Author Archives: Domenic Vadala

Welcome to Birdland Crush! Yes folks, for the record it's a spin off of the popular summer beverage native to the Mid-Atlantic Region - "orange crush." Nevertheless, I've been covering Orioles' baseball since 2009 in some capacity, and it's basically the greatest gig of all time so far as I'm concerned! But for those who aren't familiar with my work or bio, I'm familiar with pretty much every sport out there. But baseball is king - we all know that. So my hope is that you come back and check in after every Orioles' game, and throughout the off-season. I'm always on duty!

Baltimore Orioles to host Autism Awareness Day

The Baltimore Orioles announced last week that they’ll be hosting Autism Awareness Day at Camden Yards when they host the Boston Red Sox on Sunday, April 23rd at 1:35 PM. Discounted tickets are available at the link I provided above, and $5 of every ticket sold will benefit Autism Speaks. Incidentally, Autism Speaks will also be participating in the first pitch ceremony that afternoon.

Rarely to I get personal in this column because folks don’t come here to read about my personal life. However this is a cause near and dear to my heart. Autism is in my family, and it’s a cause for which I feel very strongly should get as much funding from government agencies as possible. And quite often when I make my voting decisions in November, I look at candidates’ views on funding for issues such as this.

So on behalf of my own family, I sincerely appreciate the Orioles bringing awareness to autism. I would submit that at this point it’s something that’s already well known in the public eye, however there can never be enough awareness or funding for research for something along these lines. Every little bit helps.

Incidentally it’s also something that’s touched the extended Orioles’ family. Hall of Famer Jim Palmer has a stepson who’s autistic, and former Oriole B.J. Surhoff has a son with autism. So the Orioles perhaps more than any other franchise recognize the impact that this has on families.

So nevertheless, if you come to the game on April 23rd, know that part of your ticket will go to autism research. And on behalf of my own family, thank you.

Baltimore Orioles: J.J. Hardy sidelined with back spasms

The Baltimore Orioles are already beginning to see some injury issues this spring, as it was revealed that J.J. Hardy is suffering from back spasms. This is something that’s plagued Hardy in the past, and he has missed time because of it. It seems to pop up either in spring or early in the regular season at times, most recently in 2014.

This is obviously a concern for an Orioles team that relies heavily on strong infield defense. However the good news for the Birds is that they have guys like Ryan Flaherty who can step right in and odds are not miss a beat. The O’s are expecting Hardy to resume baseball activities in early March. Furthermore, the expectation is that he can start playing in games perhaps by March 10th.

In the mean time, you knew the Orioles’ streak of wins in arbitration hearings was going to eventually come to an end. The Orioles had offered reliever Brad Brach $2.25 million, and he wanted $3.05 million. The arbitrators ruled in Brach’s favor, giving the Orioles only their second arbitration loss since Peter Angelos assumed ownership of the club. Some might argue that this shows Angelos to be cheap and obviously a good litigator. However the flip side is that perhaps the O’s under Angelos have simply been spot on when it comes to how much players are worth.

I myself was a bit shocked at the news given the Orioles’ track record. And I’ll be honest…in this situation I kind of sided with Brach. Anyone who watched the O’s last year should know how valuable he was to them. In many other cases it was almost laughable when players would go to arbitration with the Orioles, given their track record and the player’s production the previous year. But in this case my personal view was that Brach had a legitimate case. And the arbitrators felt the same way.

Baltimore Orioles: one week until games

One week from today, the Baltimore Orioles will take the field in Lakeland against the Detroit Tigers. It’s unclear who will be in the lineup and for how long, but Orioles baseball will be played. That’s a fact!

This is an interesting time of year because a lot of things are happening. This is NBA all-star game weekend, and the college basketball season is making it’s stretch run. Yet one week from today Spring Training games begin.

The O’s of course won’t open at home in Sarasota until Sunday the 26th. However as I said, they’ll be playing before then. Box scores with BALTIMORE ORIOLES will exist. And that’s a good thing!

Baltimore Orioles: Is Kevin Gausman the man of the hour?

With Tillman apparently sidelined, it seems natural to say that Kevin Gausman will be the Baltimore Orioles’ Opening Day starter. Again folks, I’m saying it seems natural to say that. In essence I’m looking into the future and reading tea leaves. Nothing has been decided yet.

Tillman’s said on numerous occasions that Opening Day is just one start. In essence, once you’ve gone through the rotation once or so, does it really matter who started when? However there is some prestige that comes with getting that nod. I suspect that Tillman will still be viewed as the staff ace either way. But if Gausman gets the start against Toronto that means he’s definitely on the way up.

It’s also interesting to point out that the Orioles are actually still in the market for another starter – possibly. And we know that Dan Dquuette has a track record of finding starting pitchers during camp. So the fact is that we just don’t know what’s going to happen.

However the early odds appear to be with Gausman to get the nod on Opening Day. Incidentally the Orioles have a pretty good track record of winning their Opening Day game, whether it’s at home or on the road. By my count the last time they lost was 2010 when Toronto beat them.

So if it is Kevin Gausman and history means anything, odds are he puts the Orioles in a position to win. And that’s all you can ask of a starter in a regular season game.

Baltimore Orioles: Chris Tillman getting bitten by the injury bug early

The Baltimore Orioles aren’t only struggling with injuries very early, they’re coming in the form of big names – Chris Tillman, in this case. While the O’s would have never admitted it, the idea was that Tillman would make his fourth consecutive Opening Day start for the Orioles this year. Tillman apparently has had some struggles with the same shoulder that sent him to the DL last year.

Back in December Tillman apparently contacted head trainer Richie Bancells and said that his shoulder wasn’t responding as he thought it would to his off season throwing regiment. So at that time he was given a platelet-rich plasma injection in the shoulder (his right shoulder to be exact). However now it appears doubtful that Tillman would in theory be ready to go on Opening Day.

Major League Baseball created a ten-day Disabled List starting this year, and if Tillman went on that (backdated to March 30th), he’d be eligible to pitch on April 9th against NY. So we’re probably not talking about him missing any measurable time. He just wouldn’t be the Opening Day starter.

Mind you however, that scenario doesn’t really allow for much in the way of setbacks. If one little thing went wrong in terms of soreness, tendinitis, etc., Tillman might have to miss more time. The Orioles seem pretty confident in this path however, so it appears this is the direction in which they’re going.

My question would be how effective will he be once he returns? Might it not make more sense to send him to extended Spring Training for a couple of weeks? And that’s a tough call, because the pressure to win for the Orioles begins on April 3rd. Having your ace in extended Spring Training for the first three weeks of the season would be a tough pill to swallow.

But I suspect that remains an option for the Orioles if in fact Tillman does suffer a further setback. My point is whether or not that should be the plan regardless. Players go through spring regiments for a reason, that being to get ready for the season. The idea of Tillman being on a 75-pitch limit in his first regular season start was also floated yesterday; again, is someone really ready to go if they’re being limited in that manner?

It’s all a very tough call, and it’s being made by baseball and medical people. In essence, people a heck of a lot smarter than I. So it’s something to watch as camp moves along, but that appears to be the plan as of right now.

Baltimore Orioles: Does playing the NL Central matter in the rankings?

As I’ve discussed the past two days, the Baltimore Orioles are expected to finish last in the AL East according to Baseball Prospectus. My aversion to this prediction is well-documented, however is there more to it than meets the eye? Let me play devil’s advocate for just a moment…

…the O’s played the NL West last year in interleague play. The LA Dodgers, San Diego Padres, et al. Not exactly the greatest division on earth, but of course the Dodgers and Giants are always competitive. (And the O’s of course took two-of-three in San Francisco, coming back to win the final game of the series in dramatic fashion after being down by six runs in the seventh.) So did that help the Orioles of 2016?

It might have for sure – only that the other teams in the division played the same schedule. So in essence, that cancels any competitive advantage that the O’s may have had in the division out. But if they had played a tougher division last year, is it possible that they might not have made the second wild card?

Anything is possible. But this is getting into the real nitty-gritty of things. This season the AL East will play the NL Central. (The Orioles will also have two two-game series’ against the Washington Nationals – home and home.) So they’re looking at the defending World Champion Cubs (still seems strange to say that!), the Cardinals, Brewers, etc.

With the exception of Chicago, that might not seem like the toughest task. But keep in mind that the NL Central centers their game around pitching and OBP. In effect they play small-ball, whereas the AL East is all about mashing home runs. The Orioles’ experience with those types of teams hasn’t yielded results that are necessarily favorable over the past few years.

They were swept by Minnesota in August of 2015, they seem to struggle against Kansas City, and even Cleveland at times (although they handled the Tribe last year). Heck, even in their own division – Tampa always seems to play the Orioles tough. Whereas the O’s are always looking to hit the ball out of the ballpark, teams like these see a single or a walk as a small victory.

So as we get into the grind of the season and the Orioles start seeing these teams, they might do well to exercise patience at the plate just a bit. Chicago’s a team that could probably compete in the AL East with their bats, but the rest of them are mainly small ball teams. While you have to set up your team to compete mainly in it’s division, the division you play in interleague is also something to watch.

Baltimore Orioles: In Buck you should trust

I suppose I wrote a fairly scathing article regarding Baseball Prospectus’ opinion of the 2017 Baltimore Orioles yesterday. Mind you folks, I’m a writer, not a fan. So I didn’t say those things because I was “offended” by their assessment of the team. I came at those comments from a position of common sense.

Perhaps more importantly than anything else, Baseball Prospectus failed to take into account the Orioles’ most important weapon: Buck Showalter. It’s no mere coincidence that the entire franchise seemingly turned around under his leadership. And it almost happened overnight. The Birds were floundering once again and in essence playing out a string when he came along in August of 2010. Yet they managed to finish with two .winning months for the first time in light years.

Injuries plagued them in 2011, yet they once again finished with a flurry in September, and of course knocked the BoSox out of the playoffs in what I still call the greatest closing act of all time. 2012-2016 have been either playoff years, or years in which the O’s were eliminated in the final week or two of the season. Needless to say, even in those seasons they were in contention until the end.

Again, that’s no coincidence. Buck Showalter is a good manager. Perhaps more importantly, he’s a good leader. Savoir faire in the sport is only part of the equation; if you aren’t a good leader, your team is going to get nowhere. Showalter talks a lot about other sports here and there. So could he coach a basketball team as well as he does baseball? I know that he’s a basketball fan because I’ve heard him talk about the sport and I’ve heard him say he’s attended games back in Dallas…

…so if he has any savy whatsoever about the sport, yes he probably could. Or at least he could be molded into a good basketball coach. Because he’s a good leader, and players seem to buy into what he’s selling. That’s the biggest part of the deal.

So all of the people who claim doom and gloom for the upcoming Orioles’ season fail to take that into account. Now it goes without saying that good leadership only takes you so far; you also need to have good followers (players, in this case). And the Orioles do have that. They’re bringing the same team back that went to the playoffs last year. Does that mean instant success in 2017? Of course not. But today as pitchers and catchers report for spring the Orioles’ biggest competitive advantage remains William Nathaniel Showalter.

Baltimore Orioles: Was 2012-2016 all luck?

The Baltimore Orioles have always been competitive under Buck Showalter – ALWAYS. I don’t need to tell this to most fans, but what the heck. Showalter took over in August of 2010, the Birds finished the season strong, and again struggled in 2011. However they still finished the season strong in the end. The made the playoffs for the first time since 1997 in 2012, had a winning record in ’13, won the division in ’14, finished at .500 in ’15 (with a very strong September), and went to the playoffs again in ’16.

Throughout that time, the Birds have had a very similar core in terms of players, basically centered around Adam Jones. That’s especially true from 2012 to the present. And the O’s are returning virtually the same team in 2017. Yet, Baseball Prospectus is insisting that the Birds will take a huge step backwards in 2017.

They have the Orioles finishing at 73-89, and in last place in the AL East. Mind you, teams such as Toronto lost major pieces, yet they feel they’ll finish ahead of the Orioles. Then you have Tampa, who wasn’t even remotely near the map last year in terms of the post season – and supposedly they’re going to finish in second place with 84 wins.

With all of this said, some people are going to argue that last year’s results bear no relevance to anything to do with this year. And honestly I disagree – in this case. Again, the Birds are bringing the same basic team back, albeit with a couple of changes. However are those changes enough to take them from being a playoff team to the basement? And again, you have good teams from last year (Toronto) who lost big parts; yet they’re ahead of the Orioles. Not to mention bad teams (Tampa) who gained nothing – yet they’re ahead of the Orioles.

Obviously this is about the Orioles’ starting pitching, and that’s certainly a fair criticism. But what these potential standings are saying is that Chris Tillman and Kevin Gausman are definitely taking big steps backwards this year. According to Baseball Prospectus, there’s absolutely no doubt about it. It also means that Ubaldo Jimenez has no shot of improving year-over-year. Now Jimenez has struggled over time without a doubt. However he has had flashes where he’s looked good (such as last September). And Baseball Prospectus is saying that won’t happen this year.

It also means that Dylan Bundy without any doubt won’t be having any success in 2017. And here’s the thing; all of that could happen. But again using Tampa as an example, Baseball Prospectus is saying that everything Tampa’s putting together is going to magically work out. And the exact opposite with the Orioles.

To take that a step further, they have Oriole bats finishing the season at .256 with a .318 OPB. Now I’ll grant you that on-base percentage isn’t this group’s forte. However power most definitely is. And they think that the likes of Jones, Trumbo, Machado, Davis, et al are only going to hit at a .256 clip? Regardless of what people might think of the pitching, that’s not even a stretch. It’s borderline impossible.

But it all goes back to Buck Showalter. What of his record (both in Baltimore and before) would make anyone think that he’d allow this team to finish like that? In effect, what Baseball Prospectus is saying is that the Orioles got lucky from 2012-2016. Again mind you, the Orioles are bringing the same team back for the most part. Toronto is not, yet they’re picked ahead of the O’s. Tampa is bringing the same team back, but they didn’t get the job done last year. Yet they’re picked ahead of the O’s. Does that really make sense other than going under the assumption that the O’s just got lucky for five years or so?

Mind you however, all of this is plausible. Maybe Tampa’s the group that’s going to start getting lucky. Maybe Bautista and his hatred for Baltimore, the Orioles, the Orioles fans, etc. is going to be enough to give his team a better record than the Birds. Maybe instead of majestic homers and big games, Oriole bats will only produce strikeouts this year. And maybe the bright spots in Oriole pitching that does exist will simply go away, along with the success of the bullpen.

That’s called living on a prayer, or perhaps the opposite thereof in this case. Baseball Prospectus is just assuming that everything Buck Showalter puts his hand on this year is going to turn to dust; the opposite being true of every other manager in the division. Basically, they’re saying that to this point the Fighting Showalters have simply gotten lucky.

Baltimore Orioles acquire Gabriel Ynoa

The Baltimore Orioles traded cash considerations to the New York Mets yesterday in exchange for minor league pitcher, Gabriel Ynoa. In a bit of a surprise move, they then DFA’d catcher Francisco Pena. I say a surprise move, because the Orioles liked Pena and he was in the big leagues for some time last year. But “them’s the breaks.”

The Birds are expecting Ynoa to begin the year in triple-A, which means that at some point we may see him in Baltimore. For what it’s worth, the big league clock has started on him, as he played in ten games with the Mets last year. His record was 1-0.

The O’s think that Ynoa could be a starter in the big leagues on a consistent basis. Some will scowl at that a bit, however keep in mind that Dan Duquette is very good about getting these diamond in the rough players. Speaking of which, Duquette had this to say about the Orioles’ new acquisition (quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports):

He’s young, he’s strong, he’s durable. The kid won 13 games last year. Pitching in Las Vegas, that’s a tough ballpark to pitch in, but he was one of the top pitchers in the Pacific Coast League. He has a good sinker, a four-seam fastball that reaches 95 mph and a good changeup.

Our scouts think he’ll be able to develop into a big league pitcher with a little more consistent breaking ball. He’s got pretty good credentials for a major league starting pitcher.”

Just another story as we wind down the off season – or the non-baseball part of it at least.

Baltimore Orioles: “Come Monday”

As the Jimmy Buffet song goes, “…come Monday it’ll b alright” for the Baltimore Orioles. Pitchers and catchers are due to report then, which unofficially begins the 2017 season in Birdland. Pitchers and catchers reporting is always an exciting day, although nothing really happens per se. But as I said, it unofficially begins a new season…

…and everything that goes with it! A baseball season is a grind, and these guys will be together until the autumn starting next week. For their sake, you have to hope they’re ready for that.

Position players will report roughly one week later, and in essence two weeks from today is Grapefruit League Opening Day. That means it’s gameday – Orioles vs. Tigers! But regardless of who’s playing, who’s on the travel roster, or anything else, bats start cracking and gloves start popping on Monday. “Come Monday it’ll be alright.”