jamalshw

I think that's what they're trying to evaluate before the "better" prospects get here. I think he has a chance to be a cheap piece for a few years if nothing else. He may end up being a trade piece, just not this year.

If pushes come to shove, him walking away isn't the worst thing. The Orioles work out a deal. They tell him. If he chooses to walk instead, they still save the money.

Yeah...I forgot Ramirez was already off the 25-man.

Does this open the door to option Rickard and bring up Stewart soon since Broxton offers an option in CF?

He wasn't going to hit like he did in April all year. He's going to have slumps. Now, we get to see if he's able to get out of it. Ultimately, I would consider the season a success for Smith Jr. if he's able to end the year with an OPS+ in the mid-90s or better. For a first full season, that's something that you can build on.

I haven't watched much this year because it just makes me depressed, but it seems there's a lot to like from Wilkerson, but I've also noticed just one walk in 80 plate appearances. Is this something that should be worrisome? I mean, he's not ultimately a long-term starter, but even as a super-utility guy, is this something that'll catch up to him offensively?

I'm still not sold on Wilkerson. I think he's a fine utility, 25th man type player depending on roster makeup, but he's a fringe 40-man guy for me. He's hit pretty well since his promotion, but hasn't taken a walk yet in 40 at bats and is sporting a .385 BABIP. He's also 30% strikeout rate. He does seem to be making better contact than his brief appearance last year which accounts for some of the BABIP improvement from .267, but would feel much better about the sustainability if it were closer to .300 instead of .400.

I'd like for them to just stick him at 1B and let him get comfortable in one spot and have the bat carry him to Baltimore. By mid-season we should be ready to cut-ties and put Davis out of his professional misery. We should also be able to move on from Trumbo mid-year either by trade (while eating most the money) or release. I'd very much like to see Mountcastle and Mancini playing almost everyday at 1B or DH the last couple months.

I get the argument to leaving Hess in. It's a lost season, most don't think Hess is a big long-term piece (though he could be a serviceable back-end starter). A no-hitter would be the highlight of the season BY FAR. On an emotional level it would make sense to leave him in, but it would be a big risk with little reward as he still needed eight outs. It's not like he was just a few outs away. I also understand the argument that he was at 82 pitches, but this early in the season, players are often on lower pitch counts as they continue to ramp up. He also threw 42 three days prior. I can see the argument for extending him an extra 20 pitches to 100, but does 20 pitches get you through 2 2/3 innings? Not likely. All in all, I would have liked to see Hyde manage to keep the no-hitter after Hess left and tried for a combined no-no. That would have meant someone other than Arujo, but I don't really see that the decision making was egregious. The likelihood of getting a no-hitter with Hess (or combined with the better bullpen arms) was slim so I don't really have a problem with him not straying from the process to try and make it happen.

My prediction is a bit optimistic, but I think he has until around August when we start seeing a lot of guys called up. Essentially--baring an surprising turnaround--he has until the team deems Diaz, Hays, and Mountcastle ready. The pinch is on even more if Trumbo remains on the roster. I think as soon as Hays and Diaz are up, that pushes Mancini out of the OF picture. He takes one spot in the 1B/DH puzzle. With him, Trumbo and Davis it can still work, but if Mountcastle bangs down the door, that could be all she wrote for Davis especially if the team's unable to move Trumbo (which they may be able to do by eating most the money if he swings well this year).

With the sunk cost mentality, it would make sense to just release him. I would argue that not only are the ABs more valuable elsewhere, but the 40-man spot could be put to much better use. If you're going to keep him beyond Spring Training (and they are) it makes sense to me to give him the ABs to try and show he can rediscover something and be semi-useful. As unlikely as it is, it would a waste to use him in a utility role. I think there's a spot for him at 1B/DH for a while until the team's ready to move up Diaz and/or Hays and slide Mancini to 1B/DH full-time. Once that time comes, I want him gone unless he's miraculously hitting near .700+ OPS which seems nearly impossible.

It appears the Jays have DFA'ed Dwight Smith Jr. He appears to still have an option and while our OF is probably one of our deeper areas going forward, Smith may be an interesting guy who has looked good in small samples in the big leagues. Is he worth a look?

We're dealing with a tiny spring training sample size. For those smarter than I am and able to watch some of this at bats, does he look different at the plate from last year. Has he approached his ABs differently and do the pitches he's hitting look good or is he just getting great pitches to hit?

You're probably right, particularly since it was primarily Peter who negotiated and signed off on that contract, but from a business prospective, I would hope that the sign-off is more a formality. At this point, it's a sunk cost. The Orioles aren't getting that money back whether he's on the roster or not and the idea of recouping some value from him if he bounces back shouldn't be the main thought. At some point, his roster spot (either 25 man or 40 man) is worth more than whatever hope the Birds have he can bounce back. At this point, it would take a significant improvement to even be replacement level which right now, they get more value from him off the roster than on it.

Interesting, though I think the fit is a lot easier without Escobar and I really hope they go that route. I just don't see value in him other than to serve as a motivator for Martin and Jackson as prior to his acquisition, it was assumed both would be carried. I'd love to see it play out mostly as you call out above, but with Martin getting the bulk of the work at SS, Escobar off the team and another OF on the roster, maybe Stewart as I think this is our best chance to look and see if he has any chance to be a spare part going forward since we have a plethora of outfield talent that is likely to break in over the next year and a half.

I don't hate the idea of letting him battle it out for a spot on the team to start the 2019 season. I don't see him being much of anything, but while we wait on some of the "real" prospects, I don't mind giving a shot to Yastremski. I put him in a similar bucket to Rickard, Ruiz, Nunez, Wilkerson, and even Stewart. I don't expect any of them to be much, but might as well give them a chance. I'd rather give a flier unlikely to pay off to someone like that than sign a 34 year old stop gap for slightly better production.

Of course some will not make it--in fact, most probably won't--but I was just noting that Elias saying, "there are players on the current roster that will be here when the team is a contender" may be more than just lip service. There are some that may very well be here and its likely at least one or two will (albeit not necessarily in the role we think/hope).

It really depends on how things play out. I don't think we have the stars of the next playoff team on the roster, but guys like Mullins, Mancini, Scott, Stewart could potentially be here. They may be bench or platoon bats or just a middle reliever. Elias could also be talking about the guys in the organization, too, not just the big league roster. I'd expect the aforementioned players along with the likes of Mountcastle, Diaz, Hays, McKenna, Hall, Rodriguez, Kremer, Lowther, Ortiz, Tate, Bannon, Hall, etc. to at least form some portion of the roster for the next winning team, even if just a portion .

Yes, sorry all, it's 4th rounder. I read Meoli's tweet too fast, but the general idea still remains.

I'm not sure if the fact he was a first rounder in Elias's first draft in Houston is a good thing or not. He could know something and feel he can get him to capitalize on his talent. Or, he could be living in the past.

These are the type of guys it makes sense to give a chance at this point in the rebuild. We don't want to rush prospects. We don't want to sign overpriced and declining players unless they bring enough leadership to the table to help the kids. Lucas seems to be a reasonable play. He's put up some interesting numbers and could be solid if given a chance. Of course, he could flame out, too, but it really doesn't matter for the O's. Giving chances to the guys that've bounced around without many long chances, like Lucas or Nunez or a number of others, makes sense until/unless you have a prospect banging down the door at that spot. If you give 20 guys a chance, maybe you find one or two longer term pieces.

I think San Diego is a possibility. I don't think it really fits with what they should be doing, but neither did the Eric Hosmer move last offseason. They seem to do really well building a farm system, but their actions on the Major League roster have often been headscratchers. I don't see Milwaukee as an option. They're already loaded in the outfield with Yelich, Cain, Braun, Thames, Santana and Broxton. They won't be able to offer him the ABs to entice him to go there.

Overall, I still think the O's did reasonably well at the trade deadline. The Manny deal is pretty strong particularly with how well Dean Kremer looked down the stretch. The Schoop deal looks really good, particularly if Villar can yield something next trade deadline. Carmona has upside and Ortiz has a good floor. I even like the Britton deal. I think Carroll and Rogers can at least be usable pieces in the pen (Rogers possibly starting next year until the better prospects are ready). Tate isn't a great headliner and may not stick in the rotation, but he could be solid pen arm. That's not bad for a rental relief arm with health concerns. I think the returns for Schoop, Manny and Britton help make the total package back at the deadline look reasonable. It's just too bad the Gausman deal drops things so much. In order for the Gausman deal to not be a disaster, they needed VVM. They didn't get him. Encarnacion is intriguing, but he's a second or third piece at best. Zimmerman and Cumberland are fine throw ins. The money saved is good. Really, this trade is missing the headliner. They needed to get someone like Anderson, Toussaint, Allard or even Wilson to make this a good deal. VVM would've counted as the headliner, but without that. this trade falls WAY short.

Nunez should go into Spring Training as the favorite for the position and I would only give it to Mountcastle if he is ripping the cover off the ball against Major League level pitching early in games. Otherwise, lets see if Nunez can be a viable big league piece as either a bench bat or a fringe starter. What he's done since getting called up is encouraging.

At least by pitching, he could help contribute to more runs scoring than he can as a hitter ?