Dan Duquette interviewed on The Fan

[Babypowder]

I wouldent mind victor martinez and would love david wright but duquette already said manny at 3b and hardy at ss. Justin upton is just more of what we already have, power and no obp. Shin shoochoo would be nice but hes a #2 hitter, not middle of order and not much of an upgrade over mcclouth. Ian kinsler hit .252 and 19 hrs this year, we can get that from flaherty.

Career OPS: Choo .847; McClouth .756

Career OBP: Choo .381; McClouth .335

Yeah, not much improvement there...

[NATTYBO's]

Furthermore in 109 games at AA this year Manny had about a 10.5% BB rate so the skills are definitely there.

One guy isn't going to help...we need everyone to improve and cut down on the K's

[Aglets]

Make no mistake, Choo would be great on this team. Problem is he is currently ON a different team. How much are you willing to give up for 1 year of him?

It does seem like good players don't find their way to FA as much anymore, so maybe that's the way you have to go about it if he's your guy. I'd certainly kick the tires on him.

[Can_of_corn]

one guy isn't going to help...we need everyone to improve and cut down on the outs

ftfy..

[Slappy]

Man it would be sweet to get Justin Upton to play LF. He's a great all-around hitter - .280-290-ish BA, 20-30 HR, can get you 20 SB, career BB% over 10%. His fielding metrics have fluctuated but most scouts think he's an above-average outfielder. Only 25 years old next year. His contract would be pricey, $9.75m next year and over $14m for 14-15.

I like Choo too, especially from an OBP perspective. Career .381 OBP and an outstanding 11.4% walk rate. Brings similar speed, defense, and slightly less power than Upton. He would be cheaper next year but is a FA in 2014 so you'd have to trade-and-sign, although he would likely be cheaper than Upton. He is also quite a bit older (30 next year).

Both good options, if DD can swing it. Be interesting to see who we'd have to give up. Arizona might be the more likely trade partner, they have been trying to unload Upton's contract.

[Aglets]

Alright, let's try do to a bit more of a comprehensive analysis of where we need to look to improve at OBP to most significantly impact our team for 2013. I'll do each position.

Our team OBP was .311, ranked 23rd in MLB this year (11th in the AL). We were about an average, middle of the road offense in 2012 by the only offensive metric that ultimately matters, scoring runs.

OBP by position

C - .315 (I think there might be a little room for improvement here actually. Wieters had the best BB% of his career in 2012, so if he can get his swing straightened out a bit this number could come up)

1B - .328 (again, maybe some marginal improvement if Reynolds plays here more in 2013. But i don't think this is likely to change much).

2B - .273 (just dreadful, dead last in MLB. Without question this is where we need the most help. I'm not convinced our internal options will be enough here....although Flaherty does have a respectable career .346 OBP in the minors)

SS - .284 (also pretty bad. But we know JJ isn't going anywhere. He did just put up the worst OBP season of his career though, so a small bounceback is indeed possible)

3B - .311 (I think we will see an improvement here, Machado put up a .352 OBP in AA this year).

LF - .298 (McLouth or healthy Reimold almost certainly brings this up, but health is a big ?)

CF - .336 (I'll take this every year......hopefully Jones keeps it up)

RF - .346 (We all know Nick is the man. It's my belief that when he bats leadoff he changes his mentality to be OBP-centric even more. Pray for health for him in '13, this offense needs him)

DH - .323 (I'd like to see us look at addressing this for '13. Davis likely isn't going to do much better than this though. But he still might be enough. Betemit absolutely raked against RHP this year, but that's Davis's better side too. Does Reimold enter into the conversation somehow?)

Maybe more later....

[Todd-O]

I'm glad to hear we aren't talking expensive FAs. The team, as built, is young and hungry. Keep it that way, fill in the pieces as we can, and push forward. These young guys took big steps this year... I think think they'll take more next year!

[schmed77]

My O's fan friend and I were throwing around the O's current roster and we came to the conclusion if the roster stays intact (rather would decline $11M option on Reynolds BUT go to arbitration and settle for $7-8M), we believe the team wins around 85-88 games with its current roster, I'd sign up for that because you gotta believe the NYY are going to fall off but TBY/TOR/Bos may be better. The O's won't go what 18-2 in extras or win .680 of one run games but it sort of balances with full health of Nick and Nolan. Just my 2 cents.

[Rick_Schu]

Did he say anything about Tommy Big Game Hunter out of the pen? Were those 98mph fastballs a joke or something? He could be a ridiculous middle reliever.

[canonfaz]

Did he say anything about Tommy Big Game Hunter out of the pen? Were those 98mph fastballs a joke or something? He could be a ridiculous middle reliever.

I wouldn't be suprised if Hunter was traded this offseason. I think that its possible that some teams would value him as a late inning reliever. He could be a sell high candidate.

[SteveO]

Its a tricky thing here. We all want to see guys come back but at the same time we also get that it is unlikely that the team has the same winning percentage in one run or extra inning games. Those numbers were historic and expecting them to happen again would be a mistake. That said, I also think you have to take into consideration the improved record and performance in the second half that went far beyond the Orioles being really good in one run games or xtras

I think for next year these guys are definatley back

C-Weiters

3B- Machado

SS- Hardy

RF-Markakis

CF Jones

DH Davis (some corner OF duty)

Think that leaves you 1B, 2B, LF were you can improve

Reynolds would be ok @ 1st his OBP is reasonable and his glove with great. Think they will bring him back at less than his option price but will also kick the tires on trades that could bring in a guy if they find a upgrade out there available. Still betting on Reynold being at first

2B- Flaherty is going to get a shot here IMO, maybe they bring in a guy like Keppinger or something like that as a backup plan but think they want to see what Flaherty can do and if he takes off in the role that gives you more trade options with Schoop etc...

LF- This is the spot other than first were I think the O's will make a deal. Dan said they like McLouth and want him back. I believe that but also think they would either use him as a 4th OF or as a starter if they cant find an upgrade via trade

SP ...think its likely that Chen, Tillman, Gonzalez, Hammel are locks for the rotation unless one was traded in a really big trade. That leaves Matusz, Arrieta, Johnson, Hunter, Britton filling one spot and backing up in case of injury or poor performance. If DD believes Bundy and or Gaussman can be ready next year it certainly makes at least a couple of those guys tradeable. M

My guess is you see a trade or two involving some combo of Matusz, Arrieta, Britton, Johnson, Hunter etc packaged with a guy like Hoes, Avery, Mahoney, Schoop, Delmonico, and maybe even throwing in an arm like Bridwell, Schrader, etc.... and bringing back either a 1B or LF/OF/DH of some consequence. Choo is a possibility, Upton, etc....

[wildcard]

Did he say anything about Tommy Big Game Hunter out of the pen? Were those 98mph fastballs a joke or something? He could be a ridiculous middle reliever.

Hunter is a favorite of Buck. I doubt he is traded. He is probably in the pen from day one of ST.

[DrungoHazewood]

One guy isn't going to help...we need everyone to improve and cut down on the K's

Which we know isn't going to happen to any great extent. The only hitter on the roster likely to make a leap forward is Machado.

[SteveO]

Hunter is a favorite of Buck. I doubt he is traded. He is probably in the pen from day one of ST.

Buck likes flexibility. Hunter is a guy who gives you some. I am sure he is a guy they would like to keep. That said I think they would move him in a deal that brings something of significance back though.

[wildcard]

Which we know isn't going to happen to any great extent. The only hitter on the roster likely to make a leap forward is Machado.

Flaherty?