Posts Tagged ‘Markakis’

Orioles…Magic?

I have all kinds of reasons to be excited and optimistic about the 2010 Orioles. The O’s are loaded with young talent, they’ve added some key veterans and have moved their spring training home to within an hour drive or so from my house. Sure they haven’t had a winning record in the last 12 years and I’ve dropped a $1,000.00 or more watching a 60-70 win team play on the MLB ticket during that time…but this is the time of year that I can be excited for my O’s.

It’s not unrealistic to think the Orioles have a chance to make a run at the wild card, just look at the 2008 Rays as an example. I know playing in the AL East makes it extremely difficult to break .500, let alone make the playoffs…but this O’s squad has talent.

OK, maybe I’m talking out my ass about the playoffs, but take a look around the diamond with me concerning the talent.

C- Matt Wieters - Batted .288-9-43 last season. No reason to believe that he can’t double those numbers this year. He’ll be moving up in the lineup, playing a full season and he’s only going to get better.

1B- Garret Atkins - No question Garret had a sub-par 2009 season, but Terry Crowley is known to get the best out of hitters. In the 3 previous seasons to 09′ Atkins averaged .305-25-110. If he approaches those numbers in 2010, he’ll be a steal for the O’s.

2B- Brian Roberts - Everyone loves Brian for good reason, he’s just a hard nosed, gritty and talented ballplayer entering his 10th season in an Oriole’s uniform. You can book him to score 100 runs, steal 30+ bases and hit 50+ extra base hits.

SS- Cesar Izturis - Cesar is not going to put up big offensive #’s, but he does play solid defense and handles the bat well. Cesar struck out less than 10% of the time last season and if he can duplicate that again this year while stealing 15+ bases…I’ll take it.

3B- Miguel Tejada - I’m happy to see Iggy back in an O’s uniform. The power may be gone..hmmmm, I wonder why…but he’s still a pure hitter. I expect Iggy to make the adjustment well to 3B and hit somewhere in the neighborhood of .300-15-80.

LF- Nolan Reimold - After years of stalling in the minors, Nolan got his chance last season and made the most out of it. I think his game fits well at Camden Yards and he reminds me of Bill Ripken…so I naturally love him. I’m still not sold completely.

CF- Adam Jones - Adam broke out in a big way last year, making his first All-Star team and showing all of his 5-tool abilities. Expect more this season. 30-30…I’m just sayin.

RF- Nick Markakis - My current favorite player, you can write it in cement that he hits .300-20-100 or better. I hope the beard is gone for spring training.

DH- Luke Scott - He may be the streakiest hitter I’ve ever seen. He can hit 5HR’s one week, and not get 2 hits the next…just bat him in the middle of the lineup when he’s hot.

OK, that’s the good news…unfortunately you have to pitch in baseball, more on that later.

Cheers and Hail

O Say Can You See The Future

Wipe your eyes, the future is bright!

In case you haven’t been paying attention, the Orioles future is officially here. And the Orioles future is a lot better than recent past. I’m not just optimistic because I’m a fan, the talent that is upon us is the real deal!

Friday marks the debut of the #1 prospect in all of baseball, Matt Wieters. He has played like a man among boys in the minors for a little over a year, and as Macphail said “it’s time.” He’s a switch hitting 6’5″ 230lb BAD-ASS!

Pictured above is rookie Nolan Reimold. His walk-off 3 run homer today was his 4th HR in his short 2 week career. He seems to be a keeper. Center Fielder Adam Jones appears to be the next Eric Davis (healthy in his prime, Eric Davis.) Jones has a .354-11-34 line so far this season. Oh yeah, he’s playing like a gold glover defensively. You know Markakis is a stud, I’ll just remind you he is only 25 years old!

So far this season the Orioles have saw 3 rookie pitchers win their major league debuts, they’ll go for #4 tomorrow when David Hernandez takes the hill. Hernandez was 3-1 with 2.91 ERA in the minors this season, along with 60 strikeouts in only 43 innings. He struck out 14 in his last start at Norfolk. In the next 4 games against Detroit the Orioles will stroll out 3 rookies with only 9 games experience under their belts…and I couldn’t be happier. No Eaton, no Hendrickson.

But, the future talent doesn’t stop there, the O’s minor league system is loaded. Chris Tillman (5-0 2.13 ERA) and Troy Patton (5-1 1.62 ERA) will be in Baltimore before the end of the year. Last years 1st rounder, pitcher Brian Matusz, and 2005 1st rounder, 1B Brandon Snyder will be up next season. Pitcher Jake Arrieta will also be making his prescience felt soon.

It’s a great time to be an Oriole fan. Although there are still some growing pains ahead of us, it’s obvious that the next 10 years will be better than the last.

Amen to that.

Cheers and Hail

Will The O’s Land Teixeira?

YES!!

This is my take on the whole Teixeira sweepstakes, probably way wrong but here is what I think is going on. Obviously smokescreens are being set everywhere. We don’t know exactly who has a serious offer on the table or who is in, who is out? Are the Red Sox really out, or are they just working Boras? Are the Yankees going to come to the table with ridiculous money? Does he play near his home in MD, but not for the O’s but for the Nationals? Does he stay with the Angels?

No, I think he signs with the Orioles. When the Orioles made an initial offer to Boras to show they are in the ballgame, that was all I needed to see. I believe that the Orioles will have the right to match any offer. I think Boras is out trying to get a $200 million dollar contract for Tex, because it’s his job, but ultimately he will not get the $200 million. He will probably get the 8 year $185 million that is being reported in the press. I believe Teixeira will then ask him to see if the Orioles will match it, because Baltimore is where he wants to be. Baltimore probably will not match it however, they will probably offer around 1-1.5 million less per year. At this point Tex will have to decide if wants to play for Baltimore at a “hometown discount,” or play for Boston. Whats 21 million per compared to 22 million? He chooses Baltimore (it may take an opt-out clause after 3 years, based on how competitive the Orioles are.)

The Orioles then need to sign Nick Markakis to a 6 year 75 million contract to lock him up. Committing $250 million dollars is a lot, but you’ll be set for the future. Tex, Markakis, Matt Weiters, and Adam Jones form an awesome nucleus to build around.
Here is a tentative lineup for 2009.

O, The Rays are Good