The Orioles Winning The World Series Would be Unprecedented In Modern Baseball History

[brucewayne]

Over the last 30 years only 3 teams in the bottom half of league payroll have ended the season with the dogpile. That's the goal. And only 1 team has won it all in the bottom 3rd which was the Florida Marlins who were 25th in team payroll. The Orioles are 29th in payroll. It's interesting to note that our rebuild aspires to mirror the Astros model. That's great. Thing is, Astros didn't win until they started spending. That's like the unspoken secret. The Rays are supposedly the gold standard and the model mid to small market franchise. I don't hate the Rays, but it's strange to see a team that has literally never won be heralded as the model franchise. It's really something to see a team has not once gotten it done be crowned. They are the kings with no throne to sit on or crown to wear. Model franchise? Where is the banner? 

 

Let us defy all odds and win in spite of our massive disadvantage. 

 

 

[Three Run Homer]

The Moneyball A's never won a championship either.   Smart, forward-thinking management is essential for a small-market team to thrive in MLB, but there are smart, well-run teams that also have financial resources--the Braves and Dodgers, for example.  In the end, it takes money to buy proven veteran talent, and guys like that can definitely help put you over the top.   Hopefully that lesson is not lost on the O's brass.

I'll say one thing, though--the demise of steroids has made it a lot easier for a small-market team to win, because it has shifted the advantage back to young players.   It's never been easy to win without a good farm system, but in the post-steroids era it's impossible.  

[Frobby]

The playoffs are not entirely a crapshoot, but they largely are.  Let’s get into the tournament and see what happens.  It would be terrific if we could win the division and earn a first-round bye.  That would greatly improve our postseason odds.  

From what we saw this week, Houston will be a tough out come playoff time.  
 

[brucewayne]

4 minutes ago, Three Run Homer said:

The Moneyball A's never won a championship either.   Smart, forward-thinking management is essential for a small-market team to thrive in MLB, but there are smart, well-run teams that also have financial resources--the Braves and Dodgers, for example.  In the end, it takes money to buy proven veteran talent, and guys like that can definitely help put you over the top.   Hopefully that lesson is not lost on the O's brass.

I'll say one thing, though--the demise of steroids has made it a lot easier for a small-market team to win, because it has shifted the advantage back to young players.   It's never been easy to win without a good farm system, but in the post-steroids era it's impossible.  

 

This. The reality is the Orioles will never be able to acquire a guy like Gerrit Cole unless they sell the farm. 

[brucewayne]

1 minute ago, Frobby said:

The playoffs are not entirely a crapshoot, but they largely are.  Let’s get into the tournament and see what happens.  It would be terrific if we could win the division and earn a first-round bye.  That would greatly improve our postseason odds.  

From what we saw this week, Houston will be a tough out come playoff time.  
 

We outplayed Houston IMO. If we get a normal outing from Bautista we win the series. 

[Moose Milligan]

The “Orioles will never win anything until they spend money” horse has been beaten into a bloody, unrecognizable pulp. 

[brucewayne]

Just now, Moose Milligan said:

The “Orioles will never win anything until they spend money” horse has been beaten into a bloody, unrecognizable pulp. 

Have the Rays won? Have the A's won since Moneyball?

[Frobby]

Just now, brucewayne said:

 

This. The reality is the Orioles will never be able to acquire a guy like Gerrit Cole unless they sell the farm. 

Or until the farm produces one, or more.  

I’m pretty bullish on Grayson based on what we’ve seen post-Norfolk.  He’s a rookie, learning whet works for him in the majors and what doesn’t, and learning how to get deeper into games than the Orioles let him get in the minors.  But he’s figuring it out and it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s one of the league’s best in 2024, if he stays healthy.  
 

 

[btdart20]

What percentage of peak payroll should be allocated toward extending prospects and proven/aging FA acquisitions?  50/50?  80/20?  20/80?  

[Moose Milligan]

1 minute ago, brucewayne said:

Have the Rays won? Have the A's won since Moneyball?

I didn’t say you were wrong. I just said the horse is dead. 
 

I hope you don’t think you’re original by pointing to the A’s and Rays as evidence, too.

[brucewayne]

1 minute ago, Frobby said:

Or until the farm produces one, or more.  

I’m pretty bullish on Grayson based on what we’ve seen post-Norfolk.  He’s a rookie, learning whet works for him in the majors and what doesn’t, and learning how to get deeper into games than the Orioles let him get in the minors.  But he’s figuring it out and it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s one of the league’s best in 2024, if he stays healthy.  
 

 

I am most impressed by how improved his slider is post Norfolk. In his first MLB stint he featured a sub-par breaking ball. I was surprised at how bad it was to be honest. I don't know what he did, but this new breaking ball he's throwing is a plus breaking ball. 

[brucewayne]

4 minutes ago, btdart20 said:

What percentage of peak payroll should be allocated toward extending prospects and proven/aging FA acquisitions?  50/50?  80/20?  20/80?  

Have no idea. Teams that win the World Series tend to win bidding wars for pitching. 

[Frobby]

2 minutes ago, brucewayne said:

Have the Rays won? Have the A's won since Moneyball?

That’s got nothing to do with whether the Orioles will win. 

And, we don’t really know what model the Orioles are going to follow.  We won’t know that until 3-4 years from now when our top producers start to get expensive.  The low payroll now is mostly a function of the fact that our best players are pre-Arb or in the early stages of arbitration.  That won’t be the case a few years from now, unless Elias starts trading everyone away when they reach Arb 2 or so.   That hasn’t been put to the test yet.  
 

[Frobby]

3 minutes ago, brucewayne said:

I am most impressed by how improved his slider is post Norfolk. In his first MLB stint he featured a sub-par breaking ball. I was surprised at how bad it was to be honest. I don't know what he did, but this new breaking ball he's throwing is a plus breaking ball. 

That is what his slider looked like in 2021 and the first half of 2022.  So, in my view, what we’re seeing now is the “normal” Grayson, not the “new and improved” Grayson. 

[waroriole]

23 minutes ago, Frobby said:

The playoffs are not entirely a crapshoot, but they largely are.  Let’s get into the tournament and see what happens.  It would be terrific if we could win the division and earn a first-round bye.  That would greatly improve our postseason odds.  

From what we saw this week, Houston will be a tough out come playoff time.  
 

Houston is probably the toughest AL team we could face. I’m thinking it’s a good chance they’re the #2 seed.