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: Deal from a position of strength?

There’s a school of thought out there which says that the Baltimore Orioles should consider dealing closer Zach Britton. So let me preface this by saying that I think that’s one of the most ridiculous ideas that anyone could have. When you have a closer that just finished the season 47 out of 47 in save attepts, your goal should be to keep him on your roster – not deal him.

However the flip side of the coin is that Britton would potentially net a nice return for the Orioles. A closer of that caliber doesn’t come around everyday – which is why he’d bring them a good return. Or would he?

For the record, Dan Duquette is on record as saying that he’s not dealing Britton. One of the Orioles’ biggest strength is their bullpen. While guys such as Brach or Givens may well do fine in the closer’s role, weakening the ‘pen by dealing it’s marquee member is a bad idea.

Furthermore, I’m not sure that other teams would be as willing to play ball with the Orioles on Britton as some might think. As I said above, Britton would potentially net the Orioles a nice reutrn. Nothing is gauranteed in life, as we know. Every team, including the Orioles, is going to try to get as much as they can out of a trade while giving up as little as possible.

Teams would know that the reason Dan Duquette would be shopping Britton is because he thinks he can find an everyday right fielder or DH. Are we truly to believe that teams aren’t going to balk at dumping an everyday player for a guy that pithes one inning?

Granted Britton only pitches one inning a game. However right now there’s nobody better than he in the game at what he does. And we knew that before he had  a perfect season. But the fact remains that he’s a one inning guy.

I could see another team leveraging the fact that they’d only be getting perhaps 4-5 innings a week out of Britton (best case scenario) by trying to get away with offering the Orioles less. For a guy like Britton, one would expect big leauge ready talent. In fact, one would expect someone with big league experience – and at a high level at that. Whether or not another team would view it the same way would remain to be seen.

The good news is that Dan Duquette isn’t going to deal Britton away for peanuts. In fact, if his comments are to be believed he isn’t going to deal him away at all. Howver the point is that other teams will often give the impression of undervaluing your players just so they can get them cheaply. But again, I don’t see Britton going anywhere anytime soon.

Baltimore Orioles: Does MLB have a marketing opportunity?

As the Baltimore Orioles’ offseason has kicked into full gear, one topic on which I’ve spent some time is some of the ratings problems being seen in the National Football League thus far this fall. Let’s be clear; the ratings aren’t by any means taking a nosedive for football every week. But they’re seemingly trending downwards, and that’s something that a lot of people thought could never happen.

Last week was the first week after which the Presidential election had finished. So I’ll be interested to see what the ratings are moving forward. I do think it’s very possible that’s something which may have affected viewership here and there. I won’t lie; as the autumn went on, I found myself watching CNN/FOX/MSNBC on Sunday evenings when I would have otherwise been watching football or baseball. The election riveted millions of Americans.

However the flip side is that some of the PR problems, over-officiating, and over-regulation probles the NFL has are what’s partially causing the downtick. I suspect that if that’s true, what’s happening is that people are still watching their favorite teams week in and week out. I know that I do! However I would submit that perhaps it’s viewership with the national games that are down. Why watch two other teams play on Monday Night Football when it’s only going to be a flag-fest?

So here’s my point this morning; while baseball is always going to be known as America’s Pastime, the NFL has also been “king” for the past 30 years or so. Therefore, does MLB perhaps now have an opportunity to re-make itself? In saying that, keep in mind that for the most part these two sports don’t compete against one another. The beginning of the football season competes with the pennant stretches and playoffs, but the meat of the two seasons are mutually exclusive

I think that baseball is in a unique spot because of it’s title of America’s Pastime. It bonds with the very fabric of the history of our country. Furthermore it’s a summer game, which people associate with vacations, BBQ’s, and good times. It’s also an everyday affair, whereas the NFL is once a week. That’s always been to the NFL’s advantage, as it keeps people in suspense so to speak.

Given the fact that baseball is so embedded in the fabric of our culture, I’m not sure you’ll ever see players kneeling for the national anthem. And the fact that the most recent World Series included two teams that were true feel-good stories in the sport doesn’t hurt. Furthermore the invent of the new Wild Card format has given the month of September and the playoffs themselves a shot in the arm.

So with all of this said, if the NFL truly has a PR problem of sorts now, baseball is in a perfect spot to re-market itself once again as America’s Pastime. Again, it will always be that, and it always has been. But they might now find themselves in a spot to shift people’s sports dollars from football back to baseball. Time will tell.

Baltimore Orioles still searching for a pitching coach

The Baltimore Orioles are going into the first part of the final weekend before Thanksgiving still in search of a pitching coach. According to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports, there’s a shot that an announcement could be made on a hiring before the Warehouse closes for the holiday. In case you’ve forgotten from past years, Thanksgiving week is a dead period for MLB.

In the article I linked above, Kubatko mentions how it’s a fine line that teams have to walk because you don’t want to make a rash decision, but you also don’t want to lose a candidate to another team. And that’s a sentiment with which I agree entirely. The Orioles aren’t the only franchise that needs a pitching coach, and there are only so many qualified candidates. The longer you wait the more you risk.

And we can’t understate how important of a decision that this is for the Orioles. The starting rotation is so precarious at times, and it’s tough to know which version of it is going to show up each game. So they really need to ensure that they get this hire right.

My personal opinion is that they need someone who’s going to strike a balance between being firm and not accepting excuses, and being a shepherd of sorts. Time will tell who that person ends up being. But according to the Orioles, that decision hasn’t quite been made yet.

Baltimore Orioles: Matt Wieters to New York?

With Matt Wieters being a free agent, the Baltimore Orioles need to be aware of who’s in need of a catcher. Their American League East rival, the New York Yankees, made a move yesterday that could impact the Orioles and Wieters. They traded catcher Brian McCann to Houston for two promising young pitching prospects.

McCann had apparently been on Houston’s radar for some time, and he’s a player that they had really wanted to add to their mix. For sure, he’ll provide some veteran leadership to a young team who seems to be up and coming. However while my personal opinion is that they gave up too much to get him, that seems to be how New York flies. So now they have a hole at catcher.

So my point would be why would they not be interested in Wieters? Since the likes of Wieters, Machado, and even Schoop have broken into the bigs with the Orioles, the muted running joke has been that at some point they’d be in pinstripes. (The same is true with Washington’s Harper down the pike.) So again, I’m not sure why they wouldn’t be interested in Wieters, but assuming they are in some manner they now have a golden opportunity to get him.

And given the fact that the market for catchers isn’t as good as it could be, Wieters is looking to get decent coin for his services. So what exactly can the Orioles do? The fact is that the Birds have about as much of a shot as anyone else at landing their now former catcher. It all depends on whether or not they’re willing to spend the cash to keep him.

In general, I think they’re fairly set at catcher with Joseph and Pena. But while there’s no gaurante that Wieters ends up in the Bronx right now, you have to imagine that he’s on their radar. And here’s the kicker; he doesn’t come at a price more than his price in a sense. This is exactly why the Orioles should have made him a qualifying offer, because now any team can sign him without surrendering a draft choice.

New York is in the rare spot of rebuilding and being able to compete at the same time. So if they had interest in Wieters, are we to believe that surrendering a precious first round pick might not give them some pause? If the goal is to continue building for the future, that pick would in theory be of supreme importance. That’s not something with which they need to be worried now.

Ultimately, whether he ends up in the Bronx or not remains to be seen. But I don’t think he’ll be back at Camden Yards, except as a visitor at some point. And while the Orioles are a better team with Matt Wieters than they are without him, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. They’re keeping some extra cash stashed away for the likes of Manny and Schoop at some point down the road. These decisions aren’t easy sometimes, however they have to be made.

Baltimore Orioles add a stop in Norfolk

The Baltimore Orioles announced yesterday that they’re extending their spring training schedule by one game. This final game won’t count towards “Grapefruit League standings” of course, however the Birds have scheduled what to me amounts to a glorified intersquad scrimmage. On their way up to Baltimore after breaking camp, they’ll stop at Harbor Park in Norfolk, VA to face their triple-A affiliate Norfolk Tides.

Again, to me this is similar to an intersquad scrimmage, as it’s the big league team against the triple-A team. The game will be on Friday, March 31st with first pitch slated for 3 PM. How much a role it will play in final cuts is unclear, however needless to say it’s a game that’s now on the schedule. Tickets will go onsale at 10 AM on March 4th at norfolktides.com.

Bearing that in mind, I would highly recommend that any Orioles fan consider taking a trip and going to this game. First off, Hampton Roads, VA is a really cool and really nice area. My sister went to school in nearby Newport News, and I always enjoyed going down to visit when she was down there in college.Harbor Park is also a great ballpark in which to watch a game, with the James River passing directly behind the right field grandstand.

In that sense the Orioles uniformly have great facilities in their organization. We know the merits of Oriole Park at Camden Yards and Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota. However at each stage in the organization Orioles players find themsevlves playing in great facilities such as Harry Grove Stadium in Frederick, Prince Georges County Stadium in Bowie, and Harbor Park in Norfolk.

The O’s have played their triple-A team on two other occasions at Harbor Park. They also hosted the Washington Nationals in Grapefruit League action at the facility twice, most recently in 2009. And to piggyback on what I said above, it you happen to frequent Virginia Beach in the summer, make a point at stopping in Norfolk for a game. According to my sister, the Tides do promotions such as Turn Back the clock Night, whereby hot dogs are sold for $.25. I mean, can you really beat that?!

Baltimore Orioles: Buck Showalter third in Manager of the Year voting

Baltimore Orioles’ manager Buck Showalter finished third in the manager of the year voting in the American League. He finished behind Texas’ Jeff Banister, and Cleveland’s Terry Francona. Francona ended up taking the award home.

For the record, these awards are voted on prior to the post season, so the fact that Cleveland made it to the World Series wasn’t taken into account. The Orioles were picked to finish last by many pundits this past year, and with 89 wins they obviously smashed that prediction.

So did Showalter get screwed out of the award? I would say no in a sense, as Francona was just as deserving. I might argue that he should have placed ahead of Banister, however at the end of the day it really only matters who finishes first. And ultimately Showalter isn’t a guy who cares too much about accolades for himself.

However consider this for just a moment; as the season wound down and the Orioles remained in the race, the fact that they were picked by many to finish last became a popular point of discussion. Buck Showalter always brushed that off, saying that they never thought of themselves as a last place team, and they always knew they were better than that. Again, this might register for someone who cares about these awards, which Showalter does not…

…but in saying that they always knew they could be competitive, did he kind of talk his way out of an award like this? Most people, myself included, love Showalter’s aw shucks type of folksy talk. However it’s entirely possible that voterson the committee hear that at various points along the way and that perhaps it registers with them. If they really weren’t a surprise team in the race, how good of a job did Buck really do?

That may be a bit of an unfair way of putting it. Probably it’s better stated to say that Buck may have done his normal run-of-the-mill good job. As Showalter himself says, these awards usually go to the manager of a team that comes out of nowhere and surprises people. In reality it’s actually a team award, because it involves the players playing for the manager and so forth. And there’s been nobody in Baltimore who hasn’t wanted to play for Buck since he’s joined the organization.

Ultimately, Showalter doesn’t really care about these awars. He’d probably say that it’s an honor to be considered at all – and he’d be right. But I guarantee you that he’s not losing sleep over it now. He’s focusing on 2017.

Baltimore Orioles: Mark Trumbo rejects Birds’ qualifying offer

In a move that wasn’t unexpected, Mark Trumbo rejected the Baltimore Orioles’ qualifying offer. Trumbo is turning down a guaranteed $17.2 million contract for one year because both he and his agent feel that he can get a longer term deal on the open market. And who can really blame him.

As I said, this wasn’t unexpected. The Orioles would like to keep Trumbo, and in a rare example of a player showing a bit of his had Trumbo said at the end of the season that he’d like to stay. Obviously he doesn’t want to stay long enough to take the qualifying offer. And again, nobody can really blame him.

The Orioles of course will get a compensatory draft pick from whichever team signs Trumbo, assuming that it isn’t them. However here’s a word of caution on that for you; don’t assume it’s a first round pick. In general, yes it will be a first round pick. However the rule is that the draft pick is the signing team’s best possible pick.

So let’s say for example that Trumbo happens to sign with a team that’s already signed someone else as a free agent who had a qualifying offer tied to them. That team would have already surrendered their first round pick for the first free agent, meaning that Trumbo would cost them their second round pick as a compensatory pick to the O’s.

So that’s something that Dan Duquette needs to monitor. It’s not necessarily a huge point per se, however it goes without saying that you’d rather have an extra first rounder than second rounder. So if a couple of free agents are already gone and the same teams are sniffing around Trumbo, that might make the Orioles consider offering a contract.

At the end of the day, the expectation is that Trumbo will be elsewhere in 2017. And that’s not necessariy a knock on the Orioles in terms of not being willing to spend the money. Funds aren’t unlimited, and it’s unclear if Trumbo can duplicate what he did this year moving forward.

Furthermore, would Orioles fans want Trumbo back if that made it more difficult to keep the likes of Machado and Schoop in the future? All of these contracts add up, and the fact is that it’s fair to say that the team can’t keep and pay everyone. That aside, Trumbo is now officially a free agent – as if he wasn’t before. Teams now know that there’s an additional price of a draft choice attached to him. So in theory, the Orioles won’t be left out in the cold if he walks.

Baltimore Orioles: Is Dan Duquette tough to get along with?

With so many changes having already come down the pike for the Baltimore Orioles, there’s a question that needs to be asked about Dan Duquette. Is he tough – maybe too tough – to get along with? Why would I be asking that about Duquette and not Showalter?

And the answer to that second question is because Duquette’s the one who hands out the contracts. It seems that a lot of guys are choosing to walk away for whatever the reason may be. Dom Chiti said that Duquette never returned his calls (Duquette disputed this fact). Rick Peterson bizzarrely seemed to be bounced from the organization. Among others.

Looking specifically at Chiti for a moment, he’s the type of guy that was never afraid of expressing his views on where the organization was going and so forth. So if he felt Duquette was erring in judgement, he would say so. So again given that, is Duquette possibly too tough to get along with?

It’s hard to say for sure what goes on behind closed doors. Needless to say, Duquette’s record speaks for itself – he’s had the Orioles in the playoffs three years out of five. He’s gotten very good at finding diamonds in the rough for the Orioles, and that’s to his credit. Many detracts will also point to the likes of Jimenez and Gallardo as quite the opposite. However mind you that not one expeert/writer (myself included) thought those were bad moves at the time.

However the fact is that we now live in a world where people are increasingly wary of working for someone who’s thought of as being a “pill.” And that may not necessarily be a bad thing per se. Nobody wants to take on additional struggles in their life. However I would submit that the character of one’s boss is probably weighed more heavily now than ever in the past in deciding whether to take a job or stay at one.

If in fact Duequette himself if an issue, undoubtedly he probably knows that he has this reputation. And if that’s the case, he might want to soften up just a bit. Granted I recognize that there’s an incredible amount of pressure in all of these jobs to succeed and succeed now. But if good people refuse to come to your organization, it’s tough to do that. Worse yet, if you continually lose good people from your organization, things become all the more difficult in the immediacy of today.

Baltimore Orioles lose Rick Peterson as Director of Pitching Development

The Baltimore Orioles will not have the services of Rick Peterson as their Director of Pitching Development moving forward. Peterson has worked behind the scenes with Oriole minor leaguers (and a few big league guys) since joining the organization in 2012. And speaking for myself, I think that the results have been fairly decent.

Some would take issue with that assessment, and perhaps they have a valid point. The Orioles’ starting pitching (at the major league level) is inconsistent for the most part. However compared to what it was prior to 2012, I would submit that it’s been pretty good. And to me, that’s the context into which anything needs to be put.

Vice-President of Baseball Operations Dan Duquette confirmed this news yesterday (quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports):

I appreciate Rick Peterson’s effort and good work for five years to develop pitching at all levels and wish him well. Rick has a solid track record helping pitchers and is well-respected throughout baseball.

I’m not exactly sure what to make of that statement, as it somehow comes off in the form of someone saying the right things. I know what you’re thinking – gee Domenic, are you saying that there’s more than meets the eye? The fact is that there generally is more than meets the eye.

Running an operation such as a major league baseball team and bringing everything together isn’t easy. So when you look at how things were run prior to Andy MacPhail’s arrival and then how things have been since (up to and including Duquette’s stewardship of the franchise), there’s no question that things are better. However needless to say, the changes on the pitching side of things of late are of interest…

…and that’s something into which we’ll delve perhaps this week. But right now the big news is that Rick Peterson is out. You have to wonder what’s next for him, as you may recall that Boston was interested in him as a pitching coach a few years back. My personal opinion is that he’s very good at bringing out the best in pitchers, so it wouldn’t surprise me if he ends up in a dugout somewhere.

Time will tell, however for the time being he’s out of the Orioles’ organization. Honestly, I’m not sure why he isn’t being considered for the Orioles’ vacant pitching coach job, but that’s another story for another day. For the time being he’s gone.

Baltimore Orioles’ Mark Trumbo wins AL Comeback Player of the Year award

Mark Trumbo of the Baltimore Orioles has won the 2016 Player’s Choice Award for the American League Comeback Player of the Year. In leading the league with 47 homers, this was all but pre-determined. Trumbo of course has a one-year $17.2 million dollar qualifying offer on the table from the Orioles.

Trumbo rebounded from a 2015 season in which he smacked only 22 homers. He also improved year-over-year by RBI as opposed to 64 in 2015. Trumbo was elected to the all-star game for the second time in his career in 2016 as well.

This of course makes it all the more likely that Trumbo will be a hot commodity on the free agent market this winter. There are rumors that the Orioles are considering a multi-year deal for Trumbo, however I admittedly think that would be a mistake – if in fact it’s being considered. Trumbo might be a big force for another year or two, however whether he’d be any more than a name after that would remain to be seen.

Anything’s possible, I suppose. However assuming Trumbo walks (and that’s only an assumption), the O’s would have to find a way to replace his production in the lineup. And that would be a daunting task. But it could also make the team more productive, if in fact they’re forced to opt for on-base percentage more so than home runs. But then again, home runs is how games are won in the AL East.

The Orioles of course fleeced Seattle in trading a minor league catcher for Trumbo last off season. Given his down 2015, it wasn’t exactly a trade that made huge waves around the league. Trumbo was a name for sure, but he was thought to be past his prime. And it’s important to put it the way I did in that the Orioles “fleeced” Seattle in that trade…

…nothing against Seattle of course. Although their trades with the Orioles do have a historical knack for backfiring on them. However while many fans are complaining about the number of former Orioles that are currently World Series Champions in Chicago, there have been plenty of trades of late in which the Orioles have ruled the roost.

While it’s regrettable that Arrieta thrived after leaving the Orioles, how do you think Seattle feels about losing Trumbo? In that case they very well may have made it over the hump and into the post season had they had his services. How do you think Texas feels about having lost Davis?

The point is that some trades work out and others don’t – it’s the nature of the business. But Mark Trumbo winning comeback player of the year validates this one for the Birds, just in case it needed anymore validation.