The end of the second week of spring training games is upon us, so lets see how these position battles are shaking out.
Before the season I listed 5 things to watch:
1. Pie versus Reimold - Felix Pie is hitting .250/.250/.350 still with just the two doubles over 20 plate appearances and, characteristically, no strikeouts or walks. Nolan Reimold is hitting .308/.471/.577 with 2 homers, 7 walks and 5 strikeouts over 33 plate appearances. Reimold is not only outhitting Pie by a large margin, he's getting a longer look this spring. With Derrek Lee's injury, they may both make the Opening Day roster, at least for a while.
2. Chris Tillman versus Jake Arrieta - Arreita has a 3.60 ERA, Tillman has a 7.20 ERA. However, Tillman's peripherals are better (0 HR, 4 K, 1BB) than Arrieta's (1 HR, 2 K, 2 BB) I haven;t seen either of them to see how hard one or the other is getting hit. Zach Britton has been moved up to starter with Tillman working in relief for today's game. A sign of things to come? At the moment, it does not look good for Tillman.
3. Brian Roberts Rebound - Sidelined with neck spasms early, now he is sidelined with back spasms. Not good.
4. The Battle for the Backup Backstop - Craig Tatum got up off the mat and is hitting .300/.333/.350 after last night's game. However, Tatum only has 21 plate appearances. Jake Fox has 30 and has posted a line of .367/.367/.767 with three homers and three doubles. Fox is getting the longer looks this spring and is hitting very well. And he has not embarrassed himself behind the plate. Fox has the edge.
5. Who's the Backup Middle Infielder? - None of the candidates has hit. Cesar Izturis has been hurt but is hitting .250/.250/.357 so far and probably has the job by default at this point.
Further developments: Koji Uehara threw on flat ground yesterday...Some beat writers believe that Ryan Drese has pitched well enough this spring to insert himself into the competition for the 5th starter. Drese has not pitched in the majors since 2006 or in affiliated ball since 2008...I saw Jeremy Accardo for the first time last night. He's getting groundball, throwing strikes and has yet to allow a run this spring. If he pans out, kudos to the Oriole scouting team for rescuing him from the Toronto farm system he has been buried in for the last two seasons...Ryan Adams might be a better prospect than I thought. He has decent power and a good approach at the plate. His fielding needs some work but if he's passable, the bat might play. He should get to (if not starts in) AAA at age 24 this season. I'll be curious to see how he does...Top prospect Zach Britton is coming up on the outside in the rotation competition. He has given up no earned runs and his peripherals and ground ball rates look great...Rule 5 pick Adrian Rosario has been wild and has a 9.00 ERA. The team can arrange a trade for him with the Brewers but he looks like a wasted pick at this point...Meanwhile, RHP Pedro Beato has a 1.80 ERA for the Mets but the peripherals are not so good for him. RHP Pat Egan has a 0.00 ERA but only two appearances for the Brewers. Both may be offered back to Baltimore or in Egan's case, he could be swapped for Adrian Rosario.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Spring Training Updates: Week 2
Friday, January 28, 2011
Why Signing Vlad Guerrero is a Bad Idea
As much as I hate commenting on hypothetical moves, it seems I'm already arguing about them on Twitter. So now I will elaborate as to why I am not thrilled with the idea of Vladimir Guerrero coming to Baltimore next season.
1. Vlad Guererro isn't Vlad Guerrero Anymore
From 1996 to 2007, Vlad was a monster. He hit .325/.391/.591 with 365 home runs and an OPS+ of 148. However, for the last 3 seasons he has hit .300/.350/.496 with 71 homers and an OPS+ of 121. That's a good hitter but not a great one. In addition, he can no longer play the field anymore. So given that he is no longer a monster at the plate...
2. Vlad Won't Help This Team That Much
If I believed the Orioles were going to contend this year, loading up on veteran help would make a lot of sense and would be banging the drum loudly for this signing. But this team is not a contender. Not this year. I figured that if everything goes perfectly and Vlad repeats his performance from last year, he might be worth a couple extra wins. Dan at Camden Crazies broke it down some more and figures Vlad would only be worth one win, maybe. So will it make that big a difference if this team wins 73 games instead of 71 or 72? I don't see how. Besides...
3. We Already Have A DH Who Hits Like Vlad
Over the past three seasons, Vlad has an .845 OPS. Luke Scott also has an .845 OPS over that span. In addition, he can still play the outfield or first base making him a versatile and valuable player. But why couldn't the team move Scott back out to left field and let Vlad DH full time? Well they could but...
4. Vlad Robs Young Hitters of At Bats
Vlad's signing would push Scot to left field, Felix Pie to the bench and Nolan Reimold to Norfolk. And that's fine. But what if Reimold goes to AAA and starts tearing it up for a couple months like he did in 2009? Assuming health for all the OF/1B/DH's involved, there is nowhere for him to play. Or by some chance, Brandon Snyder puts it together and tears up the International League. Without Vlad, Snyder could come up and DH with Scott moving to left. Not possible with Vlad on the roster. Ditto for Josh Bell.
At this point, it's more important for Pie and Reimold to get the at bats so the team can see if they will be useful nuggets going forward and to have flexibility to call up hitters from Norfolk who are deserving of promotion.
This team isn't going to win or lose because of Vlad Guerrero. Its fortune ride on the offensive development of Matt Wieters, Adam Jones, Felix Pie and Nolan Reimold and on the advances Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman, Jake Arrieta and (possibly) Zach Britton make on the mound. An aging DH isn't going to make or break this team. So leave him alone and let the guys who are a decade younger play ball.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Three Things I Learned from the Bill James Handbook
If you haven't caught on yet, I got the 2011 Edition of the Bill James Handbook this week. Here's some nuggets from 2010 I've uncovered.
Opponent OBP
R. Halladay .289
C. Lee .294
C. Sabathia .297
J. Weaver .301
F. Hernandez .304
J. Beckett .306
S. Baker .308
J. Verlander .308
J. Guthrie .310
J. Shields .310
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Around the Oriole Blog-O-Sphere: Arbitration Edition
Sully Baseball thinks teams should beware of the Orioles in 2011.
And he's not the only one. NESN's Tony Lee thinks that the AL East will get even tougher as the Orioles and Blue Jays improve.
The Orioles will be scouring the waiver wire for players who are not tendered contracts this weekend. And they may not tender one member of their bullpen. Guess who?
If you've been living in a cave for the past week and haven't seen the Felix Pie meltdown, enjoy.
Steve Giles of the Baltimore Sports Report ponders what it will mean now that top pitching prospect Zach Britton has signed with Scott Boras. Although I think Steve's outlook is a bit of the Pollyanna treatment, Baltimore won't have to worry about Boras vis a vis Britton for a few years anyway.
Call to the Pen takes a look at his Top 100 Prospects list and feels there is a bleak outlook for Baltimore down on the farm. I disagree...a bit. More on that later.
What has 13 straight losing seasons wrought? Some October Refugees. Chris Jaffe of The Hardball Times takes a look at the best players of the Wild Card era to never play in the postseason. Baltimore is represented, as you would expect.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Preseason Predictions Revisited
As the season heads into its final week, it seemed like a good time to revisit my preseason predictions. As it turns out, they were fairly optimistic so they were also largely wrong. Here we go.
* Garrett Atkins won't be a regular with this team by June 15th. Somebody has to come to their senses. Nice clutch hitting in Tampa but that can't last.
Done and done. He was released before the end of June.
* Nick Markakis...breakout! Enos Slaughter for the new millennium. I recycling this from last season.
Yeah. Maybe someday but I'm done expecting anything more than average production from Nick at this point. Wrong.
* Brian Matusz....breakout! Don't be surprised if Matusz is having Tim Lincecum-type success (without the gawdy strikeout totals...but damn good ones) by the second half of the season.
Second half stats from Matusz and Lincecum over their first full season:
K/9 BB/9 K/BB WHIP HR ERA Matusz 7.0 3.2 2.19 1.30 8 4.27 Lincecum 8.6 4.0 2.15 1.30 5 3.38
Matusz has certainly improved as the season has gone along but not quite to the level I had expected. Close though. The walks are down, the strikeouts are up. Things are moving in the right direction.
* Matt Wieters...breakout! I'm going with the Keith Law prediction of "well over .300 with 20-25 homers" for his sophomore season.
Really wrong on this one. Wieters has actually taken a step back. Not a good sign.
* Adam Jones....no breakout! It would be hard to call this a breakout since he was pretty good last year but I expect that this is the year Jones starts to show people that Adrian Gonzalez is not necessary because the Orioles already have a bat as good in centerfield. Look for an average around .300 with something approaching 25 homers.
Not exactly. If you take away his hideous April, he looks like a guy who can hit at those levels. But he has basically held steady on his production from last year. Wrong.
* 80 wins. That's my guess. And with a little luck...you never know.
You wonder what would have happened if Buck Showalter was managing back in April. But the Orioles were lucky to avoid 100 losses. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
* Ben McDonald becomes a surprise hit on MASN.
He's been fine but no better than Brady Anderson.
* Kevin Millwood 2010 = Rick Sutcliffe 1992
It started out that way but certainly didn't end up there. Sutcliffe finished 1992 with 3.1 WAR for the Orioles. Millwood has 0.9 WAR. Millwood almost met the minimal expectations: league average pitching and eating innings. He pitched 180+ innings, which was good, but a 5.29 ERA is only good for an ERA+ of 80, which is not so good. Wrong.
* Felix Pie forces something this summer...a trade, a position change....something.
Pie has kind of made himself the forerunner for the LF job in 2011 since his return from injury earlier in the season. But a batting line of .274/.304/.401 isn't going to lock it down for him. Thus, I doubt the team makes any moves assuming that Pie will be the man. Not so much on this one.
That was kind of depressing. Anyone ready for 2011?
Friday, August 27, 2010
Stealing Signs: A Study of Pie
Mark Buerhle accused Felix Pie of stealing signs last night.
Quite frankly, that's just fine with me. Baltimore still has marginal talent and still could use every edge they can get to win games.
But Pie was only on second base (the traditional place a runner needs to be to steal signs), and that was during a Cesar Izturis groundout in the 6th.
Maybe Buerhle thoughtt he team was stealing signs all game. Maybe but every hit of consequence for the O's came with nobody on second. Matt Wieters doubled in Pie in the 5th but Pie was on first. Runners were on first and third when Corey Patterson singled to drive in Wieters later that inning. It was the same in the 6th when Wieters his a sac fly to plate Ty Wigginton and there was nobody on when Brian Roberts hit his solo shot in the 7th.
It is rare for hitters to steal signs from first base (although not unheard of) but even if Baltimore was stealing signs, it doesn't appear to by why they got the big hits on Wednesday night.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Nolan Reimold To The Rescue?
From the Oriole Insider blog on BaltimoreSun.com:
Monday, April 19, 2010
Felix Pie May Be Out for 3 Months
The only bright side to this is the outfield depth the O's have...
Roch Kubatko is reporting that Felix Pie has a back injury and could miss up to three months:
Pie went on the disabled list April 16 with an injury classified as a strained muscle in his upper back, but further examination today revealed a more serious problem.
There's been no talk of surgery, and Pie is debating whether to stay here or report to Sarasota to rehab after an extended period of rest.
President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail confirmed the injury a few minutes ago and compared it to the one suffered by reliever Jim Miller a few years ago.
"Left alone, I'm told - and they have significant medical information on this - the thing will heal itself as quickly or more quickly than if you did something on a surgical basis," MacPhail said. "But it's going to take some time to go through the process that it has to go through."
Not great news given that Pie looked to be a much improved player at the plate in 2010 and certainly looked better in the field than he did at the beginning of 2009.I suppose the bright side is that Nolan Reimold and Luke Scott will be playing nearly every day.
Lou Montanez, your time has come. You wanted an opportunity and this is it.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Raw Power...Again. This Time with Splits!
I was playing around with the new splits over on FanGraphs.com and discovered that they had batting stats for various zones of the field. So I broke down the ISO stats for some of the Oriole hitters to see where their power was for 2009
Nick Markakis
Split ISO as L to Left 0.138 as L to Center 0.126 as L to Right 0.291
Not surprising that Nick's power comes when he pulls the ball toward Eutaw Street. 14 of his 18 homers went to rightfield. But there is power to right as he hit 24 doubles while going the other way.
Brian Roberts
Split ISO as L to Left 0.089 as L to Center 0.087 as L to Right 0.448 as R to Left 0.101 as R to Center 0.182 as R to Right 0.125
When Brian Roberts is batting lefthanded, don't let him turn on one. He hit 15 of his 16 homers to right while batting lefty as well as 20 doubles. His righthanded power is more modest but more evenly distributed.
Luke Scott
Split ISO as L to Left 0.097 as L to Center 0.368 as L to Right 0.325
I've always thought of Scott as a dead pull hitter and he's got some great power to right but his power is even better to center. 12 of his 25 homers went to center.
Nolan Reimold
Split ISO as R to Left 0.288 as R to Center 0.215 as R to Right 0.143
Good power to the pull side, pretty good up the middle to. Even going the other way is not bad with 5 extra base hits over only 358 ABs.
Matt Wieters
Split ISO as L to Left 0.269 as L to Center 0.085 as L to Right 0.167 as R to Left 0.139 as R to Center 0.250 as R to Right 0.108
The splits for Wieters are uneven but his power as a lefty to left field is what kept me encouraged during his early struggles. Even when he was swinging late, he still showed fantastic opposite field power. 5 of his 9 homers went to the opposite field.
Adam Jones
Split ISO as R to Left 0.321 as R to Center 0.110 as R to Right 0.213
Power to the pull side. Jones did hit all 3 of his triples to right as well as 3 homers displaying good opposite field power.
Felix Pie
Split ISO as L to Left 0.153 as L to Center 0.224 as L to Right 0.273
This is what is so tantalizing about Felix Pie. His power is close to Reimold's output and he's a fantastic defender. It's easy to see him pushing his way into the lineup during Spring Training. If Reimold is DH'ing as he works himself back into shape after Achilles surgery, Pie will have ample opportunity to impress in Sarasota.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Could Nolan Reimold or Luke Scott Play First?
This comment under my Luke Scott post got me thinking...
Replace Atkins with Pie and that lineup is a thing of beauty. It would go
S L R L R S R L S
No consecutive batters from the same side. Man I wish Trembley would let Reimold or Scott play 1st.
math_geek
First, I hadn't realized how well balanced the handedness was in my sample lineup.
But really it got me thinking about first base. Why couldn't Nolan Reimold or Luke Scott play first on a regular basis? You could still sub in Atkins to add flexibility and give Reimold his reps in left. But replacing Atkins with Pie would give the O's the best offensive lineup.
CHONE Projections for the players involved:
OPS Atkins .739 Reimold .832 Scott .808 Pie .767
Even Pie is projected to be a significantly better hitter than Garret Atkins. And even if we assume average fielding from Reimold in left, Pie is a big upgrade with the glove.
Reimold and Scott would both be big offensive upgrades over Atkins but how big is the difference in their defense? For his career at first base, his UZR is -6.3. That's only over 708+ innings and is a bit of a small sample size. We'll bump him up to -.3 UZR and give him the benefit of the doubt.
Now, we can measure this in terms of WAR. How badly would Scott or Reimold have to play at first to offset the offense they bring to the table. Plugging some values into the WAR spreadsheet, this is what I came up with. (I am assuming all will be equal baserunners.)
UZR Scott -19.0 Reimold -26.0
The worst defensive first baseman (of regulars) in baseball last year was Billy Butler. His UZR was -7.4. You will occasionally see a guy have a season with -16, -18 UZR (Mike Jacobs had a -19.4 UZR in 2008) but it would be virtually impossible for Scott or (especially) Reimold to play first base so badly that they would offset their much improved bats.
The best choice would be to make Scott the everyday first baseman, rotate Pie and Reimold through LF/CF/DH with Adam Jones and bring Atkins off the bench.
But that's not happening.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Base Hits: In the Company of Felix Pie, Risky (Arms) Business, More Japanese Imports and Minor Transactions
Hey Oriole fans! Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving. Not a ton went on in Birdland last week but there were a few things I would like to comment on...
MASN's Steve Melewski reports that Andy MacPhail is willing to take a chance on some "high risk, high reward" arms like Erik Bedard and Ben Sheets this offseason. By proxy, I think you can include Rich Harden in that discussion.
If you can't get John Lackey, (and my other favorite to throw money at this offseason, Tim Hudson, is back off the market) this is not a bad way to go. A rotation of Erik Bedard, Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman, Jeremy Guthrie and Brad Bergesen is actually, at least, a competent rotation to open the year with.
The Orioles can afford to take a chance on a short term deal on an injury-prone pitcher due to a lot of money coming off the budget and that there are the likes of Jake Arrietta, David Hernandez and Jason Berken in the wings to fill in those potential missed starts.
Besides, how funny would it be to bring back Bedard with Adam Jones patrolling center, Tillman following him in the rotation and Kam Mickolio warming up to relieve him?
*****
Speaking of trades, the Cubs have traded RP Aaron Heilman to the Arizona Diamondbacks for prospects.
What does this have to do with the Orioles? Last offseason, the O's traded SP Garrett Olson and RP Henry Williamson to the Cubs for Felix Pie. The Cubs in turn sent Olson and IF Ronny Cedeno to Seattle for Heilman.
So the Cubs traded away Felix Pie and Ronny Cedeno and netted minor leaguers Williamson (a minor league career 4.46 ERA), RP Scott Maine (a middling relief prospect) and 1B Ryne White (career minor league OPS .754). Hmmm. That's not a great haul.
Of all the players that traded hands in these deals, the Orioles got the best player. And it's not really close.
*****
The Orioles claimed C Craig Tatum off waivers from the Reds last week. The guy has a good defensive reputation and lately has hit lefties well. May be an interesting guy to watch in Spring Training since the backup catcher spot is currently unoccupied.
*****
Farewell to P Rad Liz who was removed from the 40-man roster and claimed off waivers by the Padres.
Liz certainly had his issues and may never develop the control to pitch at the major league level but the O's did him no favors last season by declaring that he would be groomed as a reliever and then procedded to jerk him back and forth from the rotation to the 'pen.
Good luck Mr. Liz.
*****
In my last installment of Base Hits, I wondered if Japanese pitcher Hisanori Takahashi would consider joining his former teammate Koji Uehara in Baltimore next season. Well, according to NPB Tracker, the Orioles are indeed interested in speaking with Takahashi about pitching for Baltimore in 2010. However, scouting director John Stockstill said that the Orioles would not offer him a contract until January if interested.
*****
I love flipflopflyball.com. In this graphic, you can see that Oriole starters pitched fewer innings than any other starting staff in baseball. Which is hardly surprising...
Friday, September 4, 2009
Base Hits: 100 Losses, Sarasota Awaits and Revisiting Felix Pie
Since 100 losses seems to have reared its ugly head again, (many consider it a foregone conclusion), let's see how bad it would have to get for the O's to reach the century mark.
For the Orioles to lose 100 games, they would have to go 8-20 to close out the season. Their month by month records for 2009:
Record
Mar/April 9-13
May 14-15
June 12-14
July 9-16
August 10-20
Baltimore is already 0-2 in September so it would take an 8-22 record for September and October to reach such lows. Throughout this interminable drought of winning seasons, the Orioles have flirted with that level of futility but only achieved it once: last September when they went 5-20.
There are more games left due to playing into the first week of October but even if the Orioles swept the Rangers this weekend they could go 5-20 to finish the year and lose 100 games.
The Orioles are not going to sweep the Rangers. With Adam Jones and Brad Bergesen shut down for the season and Chris Tillman and Brian Matusz soon to follow...this hopeful fan is losing hope.
It's quite possible at this point that we will see triple digit losses for the first time since 1988. (And we still won't get the first overall pick...the Nationals have 8 games on us.)
*****
Sarasota sees the last FSL game at Ed Smith Stadium (by the Reds affiliate) of the season and for the foreseeable future as the Baltimore Orioles prepare to move their Spring Training home there in 2010.
The Florida State League is a high A league and while I can't imagine the O's changing affiliations from Frederick to Sarasota, I also can't imagine them doing nothing with Ed Smith Stadium. The GCL Orioles maybe?
*****
Baseball America has a spotlight article on Oriole prospect and Frederick Key Zach Britton. (subscription only) The key to his success?
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Britton throws a four-seam fastball, changeup and slider. His out pitch has been an exceptional sinker.
"It's not a two-seam grip, its an actual sinker grip which I learned from (Scott McGregor) our pitching coach in (short-season) Aberdeen," Britton said. "I kind of throw it with a type of curveball grip, which gives it a little more sink and gets more ground balls. I throw it about 50 percent of the time when I'm throwing fastballs."
According to MinorLeagueSplits.com, Britton has induced grounders at a 65% rate in 2009. Nothing wrong with a sinkerballer in Camden Yards.
*****
As you probably know, Adam Jones sprained his ankle during the Yankee series and will likely miss the rest of the season. That sucks.
However, Felix Pie will be a regular in the outfield for the rest of the season. That is awesome.
If you've been reading the blog this season, you know that I have been a strident supporter of Pie remaining the Oriole. I backed him when Lou Montanez outplayed him during Spring Training, I backed him when he struggled to start the season and only relegated him to "the 4th outfielder" when Nolan Reimold was called up and showed he was more deserving of an everyday role. But I still believed in Pie and thought that Dave Trembley wasn't utilizing him enough as a defensive replacement or pinch runner. (Even with his early season struggles in left, Pie has been the best defender in the Baltimore outfield this year.)
So this silver lining to a bad injury, these 28 games of opportunity are Pie's shot. Maybe they keep him in left and move Reimold to first. Maybe they trade Pie (or Reimold(!!!)) in a package for a veteran pitcher or young third baseman. Regardless, I believe Pie will increase his value to the team, either as trade bait or a player in September.
*****
Off topic.
I love the Baltimore Orioles. No surprise. But I live and die with my beloved Washington Redskins just as much, if not more.
The team under Daniel Snyder has been frustrating. They underachieve, the front office signs aging players, there is a coaching merry-go-round and all of it never seems to gel right. But I'm an Orioles fan. I know how to root for a loser.
The team gouges its fans. Parking, concessions and tickets are ridiculously expensive. They charge admission to training camp. They have a captive, loyal audience that they milk for every dime they can. But I've excused it because pro football is a TV game anyway (in my opinion) and I'm all for a guy making a buck. Football is a business too.
But this may be the last straw...the team is suing fans who default on their (insane) 10 year season ticket contracts. Including 72-year-old grandmothers like Pat Hill:
On Oct. 8, the Redskins sued Hill in Prince George's County Circuit Court for backing out of a 10-year ticket-renewal agreement after the first year. The team sought payment for every season through 2017, plus interest, attorneys' fees and court costs...
Hill is one of 125 season ticket holders who asked to be released from multiyear contracts and were sued by the Redskins in the past five years. The Washington Post interviewed about two dozen of them. Most said that they were victims of the economic downturn, having lost a job or experiencing some other financial hardship.
OK, if someone can't or doesn't pay for their season tickets, the team is well within their rights to revoke the fan's claim on those seats and sell them elsewhere. Redskin season tickets are still a hot commodity; those won't be empty seats for long.
But to sue for the entire value of the ten-year contract? Your biggest fans? And you're the richest team in the NFL?
It's too much. I'm taking a break. I can't root for the Redskins this year. time to find a new team for 2009...and maybe beyond.
Boooo, Mr Snyder! Booooo!
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Base Hits: 7/8/2009
This story was somewhat troubling to me. Pie and Salazar, two guys I have championed, are drawing interest from other teams in terms of trades.
Obviously, the merits of trading either of them would depend on who they got in return. If the O's got less back for Pie, I would be OK with that. The starting outfield positions are set and the Orioles have internal options for 4th outfielders in the organization (Lou Montanez, Joey Gathright, even Jeff Fiorentino). Better to get something for Pie than lose him on waivers. Salazar is another matter. I think he's already a better option at third than Melvin Mora (a player who will not be back next year) and I don't know why you would move a guy who provides some depth at the corner infield positions when that need will be glaring in 2010. Salazar provides a good bat and flexibility as he can play the corner outfield spots, third and first.
Hopefully, Salazar sticks here. If someone has to go, Pie makes the most sense.
Of course, someday we may be looking back at this and wondering why we were in such a rush to bring back Cesar Izturis in the first place. Robert Andino has displayed much better range in the field and is cheaper to boot. The only reason Izturis is starting at short for this team is the roughly $7.5 million he is owed for the rest of his contract.
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B.J. Ryan was released by the Blue Jays today. The Jays are not released from their financial obligation however and will have to pay Ryan about $15 million to finish out his contract. That's $47 million for 75 saves.
The Orioles were criticized as being cheap when they let him go to Toronto but sometimes it's just a smart move not to pay the big money.
*****
Replays? We don't need no stinking replays?
Dave Trembley on the edge of madness after last night's ejection.
Evidence that Dave Trembley is a cyborg:
1) He hasn't slept in a week.
2) He can replay all the team's plays in his head.
3) That odd resemblance to T.J. Hooker.
4) The built-in lie detector. Once he determined that Nolan Reimold was telling the truth about being past second base during the errant throw in the first, he really went ballistic.
Classic Trembley quote:
"You laugh, you think I'm funny. You have no idea what I've gone through. No idea. I can't talk for a week now, my hat is a mess."
*****
Who is Eric Crozier?
Eric Crozier is a former 41st round pick of the Cleveland Indians. He had a cup of coffee with the Blue Jays back in 2004 but he has bounced around the minors since and in 2008 he signed with the independent Atlantic League team, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. In the cultural and baseball purgatory that is Waldorf, MD, Crozier posted an .856 OPS hitting .265 with 13 homers. Hardly the stuff of legend.
This year, however, Crozier hit .314 with 8 homers in 50 games for the Blue Crabs and an OBP north of .400. The Orioles came to take a look and about three weeks ago, signed him and put him on the Baysox. In 18 games, Crozier has destroyed Southern League pitching slugging .574 and OPSing .959. Interesting "depth signing" for the Orioles and an interesting player to keep an eye on.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Miscellaneous Ramblings on the Orange and Black
The tie goes to Pie!
How can anyone not like Pie? Clapping like a maniac after he's safe and third and he's the first one out of the dugout to mob Aubrey Huff after his game winning hit. You can tell this guy loves to play and instead of getting down about his lack of playing time, he savors each morsel of the game like a juicy peach. Hope the guy sticks around as a 4th outfielder.
Peter Schmuck points to Pie's hustle as the key to last night's victory:
For all the complaints this year about Felix Pie, you have to give him credit for turning a pinch running assignment into a game-turning play. He flew into third to beat the throw on Brian Roberts' sacrifice bunt and that was the play that unraveled Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez. He had trouble finding the plate after that and walked Adam Jones to drive in the tying run.
Games like last night remind you why you're a fan.
Dave Trembley cannot win. He yanks Koji Uehara after 5 innings on Wednesday and gets it from the fans for having a quick hook. He lets Jason Berken pitch into the 7th and gets it from the fans for leaving him in to long.
1B Brandon Snyder is heading to Norfolk! Snyder put up a .347/.420/.607 line at Bowie and is still just 22. Nice to see some of these prospects forcing the hand of the powers that be to get promoted ahead of schedule.
Speaking of the minors, visiting this link from FirstInning.com on a daily basis gives you a one-stop shop for all the Oriole's minor league box scores from the night before. Quick way to keep up with the many Orioles top prospects.
If you're going to lie, stick with it. From this article on Mark Teixeira and his dad:
"My greatest memories as a kid were playing sports with my dad and watching sports with my dad," Teixeira said. "Going to Orioles games, watching football on TV at home -- those were great memories.
C'mon, Mark. Say it with me. "Going to Orioles games...to watch my hero, Yankees first baseman, Don Mattingly!" You gotta sell the lie and sell it hard and often.
Mark's dad was a Naval officer. I suppose I could make a cheap shot about the duplicitous nature of some Naval officers I had dealings with...but I'll refrain.
A quick word from Philadelphia:
Phillies Nation:
(The Orioles) are a team the Phillies should be able to beat. I’m expecting to see a lot of crooked numbers on the scoreboard this weekend. Bastardo might have another rough go of it, and hopefully he can mix in some more off-speed pitches and breaking balls to fool the O’s batters on Friday night.
Maybe. The Phillies have a lot of good hitters but Raul Ibanez is on the DL. The O's should be able to put up a few crooked numbers themselves. The rematch of the 1983 World Series starts today!
Man, I love when the Orioles play the NL East. 6-3 versus that division so far. Here's hoping they keep it up.
photo credit: AP
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Base Hits: 5/20/2009
Chris Ray is sporting an ERA north of 8.00...and that's a problem. Has he lost his fastball? Not really. His average fastball speed is 94 mph which is a couple mph off his 2007 levels but it's still not bad. But he doesn't trust his fastball anymore.
He used to work off his fastball, now not so much. He went from throwing it 72% of the time to throwing it less than half of the time. The slider and, to a greater extent, his change up are far more prominent and the results have not been good.
Why doesn't he believe in his fastball? It seems like he's still getting good horizontal movement but not quite as much movement vertically. Maybe that's the issue? Regardless, it's time for Ray to go to Norfolk to work it out. Matt Albers was better than this.
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As a fan of baseball and Jack Kerouac, I knew that he had concocted his own imaginary league of baseball teams that he played for much of his life. But I had never seen the evidence of those leagues until this week. Great stuff.
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Pie in May - .286/.355/.536
Montanez in May - .226/.294/.387
Which one needs to go to Norfolk when Scott comes back?
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Another great installment of the Eutaw Street Chronicles over at Roar From 34.
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Jay Trucker of the Examiner is not thrilled about new Baltimore Sun sports columnist Kevin Cowherd and pulls no punches...
In your "introduction," you noted that you covered sports for The Evening Sun from 1981 to 1987. I’m sure that if you want to, you will once again be an excellent addition to the Baltimore sports writing dialogue. But be forewarned. This isn’t 1987. Slip up, and you will have to deal with more than a letter to the editor or two. If you take a nap at your typewriter, awaken 20 minutes before a deadline, and rattle off 300 words explaining that Jeremy Guthrie’s “lack of fire” and “mental weakness” are to blame for his recent pitching woes, I will retaliate -- with facts and empiricism.
I don't disagree with many of Trucker's assertions in genereal. But shouldn't we wait until Cowherd writes his first baseball column, Jay?
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The Loss Column is concerned about Dave Trembley's habit of pulling starters after six innings or after 100 pitches.
I think the issue is that we don't have any pitchers capable of going more than 6 innings. Only Jeremy Guthrie would qualify and he has not performed up to expectations. More a function of personnel than managing.
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This is pretty cool. The Norfolk Tides are now putting game highlights up on YouTube. Here's the highlights from yesterday's game:
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Here Comes Nolan...
I had an Oriole history post all ready to go and the Warehouse makes this announcement...
Nolan Reimold (he of the .394/.485/743 line in Norfolk) is coming to Baltimore. Dave Trembley commented that he didn't know what Reimold's role would be but up to this point the party line has been to put him in left and let him play. I expect that will be what happens.
The fact that they called up Reimold is bad news for fans in regards to Adam Jones and Luke Scott. It means that the club believes that one or both are heading for the DL.
The silver lining is that it gives Felix Pie still more time to put it together. Lost in all the negativity about Pie's start this season, he is hitting .417/.500/.750 for the month of May. If Jones' hamstring troubles linger, he'll get a long look in center and may prove to be a good 4th outfielder.
Montanez looks to get the bulk of the DH at bats if Scott goes on the DL.
Interesting times. Injuries on a team like Baltimore are sometimes a good thing when you have young players waiting in the wings.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Centerfielder Fear Factor
Says Jones: "I got a bat in my hand. I'm not going to go up there swinging gingerly. I got three strikes and I'm just trying to make the best of it up there."
That seems to be working.
Adam Jones: Keeping American League pitchers up at night since 2009.
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In other news, Oriole legend Brooks Robinson reveals that he has been battling prostate cancer. Happy to see that he is doing better and wish him good health in the future.
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Felix Pie was in the hospital with severe stomach pain. I don't think it's any coincidence that he left the game after laying out for a ball. The O's could use this situation for a convenient DL trip, clearing the way for a Nolan Reimold tryout. Just a thought...
Monday, May 11, 2009
Random Thoughts from Weekend Baseball
I really don't know whether to be encouraged that Jeremy Guthrie battled so hard after that bad first inning on Friday or concerned that he gave up his league leading 8th home run in 7 starts in said inning.
Luis Montanez hit .300 last week, Felix Pie .333. Competition is a good thing? BTW if Luke Scott goes on the DL, it's a huge blow to the Orioles offense. But it does give Pie and Montanez more opportunites.
Matt Wieters has hit 4 doubles in his last five games and is now hitting over .300 again.
If there was ever one thing you needed to point to that would demonstrate the superiority of American League talent to National League talent, it would be Fernando Tatis. The guy was washed up and couldn't even stick with the Orioles, one of the worst teams in the AL. Now, for the past two years, he sees significant playing time for the Mets, a NL team that is considered a serious contender.
Speaking of the Mets...what kind of throw is this?
Can we get Koji a win? Just one win? He's strung together five straight quality starts. How about just a little win for the brother?
Ryan Freel debuted as a Cub today, getting a pinch hit...and then promptly getting picked off second base. At least he ducked this time...
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Around the Orioles Blogsophere - 5/5/09
...but first a quick stop off at Rob Neyer's blog on ESPN.com who make a solid point about patience and the case of Felix Pie:
How many more chances do you give him? I don't know, exactly. What I do know is that in Brady Anderson's first three seasons, his line was .216/.305/.301 in nearly a thousand plate appearances. He was awful in his fourth season, too. And he was significantly older than Pie, without the Triple-A credentials...But the Orioles didn't give up on Brady Anderson when he was 27, and they shouldn't give up on Felix Pie when he's 24. Especially not in a vain pursuit of fourth place.
Correct. Unless there's something going on behind the scenes, you stick with Pie until at least mid-season.
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Along those same lines, Frost King looks back at the month of April and makes some discoveries about Felix Pie and Lou Montanez:
Pie's defense hasn't been as advertised yet (it's only been about average in LF) but his bat hasn't been as bad as it's looked. A .194 BABIP despite a 23% line-drive rate will definitely not continue, and his increased walk rate (from 7.8% to 10.5%) and decreased strike-out rate (from 34.9% to 27.5%) are both good signs. He needs to be given plenty of at bats to work through this....
Maybe Luis shouldn't have talked so much about being over-looked for a spot on the team. Pie has shown the better underlying stats, and has the higher ceiling...
Go to the blog to see more supporting numbers but, again, he's right. Common wisdom is to dump Pie or give him a reduced role. He's performed a bit better than the basic numbers show.
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While not necessarily referring to Felix Pie, Ben at Oriole Central is urging fans with short memories to be patient:
I understand (and want) the O's to win now like everyone else. What I don't understand is the irrationality and impatience like Rick Maese advocates to call up every prospect now to Baltimore and throw them to wolves.This is the exact flawed logic that has screwed up pretty much every viable Oriole prospect for the past decade, Nick Markakis not withstanding. Garrett Olson, Adam Loewen, Hayden Penn, Daniel Cabrera, Radhames Liz, and every other pitching prospect including Erik Bedard (took him awhile didn't it) are examples how this get them up NOW to give us something is a horrible route to take. I don't like seeing Adam Eaton in the rotation either, but I'd rather bite the bullet on what's going to be another lost season and let Chris Tillman work on his control in the minors where he belongs.
He is correct! (I feel like John McLaughlin...)
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Jay Trucker recaps last night's win and looks forward to tonight's matchup:
The Orioles conclude their series against Tampa with an inexplicable 4:08 pm game. They are putting steel-ribbed Koji Uehara on the mound to face the Rays' Matt Garza.
Which gave me an endorsement idea for Koji...he could play the Jimmy Rollins role.
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Roar from 34 gets creative with an Oriole advice column...
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Wayward O also makes a good point about a managing gaffe is last night's win...
and yet Wayward O must this rainy tuesday morning chide manager for not inserting pinch runner for ZAUN when ZAUN hit double in eighth inning...let's say b-rob singles to right instead of going big fly. if pie is pinch running from 2nd there is a 84.57% chance he scores. as the game stood, there was a 13.87% chance of ZAUN scoring in same scenario.
Wayward O is not statistician but single to right scenario is far more likely there than home run.
In retrospect, it was a very odd (non)move...
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Patrick Smith of Bugs and Cranks looks at George Sherrill's closing duties and makes a fantastic Glengarry Glen Ross reference in the process.
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Speaking of Sherrill, Weaver's Tantrum runs down the options in case he is permanently unseated as the Oriole closer.
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Finally, the Toy Department blog at BaltimoreSun.com has a fine article catching up with former Oriole catcher Gus Triandos. Their "Catching Up..." series is riveting stuff to the diehard Oriole fan.
