Ok, we need to talk about Keith Law...

[Gurgi]

Finally the Law haters have the evidence. Law is a tool bag.

We can ignore his opinions from here on out.

[bdlj0887]

I hope this team takes the east so I can go kayaking down Keith Law's river of tears.

[paulcoates]

This is precisely why those who use stats as their end all be all will always proved to be incorrect at some point.

Stats are stats. Games are games

[Nigel Tufnel]

This is precisely why those who use stats as their end all be all will always proved to be incorrect at some point.

Stats are stats. Games are games

I actually think that Law agrees with this. As I remember, that's one of the things he ripped the Moneyball movie over, for giving the impression that stats could replace scouts.

[jonesing4pie]

He says we haven't suffered many injuries besides some small pitching injuries. I guess he forget Markakis' time on the DL, BRob, Reimold, and the fact that the main pitcher that is out is our #1. I get it. The Yankees have suffered injuries. But don't say "I'm not minimizing" the injuries the Orioles have suffered and then minimize them.

[El Gordo]

Law seems very bitter and resentful, but I think it has more to do with personal issues than the O's. I wonder how he makes most of his money. Perhaps being intentionally abrasive, like the "mad dog", helps put money in his purse.

[murph]

Eric Karabell even seems to know that he's not going to give any credit to the Orioles. He seems to be getting annoyed at Keith as the thing goes on.

Also, wtf is Law talking about Baltimore being healthy. Britton was injured, Roberts was here for a week, Markakis missed time, Reynolds missed time, Reimold has missed nearly the entire season, Thome went down shortly after we dealt for him, Hammell (our best pitcher) has missed ~half of the season, and the list goes on...

I think the injuries comment has to be the biggest "error" of this whole thing. We lost what looks to be our most productive offensive player for over 30 games and it was only our pitching that suffered a little from injuries? That is some frustrating radio to hear, no doubt.

[Can_of_corn]

I actually think that Law agrees with this. As I remember, that's one of the things he ripped the Moneyball movie over, for giving the impression that stats could replace scouts.

The funny thing is, he felt that way when he was hired by the Blue Jays. It took the complete and total failure of that experiment to change his view.

[Burg]

Give him credit - at least he doesn't hide the fact that he's an idiot. He actually says at the beginning that "There is literally nothing that the Orioles can do to convince me that they are a good team. They're the 8th best team in the American League." Nice "analysis".

What a tool. I hope that Buck has this blasting in the locker room.

[jonesing4pie]

Law seems very bitter and resentful, but I think it has more to do with personal issues than the O's. I wonder how he makes most of his money. Perhaps being intentionally abrasive, like the "mad dog", helps put money in his purse.

I don't think that many people go out of their way to listen to him really though. I think plenty of people read his material but they aren't on a show that really requires or looks to have an abrasive personality included.

And why are people still up in arms about this run differential stat? I know we're in the negatives and that is odd for a potential playoff team but I've never heard it discussed so much before. Law mentions how the As have the 3rd best run differential...amazing. I don't really care. This stat is suddenly almost as meaningful as W/L to some experts.

[Can_of_corn]

Good info but a quick google search shows his hatred for the Orioles goes back for years. Maybe he was passed up for a job in Baltimore before he worked for Toronto? A lot of his stuff from as far back as mid 2000's was ridiculously critical of the Orioles. More so than other teams by far.

Well, how were those O's teams run compared to other teams?

Nigel has the right of it here. What was going on with the team in those years that an impartial observer, who is prone to being snarky, could view as positive? I know I was being critical of the team handing out contracts to the likes of Millar and Baez.

[Frobby]

Eric Karabell even seems to know that he's not going to give any credit to the Orioles. He seems to be getting annoyed at Keith as the thing goes on.

Also, wtf is Law talking about Baltimore being healthy. Britton was injured, Roberts was here for a week, Markakis missed time, Reynolds missed time, Reimold has missed nearly the entire season, Thome went down shortly after we dealt for him, Hammell (our best pitcher) has missed ~half of the season, and the list goes on...

The Orioles have been relatively healthy compared to NY, Boston and Toronto. Tampa has been much healthier than us, but they did miss their best player for about half the season.

At present, New York has 9 players on the DL, the Orioles and Jays have 8, Boston has 7 and Tampa has 3. Those numbers don't tell the whole story of who was hurt earlier in the season, and how important those players were to their teams. I will do a run-down in the "Injuries Happen" thread once the season is over.

[jtschrei]

"

I guess there's only won thing left to do... Win the Whole F'in Thing"

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[crissfan172]

Honestly...I thought this was better than some of things he's said about the Orioles in the past month or so. Stubborn? Sure, but it's just his opinion, so I'm not all that worried about it. There have been times where I've felt there was some bias, like when he ripped Saunders after his first Orioles start. I mean...he would never say a pitcher was a good pick-up based on one start, why would he go out of his way to say Saunders is clearly a failure after one start? What he said in this podcast, though, doesn't seem biased to me.

[BohKnowsBmore]

I'm at work so I can't listen to the audio. I remember that Law was upset when the scouts were reassigned, so that may be affecting his judgement. But if you like Law in general, like what he has to say about every other team, but can't stand what he says about the O's.... well, maybe he's not the one that's biased.

Like I said, though, I haven't heard the audio, so I may be off base. But from following Law on Twitter, I know there are plenty of people who feel that Law is totally biased against only their specific team.

Listen to the audio when you have the chance. As I said above, even Karabell (it's not like he's an OH poster or anything) seems to be having trouble holding a rational discussion with him.