Nick & Hayden's 2014 MLB Preview: 13. Baltimore Orioles

If you thought the face of the franchise was Chris Davis, you were wrong
and the media makes sure you know that.

13. Baltimore Orioles
by Hayden Hughes




As of February 18th the Baltimore Orioles' big offseason move was trading away closer Jim Johnson to Oakland for Jemile Weeks. And they were receiving fair criticism for it.

It seems to be common practice that the Orioles' success on the field is accredited to their manager at the helm, Buck Showlater. And while he is probably really, really good at his job, I don't think it's fair to give him all the credit when prior to 2012, Showalter's record with Baltimore was 103-116. What happened in 2012 and 2013 that helped turn the tide was the long awaited emergence of slugging first baseman Chris Davis and for 2013, one of the best seasons we've seen from a 20-year-old in Manny Machado.

But since Showalter used to work on Baseball Tonight for ESPN, certain media outlets like to crown him as the team's MVP-er...MVC?

One thing we can confirm, is he's Nick Markakis' best friend in a 2013, where the right fielder had an OBP of .329.

He's the manager with a firm hand and a firmer hug.

Good news came on February 19th when the Orioles signed up Ubaldo Jimenez to a 4-year, $50M contract. So, there was some activity. While this move was met with some mixed reactions, I see this move doing one good thing for the Orioles, whether or not Jimenez is effective or not: take the pressure off of Chris Tillman, who surrendered 33 home runs in 2013.

More good news on the transaction wire: On February 24, the Orioles signed Nelson Cruz to a one-year, $8M contract!

This is a fantastic move, because Nelson Cruz is definitely in need of a rebuilding year after serving a 50-game suspension in 2013 and come season's end, Baltimore can slap a Qualifying Offer on Cruz and get a draft pick as compensation if or when he signs elsewhere. Another perk to Cruz's arrival - he, like Jimenez can take some pressure off of those around him. In Cruz's case, hopefully his bat will calm Matt Wieters down some. Wieters, a switch-hitter in a contract-year, needs to show that he can handle facing right-handed pitching. A career .244 hitter against righties, Wieters was exceptionally bad in 2013, hitting .214 from the left side. So maybe Cruz's presence in from of Wieters can take some pressure off of the catcher.

It almost seems plausible that Wieters could be shuffled down to the seven spot in the lineup if JJ Hardy proves to be more productive. The bottom line is, Wieters can't let his bat become a liability and repeating his 2013 efforts would do exactly that.

Another side note worthy of paying attention to throughout 2014 is how the young pitchers in the organization continue to find work. Dylan Bundy should be recovered from his Tommy John Surgery by midseason, so his 2014 will likely be handled with kid gloves. But two names that should take a jump for the O's are young starters Zach Britton and Kevin Gausman.

Britton, now 26, still has not seen any significant innings as a starter since 2011 when he pitched 154.1 innings and seems to have his role be diminished to nothing more than a spot-starter, racking up 101.1 innings the last two seasons. Perhaps another team could make a deal for Britton and bring him back to life.

Gausman is 23 and struggled in 2013 in his first taste of the MLB. Over 47.2 innings, Gausman's ERA was 5.66 and a WHIP of 1.343. My problem with this?
Gausman is a starter who start only started in 5 games, but he pitched in 15 other games as a reliever. So while the addition of Jimenez is benefiting to the overall team, Gausman, who is clearly MLB-ready, is now blocked by Mike Gonzalez, Bud Norris, or Wei-Yin Chen.

Sure, Britton and Gausman haven't lived up to the hype immediately, but I just have one question:

If you aren't going to utilize the young talent you have, why are you keeping them?

1.      Last Season and Offseason

a.       85-77 (missed playoffs)

b.      Signed Ubaldo Jimenez, Nelson Cruz, Delmon Young, Suk-Min Yoon

c.       Traded Jim Johnson to OAK for Jemile Weeks

d.      Traded Danny Valencia to KC for RF David Lough

2.      Lineup/Rotation

                        Lineup

1.       Nick Markakis RF

2.      Manny Machado 3B

3.       Adam Jones CF

4.      Chris Davis 1B

5.       Nelson Cruz DH

6.       Matt Wieters C

7.      J.J. Hardy SS

8.      Nolan Reimold / David Lough LF

9.        Ryan Flaherty 2B

Rotation 

1.        Ubaldo Jimenez

2.      Chris Tillman

3.       Wei-Yin Chen

4.       Bud Norris

5.      Miguel Gonzalez

3.      Favorite/Least Favorite

a.       Hayden's Favorite– irrational yet justified affinity for Manny Machado

b.      Nick's Favorite– Great ballpark

c.       Hayden's Least Favorite – Machado and Bundy injuries; How they handle Gausman

d.      Nick's Least Favorite – Wieters is almost a goner

4.      Impact Player

a.       Chris Tillman

                                                              i.      Took a huge step – 206 innings

                                                            ii.      Gives up a ton of HRs

                                                          iii.      K’s up to 7.8 per 9

                                                          iv.      Good K/BB

5.      Impact Prospect

a.       Kevin Gausman

                                                              i.      Pitched in relief a lot

                                                            ii.      Probably going to do the same in 2014

                                                          iii.      Throws hard, good change

                                                          iv.      No strike out pitch

6.      Midseason Status

a.       In the 4-team race with NYY, TBR, and BOS for division or WC

b.      Probably looking for another bat

7.      Bold Predictions

a.       88-74

b.      4^th place

c.       Will not be impact team in ALE

d.      Trade LHP Zach Britton, LHP Eduardo Rodriguez, LF Henry Urrutia to PHI for LF Dominic Brown



Podcast Playlist:
"Kaleidoscope" - Blink 182
"Anything" - Incubus