Friday, March 22, 2019

Spring Training Update


I freely admit that my excitement level for the upcoming Orioles season is far below usual for this time of year. I am one of those people who enjoy the start of the MLB season because anything can happen and there is always a World Series in the possibility as the umpires call "play ball" for the first time.

The Orioles have done well this Spring Training season. They are currently in the middle of the pack with wins and losses at  12-13. I've long since lost track of the ties, I know there were at least two. But their record is very respectable for a Spring Training campaign. The team has shown moments of excitement--but there are still some glaring problems, also known as elephants in the room. 

Chris Davis has picked up where he left off the regular season last year by posting a .148 Spring Training batting average and Mark Trombo is not far behind with a .200 average. Davis is the most egregious with 27 at bats while posting 4 hits, 6 walks, and 15 strike outs! Ouch!!

On the pitching side, Dylan Bundy has posted a 7.98 ERA in 17 innings pitched.

The highest paid players are definitely the bottom feeders of the club right now. It must be nice to have guaranteed contracts so high that the club can neither trade nor cut the lowest performers. 

The one encouraging statistic is stealing. The Orioles have 35 attempts for better than one attempt per game. They had 103 stolen base attempts during all of the 2018 campaign for less than one attempt per game.

Well, opening day is next Thursday in New York City. As I predicted, the Orioles will either arrive on Baltimore for the home opener on April 4th at 0-6 or the best could be 2-4.

Let the season begin!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

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