Roch Kubatko

Will Showalter take home the hardware tonight?

November 12, 2012, 3:47pm

Orioles

Will Showalter take home the hardware tonight?

The Orioles' last chance to win a significant postseason award comes tonight with Buck Showalter being among the three finalists for American League Manager of the Year. The Baseball Writers' Association of America voting came down to Showalter, the Athletics' Bob Melvin and the White Sox's Robin Ventura. Showalter edged out Melvin for The Sporting News award, with their peers turning in the ballots. Showalter has won the award twice previously, with the Rangers in 2004 and the Yankees in...

Tags:

Chen receives two third-place votes for AL Rookie of the Year (with minor league signings)

November 12, 2012, 1:33pm

Orioles

Chen receives two third-place votes for AL Rookie of the Year (with minor league signings)

There was little drama surrounding tonight's announcement of the American League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year. The Angels' Mike Trout was the eighth unanimous AL winner in the award's history, receiving all 28 first-place votes from the Baseball Writers' Association of America. The Athletics' Yoenis Cespedes finished second and the Rangers' Yu Darvish was third, which is how my ballot looked when I submitted it shortly before the conclusion of the regular season. Cespedes...

Tags:

orioles featured_sidebar wei-yin chen frontstory_orioles2

Chen adds parenthood to major league resume

November 12, 2012, 9:39am

Orioles left-hander Wei-Yin Chen and his wife, Yi-Wen, are the proud parents of a baby boy. Karsten was born this morning at 8:07 a.m. No word on whether translator Tim Lin joined the couple in the delivery room. Chen is a father for the first time. And there's no angst brewing over how long his paternity leave will last and whether he'll miss any games. Good timing. Chen didn't return to his native Taiwan after the season. He's been working out in California in preparation for his...

Tags:

wei-yin chen

Rookies rate highly in Baltimore

November 12, 2012, 3:18am

Orioles

The Baseball Writers' Association of America will reveal its Rookies of the Year tonight, and the Orioles are merely spectators for this award. The Angels' Mike Trout will be the runaway winner in the American League, followed by the Athletics' Yoenis Cespedes and the Rangers' Yu Darvish. There's no drama. The National League finalists are the Reds' Todd Frazier, the Nationals' Bryce Harper and the Diamondbacks' Wade Miley. The guess here is Harper wins the award. The Orioles don't...

Tags:

orioles featured_sidebar manny machado miguel gonzalez tsuyoshi wada wei-yin chen frontstory_orioles2

This, that and the other, Part II

November 11, 2012, 3:54am

Orioles

A few more leftovers from my notebook: The Orioles had seven players total 100 or more strikeouts in 2012: Chris Davis (169), Mark Reynolds (159), Adam Jones (126), Matt Wieters (112), J.J. Hardy (106), Wilson Betmit (103) and Robert Andino (100). That's a lot, right? Betemit's 103 strikeouts came in 341 at-bats. Hardy hit .238/.282/.389 with 30 doubles, 22 home runs and 68 RBIs in 663 at-bats. He was the Orioles' No. 2 hitter in 150 of his 158 games, batting .236/.281/.380 in 631...

Tags:

orioles dan duquette featured_sidebar jj hardy nate mclouth frontstory_orioles2

This, that and the other

November 10, 2012, 3:57am

Orioles

Anyone find it interesting that the Orioles seem to be focused on finding a designated hitter or left fielder, with no mention of first base? This thought process could change if they don't re-sign Mark Reynolds. Or it means they will move Chris Davis to first base. Or ... something else. The Orioles aren't real keen on clogging up the DH spot with a player who can't contribute in the field, but it seems to work out that way. Ideally, they would find someone who also can play first base or...

Tags:

orioles frontstory_orioles2

This and that from GM meetings

November 09, 2012, 5:48pm

Orioles

Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette said he "formally met" with a little more than half the teams at the general managers meetings that concluded earlier today in Indian Wells, Calif. He also spoke to executives from about 10 other teams to "get an idea of what teams are looking for in trades." In addition, Duquette said he spoke to five or six agents who are representing free agent players, describing it as "preliminary talks" that likely will continue at next month's Winter...

Tags:

orioles dan duquette nate mclouth frontstory_orioles2

Still no meetings scheduled regarding Showalter extension (Ford agrees to terms)

November 09, 2012, 10:59am

Orioles

Still no meetings scheduled regarding Showalter extension (Ford agrees to terms)

One of the hot rumors at the general managers meetings in Indians Wells, Calif., involves the Orioles moving closer to signing manager Buck Showalter to a contract extension. There's little doubt that a deal will get done. As Showalter has told me in the past, it will be a short conversation. But nothing is scheduled at the moment. Showalter is into his third week of rehabilitation back home in Texas after undergoing a partial replacement of his right knee. It's a six-to-nine-week process,...

Tags:

orioles buck showalter peter angelos lew ford frontstory_orioles2

Lee MacPhail passes away at age 95 (with Angelos statement)

November 09, 2012, 8:25am

Orioles

Lee MacPhail passes away at age 95 (with Angelos statement)

Lee MacPhail, former Orioles general manager and father of former president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail, passed away Thursday evening of natural causes at his home in Delray Beach, Fla. He was the oldest living Hall of Famer, having celebrated his 95th birthday with family and friends two weeks ago. MacPhail was hired as Orioles general manager in 1959 and laid the groundwork for the team that swept the Dodgers in the 1966 World Series. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998...

Tags:

orioles lee macphail frontstory_orioles2

Butler does it for the Orioles

November 09, 2012, 3:43am

Orioles

Now that the Orioles have been shut out of the Silver Slugger Awards, it's up to manager Buck Showalter to bring home the hardware. The Baseball Writers' Association of America will reveal their Managers of the Year in both leagues Tuesday night, with live announcements coming on MLB Network. Showalter, Oakland's Bob Melvin and the White Sox's Robin Ventura are the AL finalists. Ventura is mostly a spectator. It's coming down to Showalter or Melvin. An Oriole won't win the Rookie of the...

Tags:

orioles buck showalter frontstory_orioles2

Orioles fail to win a Silver Slugger Award

November 08, 2012, 1:52pm

Orioles

The Orioles ended their most cumbersome and painful streak this season, posting a winning record and making the playoffs for the first time since 1997, but they remain without a Louisville Silver Slugger Award over the last four years. The winners were announced tonight on MLB Network, and none of the Orioles made the list. Center fielder Adam Jones figured to have an outside chance after batting .287/.334/.505 with 39 doubles, three triples, 32 homers, 82 RBIs and 103 runs scored in 162...

Tags:

orioles adam jones frontstory_orioles2

Revisiting yesterday's rumors

November 07, 2012, 6:42pm

Orioles

No matter how many times I've been warned, I can't resist touching the hot stove. We learned yesterday through various reports from the GM meetings that the Orioles are interested in Josh Hamilton and Cody Ross as possibilities in left field. One is more realistic than the other. Care to guess? It would be a tremendous reversal in front office thinking if the Orioles were serious about making a run at Hamilton. Executive vice president Dan Duquette indicated the day after Game 5 of the...

Tags:

orioles cody ross dan duquette featured_sidebar josh hamilton frontstory_orioles2

Duquette shut out in Sporting News executive voting

November 07, 2012, 6:31pm

Orioles

Duquette shut out in Sporting News executive voting

Oakland Athletics vice president and general manager Billy Beane has been named The Sporting News' 2012 Major League Baseball Executive of the Year, as selected by a panel of 57 major league executives. You can read about it here. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette didn't receive a single vote despite trading for Jason Hammel and signing Taiwanese left-hander Wei-Yin Chen, right-hander Miguel Gonzalez and outfielder Nate McLouth, among others. These moves helped the Orioles finish...

Tags:

orioles dan duquette frontstory_orioles2

Nieves has ties to the Orioles

November 07, 2012, 10:48am

Orioles

The Red Sox surprised the baseball world by hiring Juan Nieves as their pitching coach. All signs pointed toward Orioles director of pitching development Rick Peterson, a long-time friend and former minor league coach of new Boston manager John Farrell. Farrell reportedly favored Peterson. Maybe he didn't have the final vote. Peterson has his supporters and detractors within the Orioles organization. Not everyone is buying into his methods and philosophies. It would be erroneous to assume...

Tags:

orioles rick peterson frontstory_orioles1

Award finalists announced tonight (notes on Hamilton, Burke, Peterson)

November 07, 2012, 7:18am

Orioles

Award finalists announced tonight (notes on Hamilton, Burke, Peterson)

The finalists for the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) awards in both leagues will be revealed tonight beginning at 6 p.m. on MLB Network. At least we can be assured that the show won't be preempted by live coverage of a luge competition or dirt bike race. The BBWAA votes were submitted before the playoffs. I received a ballot in the mail for the American League Rookie of the Year. It must remain private, however, until the winners are announced next week. Let's just say I...

Tags:

orioles adam jones buck showalter wei-yin chen

Flaherty preparing for winter league stint in the Dominican

November 06, 2012, 4:42pm

Orioles

Flaherty preparing for winter league stint in the Dominican

The Orioles have stated their desire for infielder Ryan Flaherty to play second base in the Dominican Winter League, as they prepare to sort through their candidates and decide on a starter for opening day. Flaherty will join Leones del Escogido on the Sunday following Thanksgiving. He's never played winter ball, though he did report to the Cubs' Dominican academy after being chosen with the 41st overall pick in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft. "This is all new to me," Flaherty said...

Tags:

orioles featured_sidebar ryan flaherty frontstory_orioles3

"Bill James Handbook" gives Orioles low marks for baserunning

November 06, 2012, 9:51am

Orioles

The 2013 edition of "The Bill James Handbook," available today, ranks the Orioles as the second-worst baserunning team in the majors. If you've been paying attention, you already know that the Orioles ranked last with 58 stolen bases, and that 28 of those came from Adam Jones (16) and Nate McLouth (12). But that isn't the only deficiency. James notes that the Orioles posted "a -49 net base gain," placing them ahead of only the Detroit Tigers (-67), who happened to reach the World...

Tags:

orioles adam jones bill james jim thome matt wieters nate mclouth nick markakis frontstory_orioles3

Ford listed among minor league free agents (and note)

November 06, 2012, 6:29am

Orioles

Ford listed among minor league free agents (and note)

Outfielder Lew Ford, outrighted by the Orioles on Friday, has elected to become a minor league free agent, according to this list provided by Baseball America. The Orioles signed Ford, 35, out of the independent Atlantic League this summer and he batted .183/.256/.352 with three home runs in 25 games, his first major league action since 2007 with the Minnesota Twins. Left-hander Zach Phillips and infielder Steve Tolleson also refused their outright assignments. You can read more here and...

Tags:

orioles frontstory_orioles2 greg burke lew ford ryan adams scott beerer steve tolleson travis adair

Who's on the bench?

November 06, 2012, 2:37am

Orioles

It's always tricky to project a major league roster in early November. Too many players could be signed or non-tendered. The list can become outdated in the blink of an eye. However, there isn't much else to write about in early November, so why not? Perhaps the Red Sox name Rick Peterson as their pitching coach. The Orioles could claim another player off waivers. I won't plan my entire day around it. I'm focusing on the bench this morning. Assuming manager Buck Showalter carries four...

Tags:

orioles alexi casilla featured_sidebar frontfeatured_orioles nate mclouth nolan reimold robert andino ryan flaherty taylor teagarden wilson betemit

Tolleson refuses outright assignment

November 05, 2012, 4:33pm

Orioles

Infielder Steve Tolleson has refused his outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk and elected to become a free agent. The Orioles designated Tolleson on Friday to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Tolleson, 29, batted .183/.227/.310 with three doubles, two homers and six RBIs in 29 games over four stints with the Orioles in 2012. He hit a game-tying three-run homer off the Phillies' Cliff Lee on June 10 at Camden Yards. Tolleson played second base, shortstop, third base and left field for...