A few observations

[wildcard]

I think we generally agree that the O's offense is doing well and the pitching has not been that good. Here are a few things that might be happening.

1) The ball is flying in April. Traditionally the air is pretty heavy in April at Camden. It fairly hard to hit balls out. That doesn't seem to be true this year. The temps have been fairly warm. Its help the ball travel.

2) While the O's have brought back most of their pitchers the Jays and Yankees offenses have improved. Donaldson and Martin make the Jays offense deeper. We didn't see Drew hit like that last year. He struggled. So maybe part of the problem with the O's pitching is that the other teams offense got better. The O's pitching did not have that much trouble with the Rays who did not improve their offense of the winter.

3) However, the Jays still play their home game on concrete. I understand that is what is under their turf. Overall, it probably will still cause them injury problems as the season moves on.

Just a couple of things to think about.

[Rene88]

I think we generally agree that the O's offense is doing well and the pitching has not been that good. Here are a few things that might be happening.

1) The ball is flying in April. Traditionally the air is pretty heavy in April at Camden. It fairly hard to hit balls out. That doesn't seem to be true this year. The temps have been fairly warm. Its help the ball travel.

2) While the O's have brought back most of their pitchers the Jays and Yankees offenses have improved. Donaldson and Martin make the Jays offense deeper. We didn't see Drew hit like that last year. He struggled. So maybe part of the problem with the O's pitching is that the other teams offense got better. The O's pitching did not have that much trouble with the Rays who did not improve their offense of the winter.

3) However, the Jays still play their home game on concrete. I understand that is what is under their turf. Overall, it probably will still cause them injury problems as the season moves on.

Just a couple of things to think about.

The Blue Jays are slowly becoming our most-hated rival...isn't that crazy? To me, always the Yankees, but getting closer with the whole DD fiasco.

Intriguing point on #3. Any stats to support this theory? If so, wouldn't more people be inclined not to sign in Toronto?

[Redskins Rick]

The Blue Jays are slowly becoming our most-hated rival...isn't that crazy? To me, always the Yankees, but getting closer with the whole DD fiasco.

Intriguing point on #3. Any stats to support this theory? If so, wouldn't more people be inclined not to sign in Toronto?

Lots of hatred toward Toronto and Cisco still sucks.

[Frobby]

It's just too early to divine anything about whether the results so far are indicative of anything. Toronto definitely has a good offense, but that didn't stop Ubaldo from shutting them down. Norris has had a bad spring and Tillman had an off day. I don't think the guys who homered off him (Pompey and Pillar) are expected to do much with the bat.

[ShaneDawg85]

It's just too early to divine anything about whether the results so far are indicative of anything. Toronto definitely has a good offense, but that didn't stop Ubaldo from shutting them down. Norris has had a bad spring and Tillman had an off day. I don't think the guys who homered off him (Pompey and Pillar) are expected to do much with the bat.

Not to mention in those three games there's still reason to worry about their pitching. Buehrle is 36 and nowhere near what he was and Dickey is old, and the Orioles had no problem getting to Hutchinson, plus Stroman is out for the year. Sanchez has promise but he's very young and just made his first ML start. People keep questioning the Orioles rotation, but outside of the Rays once Cobb and Moore get healthy every single team in this division has some large concerns about their rotations.

[Frobby]

Here's an observation.

No matter how old, decrepit, injured, or bad-on-paper the Yankees are, they will always - ALLLLWAAAYYYYSSSS - play us tough. I don't know why I forget this every single year, but I do. It literally does not matter who is in their lineup.

We were 13-6 against them last year, which was the first time we'd had a winning record against them in a very long time.

[slakattack]

Here's an observation.

No matter how old, decrepit, injured, or bad-on-paper the Yankees are, they will always - ALLLLWAAAYYYYSSSS - play us tough. I don't know why I forget this every single year, but I do. It literally does not matter who is in their lineup.

The Yankees play everyone tough. The expect to win everyday, because they have a history of doing so and their fans will accept nothing less.

[beervendor]

Lots of hatred toward Toronto and Cisco still sucks.

Cito?

[slakattack]

Sounds a lot like the Orioles, honestly.

Welp, I never hear great cheers on my TV when an Oriole homers at Yankee Stadium or Fenway, unlike when the opposite occurs at OPACY. Fans like that are not ignored by their ownership.

[LAOSfan]

It's just too early to divine anything about whether the results so far are indicative of anything. Toronto definitely has a good offense, but that didn't stop Ubaldo from shutting them down. Norris has had a bad spring and Tillman had an off day. I don't think the guys who homered off him (Pompey and Pillar) are expected to do much with the bat.

As did Odorizzi last night.

[O's84]

The pitching match ups are still favorable for us against NYY. We have a good chance to take the next 2 games.

[Frobby]

Welp, I never hear great cheers on my TV when an Oriole homers at Yankee Stadium or Fenway, unlike when the opposite occurs at OPACY. Fans like that are not ignored by their ownership.

Are we really going to have this discussion? I tell you what, when we played the Yankees in the 2012 playoffs, there was no comparison between the energy and crowd noise at Camden Yards vs. Yankee Stadium. Our fans were by far louder and more passionate.

But let's face facts -- the Yankees and Red Sox can outspend other teams. It's not a matter of what their fans "demand." It's pretty hard to field a bad team for $200 mm.

[WEAVERMAN]

The pitching match ups are still favorable for us against NYY. We have a good chance to take the next 2 games.

Who is Norris facing?

[slakattack]

Are we really going to have this discussion? I tell you what, when we played the Yankees in the 2012 playoffs, there was no comparison between the energy and crowd noise at Camden Yards vs. Yankee Stadium. Our fans were by far louder and more passionate.

But let's face facts -- the Yankees and Red Sox can outspend other teams. It's not a matter of what their fans "demand." It's pretty hard to field a bad team for $200 mm.

I agree with all of this...I was at game 2 in 2012 and it was mind bending. But you know what, in the business world in which I have been employed for my entire adult life, successful years are normally rewarded with bonuses and budget increases, the idea being that reinvestment in a winning team will yield even greater profits. They don't need to (and can't) match Boston and NY, but the recent accomplishments of this team, the excellent management team that is in place and the loyal fan base deserve a higher level of investment than the current ownership is willing to commit...for whatever reason.

[Il BuonO]

Who is Norris facing?

He faces Eovaldi but the way Norris has pitched all spring I wouldn't exactly make us a strong favorite.