With only two weeks remaining until the official start of the season, the orioles have had a few things to be excited about so far during spring training, and a few more to be concerned about.Offensively, Nick Markakis looks like he has added some muscle, and is really swinging the bat thus far. Kakes is hitting .316 with 2 bombs. Luke Scott leads the team in RBI with 9, while hitting a respectable .286. Luke has the potential to be a huge threat in the orioles lineup, if he can manage to spread out his production a little bit. Last season the streaky DH led the Birds with 25 dingers; only problem with that? He hit all 25 of them in what seemed to be the span of a week. I'll take 25 homers any time, but it would be nice if Luke could come through a bit more consistently. Nolan Reimold seems to be coming along just fine after dealing with achilles issues.
Miguel Tejada has played a solid third base, but hasn't really gotten the stick going yet. Garrett Atkins, who the Birds were hoping would come in and add some pop to the corner infield spot opposite Tejada is hovering right on the Mendoza line with an average of .200.
On the mound, Brian Matusz has been nothing short of spectacular. While wins and losses are essentially meaningless stats for pitchers during camp, Matusz's 2.51 ERA , 18K's, and 1 walk in 14.1 innings make a line that top of the rotation guys strive for, and few achieve. Other than Matusz, the starting rotation has taken their lumps so far this spring.
Relievers Cla Meredith, Will Ohman, Kam Mickilio, and Mark Hendrickson have all pitched their way into the O's pen this year. David Hernandez and his life partner Jason Berken seem destined to start the year in AAA Norfolk, joining a rotation that includes prospects Jake Arrietta, Troy Patton and Brandon Erbe. Keep your eye on a young lefty named Zach Britton. Something tells me we will hear his name before some of the prospects listed above.
Kevin Millwood, brought in to anchor and mentor the O's young pitching staff, has lowered his ERA from around a gazillion to just a shade under 13. Millwood says he "stinks in spring training" and I am inclined to believe him. let's just hope that the veteran righty irons all of his kinks out before he takes the mound April 6th in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Last year, we could comfortably blame Jeremy Guthrie's absolutely horrendous campaign on the WBC, but what is the excuse this year? Guts has allowed 3 home runs, 7 walks and 12 runs in 10 and 2 thirds innings, ballooning his ERA to 9.28. If things progress this way, the Orioles' 2 innings eaters could both reach 200 hundred innings, while giving up 250 runs...each. Let's hope they straighten it out. I think that they will.
Chris Tillman hasn't given the Orioles any reason to question his spot in the rotation, and Brad Bergesen, fresh off of two injuries-the latest occurring when he tweaked his throwing shoulder while filming a commercial for the Orioles-hasn't been spectacular, but also hasn't pitched horribly either.
Koji Uehara, expected to be a major cog in the Orioles bullpen, hurt his hamstring yet again. Was signing a frail, aging Japanese closer to a multi-million dollar deal really worth it? Well, if the door to the Asian market of frail, aging Japanese relief pitchers was the goal, than I guess it was a success. Don't get me wrong, I believe Koji is a really good pitcher who could help the O's pen tremendously, but seriously dude...try lifting A weight. Newly acquired closer Mike Gonzalez has pitched a bit, but he too has been dealing with nagging injuries. The jury is still out on whether or not this guy can hold down the closer's role in the tough AL "beast."
The biggest worry? Brian Roberts. Baltimore's All-Star caliber second baseman has been dealing with a slight herniated disc in his back. B-Rob is the one player that the Orioles can ill afford to lose. Roberts is expected to make his spring debut later this week after returning from Baltimore and a visit to a back specialist at Johns Hopkins. Roberts apparently was given an epidural to help with his nagging back. I'm not sure how that helps his swing, but apparently the Birds' second baseman will be able to give birth completely pain free.
Adam Jones appears to be a bit larger this spring as well. Here's to Jonesy staying healthy all season long, and building on a 2009 that saw him make his first All-Star appearance, as well as winning his first gold glove. Matt Weiters is still the O's opening day starting catcher despite the fact that he too has gotten off to a slow start. Don't worry though, he is still considered "Mauer With Power."
Is this the season?
