With a Tuesday off-day thoughtfully inserted to accommodate the World Cup of Hockey, the Orioles come into town with some struggling bats. After Justin Miller and Ted Lilly registered solid outings last week in Anaheim, they should each have an excellent opportunity to extend their personal winning streaks this week.
This week's Scout features a young closer on the trading block, a Canadian who unfortunately looks like yet another young arm headed for the surgeon's table, and a shortstop that's been worth the (ample) money for the O's. Also, check out (and please weigh in on) the controversy brewing with Rafael Palmeiro's contract. The O's are rumoured to be considering Palmeiro, Delgado or Richie Sexson to play first next season...but they may be starting a war with one while alienating the other two. Or is it "just business?"
On to the Advance Scout!
* Baltimore just concluded a tough 2-4 homestand against the frontrunning Twins and Yankees ... The O's managed to steal another game from the Evil Empire after taking two in Yankee Stadium over Labour Day weekend ... Their team pitching puts a lot of pressure on the club's (generally capable) offence. The Orioles are a pitiful 8-46 when scoring three runs or fewer ...
* Lee Mazzilli demonstrated the dark side of September callups in yesterday's matinee, when he made nine pitching changes en route to using ten hurlers in their nine-inning 9-7 loss to the Yankees ...
* The free-agent dollars spent by Peter Angelos did not make the O's into '04 contenders, but any measure, Miguel Tejada has been full value for his contract ... He's on pace for career highs in on-base percentage (.357) and slugging percentage (.519), and his 125 RBI are just six shy of his career best ... This has been his fifth consecutive 100-RBI season ... And he's been durable as ever, playing in all of the club's 141 games. He hasn't missed a game since 2000 ... Tejada committed a costly throwing error on Saturday, which led to a valuable insurance run for New York ...
* Javy Lopez has also enjoyed a good season, although he hasn't homered in his last sixteen games ... Like many Orioles, he's suffering through a September scuffle, hitting just .212/.278/.242 on the month ... El Duque struck him out three times on Saturday ...
* Closer Jorge Julio has had a tough go of things lately ... Of his last seven outings, he's taken three losses and a blown save to go with his two successful saves ... The 25-year-old Venezuelan (who bears a physical resemblance to a younger ex-Oriole -- Armando Benitez) has gotten in trouble with leaving his fastball up. Ten homers in 60 2/3 IP provides some evidence of this ... Julio's outing on Tuesday won't show up in his career highlight video. After surrendering a two-run bomb to Michael Cuddyer on a pitch Cuddyer described as "a fastball right down the middle," Julio knocked down Augie Ojeda with a heater uncomfortably close to the banjo hitter's head -- a stunt that got him not only ejected, but suspended for four games ... The Orioles immediately appealed the suspension, as Julio insisted that he "never tried to hit the guy," but Ron Gardehire was incensed after the game ... Lopez believes it wasn't intentional, but commented that the 98 mph high and tight one "would've killed" Ojeda had it hit him ...
* Fellow Venezuelan Melvin Mora keeps on truckin', as he's hit in eight of his last nine (.371) ... Raise your hand if you saw him following his .921 OPS season with a 1.007 OPS one ... He's been dangerous against anyone this season. He hits .350 against righties, but he posts a .449 OBP and slugs .614 off lefties ... Although he played an extremely erratic third base in April, his five errors since May 21 leave him tied with Eric Hinske for the fewest errors among AL third sackers since then ...
* Jay Gibbons has been slumping badly this month, putting up .179/.273/.321 numbers in September ... The Jays' 14th-round pick in 1998 has hit 12 homers against the team that drafted him. He's only reached double digits against the Jays and Rays (also 12) ...
* Wednesday's starter will be the still-promising Matt Riley, who turned in an excellent performance last Tuesday in his first start since his September recall ... Although he was shelled in each of his two previous stints with the big club, he was given a spot start and limited the Central-leading Twins to just two hits over seven-plus innings, leaving with a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately, he walked two in the eighth, and one inherited runner scored on Jason Grimsley's watch. Riley took a tough no-decision in a game the Orioles would lose 3-1 ... Riley was demoted amid some controversy in early July. The Orioles sent him to Philadelphia in advance of the club, and were not impressed when he took an unauthorized side trip back to Baltimore, only to return and get rocked in Citizens Bank Park ... Riley apologized to the entire team upon his return last week. Mazzilli was asked what it would take for the insubordinate lefty to earn another start, and he jokingly replied, "a no-hitter." Sure enough, Riley tossed four no-hit innings to start the game ...
* Riley will replace Canadian Erik Bedard in the rotation for the rest of the season. Bedard will be shut down in terms of game action while he works off the bullpen mound on developing a new offspeed pitch. The O's are toying with a circle change for Bedard ...
* Grimsley has been reasonably effective since his acquisition from Kansas City, but he can still get the yips on the mound, as evidenced by his walking three Yankees yesterday ... Although righties hit just .195 off him, he struggles against lefthanded hitters, who hit .310 with an 11/6 BB/K ratio ...
* He's come on at the plate of late, but is there any explanation for the 37-game stolen base drought for Brian Roberts? ... He's been caught in his last four attempts, and he has not attempted a steal in September ... All of the switch-hitter's home runs have come from the left side. As a right-handed hitter, he's only putting up .222/.307/.318 numbers ...He's been swinging a hot bat since the All-Star Break, hitting .335/.401/.454 overall ... Interesting fact: With 46 doubles, he's tied the all-time AL record for doubles by a switch-hitter. John Anderson of the 1901 Milwaukee Brewers -- the club that would next year become the St. Louis Browns, and eventually these Orioles -- previously held the record, which lasted 103 years ...
* Part-time first baseman Jose Leon has gone 4-for-20 since his late-August recall, with no walks and six strikeouts ...
* Rafael Palmeiro can be excused for losing a bit of bat speed, since he turns 40 next weekend. Still, he needs to step it up in September if he wants to keep the following impressive streaks alive: 13 straight years with 20+ homers (17 thus far), nine straight 100+ RBI seasons (75), six straight seasons slugging better than .500 (.413) ... Palmeiro refuses to publicly criticize Oriole management for their handling of his option clause for next season, but teammates say he's furious ... 140 defensive games played were required for his $4.5 million option to vest. Sure enough, with his defensive game total at 117, the veteran has seen the dreaded "DH" notation next to his name ... Palmeiro signed his current contract with the stated intention of retiring an Oriole and entering the Hall of Fame as an Oriole (if selected). Mazzilli: "You're talking about a great ballplayer...But this is also part of the job, I guess, the business and the personal" ...
* Setup man extraordinaire B.J. Ryan is a buzzsaw on lefthanded hitters, who hit just .095 off him ... He hasn't allowed a hit in his five September outings ... He's shut out the Jays in 6 1/3 IP this season, with one walk and eight strikeouts ...
* It was a while ago, but did you know that B.J. Surhoff was the first overall pick of the 1985 draft? ... Now 40, B.J.'s still a useful bat and is a lifetime .304 hitter at SkyDome ... He can still handle a corner outfield spot competently, too, which has been necessary with the season-ending injuries to Luis Matos and Jerry Hairston Jr. ... Surhoff drove in a season-high four in Friday's 14-8 thrashing of New York ...
* Those injuries have forced Larry Bigbie into an everyday role as well. Although he continues to struggle against lefties (.216/.293/.360), he's put together a nice season against righthanders (.309/.365/.450) ... He's hitting .405 in September, but 15 of his 16 hits have been singles ...
* Thursday's starter will be Rodrigo Lopez, who's a solid 6-2 over his last ten starts ... He's never pitched well at SkyDome, going 0-3 in four starts with an 11.42 ERA and a .380 opposition batting average ...Watch for his sneaky changeup, which he feels comfortable throwing anytime in the count ...
* Late-blooming 27-year-old righty Aaron Rakers made his big-league debut last Wednesday, giving up two runs on four hits to the Twins ...
* Relegated to the bullpen, Dave Borkowski had a really ineffective weekend against the Yankees. His combined line: 1/3 of an inning, 6 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 0 K ... Mazzilli was not impressed at all with Borkowski's weekend: "[Against] righthanders, he's got to do the job" ...
* Up-and-down righty Rick Bauer has allowed just one run in his seven mop-up innings since his September recall ... Bauer is in notably brighter spirits since his recall. He threw a tantrum after his July 7 demotion ...
* Old friend (?) David Segui has gone 6-for-12 since returning from a four-month stint on the DL ...
* David Newhan has been one of the real surprises of the 2004 season, but pitchers appear to be figuring him out in September (.243/.282/.351, 1 BB, 11 K) ... 17 of his 26 extra-base hits have come away from Oriole Park this year. He's put up a tremendous .345/.399/.518 line on the road thus far ...
* The club is expected to name Val Majewski minor-league player of the year and Hayden Penn minor-league pitcher of the year ... It wasn't a good year in the standings for Baltimore's minor-league affiliates, who were a collective 59 games under .500 ...
* Canadian Adam Loewen was diagnosed with the dreaded labrum tear last week ... He'll be put on a throwing program, starting next week. If rest and rehab work, then he should be good to go for spring training. But if he needs surgery, it'll knock him out for all of next year ... He went 4-5, 4.11 at Low-A Delmarva before going 0-2, 6.75 with the High-A Frederick Keys. He left his last Frederick start after complaining about hearing a pop in his pitching shoulder ... The worst thing for one's health, it seems, is to be drafted by the O's. Richard Stahl was the club's '99 first round pick, and he's been dogged by serious injuries. Meanwhile, both the club's 2000 first-rounder (Beau Hale) and 2001 top pick (Chris Smith) have been shut down for the last two seasons with shoulder surgery ...
* Early-80s A's ace Steve McCatty has been called up to the big league coaching staff. He was Ottawa's pitching coach this season ...
* The City of Baltimore did the right thing with the Memorial Stadium grounds. The ol' ballpark was razed in 2001 ... After plenty of indecision finally gave way to construction, Stadium Place was finally dedicated last week. When it's completed, it will feature a YMCA and low-income housing for seniors. Several of the units are already open ...
* It's been speculated that the O's will offer Jorge Julio in a package for a frontline starting pitcher. Sources have suggested that although the club hasn't given up hope on Julio's ability to be an ace reliever, they don't think it can happen by next season. Peter Schmuck (yes, that's his name) of the Baltimore Sun wrote last week that although Mazzilli and the coaching staff would rather have B.J. Ryan close, the club doesn't want to diminish Julio's trade value by demoting him now ... The Orioles will target Derek Lowe, Carl Pavano or Kevin Millwood -- i.e., groundball pitchers that can succeed in cozy Camden Yards ...
* Third base coach (and ex-Brewers skipper) Tom Trebelhorn got into a shouting match on Saturday with Jorge Posada as the Yanks' catcher accused him of stealing signs. If Trebelhorn was tipping Oriole hitters, he was doing a poor job of it; El Duque stymied the Baltimore bats ...
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
4 Roberts
7 Newhan
5 Mora
6 Tejada
2 J Lopez
DH Segui
9 Gibbons
3 Leon
8 Raines Jr
vs. RH
4 Roberts
7 Newhan
5 Mora
6 Tejada
DH/3 Palmeiro
2 J Lopez
9 Surhoff
3/DH Gibbons
8 Bigbie
Pitching Probables
Monday: LH Chen vs. Miller
Wednesday: LH Riley vs. Lilly
Thursday: RH R Lopez vs. Batista
Bullpen Usage
Long: Bauer R, Rakers R, Rodriguez R, Parrish L
Short: Grimsley R, Williams R, Borkowski R, Groom L
Setup: Ryan L
Closer: Julio R
This week's Scout features a young closer on the trading block, a Canadian who unfortunately looks like yet another young arm headed for the surgeon's table, and a shortstop that's been worth the (ample) money for the O's. Also, check out (and please weigh in on) the controversy brewing with Rafael Palmeiro's contract. The O's are rumoured to be considering Palmeiro, Delgado or Richie Sexson to play first next season...but they may be starting a war with one while alienating the other two. Or is it "just business?"
On to the Advance Scout!
* Baltimore just concluded a tough 2-4 homestand against the frontrunning Twins and Yankees ... The O's managed to steal another game from the Evil Empire after taking two in Yankee Stadium over Labour Day weekend ... Their team pitching puts a lot of pressure on the club's (generally capable) offence. The Orioles are a pitiful 8-46 when scoring three runs or fewer ...
* Lee Mazzilli demonstrated the dark side of September callups in yesterday's matinee, when he made nine pitching changes en route to using ten hurlers in their nine-inning 9-7 loss to the Yankees ...
* The free-agent dollars spent by Peter Angelos did not make the O's into '04 contenders, but any measure, Miguel Tejada has been full value for his contract ... He's on pace for career highs in on-base percentage (.357) and slugging percentage (.519), and his 125 RBI are just six shy of his career best ... This has been his fifth consecutive 100-RBI season ... And he's been durable as ever, playing in all of the club's 141 games. He hasn't missed a game since 2000 ... Tejada committed a costly throwing error on Saturday, which led to a valuable insurance run for New York ...
* Javy Lopez has also enjoyed a good season, although he hasn't homered in his last sixteen games ... Like many Orioles, he's suffering through a September scuffle, hitting just .212/.278/.242 on the month ... El Duque struck him out three times on Saturday ...
* Closer Jorge Julio has had a tough go of things lately ... Of his last seven outings, he's taken three losses and a blown save to go with his two successful saves ... The 25-year-old Venezuelan (who bears a physical resemblance to a younger ex-Oriole -- Armando Benitez) has gotten in trouble with leaving his fastball up. Ten homers in 60 2/3 IP provides some evidence of this ... Julio's outing on Tuesday won't show up in his career highlight video. After surrendering a two-run bomb to Michael Cuddyer on a pitch Cuddyer described as "a fastball right down the middle," Julio knocked down Augie Ojeda with a heater uncomfortably close to the banjo hitter's head -- a stunt that got him not only ejected, but suspended for four games ... The Orioles immediately appealed the suspension, as Julio insisted that he "never tried to hit the guy," but Ron Gardehire was incensed after the game ... Lopez believes it wasn't intentional, but commented that the 98 mph high and tight one "would've killed" Ojeda had it hit him ...
* Fellow Venezuelan Melvin Mora keeps on truckin', as he's hit in eight of his last nine (.371) ... Raise your hand if you saw him following his .921 OPS season with a 1.007 OPS one ... He's been dangerous against anyone this season. He hits .350 against righties, but he posts a .449 OBP and slugs .614 off lefties ... Although he played an extremely erratic third base in April, his five errors since May 21 leave him tied with Eric Hinske for the fewest errors among AL third sackers since then ...
* Jay Gibbons has been slumping badly this month, putting up .179/.273/.321 numbers in September ... The Jays' 14th-round pick in 1998 has hit 12 homers against the team that drafted him. He's only reached double digits against the Jays and Rays (also 12) ...
* Wednesday's starter will be the still-promising Matt Riley, who turned in an excellent performance last Tuesday in his first start since his September recall ... Although he was shelled in each of his two previous stints with the big club, he was given a spot start and limited the Central-leading Twins to just two hits over seven-plus innings, leaving with a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately, he walked two in the eighth, and one inherited runner scored on Jason Grimsley's watch. Riley took a tough no-decision in a game the Orioles would lose 3-1 ... Riley was demoted amid some controversy in early July. The Orioles sent him to Philadelphia in advance of the club, and were not impressed when he took an unauthorized side trip back to Baltimore, only to return and get rocked in Citizens Bank Park ... Riley apologized to the entire team upon his return last week. Mazzilli was asked what it would take for the insubordinate lefty to earn another start, and he jokingly replied, "a no-hitter." Sure enough, Riley tossed four no-hit innings to start the game ...
* Riley will replace Canadian Erik Bedard in the rotation for the rest of the season. Bedard will be shut down in terms of game action while he works off the bullpen mound on developing a new offspeed pitch. The O's are toying with a circle change for Bedard ...
* Grimsley has been reasonably effective since his acquisition from Kansas City, but he can still get the yips on the mound, as evidenced by his walking three Yankees yesterday ... Although righties hit just .195 off him, he struggles against lefthanded hitters, who hit .310 with an 11/6 BB/K ratio ...
* He's come on at the plate of late, but is there any explanation for the 37-game stolen base drought for Brian Roberts? ... He's been caught in his last four attempts, and he has not attempted a steal in September ... All of the switch-hitter's home runs have come from the left side. As a right-handed hitter, he's only putting up .222/.307/.318 numbers ...He's been swinging a hot bat since the All-Star Break, hitting .335/.401/.454 overall ... Interesting fact: With 46 doubles, he's tied the all-time AL record for doubles by a switch-hitter. John Anderson of the 1901 Milwaukee Brewers -- the club that would next year become the St. Louis Browns, and eventually these Orioles -- previously held the record, which lasted 103 years ...
* Part-time first baseman Jose Leon has gone 4-for-20 since his late-August recall, with no walks and six strikeouts ...
* Rafael Palmeiro can be excused for losing a bit of bat speed, since he turns 40 next weekend. Still, he needs to step it up in September if he wants to keep the following impressive streaks alive: 13 straight years with 20+ homers (17 thus far), nine straight 100+ RBI seasons (75), six straight seasons slugging better than .500 (.413) ... Palmeiro refuses to publicly criticize Oriole management for their handling of his option clause for next season, but teammates say he's furious ... 140 defensive games played were required for his $4.5 million option to vest. Sure enough, with his defensive game total at 117, the veteran has seen the dreaded "DH" notation next to his name ... Palmeiro signed his current contract with the stated intention of retiring an Oriole and entering the Hall of Fame as an Oriole (if selected). Mazzilli: "You're talking about a great ballplayer...But this is also part of the job, I guess, the business and the personal" ...
* Setup man extraordinaire B.J. Ryan is a buzzsaw on lefthanded hitters, who hit just .095 off him ... He hasn't allowed a hit in his five September outings ... He's shut out the Jays in 6 1/3 IP this season, with one walk and eight strikeouts ...
* It was a while ago, but did you know that B.J. Surhoff was the first overall pick of the 1985 draft? ... Now 40, B.J.'s still a useful bat and is a lifetime .304 hitter at SkyDome ... He can still handle a corner outfield spot competently, too, which has been necessary with the season-ending injuries to Luis Matos and Jerry Hairston Jr. ... Surhoff drove in a season-high four in Friday's 14-8 thrashing of New York ...
* Those injuries have forced Larry Bigbie into an everyday role as well. Although he continues to struggle against lefties (.216/.293/.360), he's put together a nice season against righthanders (.309/.365/.450) ... He's hitting .405 in September, but 15 of his 16 hits have been singles ...
* Thursday's starter will be Rodrigo Lopez, who's a solid 6-2 over his last ten starts ... He's never pitched well at SkyDome, going 0-3 in four starts with an 11.42 ERA and a .380 opposition batting average ...Watch for his sneaky changeup, which he feels comfortable throwing anytime in the count ...
* Late-blooming 27-year-old righty Aaron Rakers made his big-league debut last Wednesday, giving up two runs on four hits to the Twins ...
* Relegated to the bullpen, Dave Borkowski had a really ineffective weekend against the Yankees. His combined line: 1/3 of an inning, 6 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 0 K ... Mazzilli was not impressed at all with Borkowski's weekend: "[Against] righthanders, he's got to do the job" ...
* Up-and-down righty Rick Bauer has allowed just one run in his seven mop-up innings since his September recall ... Bauer is in notably brighter spirits since his recall. He threw a tantrum after his July 7 demotion ...
* Old friend (?) David Segui has gone 6-for-12 since returning from a four-month stint on the DL ...
* David Newhan has been one of the real surprises of the 2004 season, but pitchers appear to be figuring him out in September (.243/.282/.351, 1 BB, 11 K) ... 17 of his 26 extra-base hits have come away from Oriole Park this year. He's put up a tremendous .345/.399/.518 line on the road thus far ...
* The club is expected to name Val Majewski minor-league player of the year and Hayden Penn minor-league pitcher of the year ... It wasn't a good year in the standings for Baltimore's minor-league affiliates, who were a collective 59 games under .500 ...
* Canadian Adam Loewen was diagnosed with the dreaded labrum tear last week ... He'll be put on a throwing program, starting next week. If rest and rehab work, then he should be good to go for spring training. But if he needs surgery, it'll knock him out for all of next year ... He went 4-5, 4.11 at Low-A Delmarva before going 0-2, 6.75 with the High-A Frederick Keys. He left his last Frederick start after complaining about hearing a pop in his pitching shoulder ... The worst thing for one's health, it seems, is to be drafted by the O's. Richard Stahl was the club's '99 first round pick, and he's been dogged by serious injuries. Meanwhile, both the club's 2000 first-rounder (Beau Hale) and 2001 top pick (Chris Smith) have been shut down for the last two seasons with shoulder surgery ...
* Early-80s A's ace Steve McCatty has been called up to the big league coaching staff. He was Ottawa's pitching coach this season ...
* The City of Baltimore did the right thing with the Memorial Stadium grounds. The ol' ballpark was razed in 2001 ... After plenty of indecision finally gave way to construction, Stadium Place was finally dedicated last week. When it's completed, it will feature a YMCA and low-income housing for seniors. Several of the units are already open ...
* It's been speculated that the O's will offer Jorge Julio in a package for a frontline starting pitcher. Sources have suggested that although the club hasn't given up hope on Julio's ability to be an ace reliever, they don't think it can happen by next season. Peter Schmuck (yes, that's his name) of the Baltimore Sun wrote last week that although Mazzilli and the coaching staff would rather have B.J. Ryan close, the club doesn't want to diminish Julio's trade value by demoting him now ... The Orioles will target Derek Lowe, Carl Pavano or Kevin Millwood -- i.e., groundball pitchers that can succeed in cozy Camden Yards ...
* Third base coach (and ex-Brewers skipper) Tom Trebelhorn got into a shouting match on Saturday with Jorge Posada as the Yanks' catcher accused him of stealing signs. If Trebelhorn was tipping Oriole hitters, he was doing a poor job of it; El Duque stymied the Baltimore bats ...
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
4 Roberts
7 Newhan
5 Mora
6 Tejada
2 J Lopez
DH Segui
9 Gibbons
3 Leon
8 Raines Jr
vs. RH
4 Roberts
7 Newhan
5 Mora
6 Tejada
DH/3 Palmeiro
2 J Lopez
9 Surhoff
3/DH Gibbons
8 Bigbie
Pitching Probables
Monday: LH Chen vs. Miller
Wednesday: LH Riley vs. Lilly
Thursday: RH R Lopez vs. Batista
Bullpen Usage
Long: Bauer R, Rakers R, Rodriguez R, Parrish L
Short: Grimsley R, Williams R, Borkowski R, Groom L
Setup: Ryan L
Closer: Julio R
