Is the magic back?
#Orioles have scored 3 runs in first 7 innings and 10 runs after the 8th inning in last 3 games.
Its needed again today.
— Joe Polek on Sports (@JPonSports) June 27, 2014
The Orioles have had some late inning heroics recently that have helped them avoid some bad losses. The O’s could have used that late inning magic in Game 1 of their Day/Night Doubleheader Friday.
Where is the offense at home?
Camden Yards is known as a “hitter’s park”… so why are the Orioles struggling so much offensively at home?
They are hitting just .249 at home this season, which is 22nd in all of baseball. However, they are hitting .276 on the road, which is the best in all of baseball.
In 37 home games, the Birds are scoring just 3.24 runs per game. In 41 games on the road, the Orioles are average 5.07 runs per game.
There is no reason they shouldn’t be hitting better at home. It just makes no sense.
Do the Orioles have their catcher of the future?
Caleb Joseph has thrown out 13 of 25 baserunners… that’s 52% of guys attempting to steal have been thrown out by Joseph. The Major League average is just 27%.
Defensively, Joseph is doing a great job for the Orioles. Orioles pitchers have a better ERA with Joseph behind the plate than any other catcher.
Plus, offensively, Joseph is seeing the ball much better. In his last four games, Joseph is hitting .333 with two home runs, and three RBI’s. Plus, in Game 1 of Friday’s Doubleheader, who had another home run taken away.
Yes, I still prefer Matt Wieters (especially with how well he was playing this season) but if Wieters doesn’t re-sign in Baltimore (which I don’t see him doing), then Joseph should do the job nicely.
Is there a trade on the horizon?
The Orioles have some trade pieces available in their minor league system if they want to make a move for a player to help them win this season. But do they mortgage the future to win today? That’s the question the front office needs to decide, and a choice that many fans are split on.
I haven’t seen the Orioles in the World Series since I was four years old. I’m ready to go “all in” this year. With the prospect of losing Cruz, Hardy, Davis, Markakis, and Wieters, it could be a number of years before the O’s return to playoff baseball. So let’s go for it now. They have admitted to wanting to do just that. That’s why the spent money on Ubaldo Jimenez, Cruz, and traded for Nick Hundley. Jimenez and Hundley may not have turned out the way they hoped, but they made moves because they saw a need.
So the Orioles have another need… a quality starting pitcher who can eat up innings consistently.
I don’t think Jeff Samardzija is worth the asking price. (http://eutawstreetreport.com/samardzijas-body-of-work-doesnt-justify-asking-price/) But Jason Hammel or Brandon McCarthy might be. They might be worth the asking price, but are they the quality innings-eaters the Orioles need? That remains to be seen.
