Baltimore Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman will get his first Opening Day start against the Boston Red Sox on March 31, manager Buck Showalter announced Monday.
Tillman is 2-0 with a 4.97 ERA in four spring starts after winning a career-high 16 games (16-7) with a 3.71 ERA in 2013.
“Around the corner, he will,” Showalter told MLB.com when asked if Tillman had any reaction to the news. “I’d love to ask him, ‘Did you think it was going to be?’ He’s very unassuming. He doesn’t assume anything. But he’s one of those guys who walks out of here and, trust me, he gets it.”
Right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez, who signed a four-year, $50 million contract with Baltimore over the winter, is expected to start the second game of the season.