Observations from 2 Baltimore Orioles Fans
Posted in: Organizational Depth
Welcome to the 1st edition of Stock Picks on Orioles Observer. I plan on doing this periodically to provide a snapshot of which players in the organization are making a splash and which ones are seeing their value fall.
The Orioles set opening day 25-man and preliminary minor league rosters. Plus, a new "Next in Line for Major League Promotion" feature now included in each depth chart update as well as additional information on future updates.
In two days on Easter Sunday, all MLB teams will be required to trim their active rosters down to 25 players. As such, there has been a flurry of activity all around Major League Baseball these past few days and the Orioles have had their fair share as well. In the past 72 hours, Baltimore has released Minor League players, reassigned non-roster invitees to Minor League Camp, informed several players they have made the 25-man roster, acquired a pair of players, and added players to the DL.
A flurry of activity in this update as the Orioles have begun to trim down their Major League camp roster with the 2013 Opener just one week away.
The New York Yankees have been somewhat unfortunate with injuries over the past six months. Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera suffered injuries in 2012 that required surgery. Both players are on track to be ready for Opening Day, but there are certainly questions to how well the veteran players will hold up over a full season. Alex Rodriguez is lost for most – if not all – of the 2013 season after January hip surgery.
I am turning over a new leaf. I no longer want to get worked up over every slight thrown the Orioles way from the Baseball media at large to the point where I feel the need to respond and 'defend' the team. Between now and Opening Day, you can read dozens of articles dissecting why the 2013 Orioles will be a bad team. I am tired of reading them and I am tired of validating that opinion as the standard one by responding the criticisms laid out in those articles. Instead, I am going to be all positive from here on out. Instead of writing about how the Orioles won't finish under .500, I want to write about why they will finish over .500 and are a legitimate contender in the AL East. We start today with "30 Reasons to be Excited About the Orioles Starting Pitching"
Joe Saunders signed a one-year pact with the Seattle Mariners late last week. With Saunders off the market, it appears likely that the Orioles will look internally for a 5th starter to join Jason Hammel, Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez, and Chris Tillman in starting rotation. The list of potential candidates includes: Zach Britton (L), Jake Arrieta (R), Steve Johnson (R), Brian Matusz (L), T.J. McFarland (L), and if his contract indeed becomes finalized, Jair Jurrjens (R). Zach Britton is my pre-Spring Training favorite for the final rotation spot in Baltimore. I have some thoughts on him that I’ll try to share at a later date, but I want to talk about a more under-the-radar candidate, Rule V draft pick T.J. McFarland.
The Orioles resigned Nate McLouth this afternoon to a one year/$2 million contract. McLouth can earn an additional $500k in bonuses if he reaches 500 plate appearances in 2013. McLouth will likely start the season as the team’s everyday leftfielder. If he is able to produce at a level near what he did in 2012 for the Orioles, then he should be a very valuable contributor and his contract will be a bargain for Baltimore. Of course, the million dollar question is this – is it realistic to expect McLouth to produce at the same level he did last season for the Orioles?