland has now pitched in 100 games (59 starts) in his first seven years in the majors and he is 19-24 with 1 save, a 5.52 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. I think his success with the Dodgers last year was a mirage.

Armando Galarraga: 30-year old righty Armando Galarraga is more than capable of winning a job in the Orioles’ starting rotation this spring. He pitched in 8 games (all starts) for the Diamondbacks last year and he was 3-4 with a 5.91 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP. Galarraga has now pitched in 95 games (86 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 26-30 with a 4.69 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP.

Wei-Ying Chen: 26-year old lefty Wei-Ying Chen is another soft tosser from Japan. He pitched in 25 games (24 starts) in Japan last year and he was 8-10 with a 2.68 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. Chen has pitched in 117 games (88 starts) in his four years in Japan and he is 36-30 with a 2.48 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP.

Alfredo Simon: 30-year old righty Alfredo Simon won’t have any off the field issues heading into spring training. He will battle for a starting job, but will likely land in the bullpen if he loses out in his bid to start in 2012. Simon pitched in 23 games (16 starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 4-9 with a 4.90 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. He has now pitched in 78 games (19 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 8-12 with 17 saves, a 5.18 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP.

Brad Bergesen: 26-year old righty Brad Bergesen is going to try to win a job in the rotation this spring, but, if he loses out I see him winning a job in the bullpen. He pitched in 34 games (12 starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 2-7 with a 5.70 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He has now pitched in 83 games (59 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 17-24 with a 4.68 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP.

Charles Tillman: 23-year old righty Chris Tillman will need to really impress the coaching staff if he’s going to win a job in the rotation this spring. Tillman pitched in 13 games (all starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 3-5 with a 5.52 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. He has now pitched in 36 games (all starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 7-15 with a 5.58 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. Tillman has a nice upside, but he’s going to have to start performing better for the Orioles to justify keeping him in the majors.

Brian Matusz: 24-year old lefty Brian Matusz was pathetic for the Orioles last year. He pitched in 12 games (all starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 1-9 with a 10.69 ERA and a 2.11 WHIP. Matusz has now pitched in 52 games (all starts) in his first three years with the Orioles and he is 16-23 with a 5.53 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. Matusz is likely going to start the 2012 season in AAA and have to earn his way back to Baltimore.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE STARTING ROTATION IN 2012: D

The Orioles have designated 26-year old righty reliever/starter Rick VandenHurk for assignment. VandenHurk pitched in 4 games (2 starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 0-0 with a 8.00 ERA and a 2.22 WHIP. He pitched in 11 games (3 starts) in his two years with the Orioles and he was 0-1 with a 6.04 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. He has now pitched in 46 games (35 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 8-10 with a 5.97 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP. The Orioles won’t miss VandenHurk if they lose him on waivers.

UPDATE: (2/4/2012) - The Orioles have released Rick VandenHurk.