“What is this thing, and how do I use it?”
There’s no sugar-coating it. The last few days of Orioles baseball have been painful to watch. The team has scored just two runs in three games since Sunday, losing all three. While it’s certainly no coincidence that the nosedive in offense has come at a time when they are facing the teams with the #3 (Tampa) and #2 (KC) ERAs in the AL, two runs in three games from this offense is unacceptable no matter who they’re facing. Oh, and the best news? Next up are the Chicago White Sox for four games – they only have the best team ERA in the AL.
Let’s find the bats, huh? Until then, some links!
Bottom of O’s Lineup Not Pulling Its Weight
The dirty little secret of the Orioles offense – still at or near the top of the AL in most categories, even after this awful road trip – is that most of the production has been coming from three players: Manny Machado, Mark Trumbo, and Chris Davis. After that, the O’s are getting not much-to-nothing. Matt Kremnitzer of Camden Depot says that the bottom of the order especially, needs to pick it up.
Scouts Opine on O’s Rotation “Full of Frustrating Guys”
Watching the Orioles pitchers isn’t just frustrating for us fans. Scouts of opposing teams are paid to tell their squads what to expect, and sometimes even they have no idea what to write on their reports. Dan Connolly of Baltimore Baseball talked to a couple of them about Chris Tillman, Ubaldo, Vance Worley, and the other Orioles pitchers. They don’t know what to make of them either.
The Change: Kevin Gausman or Nate Eovaldi
This is a fantasy-focused article, but it’s Eno Sarris of FanGraphs writing about pitching, which means you probably want to read it, and it’s Eno Sarris of FanGraphs writing about an Orioles pitcher, so you definitely want to read it.
Bird’s Eye View Episode 161: Glass Case of emOtion
Jake & Scott are back with their weekly dose of lack of insight and baseless opinion. They discuss the many emotions the Orioles make fans feel, Hyun-Soo Kim deserving more chances, Jonathan Schoop’s regression, the mediocre AL East, and more. Give them a listen, and subscribe if you haven’t already.
Britton Trying to Save Organization’s Reputation
First off, that’s a strange headline. Anywho, there have been some stories recently, thanks to Jake Arrieta continuing to be awesome and throwing his second no-hitter, wherein quotes from Jake and Zach Britton and other “cavalry” members were used to form narratives around how awful the Orioles’ organizational pitching philosophy is, or was. Roch sat down with Britton, who tried to clarify (or walk back, depending on your point of view) some of the comments he’s made about Rick Adair and O’s pitching development in the past.
And in NFL news…
Paralysis by Analysis on Draft Day
One more sleep until the draft. When we meet again in this space on Friday, we’ll have some first-round picks to talk about, specifically the name the Ravens put on their card. Tony Lombardi of RSR says that it’s imperative for teams to not get paralyzed by analysis on draft day.
