Its the Birds again. Better get used to it, 7 of the next 13 games are against Baltimore. A 4 set this week in Skydome and then three in Baltimore July 4th weekend.The Jays have won 30 of the last 41 between these two.
The good news is Baltimore aren't quite as hopeless as they have been in recent years. Mora, Gibbons, Matos and Hairston are showing signs of becoming the core of a decent offense. That offense has scored a creditable 366 runs (through Saturday) thats more than the Giants, Mets, White Sox, Cubs,
Indians, Expos and Phillies and only one less than the Rangers.
The Orioles are entering a stretch of the schedule not even Montreal would envy, they are in a stretch of 50 games where only two are against teams under .500.
On to the advanced scout...
* Prince Edward will throw out the first pitch before Mondays game. He's the goofy young one who doesn't play golf and works in TV.
* Director of Baseball Operations Ed Kenney was a candidate for the Mets GM job recently, and is considered a front-runner for any GM vacancies in the off-season according to the Baltimore Sun.
* The Orioles are holding a celebration of their 1983 series win over the Phillies next weekend.
* Remember the days of salary insanity - David Segui is making $6,762,895 this year.
* The Orioles have lost four of their last five and given up 31 runs. Oriole pitchers will spend the journey to Toronto thinking up bogus injuries so they can miss a start.
* There may be two All Stars on this team. Mora is almost certain to go, given his gaudy numbers, but the Baseball Prospectus is suggesting Sir Sidney Ponson might join him. Ponson's success this season seems to be down to a new-found ability to keep the ball in the park.
* Rodrigo Lopez made his second start since coming off the DL on Saturday and took a 3 hit shoutout into the sixth when the wheels came off. Mike Hargrove was mystified - "He entered the inning with 71 pitches, so he wasn't tired. For whatever reason, he got real tentative and started throwing a lot of changeups and a lot of sliders and wasn't trusting his fastball, and it got him in trouble."
* Sidney Ponson's nice little year is surely entirely coincidental with this being his contract year. Beattie and his agent are currently flirting through the Baltimore papers about the possibility of an extension. Althoughthere still seems a good chance he will be shopped around at the deadline.
* Melvin "Career Year" Mora is day-to-day with a right hand injury after he was hit on the hand by a Greg Maddux fastball, he doesn't think he needs a trip to the DL, but has missed the last two games. He may miss at least theseries opener. "It feels a lot better," he said. "I think two more days and I'll be fine." he said yesterday. Mora is showing no signs of slowing after his hot start, he has gone .364/.469/.545 over the past twenty games.
* Rumours have surfaced here and there that Dievi Cruz's days at shortstop may be numbered with Mora moving there. Cruz must have heard this as he has started hitting recently - he is .356/.365/.589 over the last twenty.
* Jack Cust's bat is heating up in Ottawa and he is up to a .314 EQA.
* One Orioles blogger believes the starting pitching in the farm system is better than the big clubs.
* Larry Bigbie has gone to Ottawa to continue his rehab - he strained a hamstring
last week.
* B.J Surhoff has remembered how to hit recently. He is .395/.410/.526over the last twenty games. He may see a few more starts over the slumping Matos (although Matos may be out of that slump - 3 for 4 yesterday).
* Jeff Conine played third for the first time since June 2001 yesterday as Tony Batista (see below) was benched. A double switch on friday also saw Conine in right field for the first in two years. He has prdominantly seen at first this year. There is no indication the move was more than a one-off
hargrove seems to think giving the slumping batista a day-off might do him good.
* ex-rated. The Orioles have quite a collection of ex Blue Jays
* Jay Gibbons is having a fine year sporting a nifty .872 OPS and leading
the team in Isolated Power at .220 (tied with Mora)
* David Segui is seeing time almost exclusively at DH, where his .735 OPS
isn't exactly lighting up the joint. Isn't this guy meant to be some kind of
defensive wizard, so why does he always get stuck at DH ?
* Tony Batista is doing even worse than Segui producing (if thats the
right word) at a .716 OPS.
* Marty Cordova is on the 60 day DL, he only had 30 at-bats this year,
but he was pretty productive in them with a .410 OBP. He is eligible to
come off the DL now but may find a regular slot in the outfield a big ask.
* Pat Hentgen has 7 starts this year but has struggled to a 1-4 record
with a 5.12 ERA and is now doing mop-up work. He went 3 2/3 of no hit ball
yesterday for his first career save. He took one for the team too when a
Castilla one-hopper deflected off his glove and hit him in the eye. Hentgen
being Hentgen, of course, he got the out at first and stayed in the game.
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
B Roberts
Matos
Mora
Conine
Gibbons
Batista
Surhoff
Cruz
Fordyce
vs. RH
B Roberts
Matos
Mora
Conine
Gibbons
Batista
Surhoff
Cruz/DH Segui
Fordyce/Gil
Pitching Probables
Monday: LH Daal vs. Davis
Tuesday: RH Helling vs. Escobar
Wednesday: RH Ponson vs. Lidle
Thursday: RH Lopes vs. Lurch
Bullpen Usage
Long: Driskill R, Hentgen R
Short: W Roberts R, Ryan L
Setup: Groom L, Ligtenberg R
Closer: Julio R
Interestingly, Orioles.com is the home page of the "US beer drinking team". Come up here and try your luck with some beer with alcohol in it boys.
The good news is Baltimore aren't quite as hopeless as they have been in recent years. Mora, Gibbons, Matos and Hairston are showing signs of becoming the core of a decent offense. That offense has scored a creditable 366 runs (through Saturday) thats more than the Giants, Mets, White Sox, Cubs,
Indians, Expos and Phillies and only one less than the Rangers.
The Orioles are entering a stretch of the schedule not even Montreal would envy, they are in a stretch of 50 games where only two are against teams under .500.
On to the advanced scout...
* Prince Edward will throw out the first pitch before Mondays game. He's the goofy young one who doesn't play golf and works in TV.
* Director of Baseball Operations Ed Kenney was a candidate for the Mets GM job recently, and is considered a front-runner for any GM vacancies in the off-season according to the Baltimore Sun.
* The Orioles are holding a celebration of their 1983 series win over the Phillies next weekend.
* Remember the days of salary insanity - David Segui is making $6,762,895 this year.
* The Orioles have lost four of their last five and given up 31 runs. Oriole pitchers will spend the journey to Toronto thinking up bogus injuries so they can miss a start.
* There may be two All Stars on this team. Mora is almost certain to go, given his gaudy numbers, but the Baseball Prospectus is suggesting Sir Sidney Ponson might join him. Ponson's success this season seems to be down to a new-found ability to keep the ball in the park.
* Rodrigo Lopez made his second start since coming off the DL on Saturday and took a 3 hit shoutout into the sixth when the wheels came off. Mike Hargrove was mystified - "He entered the inning with 71 pitches, so he wasn't tired. For whatever reason, he got real tentative and started throwing a lot of changeups and a lot of sliders and wasn't trusting his fastball, and it got him in trouble."
* Sidney Ponson's nice little year is surely entirely coincidental with this being his contract year. Beattie and his agent are currently flirting through the Baltimore papers about the possibility of an extension. Althoughthere still seems a good chance he will be shopped around at the deadline.
* Melvin "Career Year" Mora is day-to-day with a right hand injury after he was hit on the hand by a Greg Maddux fastball, he doesn't think he needs a trip to the DL, but has missed the last two games. He may miss at least theseries opener. "It feels a lot better," he said. "I think two more days and I'll be fine." he said yesterday. Mora is showing no signs of slowing after his hot start, he has gone .364/.469/.545 over the past twenty games.
* Rumours have surfaced here and there that Dievi Cruz's days at shortstop may be numbered with Mora moving there. Cruz must have heard this as he has started hitting recently - he is .356/.365/.589 over the last twenty.
* Jack Cust's bat is heating up in Ottawa and he is up to a .314 EQA.
* One Orioles blogger believes the starting pitching in the farm system is better than the big clubs.
* Larry Bigbie has gone to Ottawa to continue his rehab - he strained a hamstring
last week.
* B.J Surhoff has remembered how to hit recently. He is .395/.410/.526over the last twenty games. He may see a few more starts over the slumping Matos (although Matos may be out of that slump - 3 for 4 yesterday).
* Jeff Conine played third for the first time since June 2001 yesterday as Tony Batista (see below) was benched. A double switch on friday also saw Conine in right field for the first in two years. He has prdominantly seen at first this year. There is no indication the move was more than a one-off
hargrove seems to think giving the slumping batista a day-off might do him good.
* ex-rated. The Orioles have quite a collection of ex Blue Jays
* Jay Gibbons is having a fine year sporting a nifty .872 OPS and leading
the team in Isolated Power at .220 (tied with Mora)
* David Segui is seeing time almost exclusively at DH, where his .735 OPS
isn't exactly lighting up the joint. Isn't this guy meant to be some kind of
defensive wizard, so why does he always get stuck at DH ?
* Tony Batista is doing even worse than Segui producing (if thats the
right word) at a .716 OPS.
* Marty Cordova is on the 60 day DL, he only had 30 at-bats this year,
but he was pretty productive in them with a .410 OBP. He is eligible to
come off the DL now but may find a regular slot in the outfield a big ask.
* Pat Hentgen has 7 starts this year but has struggled to a 1-4 record
with a 5.12 ERA and is now doing mop-up work. He went 3 2/3 of no hit ball
yesterday for his first career save. He took one for the team too when a
Castilla one-hopper deflected off his glove and hit him in the eye. Hentgen
being Hentgen, of course, he got the out at first and stayed in the game.
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
B Roberts
Matos
Mora
Conine
Gibbons
Batista
Surhoff
Cruz
Fordyce
vs. RH
B Roberts
Matos
Mora
Conine
Gibbons
Batista
Surhoff
Cruz/DH Segui
Fordyce/Gil
Pitching Probables
Monday: LH Daal vs. Davis
Tuesday: RH Helling vs. Escobar
Wednesday: RH Ponson vs. Lidle
Thursday: RH Lopes vs. Lurch
Bullpen Usage
Long: Driskill R, Hentgen R
Short: W Roberts R, Ryan L
Setup: Groom L, Ligtenberg R
Closer: Julio R
Interestingly, Orioles.com is the home page of the "US beer drinking team". Come up here and try your luck with some beer with alcohol in it boys.
