Steve Melewski

Talking Joe Girardi's ouster, game times and more

October 26, 2017, 10:16pm

Orioles

Talking Joe Girardi's ouster, game times and more

There are 30 teams in the majors. As of yesterday, 20 percent are changing managers. As of yesterday, 30 percent of the 2017 playoff teams will have different managers next year. The Yankees' Joe Girardi will not return to the Bronx. He has been the skipper the past 10 years, averaging 91 wins per season and finishing first or second seven times. His teams made the playoffs six times, won the World Series in 2009 and lost in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series this year. By most...

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In major leagues, you need both dollars and sense to win

October 25, 2017, 6:45pm

Orioles

In major leagues, you need both dollars and sense to win

Each year in October, it is interesting to see if the clubs that advanced to the playoffs are the teams spending the most money on players. As is often the case and again this year, the answer is no. There is no question that having a big payroll is an advantage. How can having the ability to outspend your competitors not be? But having a big payroll is just not a requirement to having a winning ballclub. According to Spotrac and using team cash payroll spending, the World Series will be won...

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A look at a trio of free agent starting pitchers

October 24, 2017, 6:29pm

Orioles

A look at a trio of free agent starting pitchers

Before long, free agency will be underway in Major League Baseball. As the Orioles look to improve their rotation, that is one area they will be looking at. The club has long been reluctant to chase free agents at the top of the pitching food chain. But maybe there are a few hurlers that could be costly, but also affordable, to help the team moving forward. We'll take a look at several such possibilities over the next few weeks, starting with these three pending free agents today. Alex Cobb:...

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Notes on DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle

October 23, 2017, 8:27pm

Orioles

Notes on DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle

On their way to a 72-68 record and an Eastern League playoff berth, the Double-A Bowie Baysox were the best hitting team in the league this season. Bowie led all clubs in batting average (.283), on-base percentage (.345), slugging (.436) and runs (697). There were several hitters that had good seasons for Bowie, including Austin Hays, Garabez Rosa, Aderlin Rodriguez, Steve Wilkerson and Cedric Mullins. But when I asked Bowie hitting coach Butch Davis which player improved the most from the...

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Does Bowie flamethrower have future in the Baltimore rotation?

October 22, 2017, 8:13pm

Orioles

Does Bowie flamethrower have future in the Baltimore rotation?

He has the best fastball velocity of any pitcher in the Orioles organization. On Sept. 20, lefty Tanner Scott made his major league debut versus Boston. He began his career throwing two 99 mph fastballs. The second was hit into right on a checked swing for a single. Welcome to the show, kid. Scott allowed two runs in one inning in his debut, but his fastball, as advertised, touched 100 mph. He averaged 98 mph on his fastball and 88.7 mph on his slider, which got swings and misses on four of 11...

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Who is your all-time favorite Oriole?

October 21, 2017, 3:02pm

Orioles

A few times in the past during one of my "10 questions for O's fans" blogs, I ask, "What question should I ask you next time we do this?" Several of you have said ask us about our all-time favorite Orioles. OK. Today is that day. Tell us who your all-time favorite Oriole is and why that player is your favorite. If you can't pin it down to one, mention a few if you care to. Don't hold back and feel free to give us the background story. Maybe you just like how he played or how well he...

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Tough time to be an MLB manager and Houston forces Game 7

October 20, 2017, 8:27pm

Orioles

Tough time to be an MLB manager and Houston forces Game 7

Dusty Baker will not return as the Washington Nationals' manager. We found that out yesterday. We already knew John Farrell is not coming back as Boston's manager. Are these two being made the fall guys for player postseason failures? You could certainly make a case for that. Baker's teams won back-to-back division titles, winning 95 games in 2016 and 97 this season. But they lost back-to-back National League Division Series in fifth games. Farrell's teams won back-to-back division titles,...

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A look at the Orioles' list of pending minor league free agents

October 19, 2017, 6:45pm

Orioles

To put in perspective how long Garabez Rosa has been in the Orioles organization, when Adam Jones was traded to the club in February 2008, Rosa was about to begin his second season on the O's farm. Signed out of the Dominican Republic at 17 in November 2006, Rosa has played 1,154 games over 11 seasons in the Orioles' minor league system. Save for a few games at Triple-A Norfolk, he's been at Double-A Bowie since the 2013 season. He is the Baysox's all-time leader in games (590), hits (650),...

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Can Chris Davis become more aggressive and increase run production?

October 18, 2017, 3:40pm

Orioles

Can Chris Davis become more aggressive and increase run production?

He faced pretty much daily criticism during the 2017 season and was easily the most criticized Orioles player. We don't keep a sabermetric stat on that, but we don't need one to know that Chris Davis took a barrage of criticism during the 2017 season. And 2016, as well. As a player with a long-term contract and the highest salary on the team, fans expected a lot and didn't get it. As fans around Birdland looked to assign blame for a team that came up short of the playoffs, they pointed often...

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MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis says O's farm has made solid progress

October 17, 2017, 7:33pm

Orioles

MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis says O's farm has made solid progress

After a year when the Orioles farm system has taken a nice step forward, we checked in with a few national analysts to get their takes. Today, we hear from MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis. Ranked well down the list when it comes to organizational rankings the last couple of seasons, the club is moving up and making decent progress. The Orioles had several players ranked among the various league top 20 prospects lists from Baseball America, including four in the prospect-laden Eastern League....

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Some Orioles payroll math

October 16, 2017, 8:28pm

Orioles

The Orioles should have at least a few dollars to spend this winter, based on their current monetary obligations for 2018 and what they have spent in recent years. According to Cot's Baseball Contracts, the salary for the Orioles' opening day roster was $147.7 million in 2016 and $164.3 million last season. The Orioles have four guaranteed salaries on the books for 2017 with Chris Davis listed at $21.1 million, Adam Jones at $17.3 million, Mark Trumbo at $12.5 million and Darren O'Day at $9...

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Asked and answered: The readers respond

October 15, 2017, 6:40pm

Orioles

Yesterday in this space, we asked the readers to answer a few Orioles questions. Today here is a look (as of late last night) at how you answered. Not everyone answered every question or in the manner asked, but hey, we had some fun reading the responses. Who will lead the 2018 Orioles in wins?: Right-hander Dylan Bundy was the easy winner here, getting 21 votes to seven for Kevin Gausman. Alex Cobb, a pending free agent, got three votes, while Chris Tillman and Brad Brach got one. Unless MLB...

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First offseason edition: "10 questions for O's fans"

October 14, 2017, 8:32pm

Orioles

First offseason edition: "10 questions for O's fans"

It is time for the first edition of the offseason of "10 questions for O's fans." Feel free to answer one, two, three, any amount or all 10. Here are today's 10 questions: 1. Who will lead the 2018 Orioles in wins? 2. Which player will get the most starts in right field? 3. Better candidate to have a bounceback year: Chris Davis or Mark Trumbo? 4. Which free agent pitchers should the club pursue? 5. Who will lead the Orioles in homers next year? 6. Rank these Orioles prospects from best to...

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MLB's replay review system comes under fire again

October 13, 2017, 8:08pm

Orioles

MLB's replay review system comes under fire again

I have heard and read criticism of the replay review where Jose Lobaton of the Nationals was called out on review in the eighth inning on Thursday night. Lobaton beat the tag at first as Chicago Cubs catcher Wilson Contreras tried to pick him off. On replay it was noted his foot came off the bag while the tag was held. He was correctly called out. One criticism is this was not the spirit of the rule. I am not sure what that means. In baseball if your foot comes off the base during a tag, you...

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A position-by-position look at O's offense against league average

October 12, 2017, 9:01pm

Orioles

A position-by-position look at O's offense against league average

It is just one stat, but not a bad one to look at for any hitter - OPS. That is on base percentage plus slugging added together. Anything .800 or above, as we know, is a strong number. The high 700s are not too shabby. Among qualifying hitters, there were 37 players in the American League that posted an OPS of .800 or better this year. That list includes two Orioles, as Jonathan Schoop was 22nd at .841 and Trey Mancini was 26th at .826. But for this blog, I expand that a bit and will compare...

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O's list of Rule 5 eligible players includes pitcher Pat Connaughton

October 11, 2017, 4:26pm

Orioles

O's list of Rule 5 eligible players includes pitcher Pat Connaughton

He has only pitched 14 2/3 innings on the Orioles farm, but 24-year-old right-hander Pat Connaughton is eligible to be taken this December in the Rule 5 draft. Yep, that was fast. This will be the fourth Rule 5 draft since the Orioles selected Connaughton in round four out of Notre Dame in the 2014 draft and signed him to a bonus of $428,000. With short season Single-A Aberdeen in 2014, Connaughton pitched to a 2.51 ERA and showed a fastball that touched 96 mph with secondary pitches showing...

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In playoff pressure-cooker, AL East manager job security takes a hit

October 10, 2017, 8:16pm

Orioles

In playoff pressure-cooker, AL East manager job security takes a hit

It was about this time last year, when Orioles manager Buck Showalter was the subject of heavy criticism for not using closer Zach Britton in the club's AL wild card game loss at Toronto. But almost no one suggested Showalter's job was on the line and it wasn't. He is signed through 2018. But two other AL East managers are the subject of rumors now and their job security seems less firm than it was even a week ago. Not long after the New York Yankees lost Game 2 of the American League...

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Are the Orioles ready to turn over right field to Austin Hays?

October 09, 2017, 5:14pm

Orioles

After he has had 63 plate appearances in the majors, are the Orioles prepared to turn over right field to Austin Hays in 2018? Should they make that bold move? It would be a bit of a bold move for a player that has only 166 minor league games and one full season on the farm under his belt. He was drafted in the third round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft and became the first player from that draft class to make the majors. Hays had an amazing minor league season, one that began at Single-A...

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A few facts and a few opinions

October 08, 2017, 4:27pm

Orioles

A few items worth nothing and a few opinions about them to start the second week of the offseason. Item: The Orioles offense was the best in the American League in August and the worst in September. This was a pretty stunning change. In August the team ranked first in batting average (.306), slugging (.534), OPS (.882), homers (57) and runs per game (6.0). In September they ranked 15th and last in the AL in average (.224), OBP (.273), slugging (.358) and runs per game (3.1). The Orioles hit 27...

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Orioles will reload, not rebuild

October 07, 2017, 3:54pm

Orioles

It is a question worth asking even though we pretty much know the direction the organization will take: Should the Orioles be rebuilding now after posting a losing record in 2017, and with several veterans not signed beyond 2018? The Orioles seem much more inclined to be reloading than rebuilding. They are still looking to add to their roster and improve their pitching to make another run for the playoffs in 2018. But we all know that free agency awaits for four key players after the 2018...