Reality: Manny Machado has been diagnosed with a right knee ligament sprain. The Orioles are expected to give more of an update on his condition sometime today.
Perception: Orioles General Manager, Dan Duquette, said a disabled list (DL) stint is under consideration for Machado. “There will be some work he has to do to come back and play.”
The shortest a player can be on the (non-concussion) DL is 15 days. But from everything I am seeing and hearing, it’s going to be longer than two weeks that Machado is out for the Birds. We should find out more today, but my opinion is that Manny will be done thru the end of September, with his goal to be back for the playoffs for the Orioles.
I think the Orioles can still win the AL East going the next six weeks without Machado. But I’m not sure how far in the playoffs they can go without him. Still, according to the stats, they might be able to still win without him. The Orioles are 46-35 with Machado in their lineup, and are 21-15 without him.
Reality: With Machado likely to go on the DL and with JJ Hardy struggling with a sprained left thumb, the Orioles need to make a move for infield help.
Perception: We’ve all heard of Steve Lombardozzi, Jemile Weeks, and even Jimmy Paredes. I just assumed one of those three players would be who the Orioles look to for help. But it appears it will be Cord Phelps.
Triple-A Norfolk infielder Cord Phelps is in Baltimore and waiting to have his contract purchased. The Orioles signed him off waivers from the Indians on Nov. 25.
The Orioles can’t go into tonight’s game without Machado and shortstop J.J. Hardy, whose MRI confirmed that he’s got a sprained left thumb. A two-man bench won’t work. Not having a backup infielder won’t work.
Phelps can join the Orioles when they place him on the 40-man roster and then the 25-man roster. They can make room on the 40-man by taking Matt Wieters off the 40-man and putting him on the 60-day DL. Then, by placing Machado on the 15-day DL, that would make room for Phelps on the 25-man roster.
So who is Phelps? Well, this season alone, he has played just about every position, including pitcher! He pitched two innings in three games. He’s played five games at 1B, 31 games at 2B, 38 games at 3B, four games at SS, and 31 games in the OF. Talk about a super utility players, he can do it all in the field.
At the plate, he was pretty decent in AAA but not great in the big leagues. He has a career minor league batting average of .280 with 60 home runs and 43 stolen bases in 679 games in six seasons. In 53 major league games (over three seasons in Cleveland), Phelps hit .159 with two home runs, and a stolen base.
If he is filling in for Machado or Hardy, the Orioles will need someone to step up at the plate… Phelps, Flaherty, or Schoop. Someone needs to start hitting better if the Orioles are without the left side of their infield for an extended amount of time.
Reality: The AL East has the best winning percentage of any division in baseball.
Perception: Before Tuesday’s games, WBAL’s Brett Hollander posted this tweet:
Here are the winning percentages by division. AL East/NL Central tied for the best winning %. pic.twitter.com/d3aM3aes82
— Brett Hollander (@BrettHollander) August 11, 2014
Most people would be shocked to see that, especially when the national perception is that the AL East is down this year. That was reiterated this morning on national sports radio. I had a twitter debate with “DA on CBS”, who does the overnight shift on CBS Sports Radio (which 105.7 the Fan airs from 2am-6am).
@DAonCBS Good point. Maybe a Push. 2 teams at 14-2 doesn't necessarily make it a better division than 4 at 8-8. Just makes 2 teams better.
— Joe Polek on Sports (@JPonSports) August 13, 2014
@DAonCBS Last point.
Best records since AS break: KC 15-7; Orioles 15-8; TB 13-7; SD 13-8; NYY & Tor 14-9.
4 of 6 best records are AL East
— Joe Polek on Sports (@JPonSports) August 13, 2014
I truly believe that the reason the national perception of the AL East being “down” this year is solely because the Red Sox stink and the Yankees are not in first place. When normal cellar dwellers in Baltimore and Toronto are leading the division, everyone just assumes it’s a bad division. But that’s not the case. Only the NL Central (4) has more teams over .500 than the AL East (3). Since the All-Star break, four of baseballs six teams with the best record reside in the AL East.
The AL East also has the third best run differential as a division, trailing the AL West and NL Central.
Is the AL East the best division in baseball? No, but it’s far from the worst, and I still say it’s not “down” this year.
