What should O’s fans be looking out for this Spring Training?

As I type this, it is about 15 degrees outside and the wind chill makes it feel even colder. Weather like this can’t help but make you think about how you can’t wait for winter to be over and spring to begin. Well, my unofficial start to spring comes this week, when pitchers and catchers report for the Orioles. They report on Feb 19th, with the rest of the team set to report by the 24th.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

Spring Training is largely about getting ready for the season but for some, it means a lot more than that. The Orioles team is largely set. We basically know who is on the team with the exception of a few roster spots.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the story-lines for this spring.

Note: These are not listed in a particular order of significance.

1) How does Jimenez look?

The Orioles gave Jimenez a large contract last year and he did everything he could to make that contract look bad. The hope is that his shortened off-season caused him issues last year and those carried on throughout the season. He has to get the walk rate down and getting the velocity up would be nice as well. IMO, the Orioles didn’t move a starter this off-season because of the uncertainty with Ubaldo. How he looks this spring training will be key in how the Orioles shape the rotation and the bullpen.

2) Can Gausman make the Orioles keep him as a starter on the OD roster?

BSL Orioles analyst Jeff Long recently pointed out that Duquette may play with the roster some here, so its possible KG will be in the rotation but start in AAA to get the extra bat early on. But, aside from that, will Gausman force the Orioles to have him as part of the 5 year rotation to start the year? What has he done this offseason to improve his fastball command and his third pitch? Those are his biggest issues and he needs to show he can get past those issues if he wants to be the TOR starter we all know he can be. His status on this team may depend on Ubaldo. Personally, I think he is sent down, which I think is a poor decision.

3) Will any trades be made?

The Orioles have 6 starters, a few extra OFers and a glut of bullpen pitchers. Again, how Jimenez looks does determine some of this but the Orioles have some decisions to make here. I normally don’t think ST should determine roster spots but there are a few spots available and a lot of players to fill those spots. This concept goes back to the ideas that Jeff was trying to convey in the article I mentioned earlier. So, will the team make any deals? They have some interesting players that could help teams, so you have to think they will be fielding phone calls.

4) Machado and Wieters?

Obviously, each of these guys are coming off major surgery, so this spring is important to them. Will they look fully recovered? Will either(or both) show that they need extended Spring Training to start the year? Also, a major part of injuries is getting over them mentally. We saw that with Machado last year. He definitely held back early on when he first returned from his initial knee surgery. Having a full spring training to gain that confidence that what the doctors did worked out well is huge for both of these guys.

5) Davis’ swing mechanics?

We all know Chris Davis had an awful year last year and he recently talked about how the shift really hurt him last year. Between that and what appeared to be some poor mechanics at the plate, he had an awful year and a good spring and improved mechanics at the plate will be very important for Chris. The Orioles need a bounce back year from him and a good spring should help with his confidence.

6) How does the bullpen fill out?

We know Britton, ODay and Hunter are locks. Brach is essentially a lock as well. We have other guys like Matusz, Wright and Webb that have guaranteed contracts for 2015 as well. That may be your 7 right there but they also have some other arms, including a few rule 5 guys that they like, led by Jason Garcia. Either or both of those guys have to be kept on the roster or be offered back to their original teams. So, how they configure the last few spots of the pen will be an interesting decision and goes back to the idea of will they trade anyone or not.

7) JJ’s back.

JJ recently talked about how his back was an issue last year and he felt it hurt his power. He says the back feels good now. That’s huge for the team but backs can be tricky, as Tiger Woods is finding out. JJ is very important to the Orioles success, as he is a key part of their elite level defense, so his back being 100%(or close to it) is essentially to his success. Hopefully he doesn’t have any flare ups in spring.

8) Injuries

Every spring, teams deal with injuries. Who gets hurt and how long they are hurt is always a storyline. That is no different with the Os. Whether that be guys coming off of injuries, guys who get hurt or players on other teams that get hurt that end up making teams call the Orioles for a trade, injuries are almost assuredly going to impact the OD roster in one way or another.

While I largely view ST as an uneventful 6-7 week time period, there are things to look for and this is a list of some of those things. For the sake of the Orioles, hopefully everyone is healthy and this spring is indeed, uneventful.