Are the Orioles going to be competitive this year? Probably not. But who do you throw to the wolves in a non-competitive year?

Dempsey’s Army, one of the Orioles’ fan blogs, takes a look at who is available and builds out a “shoulda been” rotation accordingly.

Raise your hand if you honestly believe the Orioles can win this season? Yeah , me neither. So unlike most teams, this is not just a matter of picking pitchers who give the team the best chance to win. It goes deeper than that.

1) Pitchers who give you team the best chance to win.
2) Pitchers with upside who may or may not be ready for the majors but are out of minor league options.
3) Pitcher who can be used as cannon fodder, eating some innings for a couple months while better options can be found without resorting to rushing young arms to the majors.

Some interesting insights in there.

Source.

Rick Vaughn orioles, pitching

Secreast ... out.

Over on the Baltimore Sun, Joe Angel, half of the duo that was accused of faking a rainout to get out of work early has issued a statement, which we’ve partially reproduced here:

To ALL Orioles  Fans…..Fred [Manfra] And I had nothing to do with the decision to
discontinue the broadcast on Sunday March 29th. It was completely out of
our hands.  We normally fill during a rain delay for about 15
minutes….and then return the broadcast to the network which enables
affiliates to continue with local programming.  We then WAIT OUT THE RAIN
DELAY…until the game resumes. On Sunday,….we filled for about 40
minutes and then we were told to discontinue the broadcast and simply sign
off.  The engineer left, the equipment went  with him.  Fred And I did NOT
make that decision……we are not in a position to make that decision.

This after an unnamed Orioles rep who said they had no clue why the broadcast stopped. This actually does sound more like a misunderstanding than anything else. The idea that two established announcers would just walk off a set without a frothing tirade is too bizarre to really entertain. Unless they’re both heroin users or something.

Source.

Joe Blancato announcing, baltimore sun, fred manfra, joe angel, orioles

Ron Burgundy would be ashamed of these guys!

Who ever heard of the dog days of spring getting you down? Bart Hubbuch at the NYPost Mets Blog is reporting that Joe Angel and Fred Manfra, the Orioles radio announcing duo, ditched their post during a rain delay. They told their boss the game was canceled, which was news to everyone else.

An O’s rep told Hubbuch, “Yes, the rest of the game was not on the air back home and we don’t know why. We looked over during the game and they weren’t there.”

Stay classy, guys.

Source.

Joe Blancato announcing, bart hubbuch, fred manfra, joe angel, orioles

Matt Wieters may be destined for AAA to start the season.

Peter Schmuck dropped this news on his blog: “Matt Wieters, who is the only one of the Orioles’ elite prospects that is still in camp, probably will be sent to minor league camp very soon. Manager Dave Trembley said today that he wants to start playing the regular starting lineup over the next few days.”

Not the best move by the Orioles, given Wieters is predicted to tear up the league given Nate Silver’s PECOTA projections. Silver predicts Wieter’s VORP to be 59.6 and his WARP 7.9, highest among catchers and highest among AL hitters, respectively. Currently at the top of the Os’ depth chart is Gregg Zaun, whose lifetime OPS+ is 90.

Now, it’s not total insanity, as the Orioles are clearly tanking the 2009 season in favor of 2010, when they’re planning on unleashing the fury as the decade winds down. At the same time, a potential Rookie of the Year candidate beating up pitchers in the minors just seems like a waste of ticket sales.

Source.

Joe Blancato matt wieters, orioles, peter schuck