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

[Hank Scorpio]

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 can't listen to it, but I'm fairly certain that this is the situation here.

He's Skip Bayless, Colin Cowherd, etc.... basically just mainstream media noise.

[Can_of_corn]

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.

He seemed pretty annoyed that the O's and Nats were the topics of conversation. Karabell's argument that the vast majority of emails addressed those two teams meant nothing to KLaw.

[CA-ORIOLE]

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

Actually Law is pretty clear in the interview that the best stats don't always mean the team with the most wins. In that sense I don't have an issue with him stating the team has been lucky. Where he falls short imo is failing to acknowledge that the team (i.e many of the players) have developed and/or gotten much better and also discounting some of our injuries.

Also, I'm not sure how he can discount the Orioles as being inferior due to other teams injuries and at the same time say the other teams are still better. The Yankees have a team of old guys who are susceptible to injuries. That's the way it goes. Tough titties.

[eb45]

As someone who normally likes Law's stuff, I think this is really poor work. If he'd given a well-reasoned argument instead of just saying things like "they're worse than all these teams" and proclaiming himself to be objective, it'd be a lot easier to take him seriously.

Maybe he's right, but this is a really, really poor way of expressing it.

[Nigel Tufnel]

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.

And if I'm remembering this right, Michael Lewis interviewed Law when he was writing the book, when Law was ardently a stats-only guy. Then Law later changed his mind and ripped the movie over a viewpoint that was in the book in large point due to Law. So that probably gives some insight into his personality.

[Can_of_corn]

And if I'm remembering this right, Michael Lewis interviewed Law when he was writing the book, when Law was ardently a stats-only guy. Then Law later changed his mind and ripped the movie over a viewpoint that was in the book in large point due to Law. So that probably gives some insight into his personality.

That is my recollection as well. Shame when people quote you accurately eh?

Meanwhile this tweet of his did make me chuckle.

keithlaw ‏@keithlaw

Roger Clemens says he doesn't intend to pitch in the big leagues this year, but I'd like to hear it from a credible source

[Campmoon]

His argument seems to be the best team is the one with the highest peak potential based on everything going right and to hell with anything that actually happens. If that's what he wants to base teams on then fine, but that's why they play the games and hand out awards at the end of the season.

[shorebird22]

It bothers me how much he uses the word "objective" while beating this dead horse opinion of his. If we win the WS, he'll still project us as a 60 win team next year, and I hope his biased opinions open ESPNs eyes to his hate.

[Mondo Trasho]

My biggest beef is what makes a team "good" (to Law or anyone else)?

The way I see it you win games (and hopefully championships) one of two ways: by being flat out better than everyone else (faster, stronger, more talented, smarter, etc.) or you win by accentuating your good traits while minimizing the negative ones. With the team they have and the division they play in, the O's are clearly going for the latter rather than the former. There's nothing wrong with it.

[CA-ORIOLE]

It bothers me how much he uses the word "objective" while beating this dead horse opinion of his. If we win the WS, he'll still project us as a 60 win team next year, and I hope his biased opinions open ESPNs eyes to his hate.

Well, I'll be honest. Even if we do make the playoffs and win the WS by some chance, I hope we look beyond wins in projecting performance for next year.

[Gurgi]

How can a guy hate a team that always loses? It really must be personal.

[callahan09]

He mentions that we aren't as good as a Oakland, Angels, Rays, Tigers, White Sox, Rangers, and Yankees.

We are at least .500 against 5 of those 7 teams! Against 4 of them, we won the series the last time we met.

It's especially tough to argue that the White Sox are better than us, when we are 6-2 against them on the year, just won 3 of 4 against them in a recent series, and have a better record than them.

[El Gordo]

I also think there might be personal resentment towards DD. Don't know what their history might be.

[Slappy]

Keith Law is limited in his comprehension of what constitutes a good baseball team. He's boxed himself into a set of narrow and incomplete beliefs, with depth being a major oversight in his blueprint (and, to be fair, in most baseball writers'). He is also stubborn, recalcitrant, and hardheaded, a classic "rather be right than happy" guy. He's joyless to listen to and his negative schtick is almost a funny mockery at this point. In short, he's a clown.

The fact that the Astros were interested in hiring the guy goes to show how screwed up that organization really is.

[Tony-OH]

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.

Not sure it would do much good. I don't think anyone in baseball takes Law seriously. I've talked with many scouts and executives and I've never heard one, not one say anything nice about Law or his analysis. He's got a schtick and he's sticking to it. He's become Skip Bayless. I don't care what he has to say anymore because he's lost his objectivity.