Baltimore Orioles Thread: Orioles Magic

[Slateman]

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Provided the weather allows a game to get in, :machado: comes off the DL today :runaway:

 

[ThomasTomasz]

I wonder how worried the team is about Chris Davis? Besides the oblique injury, there might be something else bothering him. I'm pretty sure everyone expected a regression, but the pop that he's always had isn't there.

The Orioles have been in discussions with free agent first baseman/DH Kendrys Morales at several points over the past few weeks, though there's said to remain a fairly significant gap in negotiations to date and the likelihood of a deal is unknown.

Baltimore is said to have scouted Morales multiple times in recent weeks, as it has a clear interest in the switch-hitting slugger, according to sources. However, the diffrence in dollars seems to remain fairly clear, as well.

The sides appeared to be talking about one-year scenarios for the most part, though the dollar amounts aren't known. Baltimore made hay with a nice mid-spring signing of slugger Nelson Cruz for $8 million; like Morales, Cruz's free agency was hampered by the attachment of a draft pick to his signing by virtue of his turning down the former team's qualifying offer.

The Orioles look like they have the potential to have a powerhouse lineup, with Manny Machado now back and Chris Davis expected back in a few weeks. But the switch-htting Morales could be yet another late enhancement for the team that is obviously going for it -- if they can come together on a price.

Some management people suggest they believe Morales is still more likely than not to wait until after the June 5 draft to sign, as that could open up the field to include teams concerned about losing their draft choice. The Orioles would only stand to lose a third-sound pick since they've already lost their first two picks to sign free agents Ubaldo Jimenez and Cruz.

The Mariners have long have an interest in Morales and continued dialogue after he turned down their $14.1-million qualifying offer, but things seemed to cool when Seattle hit a cold patch on the field. It's possble the Mariners' better recent play could convince them that Morales, who had 23 homers, 80 RBI and batted .277 for them last year, could be a differencemaker. Additionally, Mariners people are said to love Morales for his work in the clubhouse as well as on the field. Seattle wouldn't get the draft pick attached to him should Morales wait until after the draft to sign elsewhere.

The Brewers have looked like a possibility for a post-draft deal, but that may depend on the play of their first-base tandem of Mark Reynolds and Lyle Overbay, who have been decent so far. Milwaukee has the best record in baseball, and owner Mark Attanasio has had luck lately with surprise deals with Scott Boras clients Kyle Lohse and Francisco Rodriguez.

The Orioles' interest level may ultimately depend to some degree on the play of Delmon Young and David Lough, who are basically splitting time. Young is batting .333 but Lough, a very good defender in the outfield, is off slowly, at .164. Combined they are hitting .233.

While some baseball execs have theorized that Boras could reach some kind of understanding now for a deal following the draft, no such arrangement would be binding, and Boras is said not to believe there is any wisdom in limiting the field with such an early understanding. Once the draft pick issue is alleviated, it's possible teams could start coming out of the woodwork.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/writer...ontinuing-interest-in-morales-but-gap-remains

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Gonzalez and Chen were awful this weekend. The Orioles are targeting June 1st for Johan Santana to make his debut, but even before that, one of those guys could even lose their job to Britton, who is pitching lights out in the bullpen in any role they put him in.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Wieters going to see Dr Andrews tomorrow about his elbow, worst case scenario is a UCL tear that will end the season for him and likely cost him some money in free agency after 2015.

 

[MVPete]

Not a bad deal. Insurance if Wieters can't come back, or maybe a sign he isn't.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Not a bad deal. Insurance if Wieters can't come back, or maybe a sign he isn't.

Clevenger has been solid, but if Wieters isn't coming back we need someone else. Hundley has a good bat, just concerned about his defense. I imagine Clevenger has earned the majority of the time if Wieters is indeed out for the year- he's gotten some good reviews on how he handles the pitchers when he's playing.

Patton was never a favorite of mine, and we dealt from a strength so it's not that much of a loss. Loser in all of this is Matt Wieters, who was hot with the bat before the injury and he likely lost a lot of money in FA.

 

[Leftwich]

Clevenger has been solid, but if Wieters isn't coming back we need someone else. Hundley has a good bat, just concerned about his defense. I imagine Clevenger has earned the majority of the time if Wieters is indeed out for the year- he's gotten some good reviews on how he handles the pitchers when he's playing.

Patton was never a favorite of mine, and we dealt from a strength so it's not that much of a loss. Loser in all of this is Matt Wieters, who was hot with the bat before the injury and he likely lost a lot of money in FA.

Troy Patton felt like he's been on the team forever. Don't mind the fact that we shipped him off.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Troy Patton felt like he's been on the team forever. Don't mind the fact that we shipped him off.

I think he's the last remaining player from the Miguel Tejada deal. I can't remember the other two players, but Patton, Matt Albers and Luke Scott were the main pieces. We also have Britton, McFarland and Matusz as lefties out of the pen.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Orioles All-Star catcher Matt Wieters will undergo Tommy John surgery to repair his torn ulnar-collateral ligament Tuesday, the team announced in a press release.

Given that he's not a pitcher, the timetable for a return is a bit shorter, as the expected recovery time has been announced as nine months. Basically, Wieters is out for the rest of this season but -- assuming no setbacks -- he should be good to go for the start of the 2015 season.

This news isn't entirely unexpected. Wieters has been dealing with the injury for several weeks. He hoped to build back up throwing strength and rejoin the team around the beginning of July, but he was unable to make progress in his throwing program and this past weekend had to again visit Dr. James Andrews.

Wieters ends the 2014 season with just 26 games played. He hit .308/.339/.500 (131 OPS+) with five doubles, five homers and 18 RBI. The Orioles were 16-10 in games he started and they're 17-23 without him.

With Wieters out, the Orioles figure to use Caleb Joseph and Nick Hundley behind the plate, with Steve Clevinger being a possibility (he's currently in Triple-A), too.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/eye-on...s-to-undergo-season-ending-tommy-john-surgery

:damnit:

To make matters worse, we have a blackhole of offense behind the plate now, and Clevenger was somehow the one sent to the minors. He wasn't hitting too bad.