Il BuonO

“I, for one, am utterly appalled at your lack of judgement, sir. You’ve gone way, way downhill in my book (the only one that matters is mine). Off with you now! Be gone.” Kinda like that?

Yes, there’s no glaring need anywhere, but with injuries that makes the most sense. Is Profar an upgrade over Hays? I think that’s debatable. And unless he is, why sign him?

Because they need a limited defensive RHB first baseman to pair with RM?

Yeah, Gibson is what he is-a low cost option who could, could be what Lyles was last year, but that’s best case scenario. They’re banking on the kids with which I’m fine. Bradish and Kremer and right now are better than Gibson. Whatever Gibson gives them will be gravy. I’m not counting on anything better than an ERA of 4 and if he does THAT, I’ll be ecstatic. That’s not even mentioning GrayRod who has both a higher floor and ceiling. Or, Irvin, Wells, Voth and Watkins, who is quite similar a pitcher. For Gibson to be what they’re hoping, has nothing to do with the future of this team. If guys step up in ST and Gibson doesn’t I hope they have the courage to cut him and look for a leader to develop in the remaining group they have. Means has a been there for a bit, he can step into that role when he comes back. And both Bradish and Kremer, but especially Bradish in my view are fiery competitors who could be suited to being leaders in the clubhouse. Wells, too, for that matter. There is no need to sign over-the-hill, mediocre, journeyman starters to fill a “veteran leadership” (so called) position. He might be useful up to a point, but I’m cutting bait when the time comes.

Jon Miller is a professional announcer and I may be more partial because he spells his first name correctly, but that’s another story. His knowledge of the game and the timbre of his voice make watching the games a joy. Or, I should say, used to. Another fine mess provided by Angelos.

Dang. Wait, Melanie Newman? Hmm. Nope, not ringing any bells. Is it a certainty she’ll be doing more Oriole’s broadcasts?

Good points, but I’m more concerned with his pitch sequencing and his execution. I had held out hope at one time that he’d get another shot at the rotation, but I really do think he is better suited to the bullpen. I don’t know if you think his FB is a bit underrated as I do, but when he works at the top of the zone and locates it’s a tough pitch to handle. He should focus on that especially in shorter outings and incorporate his CH less. The fastball and his slider is a solid combination. To me though, the raw stuff off Hall is on another level.

Well, I’ve read SG’s stuff before. I think he could handle it. Stories aren’t that hard to come by and sentence structure in the English language is a dying craft.

We know who has the better stuff. I’ve liked Akin since he’s been in the pen, but he could be the odd man out.

If it was happening organically I’d tend to agree. I like an all around game. However, this is too much tinkering with what was already a great game. Same with the shift-tell guys to get back to using the whole field. If The Kid had to deal with it then why should it change now? Stolen bases were a part of the game that was already on the upswing again. Catchers are better and runners need to be judicious with attempts because of it. So be it. Don’t make it easier because you feel the need to have more scoring.

This is the bigger issue. Stupid rule. The bags will help, but I’m not sure that in and of itself makes a huge difference. The combination of both of these at the same time will.

Yes, Manny was the bigger loss, but we all know that bad season numbers don’t always equate to a bad post season. It would have been nice to have either of them, Davis as at least a threat to go deep. The Royals were the best team at the right time.

Agreed, but that day is coming. They need to be ready to pull the trigger when the time comes. Mullins struggled mightily last year vs LHP unlike the first year he hit exclusively from the left side. Of course, he has many positives, too.

One other thing that hurt the team’s chances against those white hot Royals; the Orioles were without their big slugging first baseman because? Yup, that should have been enough to make sure he didn’t get any kind of contract from the Orioles let alone the monstrosity he did. There’s no way of knowing, of course, how he would have performed, but it was in the midst of a productive time for him.

Ah, yes, I do remember that.

If they we’re smart Mullins would be in that equation as well.

Jones was the face of the franchise for many years, so that wasn’t happening. And what about Tillman? Idk, but I was happy to watch him play much better than many ever thought he could. They got tremendous mileage out of him, but they probably should have cut him loose after the shoulder issue.

Good to see you’re still here. As you mentioned, I never had a feeling there was any long term plan. There was “win-now” mode. Not that I was particularly a DD fan, but it was never going to change with PA holding the purse strings. Buck was another matter. I thought he was the right hire at the time and he succeeded in changing the clubhouse culture, but as time wore on the loyalty to vets thing was frustrating. Not to mention usage, or lack thereof, regarding a certain pitcher in the WC game. That, and his input with Angelos in the CD deal sealed his fate for me.

Ha! Never mind

There weren’t many of us. Speaking of that, does Stotle still drop in?

Ownership will realize the deal they have with the state of Maryland and sign a long term lease agreement.

Yeah, but he didn’t know what he was doing. The idea that his decision making wasn’t constrained by PA is ridiculous.

I’m unclear. Are you talking about the deal for Irvin? Hernaiz is high on your list?

Yup, I was being specific for his time in Baltimore.

He was also named Exec of the Year in 2014.