Reality: Matt Wieters had Tommy John surgery Tuesday afternoon and the Orioles hope he is ready to start the 2015 season.
Perception: The Orioles also hoped that Manny Machado would be ready for the 2014 season and he missed the first month of the season, so don’t get your hopes up that Wieters is in the Opening Day line-up next season.
But the bigger issue is this: how are the Orioles going to recover the offense and defense behind the plate?
Defensively, the Orioles are set. Caleb Joseph has played well defensively, throwing out nearly half of attempted base stealers. In fact, Joseph is far better than Wieters, Steve Clevenger, and Nick Hundley this season in Caught Stealing Percentage.
Offensively though – that’s where the Orioles are really missing Wieters. He was having one of his better seasons, hitting .308 with five doubles and five home runs in 26 games. Clevenger, Hundley, and Joseph aren’t even hitting .200 combined.
When Wieters went down, the Orioles went out a made a trade because they thought they needed help. I agreed with the aggressiveness to go after something they needed and still applaud them for trying, but as soon as the trade was announced I questioned they player they received. Hundley was the 3rd string catcher in San Diego, and his stats were no better than Clevenger or Joseph.
But Dan Duquette and Buck Showalter liked what they saw in Joseph and Hundley and sent Clevenger down to the minors. Since then Joseph and Hundley have really struggled at the plate, batting below .150 while Clev has been on a tare in Norfolk, where he is hitting .444 in 15 games in June with 15 RBIs.
With the Orioles struggling to be consistent at the plate, it only makes sense to play the guy who has been hitting the ball the best… but right now he’s in the minors. If the Birds recall Clev, they need to send a catcher down. My vote is Hundley, as Joseph is better offensively and defensively right now. The front office probably doesn’t want to admit the trade they made may not have been right move, so it may be hard for them to send Hundley down to the minors, but that’s the move that needs to be made.
So far, most of Birdland seems to agree. Cast your vote:
[cardoza_wp_poll id=”30″]
Reality: The Orioles currently have 6 starting pitchers and 6 relievers on their roster.
Perception: A roster move is to come, as Buck has said numerous times that he prefers not to have a 6-man rotation. But with an off-day tomorrow, it’s not like someone needs to skip a start.
Ubaldo Jimenez, Bud Norris, and Chris Tillman are scheduled to start in New York Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. But the Orioles also have Kevin Gausman, Wei-Tin Chen, and Miguel Gonzalez.
The Orioles are in a tough spot with so many options. Even Buck is starting to realize that. “In a perfect world, we could stay with the six until we get through the [June 27] doubleheader, but I don’t know if we’ll be able to,” Showalter said. “We’ll see. The opposition will have something to say about that.”
If Gausman lays an egg this afternoon, it could open the door for Buck and DD to send him back to the minors for a little while. But having the extra pitching could be important for the upcoming doubleheader, so maybe a move isn’t made until after June 27th.
And don’t forget, the Orioles will need to send someone down so they can bring up an infielder when Machado serves his suspension, which won’t happen until next week at the earliest.
Personally, I’d like to see Gonzalez moved to the long relief role, especially since the guy who held that role, Josh Stinson, was Designated For Assigment.
Reality: The Orioles are looking for help before the trade deadline, but it might not be enough.
Perception: I would like to see the Orioles go for it this trade deadline. Let’s stop going after 3rd or 4th starters and get a front line starter who can help this team.
The problem may be the lack of front line starters available. James Shields was thought to be available, but now that Kansas City is in first place, he’s not going anywhere. David Price would be perfect, but no way the Rays trade him inside the AL East.
Cliff Lee could become available, but picking up his contract is going to be extremely expensive and he might not be as good as his name anymore.
Jeff Samardzija, Jason Hammel, Brandon McCarthy, Justin Masterson, Francisco Liriano might all be available, but none of them are #1 guys.
But if the Orioles want to improve a shaky starting rotation it appears they are going to have to give up some quality minor league guys to make that happen. And some fans might not think it’s worth it.
