SIGNING QUINTIN BERRY BRINGS DEPTH
The Orioles and outfielder Quintin Berry agreed to a minor league contract last Friday, giving the Orioles another potential fill at left field after the departure of Nate McLouth earlier this offseason.
Berry is 29 and has experience playing all three outfield positions. He debuted in 2012 with the Detroit Tigers, and has a respectable .277/.357/.372 line against right-handed pitching in his young career. Berry also brings a much-needed element of speed for a team who lost their leading stolen base threat from a year ago.
Berry has gone a perfect 29 out of 29 in his career swiping bases, and Orioles vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette called Berry, “a good outfielder with good legs and an excellent base-stealer [who’s] shown good on-base capability, particularly against right-handed pitching.”
Berry will likely slide into a battle with recently-acquired David Lough and Francisco Peguero as well as Henry Urrutia for left field duties. Recently re-signed Nolan Reimold will likely also receive a chance to play.
The O’s have not had the offseason many fans had hoped they would, as they still have apparent weaknesses at starting pitcher as well as closer. Duquette added, “We are still trying to help our major league pitching staff. We are still looking to address the needs on our shopping list, but we have been able to add some left-handed hitters here recently.”
MASN TO BROADCAST SIX SPRING TRAINING O’s GAMES
The Mid-Atlantic Sports Network announced on Tuesday that the MASN network will broadcast six of the O’s home Grapefruit League games this March leading up to Opening Day in April.
All 6sixtelecasts will be in Sarasota, Florida and the games will be played in Ed Smith stadium where the Orioles have played spring games for the last three previous seasons. Five of the six will be afternoon games that will be replayed later that night on MASN.
The games are:
Saturday, March 1 vs Toronto Blue Jays (1 p.m.)
Friday, March 7 vs Philadelphia Phillies (1 p.m.)
Saturday, March 8 vs Boston Red Sox (1 p.m.)
Saturday, March 15 vs New York Yankees (1 p.m.)
Monday, March 17 vs Minnesota Twins (7 p.m.)
Monday, March 24 vs Boston Red Sox (1 p.m.)
The March 1st game against the Toronto Blue Jays will also be the home opener for the Orioles. They open Grapefruit league play February 28th against the Tampa Bay Rays in Port Charlotte, Florida.
TEAGARDEN AND DICKERSON ARE OUT
Earlier this week, the Orioles lost two supporting players from their 2013 season, as catcher Taylor Teagarden and outfielder Chris Dickerson were both signed by other teams for the 2014 season. Teagarden signed with the New York Mets, and Dickerson joins the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Teagarden hit .167 for the Orioles with two home runs and 5 RBI in 60 at-bats last year, but was regarded highly for his defense, serving as the team’s primary backup option to Matt Wieters. He also spent time on the disabled list from April 28th to June 4th. In New York he will look to compete for a backup job as the starting job seems likely to be Travis d’Arnaud’s.
Dickerson was a bench outfielder for the Orioles in 2013, as he hit .238 with four home runs and 13 RBI. Dickerson is a career .261 hitter however, and in Pittsburgh he will give the Pirates some outfield depth, something they have been working to bolster this offseason. Dickerson has experience at all three positions in the outfield.
While neither player was a big part of the Orioles in 2013, both had big moments as Birds (Teagarden mainly in ’12), and both will be missed for their veteran leadership if nothing else in 2014.
ORIOLES STILL LOOKING TO ADD A STARTER
The Orioles have made it known publicly they still would like to add at least one more starting pitcher to the fold for 2014 before the beginning of the season. While the starting pitching crop is never especially large, and it would be a stretch for the team to sign Japan’s Masahiro Tanaka or trade for David Price of the Rays, there are still options out there.
A.J. Burnett is the guy that some observers feel would be the top target and best fit for the Orioles. Burnett is coming off an impressive 2013 season in Pittsburgh, but is contemplating retirement at age 37. Should he decide to return for another season or two, the Orioles would likely be willing to negotiate a deal. This would work well for Baltimore, as it is thought the team does not want to offer a contract for more than 2-3 years.
Another option the Orioles may choose to pursue is Bronson Arroyo, who is a personal favorite target of The Baltimore Sun’s Dan Connolly. Connolly points out that Arroyo has thrown at least 199 innings each of the last 9 years, and Arroyo also has a relationship with the O’s new pitching coach, Dave Wallace. Arroyo, like Burnett, is getting to the end of his career, as he will be 37 in February so a 2-3 year deal may be enough to get Arroyo in Baltimore.
Other options likely priced out of the range of the Orioles include Ubaldo Jimenez, Ervin Santana, and Matt Garza. Potential stop-gaps if Burnett or Arroyo cannot be acquired include former Orioles such as Jason Hammel, Jair Jurrjens, and Bruce Chen.
One Response
Peguero played for the Giants last year, and did a decent job in the minors, but when he played in the big leagues, his performance was subpar (over-matched at the plate for example). Maybe he just needs another year or two of development.