Sanfran327

He's definitely a guy who's bat could force his way into the ML lineup at another position. Since we have a crowded MI, I think seeing what he can do in the OF is a great idea. I think it's a fairly easy transition to move from IF to OF.

I'm not either. No part of me thinks he can be anywhere as good as Mullins, but I don't think he'd be a liability there, either. But of the 3 guys I mentioned, he's the only one that has a shot at it, unfortunately. I purposefully did not mention Bradfield in this thread, and maybe I should have. I currently have major reservations about whether his bat will allow him to become an everyday player. If it does, that's wonderful. He just has a long way to go to get there.

This better articulates my opinion of Hays. Good post. And good point made by Frobby as well, I guess Hays has been on the field more than I gave him credit for, but I still think that Santander has been our most consistent OFer over the last 3-4 years than anyone else. Not even really sure how that's debatable, but I'm sure someone will show me. Count me as one of the guys that would like to keep Santander around at the right price as a RF contingency and DH option. No doubt that Hays and Mullins have shown us how good they can be, I just wish it could be for longer stretches.

Maybe this doesn't deserve its own thread - merge if needed. But the spring showings from Cowser and Stowers, however little faith you want to put in them (the results, not the players), has me thinking that our outfield prospects could be the difference between being good and great. We know our infield is set for a while. Lots of blue chippers all over the infield at all 5 positions. But the outfield doesn't get as much love, probably due to the lackluster stints that Cowser and Stowers had in Baltimore last year (and the year before for Stowers IIRC). No doubt our team strength is the infield, but if the outfield joins the party, that's going to be huge. Santander is the only consistent contributor at the moment, while Hays and Mullins struggle to stay on the field and contribute offensively when they're available. It's unlikely that all 3 pan out, but if we can go L/C/RF with Stowers, Cowser, and Kjerstad (who I view as more of a DH), we could be looking at a lineup with very few holes offensively or defensively. A pretty exciting thought to me.

I think the 2023 Orioles were a perfect case study in how platooning is great in the regular season, but not so great in the postseason. Then again, the Braves and Dodgers had early postseason exits, and they probably had more superstar power than we did.

I think we'd all feel more comfortable if we did, and I'm not sure what Lorenzen's asking price or projected contract is, but he seems to make a lot of sense for us. Even if (and I'm leaning towards that being a pretty big if) Means and Bradish come back fully healthy this year, that doesn't mean that Lorenzen is a wasted acquisition. Guys need rest, and guys miss starts all the time. I don't want to be part of a 6 man rotation, but I think the likelihood of facing that scenario at any point this year is pretty small.

I think you gotta go with Wells to start the year. He had a nice 1st half last year, and he could hold it down until Means or Bradish are ready to return. Is he being stretched out in ST, or does it look like they're slotting him for the bullpen right out of the gate?

Okay, I misunderstood. I thought he was still kinda “proving it” at 3rd. And maybe I misunderstood again, but I think the question is more like Gunnar/Holliday vs Mayo/Gunnar. I can’t envision any infield configuration that does not feature Gunnar on the left side.

IMO, this makes me like the idea of Mayo at 3b even less. We know what a strong left side of the infield can do for a pitching staff. I’m not interested in an experiment now that this team is ready to win. It would be one thing if Mayo was Adrian Beltre over there, but we’d know by now if he had that potential. For my money, let him eventually take over 1b. Agree that I’d much rather trade 2 OFers for some pitching.

I'm not sure why we keep seeing people penciling Holliday into 2b when we know that 3b is Gunnar's better position and that SS is Holiday's better position. That puts Westburg at 2b, which I think is probably his best as well (or needs to become his best due to the previous statement) and Mayo becomes the 1b of the future. Like most others, I don't think we'll see Mayo in Baltimore all that soon, so both Mounty and O'Hearn have some time to sink or swim. Does make it a little curious that O'Hearn's deal has a 2nd year option though. I like Mountcastle just fine and O'Hearn was a great story last year, but as the other thread from a while back suggests, this scenario eventually makes O'Hearn the odd man out since that probably means that Mountcastle and Kjerstad form a DH platoon unless (hopefully more like until) HK proves he's a good enough hitter to bust through any splits.

I've seen that logic before as well, which definitely makes me feel better. Moreso, the fact that this is supposedly a weak draft, which I did not know. And I guess we'd only get the pick if we make the qualifying offer and he declines and signs elsewhere, but wouldn't get it if we are able to resign/extend him. Win-win.

Trades are always a little bittersweet. I'm sure 99% of us are very happy about landing Burnes, and more than a few of us are not totally thrilled about the pieces we gave up to get him. But to me, it still comes down to trading a bullpen arm (sure, a BP arm with a very high ceiling) and a guy that probably didn't really have a starting role here for a guy that's finished T10 in NL Cy Young voting each of the last 4 years, including winning one of them. The draft pick kinda made me wince a little, but that's how it goes. Maybe they draft a future HOFer with that pick, and maybe they draft a bust. I'm still happy that we addressed our #1 need in a BIG way, (and while no offense to them) not in a Kyle Gibson or Jack Flaherty kind of way.

This is good/fair analysis and I agree with all of it, but I think the hope is that ME won't have to stamp his seal of approval from a value perspective if ownership is willing to write some checks. That way, Elias and Sig can focus on how a guy will perform, not his dollar value.

As far as I can tell, I think you nailed all of the highlights. I was at the Mariners/McKenna Redemption game, so that was fun. But the post-season clinching game against Tampa was gritty as all hell, and my favorite of the year.

I really like this. Concur 100%.

I think Kimbrel starts as "the guy" in the closer position, but I think that as the season evolves, we'll see more of a closer by committee approach. Who's hot, who's rested, etc. Pretty good move, but not super exciting.

Afternoon/daylight games are (IMO) FAR superior to night games. Chicago and NY teams play plenty of them. It's just a nice aesthetic. And as a fan, whether I'm attending a game with or without my kids, I like the early start times. The scene around the stadium and at the harbor is much livelier during the day than at night. This is nothing but a good thing.

To be fair, there's probably a large intersection of fans that subscribe to Lifetime Plus and prefer 4p start times to the ungodly late 7p start times.

Agree that OF Upper Reserve seats would be great for this. Hopefully entices folks that live within 30 mins of the ballpark to go to more games spontaneously. More fans almost assuredly means more revenue overall. The question for me becomes, let's say I buy a pair of these tickets. Are those two seats simply blacked out all season? I assume so. Makes me wonder whether they'd let folks choose their seats or if they'd try to organize these purchases in any way.

There's another thread for this (not giving you a hard time). My experience has been that the board is nearly unusable on an iOS device, but others have reported smooth sailing. Not sure if it's some setting I have that I'm not aware of.

This is my #1 concern with (what I assume is our collective, objective impression of) our approach to building our roster. It's very difficult to make the jump from good to great unless you get a massive swell of homegrown talent bursting at the same time, which I think is what ME is banking on. It almost has to be. And I think we have the players to do it, as I think Holliday, Kjerstad, and others will have a big impact on our lineup next year, combined with continued growth from Rutschman and Henderson and a return to form from Mullins. While I'm a firm believer in a bird in the hand, ME has shown consistent elite draft prowess, and I would expect his 2nd rounder to be a good one, with potential to contribute to the ML team within 3-4 years. Unless we lock up our young stars soon, we'll always have to keep an eye on the future. I agree with you fundamentally, but I fear that payroll limitations will always keep ME's eyes down the road. It's going to be interesting to see if ME will have the cajones to trade ML stars for cheaper, younger talent ala "The Tampa Model". I think we're a few years from that yet, but if it's coming, it's going to be fairly soon.

Push for 100 wins again (would be satisfied with something like 96+; that's similar enough for me when considering the volatility of season-to-season results) and an ALCS appearance would be great. Can't really control the division thing, but 96+ wins will almost assuredly get us into the postseason, and making the final 4 would be a good development. I'd also like to see the emergence of 2 all star caliber bats anchoring the middle of the lineup, with one of them in the MVP conversation. We had a good, even-keel lineup this year, but it was silenced a little too frequently. Two studs in the top 4 would help keep the embers going, rather than having to endure periods where the flame is snuffed out entirely. I think physical and mental development of our young core will help this goal.

Mr. Splash is cheesy, but that section sells out every night. People love it. Great, fun idea. The City Connect bashing is so tired. We've come a long way since the botched "leaked" photos, and I actually really like them. Plus, the people of Baltimore seem to really like them, which is probably the most important thing. This organization needs a grassroots fan base again, and every little bit helps. Their social media is engaging as well, which is something that I think they've done a good job with for a long time. When you're laughably bad, you've gotta be able to laugh at yourself. They'll continue to build on all of this, but it's all trending in the right direction.

It's amazing to me how many sports organizations still don't get this. Any team that relies on revenue in the slightest to succeed needs to be doing whatever they can to attract and serve fans. Before Elias showed up, it was apparent that the O's didn't care about the fans, as the gameday fan experience had reached new lows for me. Now they are going above and beyond to connect with and grow the fan base, and that's what will eventually allow us to keep some of our new favorite players around.

I'm not sure Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould could have cooked up a crazier storyline of mixed threads than that day. Still unbelievable to me to this day.