The Orioles have won a lot of close games, including
4 consecutive extra innings wins on the road. The O’s have a 1.50ERA in extra
innings, and lead MLB in hits and runs in extra innings. Their tenacity has
kept them in almost every game this season, not giving up until their last out
of the game. The Orioles have been winning with solid pitching, power hitting,
and a confidence that has long eluded this franchise. This promising young and
overachieving team reminds me of the 1989 “Why Not?” Orioles.
Offense:
The Orioles are 2nd in MLB with 41hrs, and 3rd
with 54 doubles. They’re 4th in the AL in hits. They have 5 players
hitting over .300 (Reimold, Wieters, Jones, Andino, Paulino) and one at .299 (Chris
Davis). The lineup is filled with homerun threats: Jones 8, Wieters 7, Hardy 6,
Reimold & Davis 5. The entire starting lineup has been contributing. Every
night someone else comes through in the clutch, showing a true team effort.
Hardy and Reynolds’ bats have finally heated up. Robert Andino has been a
pleasant surprise offensively and defensively. Nolan Reimold, when healthy, has
finally become a Major League power hitter. The starting lineup is really
solidifying:
LF- N. Reimold (DL) .313, 5HRs, 10RBIs
SS- J.J. Hardy .217, 6HRs, 10RBIs
RF- N. Markakis .236, 3HRs, 11RBIs
CF- A. Jones .304, 8HRs, 17RBIs
C- M. Wieters .301, 7HRs, 18RBIs
1B- C. Davis .299, 5HRs, 14 RBIs, 1-0 & 0.00ERA
pitching
3B- M. Reynolds .195, 2HRs, 9RBIs
DH- W. Betemit .262, 3HRs, 13RBIs
2B- R. Andino .309, 2HRs, 10RBIs
Bench:
As great as Baltimore’s starting lineup has been,
they’ve received very poor hitting from their bench. They really don’t have anyone
to replace Reimold in LF. Veterans Endy Chavez and Nick Johnson have been
busts. Rookie Ryan Flaherty is on the team for his defensive versatility, not
his anemic bat. Backup catcher Ronnie Paulino has been the one bright spot on
the Orioles bench. He only made the Opening Day roster due to an injury to Tayler
Teagarden, and Paulino has been pleading his case very well ever since. Third
catcher Luis Exposito is only on the team so that Paulino’s hot bat can be used
elsewhere in the lineup, such as DH. Exposito will be gone as soon as Reimold
returns in 2 weeks.
The Orioles are reportedly in negotiations with
former Oriole’s 3B/SS Miguel Tejada, who would add some nice power and
defensive versatility to the O’s ineffective bench. Those rumors have also lit
a fire under current 3B Mark Reynolds, who has been on a tear the last 3 games.
Miggy’s not the player he used to be, but he’d be an immediate improvement to
the current bench:
R. Paulino .300 3RBIs
N. Johnson .128, 5RBIs
E. Chavez .127, 1RBI
R. Flaherty .167, 1RBI
L. Exposito .000 (only 1 AB)
Pitching:
Baltimore has the 2nd lowest team ERA
in baseball at 2.78. The O’s starting rotation is 4th in the AL with
a 3.56ERA and an 11-7 record. In the offseason, the Orioles traded away their
most consistent starter, Jeremy Guthrie. In exchange, they received starter
Jason Hammel and late reliever Matt Lindstrom. That controversial trade has
paid big time dividends. Hammel has been fantastic, leading the team in wins
and having the best ERA in the rotation. Lindstrom has yet to surrender an
earned run. Jake Arrieta has pitched much better than his record shows.
Taiwanese import Wei-Yin Chen has been brilliant in his first month in MLB.
Tommy Hunter has pitched well in 4 of his 6 starts. Former 1st round
draft pick Brian Matusz has been shaky at best, still unable to return to his
2010 form. If he doesn’t soon make the transition from “prospect” to “star”,
Baltimore will need a different #5 starter. Fortunately, they have young
starting pitcher Zach Britton close to returning from injury, making it do or
die time for Matusz.
J. Arrieta 2-2, 3.52
J. Hammel 4-1, 2.09
T. Hunter 2-1 5.00
W. Chen 2-0, 2.76
B. Matusz 1-3, 4.67
Bullpen:
Orioles relievers have MLB’s best bullpen ERA at
1.41 and have an 8-2 record. They’ve given up an MLB lowest 18 runs, only 15 of
them earned. Long time setup man Jim Johnson has 8 saves in his new role as
closer. Most of the O’s relievers have been completely untouchable, three of
them yet to give up a run (Lindstrom, Ayala, Johnson). O’Day and Strop have
been near unbeatable too. Patton and Gregg are improving with every appearance,
although Gregg eventually needs to be replaced. Even 1B Chris Davis chipped in
2 scoreless innings! The bullpen has been a huge factor in Baltimore’s success,
keeping games close so the persistent offense has until the 9th
inning to win games.
M. Lindstrom 0.00ERA (13 shutout innings)
L. Ayala 1-0, 0.00 (15 2/3 shutout innings)
J. Johnson 0.00 (12 2/3 shutout innings), 8SVs
D. O’Day 2-0, 0.64
P. Strop 3-1, 1.59
T. Patton 1-0, 4.26
K. Gregg 0-1 5.19
Defense:
Defensive struggles and an ineffective bench have
been the Orioles only weak spots so far this season. They lead the American
League in errors and have 10 at 3B alone. They have the worst fielding percentage
in the AL. Baltimore has very poor fielding at 1B, 3B, & LF.
One defensive bright spot is the middle infield
duo of 2B Robert Andino and SS J.J. Hardy. That pair have helped the Orioles turn
the second most double plays in the Majors.
All Star C Matt Wieters is very hard to run
against, throwing out 8 base runners already.
Injuries:
The team has stayed relatively healthy this season,
other than multiple injuries to LF Nolan Reimold. He’s on the 15 Day DL and is eligible
to return on 5/14.
The O’s had 3 major injuries in Spring Training: Japanese
pitcher Tsuyoshi Wada, who was expected to return in May or June, is now out
for the season and scheduled for Tommy John surgery on 5/11. Pitching prospect
Zach Britton is expected to return in June, and may take a rotation spot from
Matusz or Hunter. Backup catcher Taylor Teagarden still has no timetable for
returning from lower back stiffness, but may have lost his job to Paulino anyway.
I will put no stake in a Brian Roberts comeback until
he proves me wrong. The often-injured 2B only played 59 games in 2010 and 39 in
2011. His days as an everyday MLB player are most likely behind him. Even if
Roberts is able to play every day, Robert Andino has earned his spot
offensively and defensively. It wouldn’t make sense to waste either of their
sure handed gloves at DH, so the most likely scenario would be moving one of
them to 3B and DHing poor fielding Mark Reynolds.
Managing:
Veteran Manager Buck Showalter has brought an
attitude of winning and playing hard till the end to a young team that hasn’t
had a winning season since 1997. Jim Presley and Bill Castro have done a great
job with an underdog pitching staff. Batting Coach Jim Presley also deserves
recognition for the hot bats this young team has had so far. Former Boston
coach Demarlo Hale is the only negative, often making poor decisions as 3B
Coach.
On the
farm:
Top pitching prospect and 2011 1st
rounder Dylan Bundy has given up no runs and struck out 25 in 17 innings at Class
A Delmarva, and should be moving up soon. Top position prospect and 2010 1st
rounder SS Manny Machado is still getting used to AA pitching at Bowie, but the
19 year old will probably be moved up to AAA Norfolk at some point. Pitcher
Jason Berkin has a 1.23ERA and 15 strikeouts in 5 starts for Norfolk. Some
other names to keep an eye on are Nick Delmonico, Xavier Avery, Glynn Davis, Robert
Bundy, Gabriel Lino, L.J. Hoes, Eduardo Rodriguez, Joe Mahoney, and Tyler
Townsend.
Going
forward:
Baltimore has a tough 4 game series against Texas
starting tonight. Many people consider the Rangers to be the best team in
baseball, but the Orioles actually have a better record. This will be a true
test for this young Orioles team, but they’re going in with the confidence of
having just beaten perennial contenders New York and Boston. This O’s team does
not quit. They play hard with a “refuse to lose” attitude, never conceding,
even if they have to play 17 innings to win. A lot of teams will take the
Orioles lightly, and maybe that’s in Baltimore’s favor. If they play the rest
of the season with the heart and determination they’ve exhibited in the first
month, expect the Baltimore Orioles to still be relevant in October for the
first time in 14 years.
©2012 Denim McDemus
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