Otter

And that was an easy stand up triple...looked like he was just cruising...

Very interesting. Will be interesting to track if this is just a rare occurrence or they are getting him some legit time there. I would have thought Kjerstad would be a much better option for 1B than Beavers, but maybe they tried it and Kjerstad was brutal there.

Partially agree, but not for the reasons stated. The old left field was way too short and unfair to pitchers. However, Elias overcompensated and now the left field wall is way too long and unfair to hitters. And I do find it strange that Elias hasn't tried to draft or acquire more LHP to mitigate left-handed power hitters taking advantage of the only short porch left in the current configuration.

Agreed. O'Hearn is just a below average outfielder and should be relegated to 1B/DH only. It's also ironic for all the talk from Elias and Mansolino about the importance of defense and having plus defenders at every position they put O'Hearn in the outfield. Is O'Hearn better defensively at RF than Holliday is at 2B??

Great reports, but Norby is blocked by multiple players at either 2B or LF and Mayo is still working on a position. Too bad we can't get all these glowing reports on some starting pitcher prospects...I know it's just the first game but looks like McDermott is still having serious control/command issues. At some point all the coaching, metrics, tinkering have been exhausted and a pitcher is who he is. I'd guess he has a full year to improve control/command, and if he doesn't then he's in the bullpen next year.

Do you think the pitchers are trying to walk batters? Do you think a silly rule will stop them from walking batters?

Diminished velocity with poor control and command after being out an entire year with elbow/forearm injuries...that usually does not portend well...

Palmer is one of the few public figures who can balance confidence with humility. It's always a pleasure to hear him talk about the Orioles or baseball in general.

90-93. I see a regression from last year due to the question marks in pitching staff and regression to the mean from the runners in scoring position numbers from last year.

I agree they should, but I don't think Elias will. We had a logjam last year, and he didn't trade any top 10 prospects or veterans to alleviate the surplus.

Agreed. Depth is very important, but if you have so much depth at certain positions that major league ready talented players need 2-3 serious injuries to even get a shot then you probably need to make a move. Deep depth is needed with pitchers because they have so frequently have long-term serious injuries that some never even make it back from. That is much more rare with position players, so trade from the position player surplus (either the guys who aren't getting a chance or the veterans blocking them) and stockpile pitching.

Definitely agree we're going to have to score more runs with the pitching troubles. However, Mayo doesn't have a clear path to playing time in the majors right now unless we have some trades or injuries.

Yeah, that's possible. But it also makes business sense too; good PR and a good program to brag about when courting players.

Agreed. I think versatility can be good when it's needed, but for the elite prospects I like having them find one main position and play it 95% of the time so they can perfect it. For a guy who profiles as a utility guy (Urias, Mateo, Vavra etc.) it's great to have them play multiple positions, but for your starters I'd rather have them master one position than be pretty good at multiple positions.

This. I usually hate it when fans try to guess what's going on inside a player's head, but with Fuji he just screamed lack of confidence. I remember some of his quotes when he was traded to us were bizarre and showed a complete lack of confidence. NY is the last place he should be going...