Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Sound Off Is Back
After a two-year hiatus to become CBS College Sports' master of women's college basketball - I'm going to miss you, Candace Parker - the Baltimore Orioles SoundOff is back.
Who missed me?
Well, I'm back anyway.
After reading my last couple of posts from way back when I realized one important thing. The Orioles are better off now than they were then. And how.
We're going to do things a bit differently this time around. First of all, I won't recap each game for you, you can get that from a multitude of places Online. I'd suggest the BaltimoreSun.com. The Sun's Roch Kubatko is my favorite Orioles beat writer and I think his blog, Roch Around The Clock, is fantastic.
I'm a reporter and a writer and a journalist, blah, blah, blah, but bottom line, for OriolesSoundOff purposes...I'm a big fan of the Birds. We're going to get opinionated around here. I'm going to tell you what I think the O's are doing right and, unfortunately I fear, doing wrong on a nightly basis.
I couldn't be happier with the way the Orioles have started the season. I believe, when it comes to the Orioles, that I am an optimist. Of course, like any faithful O's fan, I can get cynical, but for the most part I see a bright future - one in which Boston and Yankee hats don't dominate the Yard and the Birds contend each season.
That said, we're not winning 90 games this season. But that doesn't mean we can't be competitive. We're building for the future and many of the pieces are in Baltimore right now. Adam Jones, especially, is going to need to be given some slack. But you are looking at your starting center fielder for a long time. Jones is raw ability, but you can see some of the finer tuned portions of his game taking shape. He's got an excellent attitude and drive to succeed.
Who isn't excited about Luke Scott? The guy will just be turning 30 this summer and he's hitting .375 right now. He's mashing the ball and looks good in left field. If he keeps hitting the way he is, teams are going to be knocking down Andy McPhail's door to trade for him near the deadline. The Orioles hope Double-A Bowie's Nolan Reimold becomes the left fielder of the future for the team and so Scott doesn't really fit into their long-term plans. He could bring back some solid minor league talent in a trade.
Brian Roberts is still an Oriole and he's setting the table for the team as usual. Brian has scored seven runs, leads the league with five stolen bases and is hitting .327.
One concern for the team is what exactly happened to Melvin Mora? After a torrid spring, Mora has significantly cooled off. He's hitting just .255, though he did go 2-for-3 in last night's 4-3 win over Toronto.
Nick Markakis has been business as usual holding down right field and the No. 3 spot in the order. The Natural's batting .310 and is among the league leaders in walks with 12 in 13 games. Kevin Millar, the O's cleanup hitter, got hot last night, scorching the Blue Jays for four RBIs with a two-run homer, but before that wasn't cashing in Markakis when he got on base. Millar is batting .250 on the year.
The Orioles' pitching situation is interesting. The starters have been dismal. The bullpen has been the team's brightest spot. Who would have thought that a bullpen that was so bad last year the starters were thinking about pressing charges for stealing victories would become one of the best in the league the next season.
A complete overhaul will certainly help. Only Jamie Walker and Chad Bradford remain from last year's pen. Randor Bierd has four scoreless innings this year. Matt Albers was pitching out of the pen until picking up last night's win as the starter, Jim Johnson picked up Albers and pitched two scoreless innings in that game.
Closer George Sherrill has been lights out - except for Alex Rios' two-run dinger last night - and is 6-for-6 in save situations to lead the Major Leagues in that category.
At 8-5 the Orioles are on top of the AL East, for now. Tonight they play the second of a two-game set against the Blue Jays. Steve Trachsel goes for the Birds against Shaun Marcum. Marcum has pitched well this year with a 2.57 ERA in two starts and 16 strikeouts.
The Orioles will have to hit tonight if they want to pick up the two-game sweet of their division rivals.
Orioles SoundOff will be back for more tomorrow!
Who missed me?
Well, I'm back anyway.
After reading my last couple of posts from way back when I realized one important thing. The Orioles are better off now than they were then. And how.
We're going to do things a bit differently this time around. First of all, I won't recap each game for you, you can get that from a multitude of places Online. I'd suggest the BaltimoreSun.com. The Sun's Roch Kubatko is my favorite Orioles beat writer and I think his blog, Roch Around The Clock, is fantastic.
I'm a reporter and a writer and a journalist, blah, blah, blah, but bottom line, for OriolesSoundOff purposes...I'm a big fan of the Birds. We're going to get opinionated around here. I'm going to tell you what I think the O's are doing right and, unfortunately I fear, doing wrong on a nightly basis.
I couldn't be happier with the way the Orioles have started the season. I believe, when it comes to the Orioles, that I am an optimist. Of course, like any faithful O's fan, I can get cynical, but for the most part I see a bright future - one in which Boston and Yankee hats don't dominate the Yard and the Birds contend each season.
That said, we're not winning 90 games this season. But that doesn't mean we can't be competitive. We're building for the future and many of the pieces are in Baltimore right now. Adam Jones, especially, is going to need to be given some slack. But you are looking at your starting center fielder for a long time. Jones is raw ability, but you can see some of the finer tuned portions of his game taking shape. He's got an excellent attitude and drive to succeed.
Who isn't excited about Luke Scott? The guy will just be turning 30 this summer and he's hitting .375 right now. He's mashing the ball and looks good in left field. If he keeps hitting the way he is, teams are going to be knocking down Andy McPhail's door to trade for him near the deadline. The Orioles hope Double-A Bowie's Nolan Reimold becomes the left fielder of the future for the team and so Scott doesn't really fit into their long-term plans. He could bring back some solid minor league talent in a trade.
Brian Roberts is still an Oriole and he's setting the table for the team as usual. Brian has scored seven runs, leads the league with five stolen bases and is hitting .327.
One concern for the team is what exactly happened to Melvin Mora? After a torrid spring, Mora has significantly cooled off. He's hitting just .255, though he did go 2-for-3 in last night's 4-3 win over Toronto.
Nick Markakis has been business as usual holding down right field and the No. 3 spot in the order. The Natural's batting .310 and is among the league leaders in walks with 12 in 13 games. Kevin Millar, the O's cleanup hitter, got hot last night, scorching the Blue Jays for four RBIs with a two-run homer, but before that wasn't cashing in Markakis when he got on base. Millar is batting .250 on the year.
The Orioles' pitching situation is interesting. The starters have been dismal. The bullpen has been the team's brightest spot. Who would have thought that a bullpen that was so bad last year the starters were thinking about pressing charges for stealing victories would become one of the best in the league the next season.
A complete overhaul will certainly help. Only Jamie Walker and Chad Bradford remain from last year's pen. Randor Bierd has four scoreless innings this year. Matt Albers was pitching out of the pen until picking up last night's win as the starter, Jim Johnson picked up Albers and pitched two scoreless innings in that game.
Closer George Sherrill has been lights out - except for Alex Rios' two-run dinger last night - and is 6-for-6 in save situations to lead the Major Leagues in that category.
At 8-5 the Orioles are on top of the AL East, for now. Tonight they play the second of a two-game set against the Blue Jays. Steve Trachsel goes for the Birds against Shaun Marcum. Marcum has pitched well this year with a 2.57 ERA in two starts and 16 strikeouts.
The Orioles will have to hit tonight if they want to pick up the two-game sweet of their division rivals.
Orioles SoundOff will be back for more tomorrow!
