Mid-March Orioles spring training update: Good news stories

[Tony-OH]

11 hours ago, Barnaby Graves said:

I guess it depends what the team is trying to accomplish by having them on the roster instead of literally anyone else.  The obsession with service time is getting really monotonous.  There has to be SOMEONE in the organization who would be a more interesting starter than a Felix Hernandez with a mid-80s fastball.

I don't think it's service time manipulation this year but just guys that need more experience. All of the pitchers that were sent back have never pitched above AA except for Matson and honestly, I'm not sure he's a future piece anyways. Even Rutschman needs experience against professional pitching as his approach needs some adjustment. Is Rutschman better than Sisco in every way right now, probably, but I'd rather see Rutschman catch every day this year in AA/AAA and be ready for next year when this team might be at least interesting.

[Moose Milligan]

Paging service time manipulation expert @Can_of_corn to the thread.

[Tony-OH]

11 hours ago, Frobby said:

For me Zimmermann is the feel good story of the spring so far, and I think he may be the John Means of 2021.

Tony, I disagree with this statement you made:  “He already looks much more like the guy the Orioles saw last spring then the one who made two appearances late in the year last year.”    Zimmermann had a terrible debut (3 IP, 5 ER) but his second outing actually was extremely impressive (4 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 5 K’s).   His combined numbers for the two outings don’t look good but that’s because the first outing was so lousy.   But he really looked good that second time out.   

Stuff wise Frobby, stuff wise. C'mon man, you really have been trying to nitpick me often lately and I'm not sure why. I think you know I just don't pull stuff out of my butt when I post. I don't judge a guy off results in two outings, I judge him by the stuff that I saw or can now view in statcast information.

Zimmermann's velocity is back to where it was last spring and the sharpness of his slider is back. His velocity was about 2 MPH slower last September when he was recalled and his off-speed wasn't where I'd seen it in the past. Zimmermann though had not been in camp that long sue to having COVID and I don't think he was nearly 100% when recalled out of need. 

He looks a lot like the guy I started to get excited about last spring before the shutdown, but the command is better than it was last spring.

[Moose Milligan]

Would rather see Zimmermann get a rotation spot before Felix or Harvey.  

[interloper]

I'm actually kind of excited to see Richie Martin back playing in a sim game today. He's not particularly exciting as a player, but I think he's kind of a crucial depth piece while we wait for Henderson/Westburg/your MI prospect of choice. He can play all over the infield, has speed, and was kind of unlocking some offense there at the end. 

I'd probably rather have him as the backup SS over Valaika/Urias.

[spiritof66]

21 minutes ago, interloper said:

I'm actually kind of excited to see Richie Martin back playing in a sim game today. He's not particularly exciting as a player, but I think he's kind of a crucial depth piece while we wait for Henderson/Westburg/your MI prospect of choice. He can play all over the infield, has speed, and was kind of unlocking some offense there at the end. 

I'd probably rather have him as the backup SS over Valaika/Urias.

Thanks. I missed that. Two years ago, I thought Richie Martin might turn into a decent infielder, a shortstop even, which I think automatically qualified me to be an officer in the Richie Martin Booster Club. I suspected -- maybe Palmer or someone on the Hangout whose opinion I respect said so, or maybe I made it up -- that his anemic hitting carried over to his fielding. In limited action, he OPSed 1.055 in September 2019 to lead the team. I still think there's a chance he'll have some near-term value if he can stay on the field.

[Tony-OH]

39 minutes ago, spiritof66 said:

Thanks. I missed that. Two years ago, I thought Richie Martin might turn into a decent infielder, a shortstop even, which I think automatically qualified me to be an officer in the Richie Martin Booster Club. I suspected -- maybe Palmer or someone on the Hangout whose opinion I respect said so, or maybe I made it up -- that his anemic hitting carried over to his fielding. In limited action, he OPSed 1.055 in September 2019 to lead the team. I still think there's a chance he'll have some near-term value if he can stay on the field.

One thing to remember is that Martin's OPS rose when Hyde basically only played him against lefties. he has yet to show he can hit right-handers effectively enough to play everyday. 

[Frobby]

4 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

Stuff wise Frobby, stuff wise. C'mon man, you really have been trying to nitpick me often lately and I'm not sure why. I think you know I just don't pull stuff out of my butt when I post. I don't judge a guy off results in two outings, I judge him by the stuff that I saw or can now view in statcast information.

Zimmermann's velocity is back to where it was last spring and the sharpness of his slider is back. His velocity was about 2 MPH slower last September when he was recalled and his off-speed wasn't where I'd seen it in the past. Zimmermann though had not been in camp that long sue to having COVID and I don't think he was nearly 100% when recalled out of need. 

He looks a lot like the guy I started to get excited about last spring before the shutdown, but the command is better than it was last spring.

Thanks for the elaboration.   And sorry to nitpick you.  We lawyers have been known to do that.   

Very generally, and not referring to you specifically, I think a lot of people got a bad impression of Zimmermann from that first outing, where he really had no life or movement on his pitches whatsoever.    That was a start and a lot of people were paying attention.   His second outing was a long relief appearance that didn’t draw as many eyeballs.   But he missed a lot of bats that day and really pounded the strike zone (39 strikes, 15 balls).    Agree his velocity wasn’t that impressive either time last September.   
 

[Tony-OH]

6 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Thanks for the elaboration.   And sorry to nitpick you.  We lawyers have been known to do that.   

Very generally, and not referring to you specifically, I think a lot of people got a bad impression of Zimmermann from that first outing, where he really had no life or movement on his pitches whatsoever.    That was a start and a lot of people were paying attention.   His second outing was a long relief appearance that didn’t draw as many eyeballs.   But he missed a lot of bats that day and really pounded the strike zone (39 strikes, 15 balls).    Agree his velocity wasn’t that impressive either time last September.   
 

I agree that people do that and it's why a lot of people were discounting Zimmermann before this spring saying he should go back to AAA or will be in the mix for a long relieve spot.

I was told Zimmermann wasn't even that good at the alternate camp when he was promoted because he was still getting himself into shape after COVID. 

I believe I mentioned it when he made his first poor start. I didn't see his second outing but looked at the statcast numbers and they were similar. This spring his numbers looks great (minus the changeup). 

If he can refind that changeup, he's going to be pretty good this year.

[spiritof66]

3 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

One thing to remember is that Martin's OPS rose when Hyde basically only played him against lefties. he has yet to show he can hit right-handers effectively enough to play everyday. 

I don't recall that. But he didn't exactly scorch lefties all season -- .643 OPS. But OK, hitting RHers is another obstacle he'll have to deal with.

Maybe I overstated my opinion of Martin. I don't think he's done anything to show he's a major leaguer, let alone a non-platooned regular. I am saying just that he showed enough improvement that last month that a team as short on IF talent as the Orioles should keep him around, be patient, and give him another shot. 

[Moose Milligan]

More good news:  Davis hasn't taken the field yet.  

[Frobby]

Generally speaking, the offense we’re getting in the outfield is good news:

Hays .387 BA, 1.119 OPS

Santander .318 BA, .892 OPS

Mullins .313 BA, .886 OPS

Mountcastle .219 BA, .743 OPS

Obviously we’d like to see Mountcastle do better than the above, but if you’ve been paying attention, he’s really heated up the last several days.    

[scOtt]

Good news is it is OFFICIALLY Spring today, March 20th. The vernal equinox. Absolutely my favorite season!

 

 

 

 

That is all.

[Frobby]

On 3/20/2021 at 7:39 AM, Frobby said:

Mountcastle .219 BA, .743 OPS

Obviously we’d like to see Mountcastle do better than the above, but if you’ve been paying attention, he’s really heated up the last several days.    

Homer and a double today, jumping him to .250 BA and .882 OPS.    He’s been getting a lot of extra base hits over the last week.  

[Tony-OH]

2 hours ago, Frobby said:

Homer and a double today, jumping him to .250 BA and .882 OPS.    He’s been getting a lot of extra base hits over the last week.  

Mountcastle has always been a slow starter in spring from what I understand, but I have zero worries over his bat.