ESPN: When Does Stability Become Stagnation?

[Can_of_corn]

1 minute ago, wildcard said:

Matusz was in 58 games in 2015.   4th most on the team.  That is who Hart is replacing.

Reimold played in 104 games last year.  That is the spot that Tavarez may take.

Yes, every year the team gets 25 years older if the team stays with the same guys.  But the O's replace about 20% per year.   In most cases they try to get younger.  Smith is an exceptional this year.

Yea, 58 games.

He also pitched 49 innings that year, which is slightly more than Tommy Hunter did before he got traded.

Reimold had 203 at bats last year, that is less than a third of what Jones, Schoop, Machado and Trumbo had.

[PaulFolk]

2 minutes ago, wildcard said:

Matusz was in 58 games in 2015.   4th most on the team.  That is who Hart is replacing.

Reimold played in 104 games last year.  That is the spot that Tavarez may take.

Yes, every year the team gets 25 years older if the team stays with the same guys.  But the O's replace about 20% per year.   In most cases they try to get younger.  Smith is an exceptional this year.

OK, but having young players as your fifth outfielder and lefty specialist is a far cry from having young players ready to step in as major contributors. Right now, the O's don't really have any young options ready to step in to replace guys like Manny, Jones, Hardy, and Tillman when they become free agents.

Maybe somebody in the lower minors will step up in the next year or two, but the cupboard is awfully bare right now. Guys like Aneury Tavarez and Donnie Hart don't solve the Orioles' problems of having a weak minor league system and a bunch of key players headed toward free agency.

[wildcard]

2 minutes ago, PaulFolk said:

OK, but having young players as your fifth outfielder and lefty specialist is a far cry from having young players ready to step in as major contributors. Right now, the O's don't really have any young options ready to step in to replace guys like Manny, Jones, Hardy, and Tillman when they become free agents.

Maybe somebody in the lower minors will step up in the next year or two, but the cupboard is awfully bare right now. Guys like Aneury Tavarez and Donnie Hart don't solve the Orioles' problems of having a weak minor league system and a bunch of key players headed toward free agency.

Too early to tell.  What if they extend Tillman by opening day.  What if they extend Manny next off season.  Jones would likely sign a three year deal in that case.  Manny moves to SS when Hardy goes and you are right they need a replacement at 3B.

Sisco is a young player taking over at Catcher in the next year.  Mancini has no real spot on this team so he may be traded for another young  player.   I am really  interested to see if Rickard can take over for Smith in right field and become the every day lead off hitter.   If Tavarez could be useful for 200 AB that would be a good move.  Adds speed.

There are a lot of moving parts here.   We will have to see how players develop.  

[Can_of_corn]

I don't think Sisco is an iron clad lock to be at Catcher next year.

[Frobby]

3 minutes ago, wildcard said:

Matusz was in 58 games in 2015.   4th most on the team.  That is who Hart is replacing.

Reimold played in 104 games last year.  That is the spot that Tavarez may take.

Yes, every year the team gets 25 years older if the team stays with the same guys.  But the O's replace about 20% per year.   In most cases they try to get younger.  Smith is an exceptional this year.

Here's the average age of the position players since Duquette took over: 28.0, 27.8, 28.3, 27.9, 28.5.    Pretty consistent, but it did creep up a little last year.    The pitchers were 27.6, 27.9, 27.7, 28.3 and 27.9.    

Dan really has shifted our whole idea of what "old" is.    In 2011 we featured 35-year old Derrek Lee and 36 year old Vlad Guerrero.   Those two had 954 PA between them.   Since then, here are the number of PA's we've given to players 35 and older: 194, 296, 0, 0, 0.    So far, it figures to be 0 again.   But just eyeballing things, I think this team will be the oldest since Duquette took over, and may exceed 29 on average.    That's not necessarily a current problem, but it does suggest trouble ahead.

[Spy Fox]

1 hour ago, Can_of_corn said:

I don't think Sisco is an iron clad lock to be at Catcher next year.

Me neither, but maybe. Or maybe Wellington sticks around for that second year. Or maybe Caleb learns how to hit again and the framing people were right all along.