masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgWhen you were little and you wrote a letter to Brooks or Cal, you probably didn’t ask him which right-handed bat the Orioles might sign this offseason or where the Orioles might find a left-handed reliever. If you did, maybe you were ahead of the curve, and if those are the questions you’re asking as an adult, you’re at least in the middle of the class.

But back then, things like “What’s your favorite TV show?” or “What kind of junk food do you like?” were more likely to top your list…When you were little and you wrote a letter to Brooks or Cal, you probably didn’t ask him which right-handed bat the Orioles might sign this offseason or where the Orioles might find a left-handed reliever. If you did, maybe you were ahead of the curve, and if those are the questions you’re asking as an adult, you’re at least in the middle of the class.

But back then, things like “What’s your favorite TV show?” or “What kind of junk food do you like?” were more likely to top your list of questions to ask your favorite Oriole.

So even if the baseball strategy is more engaging, the quick “What’s your favorite…” questions are still at least entertaining.

Each year, the guys get asked a list of these sorts of questions at spring training, and here are a few from that list…

Which retired player would you have most liked to play against?
Ozzie-Guillen_1994.jpgRobert Andino: Bo Jackson
Cesar Izturis: Ozzie Guillen
Nick Markakis: Ted Williams
Brian Matusz: Mark Grace
Felix Pie: Roberto Clemente
Koji Uehara: Sadaharu Oh
Matt Wieters: Greg Maddux

I wouldn’t _______ for any amount of money.
Matt Albers: Root for the Yankees
Brad Bergesen: Handle snakes
David Hernandez: Sky Dive

What’s your favorite song from the 90s?
Jim Johnson: Anything by Rage Against the Machine
Nolan Reimold: “Hot Stepper” by Ini Kamoze
Brian Roberts: “Killing Me Softly” by the Fugees
Jeremy Guthrie: “Return of the Mack” by Mark Morrison

Roch Kubatko doesn’t know it yet, but I might just send a list of my own questions like this down with him to spring training in Sarasota this spring. So here’s your chance: What would you ask the 2010 Orioles squad if you had a chance to be a kid again?