Steve Melewski

Jim Johnson talks to fans in Aberdeen about the rotation, the WBC and much more

January 17, 2013, 5:29pm

Orioles

Jim Johnson talks to fans in Aberdeen about the rotation, the WBC and much more

From time to time, the debate begins again. There are plenty of Orioles fans and some in the media that believe Jim Johnson, if given the chance, would be an excellent starting pitcher because he has several quality pitches. As for Johnson, he is not campaigning for a shot at the rotation. In fact, he said last night, he figures he's now likely a bullpen pitcher for good. "I think that has gone by the wayside honestly," Johnson said. "I think that time is long gone and I'm comfortable...

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Pedro Strop looks forward to pitching for Dominican Republic in WBC

January 17, 2013, 11:07am

Orioles

Pedro Strop looks forward to pitching for Dominican Republic in WBC

The World Baseball Classic coming in March will pit some major league teammates against each other in the 16-nation tournament and that could happen for Orioles teammates Adam Jones and Pedro Strop. The 27-year-old right-hander will pitch for the Dominican Republic and he could wind up facing Jones at some point instead of watching him play center field behind him. "Something like that would be fun," Strop said today when asked about the possibility of facing Jones in the tournament. "You...

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Buck on Roberts, working with Duquette and the training camp pitching competition

January 17, 2013, 8:03am

Orioles

Buck on Roberts, working with Duquette and the training camp pitching competition

Orioles manager Buck Showalter was asked today about Brian Roberts. He has been optimistic when talking about the veteran second baseman and his outlook for the 2013 season. He was asked after today's press conference if Roberts has had a winter free of any health concerns or issues. "That wouldn't be completely honest if I said that," Showalter said without elaborating on exactly what he meant. "He feels really good right now and he's working out. He'll be here in a day or two and you...

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Louis Angelos: "This is about building a sustained winning and competitive team"

January 17, 2013, 7:21am

Orioles

Louis Angelos: "This is about building a sustained winning and competitive team"

After today's press conference at Camden Yards, Louis Angelos of the Orioles ownership group was asked about the club making such a long commitment to Buck Showalter and Dan Duquette, with their contracts extended all the way through 2018. "Continuity is important for an organization," Angelos said. "Buck came in and he rejuvenated just about every aspect - what happens on the field, in the dugout and clubhouse. Dan came in and his impact was immediate as well. During the interview...

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Showalter and Duquette: On the job for the Birds through 2018

January 16, 2013, 4:50pm

Orioles

Showalter and Duquette: On the job for the Birds through 2018

Now that is a contract extension. Both Dan Duquette and Buck Showalter get extensions through the 2018 season, so get used to this duo running the Orioles. By the way, Adam Jones' extension from May also runs through 2018. I sense a theme here. If Buck finishes this contract, he will have over eight seasons under his belt as Orioles manager and only Hall of Famer Earl Weaver will have managed the club longer. We can probably surmise a few things from yesterday's announcement. First of all,...

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Duquette, Showalter sign extensions through 2018 (with Buck quotes added)

January 16, 2013, 11:44am

Orioles

Duquette, Showalter sign extensions through 2018 (with Buck quotes added)

The Orioles announced contract extensions through the 2018 season for executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter on Wednesday evening. They will hold a 10 a.m. press conference with the duo at Camden Yards on Thursday. The pair led the Orioles to a 24-win improvement in 2012, as the team went from 69-93 to 93-69 and posted its most wins and first playoff berth since 1997. From Aug. 1 to the end of the regular season, the Orioles went 38-20 and...

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Upward trend: Adam Jones' stats are on a three-year increase

January 15, 2013, 9:21am

Orioles

Upward trend: Adam Jones' stats are on a three-year increase

If you look at Adam Jones' offensive stats, they have been trending upward for three years now. It makes you wonder just how good the Orioles center fielder can be and how much better he can get. When MLB Network recently picked its list of the current 10 best center fielders, guest host Bill James rated Jones fifth and analyst and former Oriole Bill Ripken placed Jones third among all center fielders behind only Mike Trout and Andrew McCutchen. Ripken said of Jones that he got a lot of big...

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Checking on another pitching prospect: A look at right-hander Mike Wright

January 14, 2013, 11:10am

Orioles

Checking on another pitching prospect: A look at right-hander Mike Wright

He is mentioned often as being one of the Orioles' top pitching prospects. After this past season, Baseball America rated right-hander Mike Wright as the club's No. 8 prospect and he ranks fourth among pitchers after Dylan Bundy (No. 1), Kevin Gausman (No. 2) and Eduardo Rodriguez (No. 5). Wright began this past year at Single-A Frederick and went 5-2 with a 2.91 ERA in eight starts for the Keys. He moved to Double-A Bowie in late May, but after just two Baysox starts, he spent about five...

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The case for the defense

January 13, 2013, 2:45pm

Orioles

So, were there any exciting sporting events over the weekend? I heard there were some. Meanwhile, back on the baseball beat, what if there was a team and only four other teams made more errors than said team last season? What if just three squads had a lower fielding percentage than said team? Could that squad be a good fielding team in 2013? It can if you are talking about the Orioles, and of course we are. Tampa Bay, a team with a recent history of very solid defense, led the American...

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Orioles promote James Keller to the position of national pitching crosschecker

January 11, 2013, 3:32pm

Orioles

The Orioles have promoted scout James Keller to the position of national pitching crosschecker, O's scouting director Gary Rajsich said tonight. Keller actually began working more closely with scouting pitchers before last season's draft. That was a draft where the Orioles took pitchers in the first two rounds, drafted eight in the first 12 rounds and selected 12 pitchers in the first 17 rounds. "That is really James' specialty. He's real good at identifying pitchers and real good with...

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10 questions for O's fans

January 11, 2013, 2:44pm

Orioles

Today and this weekend, I'm asking 10 questions and looking for your answers. Feel free to provide a take on one, three, six or all 10 questions. If you want to number your answers to correspond with the question that may make it easier to follow. 1: How many games will Nolan Reimold start next season? 2: How many saves will Jim Johnson have in 2013? 3: In three years, will Johnson be a relief pitcher or a starting pitcher? 4: Which team will finish last in the American League East in...

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Can the Orioles bullpen be 2012 good again?

January 10, 2013, 12:41pm

Orioles

There is a baseball theory out there, and plenty of evidence behind it, that says relief pitchers and entire bullpens for that matter, are volatile and likely to see big swings in performance from year to year. There sure seem to be fewer relief pitchers than starters who can be counted on to produce top stats every season. Some believe closers are overrated and that you should seldom, maybe never, give bullpen pitchers multi-year contracts because of that volatility. So where does that leave...

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Random Hall of Fame rumblings

January 09, 2013, 3:40pm

Orioles

Today a random rumblings, Hall of Fame edition. As per usual, after reading this please leave plenty of your own opinions and comments: * The so-called steroid era is a mass of confusion to me. It is undefined, subjective and talk of it creates many more questions that actual answers. It creates a wealth of strong opinion and spirited debate, which is interesting, but very few absolute facts. It makes each Hall voter judge and jury and that is what a vote is, I guess. You decide what you think...

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How to determine a player's trade value

January 08, 2013, 3:23pm

Orioles

Here is an interesting question to discuss and debate as we look out the window on these cold winter mornings and count the days until spring arrives: What is the value of a player? When a few people asked me via Twitter yesterday if the Orioles might include Brian Matusz in a potential trade for the Nationals' Michael Morse, it made me wonder about Matusz's - and all players' - trade value. Now I am not proposing the Orioles trade the lefty but you have to wonder how opponents view the...

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A look at another pitching prospect: Pinales shows early promise and potential

January 07, 2013, 2:58pm

Orioles

A look at another pitching prospect: Pinales shows early promise and potential

In some ways, left-hander Elias Pinales is just like a lot of young pitching prospects over the years from the Dominican Republic. He is tall and lean, and throws hard. He is a decent prospect, but has a lot of developing to do to try and work his way up through the Orioles farm system. Pinales, from Bajo de Haini, turned 20 in November. The 6-foot-4, 155-pounder was signed by David Stockstill as a non-drafted free agent on Aug. 27, 2010. For the Dominican Summer League Orioles in 2011, he...

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The great Orioles winter debate

January 06, 2013, 3:39pm

Orioles

It is not a surprise to me. In fact, I predicted early in the offseason that the theme this winter would be how the Orioles were fortunate to win last year and how it can't happen again. The theory goes that last year everything broke right. The Orioles went 29-9 in one-run games and 16-2 in extra-inning games. What good fortune. But the Orioles outscored their opponents 33-5 in extra innings in 2012. No one talks about that run differential. Opponent batters hit .189 with a .241 slugging...

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What is your take on getting baseball autographs?

January 04, 2013, 3:22pm

Orioles

So what is your take on FanFest and what is your take on getting baseball autographs? With Friday's announcement of the lineups for autographs for FanFest, it's a good time to revisit these topics. Feel free to share some stories and opinions here this weekend. For those FanFest veterans, what do you like most about the day? What advice would you give fans that are going for the first time? How could the Orioles improve the event and make it even more fan-friendly? The aspect of getting...

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The Orioles shouldn't have any untouchables, however ...

January 03, 2013, 3:29pm

Orioles

When a member of the Miami Marlins front office said the club would listen to trade offers for Giancarlo Stanton, it set off a mild firestorm around baseball. To me, all it meant was the Marlins' brass was doing its job. I am not a believer in the concept that certain players are "untouchable" meaning they are 100 percent unavailable via a trade. How can a team say never? Every GM has a price on every player and if some team overwhelms the Marlins with a deal too good to pass up, maybe...

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Miguel Gonzalez could be the X factor on the pitching staff

January 02, 2013, 2:44pm

Orioles

Miguel Gonzalez could be the X factor on the pitching staff

In this space yesterday, I labeled Nolan Reimold an X factor for the Orioles' offense come April. If Reimold can stay healthy, he could be huge for the offense next season. Who is the X factor on the pitching staff? I think Miguel Gonzalez is a candidate for that. He was so good and so poised last year that it could be hard for him to duplicate that performance, but he enters spring training as someone who would really have to struggle badly through March to lose a starting rotation spot,...

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A healthy Nolan Reimold could be a real X factor for Orioles offense

January 01, 2013, 12:50pm

Orioles

The assumption seems to be that the Orioles offense needs to get better and needs a key addition before the start of the 2013 season. This after the club scored just 15 runs in six postseason games and finished ninth in the American League in runs scored last year, 10th in batting average and 11th in on-base percentage. But while those numbers cover the entire 2012 season, the O's offense was better in the second half. The Orioles hit .240 with an OPS of .704 and they scored 4.13 runs per...