Obsession is more than an outdated cologne, it’s a problem I have with the Orioles this offseason.

In years past the Travis Snider trade would have grabbed my attention for a quick second and then I could drift back to avoiding whatever house work the wife thinks I should be doing. This year is apparently not years past…except for that pile of dishes.

The Snider deal is the first real life we have seen from the Orioles front office since the trade deadline. Is that why I care? Is it that my football season ended in Foxborough three weeks ago? Is it that this organization has finally given us hope heading into each Spring? Probably all of the above.

The Obsession

I have been playing armchair GM since the day the season ended. I’ve spent and saved more of Peter Angelos’ money in the last couple months than Apple made this past quarter.

I was doing a heck of a job too. I worked out a deal with Melky Cabrera after my negotiations with Victor Martinez went nowhere. The real Orioles were not in on either guy, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have been.

After Nelson Cruz left and the O’s smartly let Nick Markakis go (save your torches for Frankenstein), there needed to be corresponding moves.

Cue the crickets. Nothing but the feeling Dan Duquette was already working for the Blue Jays, or doing his best Rip Van Winkle impression.

I was the armchair GM because the real guy wasn’t doing jack. This act worked last year because Cruz fell out of a tree into the Orioles front yard. That tree is now dead and the lack of action was killing me. I’m getting worked up thinking about it now.

It’s not helping that the neighbors look like they’re in early stages of building a dynasty. Damn Nationals.

As I said, years past this was a bit of a yawner of a trade. This year, I’m searching out scouting reports on a low-A left hander no one has heard of and wondering just who is on the list that will become the “player to be named later.” I’m looking at metrics and I hate metrics. I’m having buyer’s remorse on a car I didn’t even buy.

God, I need help.

There’s Hope

No, the wife’s nagging isn’t going to snap me out of this and Spring training is actually going to make the symptoms worse. Good thing the regular season is coming. The Orioles are not a bad team, but the AL East, except Tampa, will be AL Eastier this year.

I love dem O’s, but I suspect they’ll be out of it early this year freeing up time to weed flower beds.

Oh Yeah, The Trade

Back to the actual trade that has my brain falling out of my skull. Snider is the prototypical Oriole of the Angelos regime. He’s a former hot prospect that hasn’t panned out, but he’s still fairly young and the O’s have him for two years. I’m always a proponent of trading potential for proven major league play. In this case, the O’s dealt limited potential and got a third outfielder with some upside.

In other words, who cares?

Apparently I do.