Really...how much more time is Atkins going to get???

[Three Run Homer]

Hate to say it ...Nut I think the Orioles will give Atkins a free pass until the season is over.

I doubt it. I think he's got 2-4 more weeks to start hitting, or he'll be released. It could even be sooner than 2 weeks.

Personally, I think the O's should focus on run prevention, given the lack of alternatives. That means Wiggy at 1B and Lugo at 2B most of the time until Mr. Roberts comes back. You're upgrading your defense at two positions, and you're not giving up much if anything with the bat.

[stef]

McPhail chimes in but doesn't really say too much:

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/2010/05/macphail_talks_first_base_nola.html

As mentioned elsewhere, LF and SS are equally big holes.

[NewMarketSean]

This comment says it all:

Good grief, sounds to me like these guys have no idea what they are doing.

I have to agree. Atkins is horrible, the $4.5 million is already spent either way. Get Garko or Blalock in here, and then still look for a 1B when trades heat up. There is no reason you can't do both.

Right now MacPhail is like the lazy homeowner who refuses to fix crooked shutters or a leaky roof.

[SilentJames]

I think Atkins has until Nolan shows he can 1) hit and 2) play a decent enough firstbase.

[NewMarketSean]

I think Atkins has until Nolan shows he can 1) hit and 2) play a decent enough firstbase.

That is asking a lot from him in the middle of a struggle.

Why he didn't play more 1B in ST, I don't know.

Right now, it sounds like AM is panicking a bit when it comes to 1B, but he hasn't done a thing to remedy it. There are guys out there available for the minimum, yet we are still running Squinty McGee out there every game.

[waroriole]

That is asking a lot from him in the middle of a struggle.

Why he didn't play more 1B in ST, I don't know.

Right now, it sounds like AM is panicking a bit when it comes to 1B, but he hasn't done a thing to remedy it. There are guys out there available for the minimum, yet we are still running Squinty McGee out there every game.

Probably because he was recovering form Achilles surgery.

[NewMarketSean]

Probably because he was recovering form Achilles surgery.

How often did he play LF in ST? Gotta think 1B is less of a strain than LF.

[waroriole]

How often did he play LF in ST? Gotta think 1B is less of a strain than LF.

Maybe so, but he's still got to play LF. You're just adding learning a new position on top of everything else he has to get ready for while returning from surgery.

[NewMarketSean]

Maybe so, but he's still got to play LF. You're just adding learning a new position on top of everything else he has to get ready for while returning from surgery.

How is that different from learning a new position while struggling so much you got sent down to AAA and still possibly be bothered by injury?

[waroriole]

How is that different from learning a new position while struggling so much you got sent down to AAA and still possibly be bothered by injury?

I don't really see what you're asking? These two aren't connected. If you're injured there is only so much you can do in a spring training.

[NewMarketSean]

I don't really see what you're asking? These two aren't connected. If you're injured there is only so much you can do in a spring training.

Well if he was injured, why did you say "he's got to play LF" when it is a tougher position on an injured achillies than 1B -- even if he was just learning it?

[SilentJames]

That is asking a lot from him in the middle of a struggle.

Why he didn't play more 1B in ST, I don't know.

Right now, it sounds like AM is panicking a bit when it comes to 1B, but he hasn't done a thing to remedy it. There are guys out there available for the minimum, yet we are still running Squinty McGee out there every game.

Because we had Atkins, Wiggy, Aubrey, Snyder and Hughes all in line. In April the odds of Nolan playing firstbase at any point in the season would have been slim to none.

It would have taken a complete worse-case-scenario on many many levels to have that happen.

So there was no point in wasting a lot of instructional time on 1B when he needed the time to get acclimated back to LF.

Well, guess what: the WCS has happened, and then some. Add in the fact that C-Patt has looked very very good in LF Nolan at first all the sudden looks both more likely and attractive.

[waroriole]

Well if he was injured, why did you say "he's got to play LF" when it is a tougher position on an injured achillies than 1B -- even if he was just learning it?

He's playing LF b/c that is his primary position. He doesn't have to put the work in to LF that he would with 1B b/c he's got years of experience to fall back on. He doesn't have to learn what to do at LF, but he has to put alot of work into 1B. Therefore, the extra defensive work would put more of a strain on his achilles, at least I would imagine.

[DrungoHazewood]

I expect Atkins to be on the roster all year.

Then you must expect a dramatic turn around in his performance. Because it's been decades since a team kept a .600 OPS first baseman with no defensive or baserunning chops for an entire year.

If Atkins gets 400+ ABs while putting up something like a .240/.310/.320 line I'll consider that the first epic failure of the MacPhail years.

[stef]

This comment says it all:

I have to agree. Atkins is horrible, the $4.5 million is already spent either way. Get Garko or Blalock in here, and then still look for a 1B when trades heat up. There is no reason you can't do both.

Right now MacPhail is like the lazy homeowner who refuses to fix crooked shutters or a leaky roof.

Blalock's contract was purchased by the Rays. Burrell was DFA. The Rays are going to keep Blalock because he is hitting and can back up both 1b and 3B. With that move there is no need to move Johnson for anything less than a good deal. But your point stands: the Os can improve at 1b, just sign Garko or someone else with a pulse.