Will any players suffer the same ignominious end as Gibby?
Take the tarp off the field; it's time to play ball! After a scandal-ridden week filled full of steroids, lies, and allegations, pitchers and catchers are finally reporting to Fort Lauderdale this weekend for the start of spring training.
The Orioles may have missed out on their pot of gold, but most prognosticators agree they've had a productive off season. Still, as the preseason begins, several questions surround the 2009 club.
Here are five of the biggest issues facing the Orioles as the team reports to camp.
1. Rotation, rotation, rotation
There are currently 67 invitees expected to compete for roster spots in Ft. Lauderdale this spring, and 60 of them are pitchers.
Ok, that’s a slight exaggeration. 37 of the 67 are pitchers, and since only 12 or 13 will break camp as members of the club, that’s a lot of competition.
The list of over three dozen includes a number of players competing for the three open rotation spots behind Jeremy Guthrie and Koji Uehara.
There are Orioles farmhands (Jake Arrieta, Chorye Spoone), newcomers (David Pauley, Mark Hendrickson, Rich Hill), and old faces (John Parrish, Chris Waters, Radhamas Liz).
Hill, Pauley, Parish, and Hayden Penn are out of options, meaning that they may not stay within the Orioles system if they aren't on the 25 man roster in April. Look for a few players to get cut as the team tries to find five guys who can hold their own in the AL East.
Will the team emerge from spring training with 5 major league-level starting pitchers? As of mid-February, the team has plenty of quantity; only time will tell if there is are three more quality arms amongst the candidates.
2. How much ya bench?
This year, the question facing the O's bench will be how many position players to carry. Recent additions Ty Wigginton and Ryan Freel have the bases covered, and with the addition of Felix Pie, Luke Scott is the new 4th outfielder. So the Orioles may choose to start the year with 13 pitchers and only 12 position players. This would leave only three spots for the bench.
Freel and Wigginton have likely pushed out minor league players like Nolan Reimold and Lou Montanez. Still, neither newcomer has experience playing shortstop. That leaves Chris Gomez, Freel, Wigginton/Scott, and a backup catcher as the logical four-person bench. With so many pitchers out of minor league options, the 25th roster spot could go to the bullpen, leaving the Orioles to face a tough decision. Can they start the season with a short bench and no backup shorstop?
3. Aces in the outfield
Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, and Felix Pie already have the defensive prowess to be one of the best outfields in the majors. In the lineup, the O's are hoping that Markakis, 25, Jones, 23, and Pie, 24, each take a step forward. After a 20 homer, 87 RBI season, can Markakis develop the power to slide into the cleanup role? Can Adam Jones decrease his strikeouts and develop some power? He claims to have put on a lot of muscle weight this offseason. Newcomer Felix Pie was castoff from Chicago. Can the former number one Cubs prospect hit major league pitching?
4. Who’s on first?
Aubrey Huff won the silver slugger award as a DH last year, but in a contract year, Huff wants to show that he can play the field. Ty Wigginton has played most often at third base, but look for him to get a fair share of starts at first this year. Luke Scott, the O's 2008 starting left fielder, will get a look at first as well. If he wants to get close to the 475 at bats he had last season, he'll have to prove that he can field the position. Luckily for Scott, first base does not require double-jointed, freakish acts of athleticism. Kevin Millar isn't about to join the U.S. gymnastics team, and if he can hold down first; hopefully Scott can, too.
5. What a relief!
With Chris Ray coming back from surgery and Jim Johnson establishing himself as a strong setup man, the Orioles look like they'll have a strong 'pen with the aforementioned guys plus last year's All Star George Sherrill and youngsters Dennis Sarfate and Matt Albers. The question regarding the pen is whether or not the team carries an extra pitcher and whether Albers and/or Mark Hendrickson slide into the starting five.
It will also be interesting to see if expensive relievers Dannys Baez and Jamie Walker make the team. The O's would have to eat the veterans' salaries should they choose to cut them loose, but Baez is coming off surgery and Walker is trying to forgot about a disastrous '08 season. Think of these two as a symbol of the pre-MacPhail era—when overpriced, aging veterans were supposed to bring the team to victory.
Now, Baez and Walker will have to put up or shut up. Ask Jay Gibbons and Kevin Millar what happens to veterans who don't perform.
Bird Watching
What do you say, long-suffering Baltimore baseball fans? What are you hoping to hear about this pre-season? How do these issues get resolved by April 6? Which of the five issues is least pressing? Which is most pressing?
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