Steve Melewski

Hunter Harvey said he feels healthy and ready for the new season

January 26, 2019, 10:14am

Orioles

Hunter Harvey said he feels healthy and ready for the new season

Orioles right-hander Hunter Harvey is feeling healthy and ready to start the 2019 season. Certainly, knock on wood when you say that. Several physical ailments, including Tommy John surgery and later elbow, shoulder and forearm issues at various times, have limited him in recent seasons. Harvey posted a 5.57 ERA in nine starts for Double-A Bowie in 2018 and threw 32 1/3 innings. He's pitched just 63 2/3 innings since the start of the 2015 season. So he's hoping this is the year to be healthy...

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Hearing from Kline, Scott and Tate at FanFest

January 26, 2019, 8:50am

Orioles

Hearing from Kline, Scott and Tate at FanFest

Right-handed reliever Branden Kline, from Thomas Johnson High School in Frederick, Md., heard about FanFest plenty of times as a kid, but never made it here. Today he did for the first time as a member of the Orioles' 40-man roster. Kline produced a strong 2018 season between Single-A Frederick and Double-A Bowie and was added to the 40 on Oct. 30. He'll head to spring training in a few weeks with a chance to have an impact on the big league roster this year. "First FanFest. Being a local...

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O's right-hander Dylan Bundy on his 2018 and more at FanFest

January 26, 2019, 7:09am

Orioles

O's right-hander Dylan Bundy on his 2018 and more at FanFest

Orioles right-hander Dylan Bundy did both some looking back and some looking forward when he was interviewed by reporters today at FanFest. Bundy said he's talked a few times to new manager Brandon Hyde and new pitching coach Doug Brocail. He got to see both in person last night. A reporter suggested that the starting rotation is a bit of mystery heading into training camp. "Mysteries are exciting," said Bundy. "New staff and lot of new faces around. Definitely looking forward to it. I'm...

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Yastrzemski heading to spring training, O's in Australia and Mussina's plaque

January 25, 2019, 3:44pm

Orioles

Yastrzemski heading to spring training, O's in Australia and Mussina's plaque

It was a bit of a surprise for me yesterday to see outfielder Mike Yastrzemski's name among the 18 Orioles non-roster invitees to spring training. It will be his first time joining those on the 40-man roster in big league camp. Pitchers and catchers report on Feb. 12 and the first spring game is Feb. 23. Yastrzemski has always had a lot of support from fans around Birdland, and I can think of two major reasons for that. One is that he has a famous baseball name and is the grandson of Hall of...

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Let's talk pitching: The Mike Elias Q&A, Part II

January 24, 2019, 11:07am

Orioles

Let's talk pitching: The Mike Elias Q&A, Part II

Here is the second part of the interview with Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias on the minors and player development. If you missed part one, it's here. Today, a little more focus on pitching. The organization Elias left, the Houston Astros, has a strong reputation for developing young pitchers. On Houston's current top 30 prospects list on MLBPipeline.com, four of the top six are pitchers, and so are six of the top 10 and 10 of the first 14. Right-hander Forrest...

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Elias with Q&A on player development and the farm

January 23, 2019, 5:57pm

Orioles

Elias with Q&A on player development and the farm

If he wants to develop that "elite talent pipeline" to build the Orioles from a 115-loss club into one that can one day win a championship, player development and the minor leagues will be critical for Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias. Elias provided this quote on that topic during the Winter Meetings: "This is an area, scouting and player development, where I have been my whole career. Where Sig (Mejdal) has spent most of his career. And we've had a lot of...

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The trip started in Montoursville and will end up in Cooperstown

January 22, 2019, 6:05pm

Orioles

The trip started in Montoursville and will end up in Cooperstown

When Mike Mussina made it to Cooperstown on his sixth try last night, he also became the 23rd player, coach or front office executive with modern-day ties to the Baltimore Orioles to be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. After playing 10 seasons with the Orioles and eight for the New York Yankees, Mussina made it clear in two separate interviews last night that he will not express a preference as to whether he goes into the Hall with an O's or Yankees cap on his plaque. "You know,...

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Cooperstown call: Mike Mussina elected to the Hall of Fame

January 22, 2019, 1:32pm

Orioles

Cooperstown call: Mike Mussina elected to the Hall of Fame

Right-hander Mike Mussina, drafted in the first round by Baltimore in 1990 and an Oriole the first 10 years of his big league career, was tonight voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. Mussina got 76.7 percent of the vote, making the Hall in his sixth year of eligibility. In his first year of eligibility in 2014, Mussina got just 20.3 percent of the vote. But he just kept trending up and got closer and closer. He got 24.6 percent in 2015, then moved to 43.0 percent...

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A few more thoughts on the Hall of Fame

January 21, 2019, 3:16pm

Orioles

A few more takes and opinions on the Hall of Fame, ahead of the announcement of the latest balloting to get to Cooperstown to be revealed live tonight on MLB Network sometime around 6 p.m. Will we finally have a unanimous selection?: This seems possible actually. In 2016, Ken Griffey Jr. missed by just three votes, getting 437 of 440 votes. If Griffey came that close, maybe today former Yankee Mariano Rivera will get every vote and set a baseball first. Rivera was a dominant one-pitch reliever...

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O's David Hess rode one big pitch to a strong 2018 finish

January 20, 2019, 6:47pm

Orioles

O's David Hess rode one big pitch to a strong 2018 finish

Can one pitch turn around a season? For Orioles right-hander David Hess, that may be exactly what happened on one he threw last Aug. 17 in Cleveland. Hess was making his 12th of the 19 starts during the 2018 season. He had allowed a two-run homer in the first inning and was in more trouble in the last of the third. With two outs, he issued two walks around a hit batsman and up came Yonder Alonso with the bases loaded looking to break the game open. Hess fanned Alonso and even though the Orioles...

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Mike Mussina is potentially closing in on a call to the Hall

January 19, 2019, 5:28pm

Orioles

Mike Mussina is potentially closing in on a call to the Hall

Will the sixth time be the charm for former Orioles and Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina? Is his call to the Hall of Fame coming on Tuesday? He's already an Orioles Hall of Famer, inducted in August 2012, and now it seems the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., may be calling. Finally. Without throwing a pitch, Mussina has become more popular with the voters - much more popular - in recent years. In his first year of eligibility in 2014, he got just 20.3 percent of the vote. But...

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Chris Archer's strong take on the Hall of Fame vote

January 18, 2019, 1:24pm

Orioles

Chris Archer's strong take on the Hall of Fame vote

Former Tampa Bay Ray and current Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Chris Archer had a strong take yesterday on players eligible for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. If you ever failed a test, got suspended, or admitted to using performance enhancers you should NOT be in the hall of fame. No hard feelings but you disgraced the integrity of the game, your stats are tainted. You don't deserve the honor. -- Chris Archer (@ChrisArcher22) January 18, 2019 Many will...

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Some props for Doug Brocail, expected to be O's pitching coach

January 17, 2019, 6:36pm

Orioles

Some props for Doug Brocail, expected to be O's pitching coach

The Orioles are expected to hire Doug Brocail as their next pitching coach. The club however, has not yet officially announced the addition of any coaches for new manager Brandon Hyde. But Brocail's anticipated addition drew some praise this week. The 51-year-old former big league pitcher worked in the Houston organization from 2010 through 2015 and was the Astros' major league pitching coach from June 2011 through the 2013 season and was later a special assistant. He was pitching coach for...

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How many top 100 prospects for the Orioles?

January 16, 2019, 5:42pm

Orioles

The new lists of top 100 prospects in baseball will be released soon by several national outlets including Baseball America, MLBPipeline.com, ESPN and others. Last year, on the Baseball America list, the Orioles had three players ranked for just the second time since 2013. They had a list of three after the 2014 and 2018 seasons. Here is a look back at the Orioles on the lists last winter. Baseball America: Austin Hays (21), Chance Sisco (68) and Ryan Mountcastle (71)MLBPipeline.com: Hays (23),...

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For fans tracking Machado and Harper, fatigue or intrigue?

January 15, 2019, 2:29pm

Orioles

For fans tracking Machado and Harper, fatigue or intrigue?

So when will teams start spending the "stupid" money? When will the saga of free agents Manny Machado and Bryce Harper come to an end? Where will they end up and could the Chicago White Sox actually wind up with Machado? So far, the free agency of the dynamic duo is not living up the hype. And this has been hyped for literally years. Hype that said they could both get north of $300 million and maybe even more than $400 million. Hype that said both could have numerous suitors among the big...

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Defense and pitching: Could the first make the second better for the Orioles?

January 14, 2019, 5:22pm

Orioles

We certainly know that Orioles pitchers didn't collectively do very well in the 2018 season. Baltimore ranked last in the American League with a team ERA of 5.18, well over the league average of 4.27. The starters' ERA ranked last in the league at 5.48, with the AL average at 4.39. The bullpen ERA was 4.78 to rank 14th and above the league norm of 4.09. But as longtime Orioles fans know, the team won often back in the day due to strong pitching and defense, and the two work hand in hand. The...

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Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman remains atop draft boards

January 13, 2019, 3:19pm

Orioles

Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman remains atop draft boards

Baseball America recently released its list of the top 100 prospects available for the First-Year Player Draft in June and Oregon State switch-hitting catcher Adley Rutschman is No. 1. Texas high school shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. is No. 2. That is the same top two that we saw on MLBPipeline.com's list. For just the second time in Orioles history, the club will make the overall No. 1 pick on June 3. In 1989, the Orioles selected LSU right-hander Ben McDonald 1/1, with the first pick in the first...

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How will the O's handle their catchers in 2019?

January 12, 2019, 2:56pm

Orioles

How will the O's handle their catchers in 2019?

The Orioles' current catching situation shows Austin Wynns and Chance Sisco on the 40-man roster and recent addition Carlos PÃ©rez and holdover Martin Cervenka as two of the top catchers on the farm. Andrew Susac was designated for assignment on Friday. That leaves the team pretty thin at the position right now, with not much big league experience on the roster. Can the Orioles get enough out of that group of four, or do they need to add a veteran catcher? Caleb Joseph was non-tendered by...

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A look at Dylan Bundy, Mychal Givens and Jonathan Villar after contract agreements

January 11, 2019, 2:50pm

Orioles

A look at Dylan Bundy, Mychal Givens and Jonathan Villar after contract agreements

If he made a list of goals for the 2019 season, avoiding any arbitration hearings would be well down the list for Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias. But it's nice anyway for the first-year GM to avoid hearings and he will accomplish that after reaching agreements with three arbitration-eligible players yesterday. The O's came to terms with pitchers Dylan Bundy and Mychal Givens and infielder Jonathan Villar. Barring trades or injuries, all three should play key...

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The 2019 season provides a chance to fully evaluate Mullins

January 10, 2019, 1:29pm

Orioles

The 2019 season provides a chance to fully evaluate Mullins

He was the Orioles' 13th round draft pick out of Campbell University in 2015. He showed such promise playing in 2016 at Single-A Delmarva and in spring training chances with the Orioles the following March that he skipped Single-A Frederick and went right to Double-A Bowie to begin the 2017 season. Outfielder Cedric Mullins was on a fast track, one that would take him to Triple-A in June of last year and later to the majors for his first call-up on Aug. 10. He became the Orioles' everyday...