Need to make a decision with Ubaldo

[Redskins Rick]

His stuff was N-A-A-A-S-S-T-Y

It truly was.

Noticed this as well. Mechanics looked a little different. If not different, then just more relaxed, as you say.

In all fairness, 8 run leads, should have an relaxing affect on you. I guess you call that a low leverage situation.

[allquixotic]

I would be fine with trading him for something more than a bag of used baseballs and a Chris Davis bobblehead. If we can get actual value back (in either prospects or someone to help the major league club), deal him. Maybe if he can repeat his performance from yesterday in another game or two, someone will want to acquire him.

I'd also be fine with keeping him, though. As odd as it sounds, I'd actually like for him to get a few more opportunities to pitch. Let him go as long as he's effective, basically -- if he has a clean 1 IP, let him go 2. If he has a clean 2 IP, let him go 3. Etc. But don't start him; we have better starters and he seems to get too high-strung when he's a starter and makes a lot of mistakes.

[sportsfan8703]

If we were to ever get a 5+ game lead in the division, I could see Buck spot starting him in certain matchups. Like at New York at the end of the month.

[O's84]

Didn't one of the Rangers' have a save in that 30-3 game?

Yeah it was one of Wes Littleton's 3 career saves.

Box Score

LOL wow! Adding a monumental "what the you know what" to the save rule. That's laughably crazy.

[George Zuverink]

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Nevermore]

It has seemed like Buck had been quite loathe to use Ubaldo; he was afraid of the result. But Buck knew that Ubaldo needed some work. So he stuck him into a low-leverage situation, ready to yank him at the earliest opportunity. However, Ubaldo went in and threw 3 innings of no-hit, no-walk baseball. Buck was mightily impressed, as he said in his post-game interview.

Being a long reliever isn't glamorous at all. But it's an important role. It might be the best role for Ubaldo at this time. Having 2 effective long relievers (Worley and Ubaldo) is important to the team, as Buck said.

[OFFNY]

o

(SEPTEMBER 5th)

Quite often, a team that has paid a large amount of money for a player that is woefully under-performing will keep said player on the roster because of the fact that they have spent all of that money on him.

The rationale is that the team "wants to get its money's worth" from the player ........ but what the team is actually doing is screwing themselves twice. The money is already spent, so they have to pay said player the money that is owed to him, regardless. PLUS, they are keeping the woefully under-performing player on the 25-man roster when it would be more helpful to the team to simply DFA said player, and bring up another player from either their AAA affiliate or their AA affiliate ........ a player that would actually help the team.

IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, the Orioles appear to have wound up benefiting from these actions. In addition to the fact that the rosters are now expanded, which means that Jimenez is no longer "blocking" a spot on the roster, Jimenez has actually been pitching well as of late, helping the Orioles win games.

So in hindsight, if Jimenez were only making $1 or $2 Million per year, the Orioles very well may have DFA'd him. But if they had done that, and another team had picked him up, we would not have Jimenez right now, helping the team win games the way that he has been doing.

Sometimes things work out be design. At other times, things work out by accident. And in the case of Ubaldo Jimenez and the Orioles, the latter is definitely what has occurred.

[Nevermore]

o

(SEPTEMBER 5th)

Quite often, a team that has paid a large amount of money for a player that is woefully under-performing will keep said player on the roster because of the fact that they have spent all of that money on him.

The rationale is that the team "wants to get its money's worth" from the player ........ but what the team is actually doing is screwing themselves twice. The money is already spent, so they have to pay said player the money that is owed to him, regardless. PLUS, they are keeping the woefully under-performing player on the 25-man roster when it would be more helpful to the team to simply DFA said player, and bring up another player from either their AAA affiliate or their AA affiliate ........ a player that would actually help the team.

IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, the Orioles appear to have wound up benefiting from these actions. In addition to the fact that the rosters are now expanded, which means that Jimenez is no longer "blocking" a spot on the roster, Jimenez has actually been pitching well as of late, helping the Orioles win games.

So in hindsight, if Jimenez were only making $1 or $2 Million per year, the Orioles very well may have DFA'd him. But if they had done that, and another team had picked him up, we would not have Jimenez right now, helping the team win games the way that he has been doing.

Sometimes things work out be design. At other times, things work out by accident. And in the case of Ubaldo Jimenez and the Orioles, the latter is definitely what has occurred.

This is where we can get into the concept of work ethic. I'm sure that 99.99% of MLB players work hard on their skills to improve themselves from the level where they are at, or at least to stay there. But sometimes, something more is needed. The right combination of skills, desire, coaching staff, techniques all seem to "mesh" with each other.

With Ubaldo Jimenez, all the wrong combinations seemed to be at play. A starting pitcher who gets paid big bucks in a long-term high-pay contract. He doesn't perform up to standard. Plus his home fans show their displeasure by booing him every time he doesn't perform to the level that the fans demand. Finally, he gets banished to the bullpen. Fans and pundits demand that management release him. This whole scenario happens not once but twice.

However, it's not like Ubaldo loves getting shelled, and booed every time he starts or enters a game. And/or he loves sitting in the back of the bullpen, not being used at all. This is where work ethic comes in. He could complain to the press about the fans, demand to be traded or give up entirely. Or he could use the extra time improving his techniques. This is what Ubaldo chose to do. He chose to ignore the boos, work on his mechanics and pitches, improve his command of his fastball.

So now the results of this work are showing. He has changed his delivery, gained more control of his fastball command. Thus he pitches effectively. When an injury results, he gets put back in the rotation, at least on a temporary basis. Pitching effectively, the fans have learned to like him, the boos are changing to loud cheers. Buck praises his persistence and work ethic. That's the sort of guy you don't want to trade away, you want to keep him on your team. This is not by accident.

[Bahama O's Fan]

I just hope he keeps up this trend so we can find someone who will take on his salary in the offseason, for anything!

[OFFNY]

This is where we can get into the concept of work ethic. I'm sure that 99.99% of MLB players work hard on their skills to improve themselves from the level where they are at, or at least to stay there. But sometimes, something more is needed. The right combination of skills, desire, coaching staff, techniques all seem to "mesh" with each other.

With Ubaldo Jimenez, all the wrong combinations seemed to be at play. A starting pitcher who gets paid big bucks in a long-term high-pay contract. He doesn't perform up to standard. Plus his home fans show their displeasure by booing him every time he doesn't perform to the level that the fans demand. Finally, he gets banished to the bullpen. Fans and pundits demand that management release him. This whole scenario happens not once but twice.

However, it's not like Ubaldo loves getting shelled, and booed every time he starts or enters a game. And/or he loves sitting in the back of the bullpen, not being used at all. This is where work ethic comes in. He could complain to the press about the fans, demand to be traded or give up entirely. Or he could use the extra time improving his techniques. This is what Ubaldo chose to do. He chose to ignore the boos, work on his mechanics and pitches, improve his command of his fastball.

So now the results of this work are showing. He has changed his delivery, gained more control of his fastball command. Thus he pitches effectively. When an injury results, he gets put back in the rotation, at least on a temporary basis. Pitching effectively, the fans have learned to like him, the boos are changing to loud cheers. Buck praises his persistence and work ethic. That's the sort of guy you don't want to trade away, you want to keep him on your team. This is not by accident.

This is a rare case in which I failed to use the phrase "I believe", and simply made an assertion about something that I did not know for sure.

o

Sometimes things work out be design. At other times, things work out by accident. And in the case of Ubaldo Jimenez and the Orioles, the latter is definitely what has occurred.

By the same token, I don't think that you can state with certainty that keeping Jimenez on the roster for the long time that he struggling badly as he was was necessarily by design, as you did.

Unless you personally know Duquette and/or Showalter themselves (which I don't, and I am presuming that you don't either), I don't think that it can be assumed either way that this whole scenario was by design or by accident. It is just as likely that they kept Jimenez around because of the money that was already invested in him as it was that they saw something in Jimenez that made them believe that he could still pitch effectively at the Major League level. Kevin Gregg (for example) was kept on the roster from late May through mid-September of 2012 when it was abundantly clear that Showalter wanted no part of him unless it was either in mop-up duty or if the rest of the bullpen was spent, and he had little choice but to use him. In that particular case, I think that it was pretty clear that the only reason why he was kept on the roster was because of his $5.8 Million salary, and not because Showalter and Duquette thought that the team was better off with him than without him ........ and IF SHOWLATER DID think that the team was better off with Gregg than without him, he had a strange way of showing it in terms of how he used him for those 3 and-a-half months before he was finally released in mid-September.

[allquixotic]

I noticed the actual throwing motion of his pitch (over his head) is a lot faster than it used to be. When he was bad, you could basically see his hand in slow motion come around and release the baseball. Now he kind of flicks it up there and his hand is a blur - the camera can't keep up with it.

[Tx Oriole]

I just hope he keeps up this trend so we can find someone who will take on his salary in the offseason' date=' for anything![/quote']

That's just ridiculous. He pitched a complete game yesterday. Saving the bullpen. He could be a big help for the O's winning the WS. Big help in 2017.

[Redskins Rick]

That's just ridiculous. He pitched a complete game yesterday. Saving the bullpen. He could be a big help for the O's winning the WS. Big help in 2017.

Not to mention, 3 straight QS.

He has been a major asset, with Tilly landing on the DL.

[FlipTheBird]

That's just ridiculous. He pitched a complete game yesterday. Saving the bullpen. He could be a big help for the O's winning the WS. Big help in 2017.

Nah. Just nah.

I mean, I'm rooting for Ubaldo to finish the season strong, too, because the O's need it. But if literally anyone would take him in the offseason, see ya later, U.

[Il BuonO]

Not to mention, 3 straight QS.

He has been a major asset, with Tilly landing on the DL.

The truth is he's been a major disappointment. Three starts (including a complete game) doesn't change that. He has been and will be too inconsistent. If there was anyone with interest I'd ship him in a second. Gallardo and Miley haven't been much better but are recent additions.

Looking at next year, there are six guys vying for spots if they keep him. If he somehow continues to look sharp helping the team into the PS it may change things. Holding onto him through ST lowers his value if he doesn't look good. If he does, then the temptation is to keep him.

I'd rather sell high (his recent work may convince someone in a spacious NL park he's rediscovered a bit of what made him less inconsistent) while he's on a roll. Sure, the return won't be much, but it clears up the rotation picture a bit. But the idea of trading him certainly isn't ridiculous.