For the second straight season, the Baltimore Orioles will hand to the ball to right-hander Chris Tillman for the Opening Day start.
Tillman received the nod over Wei-Yin Chen and Bud Norris for the April 6 game against the Tampa Bay Rays, becoming the first Orioles pitcher to start back-to-back openers since Jeremy Guthrie in 2008-09.
The 26-year-old Tillman finished last season with a 13-6 record and a 3.34 ERA in 34 starts covering 207 1/3 innings. He surpassed 200 innings for the second consecutive season.
In six major league seasons, Tillman has a 45-31 record and a 4.00 ERA in 118 career starts, including 67 the past two years.