masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgThe Orioles have completed the home portion of their 2016 regular season. They hope you enjoyed it as much as they enjoyed bringing it to you.
They’re off today before opening a three-game series at Rogers Centre, where they’ve gone 2-5 this season.
It doesn’t seem so long ago that the Orioles were performing morning drills at the Ed Smith Stadium complex, with pitchers throwing to the plate with strings running across it. That Yovani Gallardo’s contract was restructured after his physical…

The Orioles have completed the home portion of their 2016 regular season. They hope you enjoyed it as much as they enjoyed bringing it to you.

They’re off today before opening a three-game series at Rogers Centre, where they’ve gone 2-5 this season.

It doesn’t seem so long ago that the Orioles were performing morning drills at the Ed Smith Stadium complex, with pitchers throwing to the plate with strings running across it. That Yovani Gallardo’s contract was restructured after his physical and Dexter Fowler’s mind was changed.

Where has the season gone?

“It’s actually been pretty short,” said manager Buck Showalter. “It just seems like yesterday we were in Sarasota. It does. It starts hitting you a little bit that it’s the last time we’re going to this city or that city. Thank God it’s the last time we’re going to that city. Oh my goodness, they may be in the playoffs and we may play them again and have to go back there. And that’s OK.

“I think seasons, when you’re having a winning season, it feels shorter. There are so many ebbs and flows to the season. We’ve been in the top of the competition just about all year and that’s really hard to do. I probably have the most respect for organizations and coaches and players that are consistently winning. It’s so hard. I’m not saying the first year we were competitive was easy.

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“You always feel like you’re playing with house money. But then to come back and be consistent and do things when you’re expected to do them, it’s called the burden of expectations. You can make it a burden or you can make it a good thing, and our guys have made it a good thing, so I think that’s what’s made it go by.

“Physically, emotionally and mentally? No, it’s a grind.”

This is where Showalter relates to the plight of the reporter, where he attempts to destroy the myth that the job is incredibly simple and none of the whining is justified. I resisted the urge to jump out of my chair and hug him.

“There’s a lot of people who have no idea about the grind you all have,” he said, connecting the sport to the people who deliver its news. “They think you just come in here and write some things down and go watch a game, but it’s so much more than that.

“I tell them all the time, try to bring something – and I’m sure you do too – that (says) here’s why you keep your job. Because I do something that other people can’t do. Bring something.”

* I’m asked all the time whether outfielder Joey Rickard, on the 60-day disabled list with a thumb injury, retains his Rule 5 status in 2017. And if so, do the Orioles again need to keep him on the roster all season.

Rickard spent enough days in the majors to shed the status. The Orioles can option him to the minors next season if necessary. He doesn’t need to pass through waivers and be offered back to the Rays.

Has Showalter seen enough of Rickard to have a completely clear read on him?

“Nobody’s that smart, but yeah, we’ve got a good feel for what Joey can do and where some challenges might lie,” Showalter said.

“We still hold out hope that we play deep enough that he might come back, but we’ve got a pretty good feel for him and we’re going to have a good player next year that has options.”

* Closer Zach Britton talked yesterday about sweeping after being swept. The former is much better than the latter.

I’m turning it into a bus scene from Bull Durham.

“It was huge,” Britton said after improving to 46-for-46 in save opportunities. “I think it was good that we were able to turn the page. The starting pitching did a great job the last three days and that kind of set the tone for everything. And then the offense, we gave them a chance to get going and they scored some runs and the bullpen came in and did a great job.”

That pretty much sums it up.

* Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Dariel Alvarez is going to play winter ball in Venezuela.

As a hitter?

“I think so,” Showalter said. “That’s what they wanted, so he’s going.”

If that sounded like a dumb question, there are people in the organization who are intrigued by the idea of Alvarez and his plus-arm converting to pitcher.

“I saw Dariel throw on the side the other day. A tape of him throwing on the side to a catcher. Pretty impressive. We’ve got some decisions to make there,” Showalter said.

“What’s tough is a guy like him, we talked about him maybe being able to do both and decide what he’s going to do, but then he’s going to get paid $20,000-$25,000 a month to go play in Venezuela and he’ll get to see his family in Venezuela, so how do you say, ‘You can’t go, you’ve got to stay in the instructional league and maybe do some pitching?’ Either you figure out a way to pay him $20-something thousand dollars to go to instructional league per month and get his family into the country. That’s about the only way you could do it. So, he’s going to Venezuela.”

As a hitter.

* Did everyone get their Hyun Soo Kim t-shirt Friday night? Did anyone reflect on how his popularity has risen from three layers below the surface to the roof deck?

Fans love the guy and vent about his usual exclusion from the lineup against left-handed pitchers. Booed on opening day for refusing a Triple-A assignment, embraced now with such force that his tongue almost spills out of his mouth.

“We’re all human beings. We all like to be liked,” Showalter said.

“It’s like David Cone a long time ago had a locker outside my office and I heard him talking. He’d had like three bad outings in a row, didn’t get out of the second or third inning and he was being booed. He had a great line. He said, ‘You know, they’re waiting to embrace me. It’s up to me to give them something to embrace me about. They want me to do well because it means our team is doing well. It’s something I control.’ I think Hyun Soo had a lot of confidence in his ability and knew that it would work out. He also realized it hadn’t gotten off to a good statistical start.

“I’m proud of him and happy for him because there’s a lot of pressure on him back there. Every time I do an interview with the Korean media, it reminds me of how many people live and die with every at-bat and everything he does here. I think it’s 8 o’clock in the morning the games come on. They were telling me they basically get up and have breakfast and watch our games.”

Kim will enter the Blue Jays series batting .302/.380/.416. The power hasn’t transferred from Korea to the majors, but he knows how to work a count and get on base. He leads the club in the first two categories.

“He’s been a good contributor, especially with the on-base percentage that all clubs are in need of,” Showalter said. “He’s played an adequate left field, too. Real accurate thrower, sure-handed.”

Kim was shaky in the outfield in spring training and the scouting reports that accompanied him were less than flattering toward his arm and range. But we’ve seen a guy who gets to the balls he’s supposed to and isn’t a liability.

Won’t win a Gold Glove, won’t hurt you.

“I’ll tell you, spring training’s one of the bigger foolers in outfield play,” Showalter said. “I’ve seen Gold Glove outfielders look terrible in spring training. You’ve got high sky, you’ve got sun, you’ve got wind, you’ve got no background on the ball coming off the bat behind home plate. Everything that you get spoiled with in the big leagues. So, I didn’t know.

“He’s played a very adequate left field. He works hard at it, he wants to play good defense and it doesn’t surprise me because if you gauge outfielders’ defensive skills by watching spring training, you’re going to make a lot of mistakes.”

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* Mark Trumbo was in a world of hurt in right field at Ed Smith Stadium. He’s had some rough moments this season, but not to that degree.

“Trum came here, we all knew he had a chance to hit and that’s where it fit for us in the outfield,” Showalter said. “He throws well and he’s engaged in it. He wants to be as good as he’s capable of being. And he’s done some good things for us out there.

“He’s not going to try to make a case that he’s a Gold Glover, but he’s been adequate for us, and especially when you couple the offensive things he’s done, I would have been real happy with it coming out of the spring because there was some real unknown. He’s been good.”

* Michael Bourn is here because he can play all three outfield positions, with his center field experience making him an ideal backup to Adam Jones. He’s also hit two home runs and shifted to small ball mode when the Orioles needed it.

“He’s a pro, as many people who have kind of been in the fire,” Showalter said. “A trustworthy guy. Has played at a high level. Had the burden of expectations before, so to speak. He’s handled it well.

“You can tell he’s a guy who’s embracing being here. He loves the atmosphere that he’s in. We’ve got a very welcoming group and it’s an easy mix when he came in here. A lot of guys already knew him.

* Manny Machado stole 20 bases last season. He doesn’t have a steal this year.

Machado’s established career highs in home runs (36) and RBIs (94) this season. His .301 average, .545 slugging percentage and 103 runs exceed his previous highs.

* Left-hander Tanner Scott made a combined 43 appearances between Single-A Frederick and Double-A Bowie, all in relief, but he’s slated to be a starter in the Arizona Fall League.

* We’re still waiting for confirmation on the starting time for Saturday’s game against the Yankees in the Bronx. It’s believed to be 4 p.m. if a MASN telecast, but earlier if FOX picks it up.

Let’s close this off-day blog entry with a few questions.

* During one of Showalter’s pregame media sessions, we began to debate the best trade made by executive vice president Dan Duquette. Trumbo for Steve Clevenger and Brad Brach for Devin Jones instantly came to mind. What’s your choice?

* Machado was named Most Valuable Oriole. The Orioles don’t reveal the second- and third-place finishers, but I chose Machado, Britton and Trumbo.

Who’s in your top three?

* When the anthem is played, why are only gentlemen asked to remove their hats?