Orioles Midseason: Magic Or Tragic?
Halfway thru the 2009 season the Orioles are definitely a work in progress. Having shown signs of improvement, they still finished the first half at 36-45…and with a firm grip on last place in the AL East. Their record also placed them 24Th out of 30 MLB teams. But, it hasn’t been all bad…let’s take a look at the first half, the positives (Orioles Magic) and the negatives (Orioles Tragic.)
Orioles Magic:
Adam Jones - Voted to his first All-Star game today, Jones is having a breakout year. He’s almost eclipsed his numbers from last year, in every category. He batted .307-12-46 in the first half and played a gold glove centerfield. And he blew bubbles the whole time.
Luke Scott - He has swung a hot bat all year, .296-16-43, despite a stint on the DL.
Markakis, Roberts, & Huff - The big 3 have been as steady as ever. Roberts is tracking 70 extra base hits, Markakis is tracking 108 RBI’s and Huff 110 RBI’s.
Nolan Reimold - NOLAN! He finally got his chance and he’s delivered. 9 HR’s in only 45 games. He’s got sneaky speed and doesn’t seem over matched in any situation.
Brad Bergesen - All he has done is go 5-2 with a 3.53 ERA since being called up. His record would have been better if not for the bullpen letting him down twice. Plus, he’s been lights out working with Matt Wieters.
Tragic:
Free Agent Class 2009 - Ryan Freel, Chad Moeller, and Adam Eaton are already gone from the organization. The rest of the class, Koji Uehara, Mark Hendrickson, Ty Wigginton, Cesar Izturis, and Greg Zaun range from disappointing to horribly disappointing.
Cubs prospects turned Orioles prospects - Since taking over the O’s, Andy Macphail has made a point of picking up or trading for draft picks that didn’t pan out during his tenure with the Cubs. Guess what…they still suck with an Orioles uniform on. I guess there’s a reason we got Hill, Montanez, and Pie for next to nothing.
Middle relief - Bass, Hendrickson, Walker, Sarfate, Liz, and Ray have been absolutely horrible.
Melvin Mora - Not sure if it’s age or something else?? He went nearly a month without an RBI and has 2 HR’s and 9 extra base hits so far.
To Be Determined:
Matt Wieters - The knock on him coming up was that he was not going to be a good defensive catcher…so far he’s been great behind the dish. His bat was slow to get going, but it’s gotten hot the past couple of weeks. Expect a big 2nd half.
Cheers and Hail
