The Orioles lose Matt Wieters for the year, Manny Machado for an extended period of time on two separate occasions, Chris Davis struggles offensively all season long plus makes a stint on the Disabled List, and their big offseason signing in Ubaldo Jimenez has been moved to the bullpen.
Yet, the team is 20 games over .500 and in cruise control to winning the American League East.
Ubaldo Jimenez moving the bullpen
Buck Showalter made a bold move when he decided to move Jimenez to the bullpen. I know that sounds crazy for as bad as he has pitched all year, but demoting a high-priced veteran is not an easy decision. Don’t get me wrong – this was the right decision and best for the team and in the end, that is all that matters.
At this point, you hope Jimenez can figure it out for 2015. With Jimenez’s struggles to throw strikes, there is no shot Showalter brings Jimenez in any game that’s not already a blowout.
Chris Davis continues to play well defensively
Davis is not on this team to hit 7th and play well in the field; we all know that. His swing is all over the place, but like last night with his two-run double, it seems he comes up with the big hit when needed. We can only hope Davis gets locked in when the playoffs start, but I will give him credit, he continues to play well in the field.
With Machado out, Davis has had to play third and looks extremely comfortable. It has to be killing him that he has been awful offensively all year, but the fact that he has stayed focused in the field speaks volumes about the mindset of this team.
Ride the Steve Pearce hot streak…again
After hitting nine home runs in May and June, Steve Pearce only hit two in July and batted .231 with 6 RBIs. However, over the last week Pearce has started to get locked in again and with Machado not nearing a return, Showalter needs to ride the Pearce wave again. It will be interesting to see what Showalter does this weekend against the Cubs with the O’s losing the designated hitter.
Biggest offseason acquisition? Not Cruz, certainly not Jimenez…Dave Wallace
How crazy does that sound with Nelson Cruz in MVP discussion? I don’t think the impact Dave Wallace has had on the pitching staff as a whole can be stressed enough. Showalter always talks about the process and that has been especially true with Wallace’s impact. The starting rotation in particular went through their struggles, but since June 9th, the rotation has pitched to an ERA of 3.18. It is not a coincidence the team has gone 41-22 in that stretch and has a comfortable lead in the division.
I still crack up when I hear the “experts” say the Orioles don’t have enough starting pitching to compete for a World Series title. What have they been watching the last couple of months? Do they have an ace? No, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have a collection of talented arms that can make a deep run in October. They got to this point though because of Wallace and his ability to get through to the starters and make them buy into his philosophy of pitching.
