HelenaEngineer

I do think the 2-6 record does cry out "small sample size" as opposed to "do something". I assume you are aware that 2 of those losses were games in which the Orioles got 3 hits and scored 1 run and would likely have lost with any pitcher on the mound and that two of them were 1 run losses in Pittsburgh where the Orioles allowed 3 runs through 9 innings. As ugly as the Fri/Sat games were against the Brewers, other than giving Bradish and Means a chance to see if they can step in, I don't really get the screaming "do something" based on the season so far.

Conventional wisdom was that with early games against Kansas City, the Angels, Pirates, Brewers and Red Sox that the Orioles early schedule was pretty soft. Projected PECOTA standings had everyone except the Brewers well under .500 and the Brewers at 83-79. If you discount the games those teams have played vs the Orioles, where they obviously have gone 6-9, they are 41-22 overall. That's a pretty impressive record. While obviously 15 games or so is a small sample size, it isn't quite as obvious that 63 games spread over 5 small samples is still all that small of a sample. It has been a long time since I took statistics, but I am not so sure that schedule is near as soft as everyone was expecting.

While I am all in favor of Adley getting as much rest as possible, he only caught one of Means' three starts, and that is his only regular season game catching Means. Just for familiarity, if I were going to catch Adley only once, I would have him catch Means.

You can have him for 2024 if you offer arbitration. I would think it depends on what the Orioles believe his potential to recapture his 2022 form is. If you think he has a decent shot to be a major bullpen piece next year, then why would you DFA him? If you don't think he is worth offering arbitration, then you could do what you want. Unless it opens up a spot for someone who you think might contribute in the post-season, it would seem to be a classless move, even if there is no real downside from a personnel perspective. I don't know what the team believes about his value and potential for 2024.

That's true. I don't think a lot of fans realize how bad he has been for the past couple of months, especially July. His full season stats look OK, but in July, opponents batted .327 against him with a slugging percentage of .592 and an OPS of over .950.

Or worse. Opponents OPS since May 25 vs Cano has been .834 after being .288 up to that point. He has below ordinary for more than two months now.

If this is a repeat, I apologize in advance. I have been swamped and didn't have a chance to read all 20 pages. What about reliever David Robertson of the Mets? He is rental just for this year, is on a $10 million deal and has 12 saves and 1.97 ERA. Strikeouts over walks are 47:11 and he's has only allowed 30 hits in 41 innings. Mets are 8.5 out of the last wild card and may be happy to dump salary and not want a whole lot in return. If the Birds can keep better prospects and just eat an expensive contract and give up a lesser prospect for 2.5 months of Robertson, that would appeal to me. They need some bullpen help.

I don't know about that. I think his activation today is a pretty strong signal that he won't be optioned before Friday. You bring someone up for a game and then option him to a pitcher who is up for a day or two as an emergency arm but not to someone with a history like Mountcastle. It is a Vallimont kind of move. You can make an argument that the one-day activation is the right move from a pure numbers view given Zimmerman won't be needed today, but that is just not how things are done with established players. Promoting him for one day and then optioning him would probably be viewed more as a slap than a nice gesture. I think it would be a lot easier and cleaner just to let him know he was staying down for the time being until he re-established his hitting stroke than go through a one-day song and dance if that was the plan. If they were going to keep him in Norfolk until an injury or his performance justified a promotion, then they would have just done that. I am not defending or attacking the activation to the roster, but I am almost certain it tells us he is here for the foreseeable future. I don't know who goes when they need to go back to 13 pitchers, but I think it will be a tough decision unless there is a trade in the works or someone gets hurt. I just think Elias basically said that it won't be Mountcastle in his own way.

I have no recollection of what Steve Finley's prospect ranking was, but he hit over 300 HRs in his career, won 5 Gold Gloves and had a career WAR over 44, despite his last three seasons dragging the total down. I would take that from any of our prospects. If his prospect ranking wasn't high, then it was because he was underrated, because he had a very good career.

That seems like a no-brainer, but I will be very pleasantly surprised if it happens.

I think if Irvin has a bad start before the break, he could well lose his spot in the rotation to Rodriguez. His 1 run in 5 innings vs the Twins was a Houdini act, and his other starts have not ended well. The question there might be whether Irvin holds on to a long relief spot and Zimmerman or someone else goes back to Norfolk. The way Rodriguez is pitching now, I think you have to make the move soon to bolster the Baltimore rotation.

Nor should he. Cowser should come up and be much more than a 2 day fill in. If that is all he is, leave him alone in Norfolk.

You don't DFA Stowers or Vavra. You DFA a pitcher like Vallimont, who has exactly one year in the minors with an ERA below 5 and it was 2019. No one is going to put him on a 40 man roster, and if they do, so be it. Hicks becomes a 4th outfielder, who starts against lefties and plays 2-3 other times a week as a sub for Hays or Mullins or as a DH. Cowser plays at least 4 times a week - playing against righties unless there is some sort of matchup Hyde doesn't like with a veteran junkball thrower. It is fine to have four outfielders who all see playing time with all of them getting a bit more rest. That also gives you Hicks on the bench several times a week, where he is far more valuable than McKenna since he can pinch-hit against righties or lefties and if Hicks is in the lineup, the ripple down on the bench to whoever ends up there inevitably gives Hyde more late inning options. Between 1B, DH and OF, Santander is in the lineup just about every day as well - and when he is not, it is much better to have him available late than their current options.

McKenna only plays against lefties or as a late defensive sub, and the Orioles have seen very few lefties lately. Ortiz had the same issue. Cowser would primarily play against righties and could take at bats from a group of players including Hicks, who is 4 for his last 31, Hays and Mullins if they need a day off. O'Hearn if you want to play Santander at 1B and Santander if he needs a day off. You could also have Santander at DH and give Adley a full day off, when he doesn't DH, more often. Although the Orioles are my team, I do live in Atlanta and follow the Braves as my National League team. Whenever they have a player in the minors that they think can help the major league team win games, they bring them up and cut them loose. It is quite refreshing. You can't tell me that having Cowser in RF last night instead of Frazier, regardless of whether you used Frazier to replace Mateo or Urias or on the bench, would not have been a better lineup offensively and defensively - and the same thing will hold the rest of this week. When you are a contender and not in rebuild mode, there comes a time to put the best players on the field if you are serious about trying to win.

He is now 12-107 vs RHP dating back to May 1, with 37 Ks and 5 doubles boosting the slugging percentage all the way up to .159.