MASN Sports reports that Steve Johnson '05 will be called up to the Orioles' major league roster and could be available to pitch in relief as early as Monday, July 2, as the Orioles start a West Coast road trip.

According to MASN, Steve is 3-5 with a 2.73 ERA in 14 games at Triple-A Norfolk this year. He's allowed 43 hits, walked 24 and struck out 63 in 62.2 innings, and opponents are batting .194 against him.

Steve began the season at Norfolk as a starting pitcher, then was moved to the bullpen because the Tides were overloaded with starters. He's 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA in five games since moving to the bullpen, with one earned run (three total) and eight hits allowed, 10 walks and 24 strikeouts in 17 innings. He tossed five scoreless and hitless innings against Columbus on June 26, with two walks and eight strikeouts.

This will be the first major league experience for Steve, whose father, Dave, pitched for the Orioles from 1989-1991. Steve helped the Crusaders win back-to-back MIAA "A" Conference championships as a freshman and sophomore in 2002 and '03 while winning a total of 34 games during his extraordinary high school career. He became the first player ever to be named a four-time first-team Baltimore Sun All-Metro selection since the teams were first picked in 1960.

Steve is one of four Crusaders to have been selected in the major league baseball draft. This year John Kuchno '09, a pitcher at Ohio State, was selected in the 18th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates, joining Justin Singleton '97, Chad Durakis '04, and Johnson.