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<p>The last thing going through Matt Wotherspoon&#8217;s mind when he woke up Sunday in Pawtucket was the possibility of being traded.</p><p>In fact, he hadn&#8217;t pitched for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders since Wednesday, so it was likely he&#8217;d pitch that night against the Red Sox. He was getting himself ready for a possible relief appearance. One that never came.</p><p>Around 3:30 p.m. RailRiders manager Al Pedrique called the Crestwood grad into his office. New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman was on the phone. Wotherspoon had been traded to the Baltimore Orioles. The Yankees received international signing bonus pool money in return for the right-hander.</p><p>&#8220;I said to somebody being traded was probably the last thing on my mind today,&#8221; Wotherspoon said. &#8220;I&#8217;m really just excited. Just excited to be with the Orioles.&#8221;</p><p>The reliever quickly had to start shifting his focus to his future, one that no longer included playing for his hometown RailRiders. The 25-year-old was now a member of the Norfolk Tides, the Orioles&#8217; Triple-A affiliate.</p><p>Wotherspoon drove back to Moosic Sunday night to get his truck before joining his teammates in Norfolk on Monday.</p><p>&#8220;To be honest I was kind of speechless. It&#8217;s just something you&#8217;re not prepared for,&#8221; Wotherspoon said. &#8220;I&#8217;ve never pitched against Norfolk. I missed them when I was up here last year. I&#8217;m just excited.&#8221;</p><p>While the move is bittersweet, Wotherspoon does join the Tides in the midst of his best season as a pro.</p><p>The Mountain Top native is coming off of what is likely his best Triple-A game, pitching three perfect innings while striking out four in a spot start against the Syracuse Chiefs. It was a game the RailRiders would eventually win.</p><p>Wotherspoon&#8217;s appeared in 21 games this season &#8212; 21 for Double-A Trenton and six with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre &#8212; and has registered a 3-1 record and 1.85 ERA with 45 strikeouts in 39 innings pitched. His 2017 ERA is more than a full point lower than his career number (2.96).</p><p>&#8220;I feel good about where I&#8217;m at physically,&#8221; Wotherspoon said. &#8220;Throwing the baseball pretty well right now. I just have to continue throwing the ball well And hopefully I&#8217;ll get an opportunity.&#8221;</p><p>Wotherspoon now heads down an unfamiliar road &#8212; he&#8217;s a Baltimore Oriole now.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s definitely going to be challenging,&#8221; Wotherspoon said. &#8220;I think the hardest part is going to be kind of getting to know everybody in the organization. Now, when I&#8217;m walking into spring training in the spring I know everybody, everything. I know everybody besides the new draft guys. Those are probably the only guys I don&#8217;t know. That&#8217;s probably going to be the most challenging thing, just getting to know everybody, new faces and what not. But I&#8217;m excited to meet everybody.&#8221;</p><p>The Tides come to PNC Field for the first time this season on July 17 for a three-game set.</p><p>And Wotherspoon will go to the vistor&#8217;s clubhouse the first time, a place he doesn&#8217;t know exactly the location of.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Crestwood grad and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders reliever Matt Wotherspoon was traded to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday. Aimee Dilger file photo | Times Leader</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/web1_TTL061517Wotherspoon3201772182823292-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Crestwood grad and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders reliever Matt Wotherspoon was traded to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday. Aimee Dilger file photo | Times Leader</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Crestwood grad traded to Orioles</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By DJ Eberle</p><p>djeberle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach DJ Eberle at 570-991-6398 or on Twitter @ByDJEberle</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Crestwood grad and SWB RailRiders reliever Matt Wotherspoon traded to Baltimore Orioles