Tony-OH

Here's his numbers from his last start before opting out: Let's just say it's a hard no for me dog!

Beavers' start to the season this year is pretty impressive overall especially when you look at him through the Aberdeen lense. Bencosme could still end up a guy, and I certainly love the plate discipline, but I'm not convinced he sticks on the dirt and definitely is not a SS without a huge step forward on his throwing accuracy and overall hands. Next year I'd like to see some power start to play a bit and would like to see him drive the ball a little more consistently.

They're probably 1a and 1b for me, but I would really like to see Rodriguez put some seven inning starts together before anointing him back to #1 by himself. They're both fantastic prospects.

Thanks for the kind words. Just to be clear, I prefer Ortiz at 2B on this team over Frazier, only because Mateo is at SS. He's a legitimate major league defensive SS in his own right. As for who has more value, it depends on what the team's need are that are looking to acquire one of them. Ortiz is the best defender by far and while his bat may be close to Westburg, I give Westburg's bat the edge because of his power potential. Norby is in a bit of a funk right now, but I do think his bat will play in the major leagues when it's all said and done. Unfortunately, his defense at 2B, while not terrible, is below average. If a team wants an all-around SS, Ortiz is your guy. If a team is looking for a bat first infielder who can play all three infield positions (and probably 1B with a little experience) then Westburg is your guy. Norby to me is a step under the other two because of his defensive concerns.

Coming into the season, Henderson was the logical replacement for Mateo if he struggled offensively, with Ortiz and the tertiary option at SS. I think it's fairly clear that with his swing adjustments that he's pretty well set as the everyday SS for the foreseeable future. It would be quite the surprise if he keeps up his torrid pace, but there is hope that at worse he's a .750 OPS guy with speed and power and if with his defense, that's still all-star caliber. Obviously my preference is for Ortiz to play at second base for now, though I do think ultimately Ortiz could be a trade chip for a starter, especially since Holliday is probably only a few years away.

Doing some work:

Nice to to hear Young and Scott are coming back. Williard must run a really good program to get two really good guys willing to come back on their 5th year.

From the official MLB 40-man roster:

44. Juan Nunez – RHP (FCL/A): Acquired in the Jorge Lopez trade, brings a fastball that sits 94-96, but can touch 98 on occasion. His best offspeed pitch is his slider, though he also has a curveball and change. Has a long way to go command wise, but when he’s on, he has a starter’s repertoire. Command has a long way to go though.

Whoops. Forgot.. Thanks.

Looks like we have to play Where's Waldo this series for TV? Anyone know where it's at tonight?

No, that's off his season average.

You're right. The 1-2 sweeper on Zack Short was called a ball but was a strike according to game day.

Seemed like a lot of strikes outside of the TV box so I thought I'd check the score, and sure enough, the HP umpire was below average but at least it was in the O's favor overall. The Coulombe call was huge. The difference between loaded bases and one out and 1st and 2nd and two outs. It was Doug Eddings worse game of the year. https://umpscorecards.com/single_umpire/?name=Doug Eddings

His fastball was only -0.1 MPH down and his sinker (9 of them) was -0.5 mph down, so I don't think there's any issue there. It was more about command leaving him the 5th.

I think you only move Mateo at this point for a young TOR or major league ready TOR potential starter, but I'm not sure he's going to get that. Right now, with his adjustments a the plate, it's hard to think about moving him when he's playing like the best player in baseball. Do I think the Orioles have a replacement ready in Ortiz? Yes. But I'd much rather have Ortiz playing next to him at 2B and have two SSs playing up the middle. Unless the Orioles crash and are out of it by the trade deadline (doubtful), Mateo should be this team's everyday SS this year. Henderson should basically platoon with Urias at 3B with Urias picking up extra playing time at 2B.

I don't have an issue with how they've used him either per se, though I personally would let his performance dictate his removal, not his pitch count under 100 pitches. We'll see. I'm sure the Orioles think they have the data to show how to keep guys healthy and bring them back, but they certainly are much more passive on that approach then many other teams, including teams like the Cardinals that have a long history of being more aggressive in providing work load. I want him pitching in October as well, and if this is how they think he can do it, then ok. It hasn't really been a huge issue since he's been up to 90 pitches has last three starts, but I'd like to see him closer 100-pitches before he needs to come out. If we can get him through 6 more times than not, it would help the pen.

Not saying you are wrong, but where did Hall say that about his back?

For the life of me I'll never understand posters that call factual posts negative and then spout their rosy opinions on where guys will end up. Currently, the Orioles have two starters in the rotation with 6+ ERAs (Kremer and Bradish) and while they're FIPs suggest they should be better, neither has made you confident when they're out on the mound. I like to look at XWOBA to get an idea of how a pitcher is getting hit and ultimately how well they can be expected to do going forward. Wells .278 Rodriguez .316 MLB avg .322 Gibson .338 Bradish .339 Kremer .398 If I'm looking at these early numbers, I'm feeling better about Bradish bringing his performance closer to major league average but not so sure about Kremer. His lack of command this year and seeing him get hard pretty consistently even though he can miss bats. The only pitcher this year with a higher XWOBA was Cole Irvin at a grotesque .426 and why he finds himself in AAA. It's worth noting that Elias's guys are Wells, Bradish, Gibson and Irvin, while the previous regime acquired Rodriguez and Kremer. Either way, the starting rotation is the weak part of this team and unfortunately, we said the same thing going into this offseason and Elias brought in Gibson and Irvin to shore it up. While Gibson has been solid, Irvin has been a disappointment so far, and neither were the TOR this team needed every five days. Thankfully Elias did what he's great at, and found two guys like Cano and Coulumbe who are cheap and were money in April. I do have concerns that the bullpen will be burnt out if they can't get more innings out of heir starters. I do think Bradish will settle down and be able to provide more consistent length but Kremer is more worrisome. Rodriguez has been great of late, but of course, the Orioles seem to be on the five innings and done more with him so far no matter how well he's pitching so right now, the team really needs Gibson and Wells to give them consistent length.

Think you're in the wrong thread.

Interesting well-written article. I didn't realize he had changed his swing this offseason. Well, it's worked so far!

It will be interesting to see how the numbers look in his next start. I really don't care how hard he throws if he's going to toss five shutout innings with 9 Ks.

No way Cano is going anywhere. He hasn't even allowed a hit yet. I'd send Kremer down and replace him with Voth in the rotation for Givens. When Tate is ready, it's going to get really interesting. Perez (like Voth) has no options and I doubt they are going to risk losing them. With Baumann's ability to stretch out, Akin is probably the other one that goes down. I think we may see Tate on a longer rehab

Interestingly, Rodriguez appears to have taken a little bit off velocity wise for the increased command. It will be interesting to see if that's what he did r if his velocity was just a bit down for whatever reason.