Duquette, "Our best players are going to come up through the farm system."

[Rene88]

Translation-We aren't going to spend money.

Sadly, same story, different year.

Makes you sick to your stomach. Sure, miracles can happen and we could stay afloat this year. However, when a team makes the playoffs on the starting staff we had, it is a one-time occurrence. We had a chance to improve the team (we had to improve the team) and we have failed.

Frustrating. Nobody is saying handicap the franchise, but Angelos money coming out of his eyeballs, it is disgusting.

The only positive thing is Buck being resigned, which is probably the best signing you can make. No clue why he wants to re-up or why he came here in the first place, but god bless the man.

[Rene88]

Makes me wonder if PA held him back or if DD made a deliberate choice to not spend on FAs?

Is this a serious question? Does anyone here really believe Angelos is not dictating the purse strings? Come on...

[El Gordo]

This article is a nice set up job by a hack. He has two out of context quotes from DD, and then editorializes. DD is right. Long term, we will win when we have a farm system that produces a steady stream of talent. He doesn't say he is not trying to upgrade the ML roaster, nor does he say he is standing pat. The writer is just playing to the anxieties of fans who think we should be spending on high priced FA. DD has nothing to say about Morse and his cost. That is pure editorializing by the hack. Of course the rubes will fall for it.

[crawjo]

The inaction is frustrating in a way, but I don't really feel like the Orioles have left any better moves on the table. Duquette clearly wants to get this franchise into a position where it can be competitive every year. The only way to do that is through the farm system. And while winning 93 games was totally unexpected last year, it doesn't change the fact that you still need to rebuild the farm system. That's going to take years. And it's going to mean that in the interim we aren't going to see a lot of blockbuster trades where we give up young players, or where we sign free agents who will cost us draft picks. This is the strategy. I'm fine with it.

[El Gordo]

The inaction is frustrating in a way, but I don't really feel like the Orioles have left any better moves on the table. Duquette clearly wants to get this franchise into a position where it can be competitive every year. The only way to do that is through the farm system. And while winning 93 games was totally unexpected last year, it doesn't change the fact that you still need to rebuild the farm system. That's going to take years. And it's going to mean that in the interim we aren't going to see a lot of blockbuster trades where we give up young players, or where we sign free agents who will cost us draft picks. This is the strategy. I'm fine with it.

I agree with this.

[paulcoates]

Hopefully Buck and DD can convince Angelos to take on Carlos Gonzalez's contract.

Colorado's GM, said last year at the trade deadline that he has zero intention of trading Gonzalez

[CA-ORIOLE]

Where's the splashy free agent signing or two to energize the fan base even more? What, this team can't afford to make moves? What are they doing with all that MASN money?

Geez, I don't know Kevin. You're the reporter. Why don't you find out and let us know.

[MrOrange82]

Colorado's GM, said last year at the trade deadline that he has zero intention of trading Gonzalez

I suggested CarGo as a trade target last year, and then people here told me to look at his splits. Unless other people can explain how his stats don't necessarily indicate that his production would decrease sharply following a trade away from Coors...pass.

[scOtt]

Makes you sick to your stomach. Sure, miracles can happen and we could stay afloat this year. However, when a team makes the playoffs on the starting staff we had, it is a one-time occurrence. We had a chance to improve the team (we had to improve the team) and we have failed.

Frustrating. Nobody is saying handicap the franchise, but Angelos money coming out of his eyeballs, it is disgusting.

The only positive thing is Buck being resigned, which is probably the best signing you can make. No clue why he wants to re-up or why he came here in the first place, but god bless the man.

He came here to get to the playoffs.

[scOtt]

This article is a nice set up job by a hack. He has two out of context quotes from DD, and then editorializes. DD is right. Long term, we will win when we have a farm system that produces a steady stream of talent. He doesn't say he is not trying to upgrade the ML roaster, nor does he say he is standing pat. The writer is just playing to the anxieties of fans who think we should be spending on high priced FA. DD has nothing to say about Morse and his cost. That is pure editorializing by the hack. Of course the rubes will fall for it.

I forgot to mention this... I hate when he writes about the Orioles. Then I have to read it.

[24fps]

The inaction is frustrating in a way, but I don't really feel like the Orioles have left any better moves on the table. Duquette clearly wants to get this franchise into a position where it can be competitive every year. The only way to do that is through the farm system. And while winning 93 games was totally unexpected last year, it doesn't change the fact that you still need to rebuild the farm system. That's going to take years. And it's going to mean that in the interim we aren't going to see a lot of blockbuster trades where we give up young players, or where we sign free agents who will cost us draft picks. This is the strategy. I'm fine with it.

Or Duquette wants to resurrect his career in Baltimore then move on just as quickly as possible to a franchise that doesn't have Peter Angelos running it.

Or Duquette has a hard and fast (and inadequate) budget cap and is doing the best he can under those constraints.

And so on.

FWIW I think your analysis is most likely correct, but I don't think it's at all clear what DD wants. Furthermore I think it's all too easy to look at what Duquette's done so far and project whatever bias each of us has on his actions and feel content that progress is being made. Or in my case not. After all we're fast approaching the time where we've talked ourselves into believing Saunders and Morse is a successful offseason and that's not any sure thing either. Myself, I'm going to remain skeptical of schemes that require my money or my faith or my simple trust now for results somewhere vaguely down the road if such a proposal comes from the Orioles organization, directly or indirectly.

Percolation by any other name...

(crickets)

[Satyr3206]

This article is a nice set up job by a hack. He has two out of context quotes from DD, and then editorializes. DD is right. Long term, we will win when we have a farm system that produces a steady stream of talent. He doesn't say he is not trying to upgrade the ML roaster, nor does he say he is standing pat. The writer is just playing to the anxieties of fans who think we should be spending on high priced FA. DD has nothing to say about Morse and his cost. That is pure editorializing by the hack. Of course the rubes will fall for it.

I agree. Rubes is actually being nice. To build a ML organization takes time and patience. Virtues sadly lacking sometimes.

I wonder how many remember the Oriole Way?

[joeyc]

This team is really hard to root for. It's obvious Angelos and DD really don't care about the fan base. The crowds went from no one being there to a full house again, by saesons end and they just couldn't care less about filling the stadium. I don't get it. What a sad state of affairs. Angelos is a joke for an owner. I wish he would sell the team to Cal.

We will finish under .500 again and be right back to losers at the bottom of the AL east, this year.

[Roll Tide]

This formula simply won't work until the minors are packed with talent. It will takes years for that to be the case even under the best of scenarios.

[BrunoCherrytown]

"Our best players are going to come through our farm system" is such a revolutionary concept I'm surprised no other team follows that mantra. Oh wait every single team does. Yet the serious teams somehow find ways to add legit free agents too.

I can see why Mr. Nepotism MacPhail followed this religiously since he was handed a team from the previous regime in Minnesota that he tweaked to get him his first World Series ring and added to in order to get his second and he rode that all the way to fame and failure in Chicago and Baltimore.

But DD has a history of being a complete GM who drafts - goes international - and signs free agents. So him saying some canned b.s. statement like that and then proving it with this - to this point - pathetic offseason - it just rings so loudly of Angelos' cheapskate ways it's impossible to ignore. The article had zero investigative effort to it but at least it called out the obvious about where the RSN money is going.