SemperFi

I just got power on in Savannah, I hope those we have not heard from are well.

Hi Malike-it's great to have you back!! As an Orioles fan I'm not sure I find anything so parochial like that so annoying but I do have to admit it is a brilliant marketing tactic-classic transference of a positive emotion (a K) to a brand. They do pay but it's likely part of larger sponsorship agreement (signage, event branding, suites, tickets)-and what PC Richard pays directly may be less than you think. Retailers can sometimes leverage their vendors (electronics and white goods manufacturer's) local or national funds-the Yankees provide almost national exposure. It's not just the population exposure that the NY market provides-it's also the amount of consumer product companies chiefly and other larger companies with HQ/presence there. The Yankees like it/or not offer unique exposure and entertainment opportunities other market's can't provide.

It will be interesting to see if there is any carry over from the HBP's culminating in Heston's beaning. Hate to say it but that's around when the .500 play started, now much worse. I did like the way HK stared down Holmes after being hit-I think this series will mean a little more to him.

It was fun to watch those Royals much as it was fun to watch last year's Orioles- plus speed at almost all positions, plus defense at most positions, forcing mistakes with aggressiveness while conversely having an elite relay system (injuries, rookies and losing Hays accuracy hurt). I don't think it's a stretch to say there is a correlation between the Orioles most recent record, defense and pitching trends. It's challenging to pitch when your defense is poor. It was also fun to watch Detroit play this weekend, their defense, style of play and execution was better and much more exciting than the Orioles. I don't enjoy the K/HR game as much-I prefer to see the ball in play and watch the choreography of the defense. More emphasis on the things that were valued when I played-speed and defense. But that's just me and like you I am of a different generation. Comparing data (0lder-2014) it's still a much greater benefit hitting line drives than hitting fly's or grounders. Of course it's of even much greater benefit if you just put the ball in play-which is frustrating watching some of the rookies struggle to advance runners. Importantly this fails to capture the opportunities that exist for defensive errors or mistakes due to pressure when the ball is simply put in play. Type AVG ISO wOBA GB .239 .020 .220 LD .685 .190 .684 FB .207 .378 .335 This was another (newer) slide that shows (to me) how FB, GB, LD trends are influenced by increasing exit velocity- -Harder hit GB's translate to hit's while harder hit LD's carry for outs, FB's with greater velocity lead to more HR's or XBH's-less balls caught. On the below attached it's interesting to note the increase in HR % on FB's and the corresponding decrease in other hits (2B/3B/1B). Note on these slides-prior to ~2013 there was no launch angle calculation-everything was visual which could affect data). I believe the Orioles draft and develop for bat speed and a certain VBA and they have the data to support that-with much smarter people and much better data than I. But I'm from the old line drive school of hitting-to me it's just much more enjoyable baseball. It's also much better baseball if the current batting approach is properly taught and executed. https://baseballwithr.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/historical-look-at-hitting-rates/ https://library.fangraphs.com/offense/batted-ball/

Have to keep your glove down, it's raining.

To be totally facetious does this mean he will place an increased emphasis on drafting position players??

That's true but in fairness he did drive in two runs by advancing runners in Thursday's game-something current Orioles seem incapable of. Elias could not have foreseen the injuries, some guys just need an opportunity and he wasn't getting it in Baltimore.

The nice thing for me is the progress he seems to be making. No two plays are the exact but I liked the way he got in a good position to support his throw. This hasn't always happened IMO and why some of throws especially longer ones throws tail or sail. He also hit Gunnar beautifully on a cut something he has struggled with. I have been very critical of his accuracy but I think the game is slowing down for him, at least in the field-now let's work on off speed.

Nah-after further review @Moose Milliganwas right-it was pretty dorky of me.

Sorry for the deleted reference-last time I listen to me granddaughter!

Hi Puck- From a marketing standpoint the Orioles will eventually reach a relative saturation point which I agree is around 2.5m then it's about leveraging money from the fan experience-winning being a chief component of that.

Sports Guy- Isn't attendance becoming more of a legacy statistic similar to Avg v. OPS? It's a very different era than 1965 when there were few suites or "premium" seating and hardly any amenities beyond a beer and hot dog. Today a seat and it's attachment rate are not comparable between say NY and KC-and we've seen the leverage of corporate sponsorship with TRP. In the Warehouse I would think growing attachment rate and corporate partners would at some point have comparable priority as a revenue driver. Seat sales account only ~20% of revenue and shrinking, The revenue tilt is upgrading fans/corps. to a premium seat at an average of 4X the price. Although this slide is from '22 it details the discrepancy between teams that can leverage premium seating and suites. Playoff revenue is also likely in this slide which benefits teams like Houston. There is no real way I have found to judge revenue other than Forbes-just food for thought.

Meals recently served the A's MiLB players, @Moose Milligan is right-cheese sandwich or yuck taco. https://tinyurl.com/83spsxrx

Hope in whatever form sells ticket packages and corporate sponsorships/signage. Interesting to see what the Orioles pitch is for next year. This year it was an easy grow-but was it a good experience for those more casual fans? Will they come back, will they come back more often? it's certainly going to be more difficult to grow attendance growing forward and much more difficult if they continue to sputter. But I agree-for planning and budgeting I would plug in 2.4m-that's the seat in the stands-then they need to work on the attachment rate.

Hi Sanity, On rehab assigments MLB players don't typically intereact with coaches after the game. He likely doesn't have any relationship with his teammates. I lived in FL for a decade and have seen this before when MLB players are sent on assignment or ST games. I understand the humble concept, but I'd rather have him believe he is a MLB player at this point in his career. No MLB enjoys being sent to the minors. Maybe he wanted to get the clubhouse in Baltimore with his teammates-maybe he likes the food at the MLB level better than the food at A level. Maybe he wanted to use the new hitting machine at CY. I don't think it is anything to be concerned about.