:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46551832/usa-today-8606299.0.jpg)
The Orioles made an eyebrow-raising roster move before Tuesday's game against the Phillies when they sent starting pitcher Wei-Yin Chen to High-A Frederick. This move was the corresponding move that allowed the Orioles to add Chris Parmelee to the active roster.
In Dan Duquette's tenure in charge of the Orioles, he hasn't been above some roster shenanigans in order to, as he and Buck Showalter like to say, put the best 25-man Orioles roster on the field every day. However, those moves tend to involve dumping bullpen pitchers or bench players with options remaining to Triple-A Norfolk, and they tend to at least be open about why they are doing so.
With the Chen option, the Orioles offered the not-entirely-believable explanation that Chen, who just pitched eight excellent innings in Monday's game against the Phillies, had been suffering from what was described as "general fatigue."
The plan is to have him put together a 3-4 inning start for Frederick on Saturday. He will then return on June 26, the minimum number of days he must remain in the minor leagues. That's all well and good, and maybe they should have gone ahead and made sure that Chen himself was on board with that plan before going forward with it.
Chen, or the person running his blue check marked Twitter account, expressed some frustration with the move:
I am in excellent physical shape. I feel great and I am ready for my next start. I just pitched 8 innings of shutout baseball.
— Wei-Yin Chen（一生懸命） (@WeiYinChen16) June 16, 2015
I am disappointed my routine is being interrupted. I will continue to work hard and do my best to perform. Thank you for all the support!
— Wei-Yin Chen（一生懸命） (@WeiYinChen16) June 16, 2015
These two tweets stand out even more because Chen has posted a total of 38 tweets since joining Twitter in May 2013. They are also the only two tweets that are entirely in the English language.
I would be frustrated too if I was Chen, who has been the best Orioles starter up to this point in the season, and now he's getting jerked around for a phony reason. The only way there might tend to be consequences for this kind of chicanery is if the player is unhappy enough to complain through the MLBPA. We'll see if this ends up being a momentary venting of frustration or if there are lingering bad feelings.