Blame MacPhail

[Sanfran327]

For as much crap as JTrea gets, he's got a pretty valid point. The GM brought back a bad coaching staff with an attitude that accepts and forgives losing. While I would not have gone after Holliday with our OF talent as it stands, Pie and Reimold are both injury prone, so acquiring a top LFer may not have been a bad move. I just think he was lousy in the American League last year.

We're dealing with injuries to Roberts, Gonzalez, Koji, Pie, Reimold, and Tejada right now (in varying degrees). Jones, Markakis, and Wieters aren't really doing much heavy hitting. Our current infield features BOTH Wigginton and Atkins ( ). Our infield tomorrow could very easly feature Wigginton, Atkins, Izturis, and Lugo.

We barely have a team right now. While I wish MacPhail would have done better personnel wise this off season, the FA market didn't really match up with our team needs. Not much you can do about that.

If we continue to suck beyond belief when our roster is at full health, that's a different issue. I'm furstrated with MacPhail a bit as well, but I have to think that we'll be better than this at some point this season.

[carolinaoriole]

No one is to blame.

Sometimes things just do not work out like they are planned.

Blaming people when things go bad is the way of the weak and timid.

When things are going bad it is time to reach down for that little bit extra that separates winners from losers.

Why don"t we as fans support our team more than 11 games before we start throwing hissy fits and acting like weak and feebleminded sheep.

Or at the very first sign of things going wrong to begin on our personal agenda's that were born out of where tex did not sign to play.

[MemorialStadKid]

Instead of blaming this on luck, it's time to start pointing fingers at the man ultimately responsible for this horrid start to begin the season - Andy MacPhail.

That was our offseason. We didn't acquire a cleanup hitter, or a consistent offensive threat or any difference making players that would give this team a real shot at a winning season. MacPhail failed to do what he said he was going to do for Dave Trembley.

Atkins and Tejada have both contributed little offensively, Gonzalez who had a max of 24 saves in his career, is now injured and owed $12 million over two years still. Only Millwood has really panned out thus far.

MacPhail's offseason efforts fell far short of what he claimed this season was to be about. He brought back the same manager and coaching staff and with him the same losing culture. And he acquired no difference making players, instead relying on the younger talent to chart the course of the team. And now we see the result.

The Orioles have steered into another iceberg with Andy MacPhail at the helm and the ship is going down... Again.

I don't know why everyone is always down on Trea when the guy only speaks the truth. This is one of the worst run FOs I have ever had the displeasure of seeing in my short 35 years (30 of which were spent watching baseball).

We aren't aggressive on the FA market. We make mediocre trades for guys who have what I call the "IF" clause because their signing is always hedged on whether or not they MIGHT bounce back.

ATKINS

EATON

PAYTON

RAMON HERNANDEZ

SAMMY SOSA

BAEZ

KRIS BENSON

MIGGI

And lord know who else because I've blocked it out of my mind.

Let's get this through people's skulls: ANDY MACPHAIL is incapable of building this team to a contender's status. He was AWESOME at turning the farm system around to where an average MLB team has theirs but beyond that, I can't see where he's going to make the necessary, big time deal with an impact bat and a true, honest-to-god, front of the rotation starter and quality bullpen help.

People can shout statistics at me all night long, but the proof is in the pudding. This team isn't awful, but is still missing a few key elements and AM refuses to make the moves that fix those holes and for the life of me I don't understand why.

Show me where I'm wrong.

MSK

[glorydays]

Trea,

If AM never said this season was about "Wins and Losses" would that have made any difference to you? Or would you be upset because he didn't say it?

I started a "blame MacPhail" thread but it wasn't about blaming AM for the team's win/loss record... it was to blame him for saying it to the public. It should have been something between DT and AM.

Your reaction is the exact reason why I thought he made a mistake saying what he said.

[JTrea81]

We barely have a team right now. While I wish MacPhail would have done better personnel wise this off season, the FA market didn't really match up with our team needs. Not much you can do about that.

There was always the trade market.

People can say that we shouldn't trade the young pitching, but Chris Tillman isn't exactly helping the Orioles right now in AAA and looks to be no more than a 4th starter, while an established premium bat could be helping this offense now and in the future...

[glorydays]

I don't know why everyone is always down on Trea when the guy only speaks the truth. This is one of the worst run FOs I have ever had the displeasure of seeing in my short 35 years (30 of which were spent watching baseball).

We aren't aggressive on the FA market. We make mediocre trades for guys who have what I call the "IF" clause because their signing is always hedged on whether or not they MIGHT bounce back.

ATKINS

EATON

PAYTON

RAMON HERNANDEZ

SAMMY SOSA

BAEZ

KRIS BENSON

MIGGI

And lord know who else because I've blocked it out of my mind.

Let's get this through people's skulls: ANDY MACPHAIL is incapable of building this team to a contender's status. He was AWESOME at turning the farm system around to where an average MLB team has theirs but beyond that, I can't see where he's going to make the necessary, big time deal with an impact bat and a true, honest-to-god, front of the rotation starter and quality bullpen help.

People can shout statistics at me all night long, but the proof is in the pudding. This team isn't awful, but is still missing a few key elements and AM refuses to make the moves that fix those holes and for the life of me I don't understand why.

Show me where I'm wrong.

MSK

Quite simply put... because the process is not over yet. Everything you said would be correct if the deadline to have everything together is today... but its not. And people who have the capability to have a vision can understand what he is doing and why he is doing it... Others can't comprehend that and only see the here and now...

[Bruce510]

There was always the trade market.

People can say that we shouldn't trade the young pitching, but Chris Tillman isn't exactly helping the Orioles right now in AAA and looks to be no more than a 4th starter, while an established premium bat could be helping this offense now and in the future...

I agree with Jtrea.. he is usually right on

[eddie83]

I don't know why everyone is always down on Trea when the guy only speaks the truth. This is one of the worst run FOs I have ever had the displeasure of seeing in my short 35 years (30 of which were spent watching baseball).

We aren't aggressive on the FA market. We make mediocre trades for guys who have what I call the "IF" clause because their signing is always hedged on whether or not they MIGHT bounce back.

ATKINS

EATON

PAYTON

RAMON HERNANDEZ

SAMMY SOSA

BAEZ

KRIS BENSON

MIGGI

And lord know who else because I've blocked it out of my mind.

Let's get this through people's skulls: ANDY MACPHAIL is incapable of building this team to a contender's status. He was AWESOME at turning the farm system around to where an average MLB team has theirs but beyond that, I can't see where he's going to make the necessary, big time deal with an impact bat and a true, honest-to-god, front of the rotation starter and quality bullpen help.

People can shout statistics at me all night long, but the proof is in the pudding. This team isn't awful, but is still missing a few key elements and AM refuses to make the moves that fix those holes and for the life of me I don't understand why.

Show me where I'm wrong.

MSK

I guess he should throw Monopoly $ at the free agents. I am sure Andy would agree he needs to add more pieces. Over half the players you mentioned Andy didn't sign. Atkins hasn't done anything wrong, neither has Miggi. Eaton was a stop gap, big deal. I guess winning two titles with Minnesota and taking the Cubs to the edge of the World Series shows how dumb he is.

[JTrea81]

Trea,

If AM never said this season was about "Wins and Losses" would that have made any difference to you? Or would you be upset because he didn't say it?

I started a "blame MacPhail" thread but it wasn't about blaming AM for the team's win/loss record... it was to blame him for saying it to the public. It should have been something between DT and AM.

Your reaction is the exact reason why I thought he made a mistake saying what he said.

It was something that needed to be said. But then MacPhail failed to act on it. 2010 should be about wins and losses.

He's had 3 offseasons now to build this team. And look where we are:

- This team still looks to have a hole LT at both 1B and 3B as Snyder and Bell are struggling in Norfolk.

- 2B is now a concern LT because of Roberts' back and there's nobody in the minors to take his place.

- SS has still not been solved as Izturis is gone at the end of 2010 with no immediate help in the minors.

- The OF is still a question mark because Jones hasn't rounded back into form offensively and Reimold and Pie have injury concerns and there is no relief in the minors there either.

And this team is supposed to compete in 2011?

There is no positional depth in the minors and that is a result of Andy MacPhail and his obsession with pitching. And MacPhail has failed to acquire the premium talent needed at the ML level to make up for that lack of positional depth. It's exactly the same problem that doomed the Cubs, and history seems to be repeating itself...

[glorydays]

It was something that needed to be said. But then MacPhail failed to act on it. 2010 should be about wins and losses.

He's had 3 offseasons now to build this team. And look where we are...

so using this same logic... can we expect that when this team plays well - which they will at some point this season - you will at that time admit that this has been a great year for MacPhail?

[JTrea81]

so using this same logic... can we expect that when this team plays well - which they will at some point this season - you will at that time admit that this has been a great year for MacPhail?

By that time, we'll be on our way to a 5th place finish and losing season #13.

The last part of April and the month of May are going to bury us.

It didn't have to be this way if MacPhail had done something pro-actively to fix the offense, and had changed the culture in the clubhouse with a new manager and coaching staff...

[JTrea81]

The play of the Orioles has got me mad enough. Reading your nonsense is just pouring salt into the wounds.

It's easier to call it nonsense than to accept the truth.

It's amazing people are continuing to deny who is responsible.

I've never seen such a love affair with a GM that's produced such little results at the ML level...

[VeveJones007]

Oh no...we don't have a cleanup hitter!!!!

Last I checked, we just lost 3 games in a row to a team that has Kevin Kouzmanoff in the 4 spot. Find a new angle.

HAHAHA

:clap3:

[connja]

bigger problem than not having a legit cleanup hitter is that the guys we are expecting to be good have not been. Our team has not been prepared to play. For that I have to give more of the blame to DT (although the players bear a good bit of the responsibility). I have been a DT supporter in the past, but I don't think we can let this go much further - If we don't start winning some games, DT will have to go. We need a big shakeup, and as we know they don't get rid of the players.

[geschinger]

By that time, we'll be on our way to a 5th place finish and losing season #13.

The last part of April and the month of May are going to bury us.

It didn't have to be this way if MacPhail had done something pro-actively to fix the offense, and had changed the culture in the clubhouse with a new manager and coaching staff...

If we had done what you wanted - given Teix a blank check - and he was here now, what kind of difference would that have made? Do you think we would we have won any more games than we have to this point in the season?