This is a weekly column that dives into eight random thoughts about the Orioles/MLB. Why eight? It’s a nod to Cal Ripken Jr. of course. That, and doing 2,632 of these would be a little overboard. – A.S.
1. Baseball has its fair share of rules. There are hundreds of pages, many of which even the most avid fan doesn’t know or understand. With all the complicated rules in the beautiful game, why are we still following ones that aren’t even written down? Some might call them the “unwritten rules.”
What went down on Tuesday night in Toronto was downright embarrassing to the game, and mostly to the Orioles. It’s an unpopular opinion around these parts, but it’s the truth. The majority of the players on the field that night looked like children, and acted like them too. This all starts and ends with Jason Garcia. Jose Bautista’s anger seemed to start when Garcia threw a pitch behind him. I’ll get to Garcia in a bit, but if I was Bautista, I’d be upset if a ball was thrown behind me too. I’d also celebrate hitting a home run in the aftermath of that.
Don’t get me wrong; Jose Bautista is a goof. He’s a total clown and acts like it on the field, just like David Ortiz does. That doesn’t give Adam Jones and Ryan Flaherty the right to bark at him after hitting a home run. The guy was celebrating. Sure, his team was well ahead and there was probably no reason to be so vocal about it, but that’s what happens when your team is delivering a beat down. I’m not entirely sure where we lost the ability to have fun while playing the game of baseball, and celebrations are fun to me.
This “right way” to play the game that everyone likes to talk about is just a sad cover up. The right way to play the game is by hustling and having fun. It’s by playing it fundamentally and as hard as you can. That word “fun” shouldn’t be lost, either. It’s an important one. The best way to avoid a player celebrating a home run isn’t to throw a pitch at him, it’s to keep the ball in the park. Even better, if you want to celebrate yourself, strike him out. I’ve simply had it with grown men acting like children. I don’t know if Garcia was throwing at Bautista intentionally, and I don’t know if Ubaldo Jimenez was throwing at Pablo Sandoval intentionally last Friday. I’d like to think neither of them were doing it on purpose. I’m not in their heads, so I don’t really know. Frankly, you don’t really know either, no matter how much you think you do. Players should stop policing themselves and start playing the game. It’s not the other way around.
2. I promised you Jason Garcia, so now on to Jason Garcia. How is this still a thing? Buck Showalter has long said that you can’t hide a player in the bullpen, especially in the AL East. Isn’t that exactly what he did for the first two weeks of the season? Garcia has pitched in just about one meaningful situation, and didn’t perform well.
Look, none of this is really Garcia’s fault. He’s a player that’s never pitched above the Single-A level before this season. The Orioles are basically choosing to play with 24 ½ players right now. That’s on a roster already without Matt Wieters, J.J. Hardy and Jonathan Schoop. I don’t think Garcia is going anywhere soon, despite how “hard” everyone is telling you it will be to keep him around. This is how the O’s have operated lately. In lieu of paying for actually baseball players, they select projects in the Rule 5 Draft. Don’t get me wrong – it’s mostly worked out in the past without too much of an issue. T.J. McFarland was hidden in the bullpen during his first year. He’s a guy who could very well be in the 2016 starting rotation. Ryan Flaherty is a fine bench player. He’s been forced into a starting role in recent days with the injury to Jonathan Schoop.
Jason Garcia must be really good come 2017 or 2018 for this to be worth it. Right now, it doesn’t look like it. It’s frustrating to fans, but the O’s obviously have their eyes on more than just this year.
3. I’ve already addressed playing the game the right way and how that doesn’t mean “policing the game” yourself or throwing at people. Luckily last night’s game proved that cooler heads can prevail, though perhaps that was partially because Jose Bautista was left out of the affair. Playing the game the “right way” was not on display last night in one particular instance: Alejandro De Aza’s stolen base attempt in the seventh inning was just about the dumbest baseball decision I’ve seen. Sometimes the game is about risk versus reward, and that move was all risk with no reward.
Down two runs with outs dwindling is not the time to try that, especially with Chris Davis (and his power) at the plate. De Aza has the speed to score from second base on almost any hit, so why is he attempting to move up 90 feet? Baseball common sense seemed to go out the window in that instance. It obviously wasn’t the only mistake the team made. Scoring more than two runs when you’re issued eight walks would be a nice step as well.
4. Jonathan Schoop’s injury leaves Orioles fans with many emotions. The only one I continue to come back to is heartbroken. I can’t get over what this year was expected to be for the second baseman. Sure, the season isn’t over by any stretch, but it’s still a devastating injury for the 23-year-old. I also think the early reports that Schoop will miss just 6-8 weeks with the Grade 1 PCL tear and MCL sprain are premature.
I’d love to see the O’s take a cautious approach with Schoop in bringing him back. The PCL and MCL play pivotal roles in the knee, especially with mobility. The biggest part of Schoop’s game is his defense, so without that mobility, he won’t be the same player. Perhaps the largest impact of the injury is the way it stretches out the bench and increases the role of Ryan Flaherty. Many fans will scoff at this, but Flaherty now becomes an even more important player for the Orioles over the next few months. Having Schoop sidelined along with J.J. Hardy continues to emphasize how important Dan Duquette’s signing of Everth Cabrera was. It’s crucial to have a competent player like Cabrera to play the middle infield along with Flaherty during this stretch.
5. Jonathan Schoop’s injury opened up an opportunity for Jimmy Paredes, but I’m not entirely sure what that means going forward. Paredes has dazzled over his first few games. Look, small sample size and all, but the guy’s hitting the cover off the ball in the early going, and even homered last night. The problem with Paredes is that he doesn’t really have a position. He’s a natural third baseman, but that spot is obviously being held down nicely. He has the capability to play the corner outfield spots, but isn’t very good at it. This is the reason there was so much hesitation with Paredes in spring training and trying to find a spot for him on the roster. Paredes’ injury made it easy for the impending roster crunch, and Schoop’s injury made it even easier to slide him back on to the 25-man roster this past weekend.
The question that I raise, is where does he fit on the roster when players like Schoop and J.J. Hardy make their return? If he keeps hitting the way he has, a spot will be found for him, but is he exclusively a designated hitter because of his lack of defensive skills? Does he push David Lough or Delmon Young off the roster? Are Ryan Flaherty or Everth Cabrera at risk?
None of this is really clear, and it’s something to keep an eye on. Sure, these things have a way of “working themselves out” as they did when Parades himself was ready to return, but if another injury doesn’t clear way for players to return, the roster crunch the team isn’t currently facing gets thrust right back into the picture.
6. Is anyone getting worried about Bud Norris yet? Based on the interactions I’ve had with people on Twitter, many are. Prior to Tuesday night’s start, I figured the leash on Norris was starting to tighten. I’m comfortable saying it’s ultra snug now. Norris never projected to be a top-line starter, but now he may be starting to show his truest colors yet.
The more I see him pitch, the more I see Tommy Hunter. A guy who was a starter, didn’t work out, but can be very useful in the bullpen. I still don’t think any type of switch happens soon, unless Norris fails to prove he can get an out in his next start. If struggles continue though, the transition to the ‘pen might start in a few weeks. It would likely be seamless with Kevin Gausman already in the long-relief role. A simple swap would provide Gausman with the opportunity to start, which is where most think he should be anyway. It’s a real shame for Norris, who was strong last year. He was, at times, the team’s best starter. Norris is in a contract year, and unless he proves he can pitch much better, isn’t looking at landing a nice deal this offseason.
Long-relief bullpen arms are important, but they aren’t valuable. On the flip side, perhaps a cheaper Norris means a Norris that is more likely to stay in Baltimore beyond 2015.
7. The Orioles are currently sitting in their first three-game losing streak of the season, so sound the alarms and fire off the sirens. It’s the first, but it likely won’t be the last. This team is going to go through its fair share of struggles this season, but the good times will be there as well. It’s important to recognize that talent plays, and the Orioles have that. Even if they aren’t putting it all together each night on the field (or carpet of Toronto), the pieces are still there.
Through 15 games last season, the Orioles were sitting on a three-game winning streak, and were 8-7 instead of 7-8. In the team’s first 15 games, I haven’t seen anything that has me really panicked. There’s nothing that has me concerned for the team’s immediate or long term future. It’s fun, and easy, to react to what we see each night and proclaim the season a dud. It’s in our human nature. The instant satisfaction of a win or prompt doom from a loss is what we are built on. It’s what makes us fans. It’s just important to realize that 15 is a really tiny number when compared to 162, and that the Orioles aren’t the only team with warts. They aren’t even the only team in their division with warts. It’s going to be a fun summer in the AL East.
8. Melvin Mora highlights the class of Orioles that are heading into the team’s Hall of Fame later this year. This is something that is well deserved, and makes me happy. Mora was one of my favorite players of the “dark years” of this franchise. Until I looked back at some of his numbers and accomplishments, I didn’t realize how good of a player Mora actually was for the O’s. The guy was a joy to watch at the hot corner, and is second only to Brooks Robinson on the team’s all-time list of games at third base.
Even more so than Mora’s presence on the field, was his kindness off of it. I had the fortune to meet Mora on multiple occasions and got to know his family and his kids a little bit. He used to bring his kids into an ice cream shop I worked at and was always very generous with his time. After many years, I bumped into him at a game last year when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch at a game and he spotted me and remembered exactly who I was and made it a point to say hello.
Those are the things that matter. There aren’t many players who care that much. Mora is one of the game’s good guys.
