Yankees release Brian Roberts

[CA-ORIOLE]

So why did the Yanks tire of him?

Probably the same reason Buck did. He doesn't give his all and his production no longer makes up for it.

[SteveO]

As someone in the organization told me yesterday, "There's a reason (the Orioles) didn't offer him a contract. Buck wants team first kinds of players. The Yankees got tired of his act real quick as well."

For a while there Roberts was one of the few bright spots on a team that basically sucked. Sometimes that can get a guy thinking an awful lot of himself. Roberts always struck me as that kind of guy. Not saying he is a bad dude by any stretch but a little full of himself.

[Dodt85]

take him back

as a hitting coach.

[SteveO]

take him back

as a hitting coach.

No thanks.... maybe as a guy who comes in during spring training but as a full time hitting coach? Hell no

[Trackmaster]

Nostalgia.

Maybe just give him a one day contract so that he can retire as an Oriole.

[kelsey59]

If Roberts had been batting #4 in the first inning yesterday we would have scored at least one run(not that it mattered eventually) because he can at least put the ball in play after a long AB unlike many of our hitters.

So you can see the world in an alternate universe. That is an amazing ability that nobody else on the planet has achieved.

[LA2]

I don't doubt you a bit, but I do find it surprising. Roberts was always hanging around Buck while he was on the bench.

From ESPN "More Sports," Sept. 17, 2010:

Another gem from the Elias Sports Bureau: By winning his first four

games, Showalter became the first manager in MLB history to do that after taking over at team that was at least 30 games under .500.

While Showalter certainly deserves huge accolades, another major factor was the return of Brian Roberts, who had played only 11 games prior to Aug. 3. He's hitting .303 in 38 games since his return.

http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/tag/_/name/brian-roberts

The same column mentions the stellar records of Brad Bergesen and Jeremy Guthrie during Buck's first six weeks as O's manager:

Since Showalter took over, two of the top seven in the AL in ERA are Orioles starters: Brad Bergesen is 4-1 with a 2.37 ERA, while Jeremy Guthrie is 6-2 with a 2.64 ERA.

[Gurgi]

Roberts would of likely taken a contract with another club in 2009 rather than accept the extention. But if I remember the economy was cratered and it was a soft market for second base that offseason. He saw another hitter that was similar to him get a low ball contract offers and when the Orioles offered the amount they did he jumped on it. But I always felt Roberts wanted to exit then. I also feel he would of been happy with being traded then. It was a real chance after the Bedard deal. But we over valued him.

[gmelson26]

Signing Roberts again would be going backwards to me. As I said in another thread,

I think sometimes the sum of the parts is greater than the parts individually. I'm referring to our 2B situation. We have one of the best records in baseball. We have the best cushion in division. Schoop and Flaherty don't hit well, but they provide what the team is constructed towards. We get cheap but excellent defense at 2B, great double play potential, and HRs. We have contact based pitching, very few strike outs; so defense on our team is worth more than on most other teams.

[mdbdotcom]

Aside from all the reasons why Brian Roberts is no longer a good option, Schoop and Flaherty have begun to pick it up with the bat in the last couple of weeks. Now is not the time to give up their superior defense for a guy who is far removed from being at the top of his game. Let's see if one or both of them can become an average (or better) hitter at 2B.

[SeaBird]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1892295-brian-roberts-dont-blame-the-player-blame-the-business-game

Steve Melewski of MASN Sports reported last week that the O's don't have a deal in place with Roberts, but that manager Buck Showalter would like to see him return to the club. In that same piece, Melewski has Duquette quoted as saying:

"Well, we've been working this week mostly on looking for a left-handed hitter and a DH and we've also been trying to add to our pitching staff, so that is something we can get to later on."

"We are still open to (re-signing Roberts). Let's see how out team shapes up and we'll address that at an appropriate time."

But in December, Showalter wanted him back and Duquette was "open" to re-signing him.

[Can_of_corn]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1892295-brian-roberts-dont-blame-the-player-blame-the-business-game

Steve Melewski of MASN Sports reported last week that the O's don't have a deal in place with Roberts, but that manager Buck Showalter would like to see him return to the club. In that same piece, Melewski has Duquette quoted as saying:

"Well, we've been working this week mostly on looking for a left-handed hitter and a DH and we've also been trying to add to our pitching staff, so that is something we can get to later on."

"We are still open to (re-signing Roberts). Let's see how out team shapes up and we'll address that at an appropriate time."

But in December, Showalter wanted him back and Duquette was "open" to re-signing him.

They certainly were not going to say they didn't want him back.

Who does that? No one.

[weams]

Bleacher Report

They certainly were not going to say they didn't want him back.

Who does that? No one.

[mdbdotcom]

They certainly were not going to say they didn't want him back.

Who does that? No one.

One off-season, Jim Duquette said that first base would be a priority for the O's, because he was sure they could do better than Kevin Millar. Guess who the starting 1B was next opening day. Yup, Kevin Millar.

[Can_of_corn]

Bleacher Report

I meant what manager or FO personnel.

Obviously sports radio and other of that ilk would have no such reservations.