After a nice little 5-2 win on “ReOpening Day,” the O’s jumped out to a 2-0 lead on Toronto Tuesday night, and Birdland had visions of a series win and possibly even a sweep dancing through our heads. That 2-0 lead quickly turned to 2-1, then a 2-2 tie, and then before we knew it, it was 10-2 Blue Jays following a complete collapse by our Birds. Ugly.
Here’s hoping they can put last night behind them and get the rubber match tonight. In the meantime, here’s some O’s reading:
Jimmy Paredes = Robinson Cano?
Ha. Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. But Zach Wilt of Baltimore Sports Report found some crazy similarities between the stance/swing of Jimmy and the Mariners’ superstar second baseman. Of course, it was Paredes who drove in the O’s only two runs of the night last night.
O’s Have Target Date for Wieters’ Return
Barring any additional setbacks, the O’s expect Matt Wieters to return to the team on June 4th, when he’s eligible to come off the 60-day DL. Buck mentioned Wieters playing perhaps every other day at that point, which might help keep both he and Caleb Joseph rested throughout the season and, hopefully, for a strong stretch run. It seems likely – to me, at least – that any games we see from Wieters here in 2015 may be his last as an Oriole, however.
The O’s defense had a huge hand in last night’s collapse, piling up three errors yet again, and adding in a passed ball for good measure. Ironically, the team had been doing their regularly-scheduled fielding drills before the game, something Buck does to try to keep the defense sharp. According to Roch, Buck likes to be proactive rather than reactive in that sense. After last night, some reacting is warranted.
Harvey Shut Down with Elbow Tightness
Sighhhhhhhhhhhh. After missing all of the season so far following being struck on the leg with a liner in Spring Training, Hunter Harvey made an appearance in Extended ST the other day, only to be quickly shut down with elbow tightness. He’ll have an MRI on the elbow in Baltimore this week. Eduardo Encina of the Sun has more on Harvey, as well as updates on Jason Garcia, Mike Wright, & more.
How to Best Utilize the Roster
The O’s have a bunch of players who are getting spot-ish duty, and none of them are really doing much to earn more. Alejandro De Aza, Travis Snider, Steve Pearce, Delmon Young, and others will also have trouble getting regular ABs once Jonathan Schoop is back (hopefully at the start of June). Chris Stoner of Baltimore Sports and Life goes down the list and tries to find a place for each guy.
