Fresh off of a 96-win regular season, and first AL East division title since 1997, there was a feeling around Birdland unlike any in recent years when the season ended, despite being swept by the Kansas City Royals in the American League Championship Series. Then, the feel good story started to lose some of its luster as pieces of the 2014 team began departing.
Nelson Cruz took the 40 home runs and 108 RBI he accounted for last season to the great northwest and joined the Seattle Mariners. Long-time fan favorite, and member of the franchise since being drafted and signed in 2003, Nick Markakis signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Braves. Lights out relief pitcher Andrew Miller moved up I-95 and is now a member of the New York Yankees.
With key members of last season’s success gone, it’s understandable if fans headed to the convention center for Saturday’s FanFest a bit apprehensive about the 2015 season. At noon, Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Dan Duquette, Vice President of Baseball Operations Brady Anderson, and Director of Player Development Brian Graham took to the main stage for the fan forum and shed some light on what fans can look forward to on the field during the upcoming season.
Last week, the Orioles acquired outfielder Travis Snider from the Pittsburgh Pirates for prospect Stephen Tarpley and a player to be named later. Snider’s 2014 season resembles the one Ubaldo Jimenez had in 2013 with the Cleveland Indians in that Snider was much better after the All-Star break. The lefty posted a .237/.318/.342 batting line in 152 at-bats in the first half, as opposed to .288/.356/.524 in 170 at-bats in the second half.
“He’s a power hitting outfielder and a good defensive player,” Duquette said when addressing fans. “He has opposite field power, has become more selective at the plate, cut down on his strikeouts, and is capable of playing left or right field.”
With Adam Jones penciled in as the starting center fielder, who will be to his left and right on a consistent basis is not yet known. Snider will be in the mix. So will Alejandro De Aza. Steve Pearce is another option to see time in the outfield, as is David Lough. While De Aza profiles as the best option for the top of the lineup, Duqutte mentioned Lough could earn increased time there as well.
“If he [Lough] can improve his ability to get on base and hit leadoff, he would be a big asset for us.”
Another potential name to consider for the outfield is Dariel Alvarez, who hit .306/.330/.472 with 37 doubles, 15 home runs, and 87 RBI while splitting time between Bowie (AA) and Norfolk (AAA) in 2014. “He’s a player who may surprise some people,” Duquette put it when referring to Alvarez, and the 26-year-old should be worth keeping an eye on in Sarasota.
On the pitching front, a few arms we can look forward to seeing at Camden Yards in the future were on display later in the afternoon as Tim Berry, Dylan Bundy, Tyler Wilson, and Mike Wright were all in attendance. Duquette was very complimentary of Wright and sees him making an impact with the Orioles coming sooner rather than later.
“Wright is on the cusp of becoming a major league pitcher. I believe he can make a contribution to the team this season.”
Wright started 26 games at Norfolk a year ago and pitched to a 4.61 ERA and 1.40 WHIP over 142.2 innings; however, he was 2-1 with a 0.30 ERA over his final four starts (29.2 IP). Wright has a fastball that generally sits in the low 90s with a heavy, ground ball-inducing sink that would benefit him well with Manny Machado, J.J. Hardy, and Jonathan Schoop behind him.
While Dylan Bundy does hold the No. 20 spot on MLB.com’s 2015 Prospect Watch list, expectations should be tempered in terms of major league appearances this year for guy who only threw 41.1 innings in 2014 and “probably needs more experience,” according to Dan Duquette.
While as fans it’s often the easy route to suggest throwing money at free agents or trading prospects with unknown futures for players who are known commodities, it’s clear as long as Dan Duquette is in Baltimore the minor league clubs will be seen as a primary source in supplying the major league club with talent. He emphasized that with his belief of “there is no other way to have a good team year in and year out without a good farm system.”
