Baltimore Orioles Baseball
How David Lough Can Improve at the Plate
At FanFest, David Lough was announced to the Orioles fans as one of the team's newest members and possibly the new everyday left fielder. To replace McLouth, who went 40 miles south in free agency, the Orioles shipped utility infielder/platoon slugger Danny Valencia...
The World Outside of Baltimore: AL East Questions
With the opening of Spring Training down to days rather than weeks, most teams are transitioning from adding players to solving problems with the players in camp. The American League East Division has always been one of the toughest divisions in the sport, but the...
Bronson Arroyo in Rare Company
It is rare that a pitcher is both physically healthy enough and good enough from a performance standpoint to throw 200 innings a season over a period of 5 plus years. I decided to go back 8 seasons, somewhat arbitrarily, to see who the best and most durable pitchers...
Weeks Needs One More Chance
Most baseball fans and analysts expect a young player to take the Mike Trout route and become an instant star. Once a player is drafted, we watch as the young player climbs the prospect lists and becomes the next big star in waiting. He’ll turn the franchise around....
Getting Creative at Second Base
Last year the average MLB second baseman hit .257/.316/.376, and produced a wRC+ of 91, or roughly 9% below an average offensive player regardless of position. Orioles second basemen combined to produce a .236/.299/.376 line, good for a wRC+ of 82. That is, 18% below...
Playing GM: Jimenez and Maholm
As the dust settled on last week’s very busy American League East dealings, the Baltimore Orioles are left with few choices. They could, conceivably, head into Spring Training as currently constituted. It isn’t a sexy choice, but it is a choice that the 85 win team...
Adam Jones, The Protected?
Power hitters are said to offer protection to those batting before them in the lineup. The idea is that with a force warming up on deck, a pitcher will throw more strikes in hopes that he won't be giving the opposing hitter a free pass and an RBI or that a batter will...
What could go right, what could go wrong?
The Orioles have as much as another $17M they could spend before the season. Based on that, it is fair to anticipate there will be some external additions before the season starts. How that available salary will be allocated is anyone's guess though.(You can discuss...