Garrett Olson

WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES

2005
R:  2-1-1, 1.58 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 40 IP, 2.9 BB/9, 9.0 K/9
A+:  0-0-0, 3.14 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 14.1 IP, 4.4 BB/9, 11.9 K/9

Olson had a good debut in short season ball, then moved up to high A for three starts.  Between the two stops opponents hit just .172 against him.

2006
A+:  4-0-0, 2.77 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 81.1 IP, 2.1 BB/9, 8.5 K/9
AA:  6-5-2, 3.42 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 84.1 IP, 3.3 BB/9, 9.1 K/9

Baseball America rated Olson the Orioles’ #6 prospect prior to both the 2006 and 2007 seasons.  He split the 2006 season evenly between high A and AA, posting similar peripherals at both levels.

2007
AAA:  9-7-0, 3.16 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 128 IP, 2.7 BB/9, 8.4 K/9
MLB:  1-3-0, 7.79 ERA, 2.17 WHIP, 33.3 IP, 7.8 BB/9, 7.8 K/9

Olson pitched well in AAA.  Opponents hit just .208 against him and he fanned 8.4 per nine innings.  He got seven starts in the majors and struggled consistently, as he couldn’t throw strikes.

2008

AAA:  9-7-0, 3.16 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 36.1 IP, 4.0 BB/9, 9.7 K/9
MLB:  9-10-0, 6.65 ERA, 1.74 WHIP, 132.2 IP, 4.2 BB/9, 5.6 K/9

Joined the Orioles’ rotation in late April and spent most of the season there.  Opponents batted .309 against him, while right-handed batters posted an .880 OPS.

2009
AAA:  2-3-0, 4.94 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 47.1 IP, 4.4 BB/9, 7.2 K/9
MLB:  3-5-0, 5.60 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 80.1 IP, 3.8 BB/9, 5.3 K/9

Olson was traded twice in January, to the Cubs for Felix Pie, then on to Seattle ten days later for Aaron Heilman.  He opened the season in AAA and posted better peripherals than ERA.  Opponents hit .222 against him with just two HRs in nine starts.  He was recalled in May and spent the rest of the season with the Mariners as a swing man.  He had major gopher ball problems, allowing one every four innings.

2010
AAA:  2-5-0, 3.66 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 46.2 IP, 2.9 BB/9, 9.6 K/9
MLB:  0-3-1, 4.54 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, 37.2 IP, 3.6 BB/9, 7.4 K/9

The Mariners obtained a fourth option for Olson and he split the season between majors and AAA, working only in relief in the former.  He had good numbers in AAA and his first (barely) passable major league season.  He wasn’t really used as a LOOGY, but did have a huge platoon split:  .829 OPS against RHP and .699 against LHPs.

2011
AAA:  4-3-0, 3.05 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 85.2 IP, 4.9 BB/9, 6.4 K/9
MLB:  1-1-0, 2.08 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 4.1 IP, 6.2 BB/9, 8.3 K/9

At the time the Pirates claimed Olson, their LHP situation was looking grim, with Joe Beimel and Scott Olsen both having bad, injury-riddled springs.   Olson made the roster as the only lefty and did fine through four appearances, but once Beimel was ready to return, they outrighted Olson to AAA.  He pitched as a swing man for Indianapolis, limiting hitters to a .208 average, but his control remained a problem.  He pitched much better as a starter.  When the Pirates needed an arm late in the season, they called up Brian Burres instead of Olson, even though Olson was more successful in AAA, probably because they considered Burres more reliable.

Olson will be a free agent in the off-season and will probably move on.