Thursday, December 31, 2009

Base Hits: Rumors, Recaps and Rebounds

The year would not be complete without Wayward O's 2009 Recaptacular! Unmissable reading.

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SI's Jon Heyman reports today that the Orioles are still indeed interested in signing Matt Holliday even though Andy MacPhail vehemently denied similiar reports from Fox Sports yesterday.

"The Orioles are laying in the weeds on this," according to a person familiar with Baltimore's thinking...

A report that the Orioles offered Holliday $130 million over eight years was denied by Orioles president/GM Andy MacPhail in The Baltimore Sun. However, MacPhail did not deny interest in the three-time All-Star...

I would still tend to believe MacPhail on this because, as John Sickels laid out nicely last offseason, Heyman is often a media mouthpiece for Scott Boras.

But if Heyman turns out to be correct, MacPhail and The Warehouse take a huge credibility hit.

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At The Bleacher Report, someone calling himself the Baseball Professor lays out the case for a rebound season for Nick Markakis, at least in the fantasy baseball sense.

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Mike Bordick is returning to Baltimore as a minor league offensive coordinator. At first glance, I would rather have Bordick working with guys on infield defense (which he says he may do as well)...

Bordick, 44, will be responsible for working with the club's prospects on offensive fundamentals such as base running, bunting and situational hitting.

Bordick was a pretty good baserunner and bunter (from what I cann recall) but I hope this is not indicative of the Trembley philosophy of "hit and run" and "agressive baserunning" spreading to the whole organization.

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Dave Mc at Weaver's Tantrum offers some thoughts on the "lukewarm" Hot Stove season for the Orioles.


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An entertaining excercise as Dan of Camden Crazies tries to quantify just how bad a major league player he would be.
 
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