Has this been a successful season or not? Harder than it sounds

[Redskins Rick]

Who was the good opponent?

I guess you just missed the 3 game sweep of the Nationals.

They did win a series with the Jays and a couple against the Yanks.

Didn't they just take 2 of 3 against KC, earlier in Sept?

[utvolzac]

Since the last out of the ALCS, it's been nothing but failures. Expectations for this season were to compete for a World Series before our window closes in '16.

Cruz walks

Markakis walks

Miller is replaced by a couple of Rule 5 refugees

Travis Snider is signed to replace Cruz' production

Hardy is given a 3 year deal even though he's showing signs of aging. Now we have to carry a bad contract into rebuilding years.

Gausman was yoyo'd between the majors and minors, bullpen and rotation slowing his development.

We half assed the trade deadline acquiring Parra.

Miss the playoffs and lose the ability to move any of our pending free agents. Wieters will most likely walk and we'll get nothing.

We should have just let Duquette leave if he didn't want to be here.

Anytime you piss away your best chance at a championship, it's a failure.

[LookitsPuck]

Since the last out of the ALCS, it's been nothing but failures. Expectations for this season were to compete for a World Series before our window closes in '16.

Cruz walks

Markakis walks

Miller is replaced by a couple of Rule 5 refugees

Travis Snider is signed to replace Cruz' production

Hardy is given a 3 year deal even though he's showing signs of aging. Now we have to carry a bad contract into rebuilding years.

Gausman was yoyo'd between the majors and minors, bullpen and rotation slowing his development.

We half assed the trade deadline acquiring Parra.

Miss the playoffs and lose the ability to move any of our pending free agents. Wieters will most likely walk and we'll get nothing.

We should have just let Duquette leave if he didn't want to be here.

Anytime you piss away your best chance at a championship, it's a failure.

Nailed it. Except I don't care one bit of resigning Miller. I didn't want them to trade for him, that's my biggest issue.

In the span of little more than a year our #1 SP and #2 SP prospects got hurt (again), our #3 overall prospect was traded for a partial season of an oft injured reliever, our next highest started pitching pitching prospect was traded for Parra (who has proceeded to put up a 60 OPS+ for us)...and in between all of that? Mike Wright (effective, hurt and then terrible) and then Tyler Wilson (effective, hurt then ???). Our only starting pitching depth that is NOT hurt or doesn't project as much in the starting rotation are long shots like Joe Gunkel, Chris Lee, and Ariel Miranda. How does this inspire ANY confidence?

Dylan Bundy will either be the rough equivalent of a Rule V next year (i.e. stashed in bullpen) or on the DL.

Hunter Harvey probably won't throw a single pitch in 2016...and possibly 2017 depending on how much the O's give him the Tanaka treatment.

So we are literally absent of any meaningful starting pitching depth.

And this is after the organization screwed up Gausman. Oh, and by the way...Chen is gone after this season. And Tillman and Gonzalez were ineffective this year.

How does ANYONE have faith in Duquette or this organization?

Next year is going to be a disaster unless somehow Duquette has a perfect offseason. There's no other way. The offense is going to regress tremendously with Davis gone and no impact positional talent waiting in the minors (and openings at 1B, DH, LF and RF). The only thing this team will have next year is a great bullpen. And that's about it.

[LookitsPuck]

I agree with most things. Clevenger has shown he can replace Wieters? He has barely caught any games. My opinion is that Joseph is not a guy you want to catch over 100 games.

The two of them together. Should be a decent enough platoon setup that should be able to net you a 720-750 OPS with very solid defense and framing when Caleb is behind the plate.

[Carllamy]

I started this thread with the personal belief that, as the team basically did enough to entertain me until the last 14 games of the season, that the season could be viewed as a success because, well, all I expect a baseball team to do is provide me with entertainment.

But man, those last 3 games in Boston have really changed my attitude. I usually don't make a decision about broad ideas based on a small sample, but there was nothing about those 3 games that was good to watch.

Right now I guess I am undecided. If the O's play like that for the last week I will have to slide over to the failure side of things.

[O's84]

Nailed it. Except I don't care one bit of resigning Miller. I didn't want them to trade for him, that's my biggest issue.

In the span of little more than a year our #1 SP and #2 SP prospects got hurt (again), our #3 overall prospect was traded for a partial season of an oft injured reliever, our next highest started pitching pitching prospect was traded for Parra (who has proceeded to put up a 60 OPS+ for us)...and in between all of that? Mike Wright (effective, hurt and then terrible) and then Tyler Wilson (effective, hurt then ???). Our only starting pitching depth that is NOT hurt or doesn't project as much in the starting rotation are long shots like Joe Gunkel, Chris Lee, and Ariel Miranda. How does this inspire ANY confidence?

Dylan Bundy will either be the rough equivalent of a Rule V next year (i.e. stashed in bullpen) or on the DL.

Hunter Harvey probably won't throw a single pitch in 2016...and possibly 2017 depending on how much the O's give him the Tanaka treatment.

So we are literally absent of any meaningful starting pitching depth.

And this is after the organization screwed up Gausman. Oh, and by the way...Chen is gone after this season. And Tillman and Gonzalez were ineffective this year.

How does ANYONE have faith in Duquette or this organization?

Next year is going to be a disaster unless somehow Duquette has a perfect offseason. There's no other way. The offense is going to regress tremendously with Davis gone and no impact positional talent waiting in the minors (and openings at 1B, DH, LF and RF). The only thing this team will have next year is a great bullpen. And that's about it.

It's kind of been a worst case scenario for us.

[BMann]

It's kind of been a worst case scenario for us.

Or maybe we've finally gravitated to where we probably should've been, at least in 2012 and 2013. Last year's team was legitimately good, but we kept hearing from the experts that the '12 and '13 O's really weren't as good as their records indicated. Seems our luck ran out this season...

[eddie83]

The two of them together. Should be a decent enough platoon setup that should be able to net you a 720-750 OPS with very solid defense and framing when Caleb is behind the plate.

I think the Orioles don't have much choice but to go in that direction but I think too many people are assuming we will have good production at catcher.

[Reboulet'sStache]

A horrible season. On field product obviously wasn't pre-2012 bad, but when you consider it from an overall organizational standpoint, it wasn't a bad year, and I'm not sure there is much hope going forward. At least in the short term.

[stockpile]

After tonight's results, it looks inevitable that Toronto clinches the division at Camden Yards. There is no amount of spin talk in the world that could convince me that 2015 was a successful season for the O's. Especially when measured up against last year, it is a hands down failure.

[O's84]

Or maybe we've finally gravitated to where we probably should've been, at least in 2012 and 2013. Last year's team was legitimately good, but we kept hearing from the experts that the '12 and '13 O's really weren't as good as their records indicated. Seems our luck ran out this season...

Well I'm not just talking about the majors which was disappointing. The minors, Bundy seriously injured again, Harvey seriously injured. Add that on to the last few years Arrieta (which I know was a headcase) but the Cubs turned him into a good starter and now this year a Cy Young. Brian Matusz once supposed to be a polished #2 has turned into a LOOGY. Britton is a great closer but we need SP. Gausman made little progress. E-Rod we traded to Red Sox and he became better (and of course cost controlled! I know many people were split one way or the other on the trade to be fair). This year were losing Chen (probably), Tillman had a bad year for us, Gonzo we have to hope it's his injury that made him pitch so bad (post AS break), Ubaldo has been up and down (though he has improved), and I mentioned Gausman. Not a rosy picture unfortunately. DD can turn this around, but he's going to have to make some excellent calls and that is one tall task.

[Nevermore]

Well I'm not just talking about the majors which was disappointing. The minors' date=' Bundy seriously injured again, Harvey seriously injured. Add that on to the last few years Arrieta (which I know was a headcase) but the Cubs turned him into a good starter and now this year a Cy Young. Brian Matusz once supposed to be a polished #2 has turned into a LOOGY. Britton is a great closer but we need SP. Gausman made little progress. E-Rod we traded to Red Sox and he became better (and of course cost controlled! I know many people were split one way or the other on the trade to be fair). This year were losing Chen (probably), Tillman had a bad year for us, Gonzo we have to hope it's his injury that made him pitch so bad (post AS break), Ubaldo has been up and down (though he has improved), and I mentioned Gausman. Not a rosy picture unfortunately. [b']DD can turn this around, but he's going to have to make some excellent calls and that is one tall task.[/b]

I no longer trust DD's baseball judgment. We should have let him go to Toronto when he wanted to. As far as I'm concerned, Toronto can have him.

[O's84]

I no longer trust DD's baseball judgment. We should have let him go to Toronto when he wanted to. As far as I'm concerned, Toronto can have him.

I have lost quite a bit of trust in his baseball judgement too, however he's going to be here and we have to hope for the best.

[scOtt]

Looks bad now. We still haven't seen the Skanks celebrating on our field and then in our visiting clubhouse. At least TOR won't be...

If we make the tremendous effort to finish above .500 it will be successful. Myth for the ages. I was there...

[SeaBird]

Looks bad now. We still haven't seen the Skanks celebrating on our field and then in our visiting clubhouse. At least TOR won't be...

If we make the tremendous effort to finish above .500 it will be successful. Myth for the ages. I was there...

It just takes one more Jays victory and one more Yankees loss for Toronto to clinch the AL East. So they very well could be dancing on the Orioles infield and swilling beer and champagne in the visitor clubhouse on any of the next 3 evenings.