Will the 2020 season produce a legit World Series champion?

Will the 2020 season produce a legit World Series champion?
Even if the coming 60-game Major League Baseball season gets played to conclusion through the World Series, fans are going to look back at this season for years and see strange things. Like a home run champion that might hit, say, 21 homers. Or a pitcher leading the majors in wins with seven or eight. Or a saves leader with 16. Or a World Series champion crowned after a 60-game season. Will that World Series winner be legit? Well, legit is in the eye of the beholder. To me, that answer is yes....

Leftovers for breakfast (updated)

Leftovers for breakfast (updated)
Hunter Harvey doesn't know whether he's going to be a reliever or a starter with the Orioles after he reports to spring training in February. He still hasn't been told anything at this point. Harvey prefers the bullpen and is anticipating the same role as the one he held in seven major league appearances after the Orioles called him up. He's just waiting for confirmation. "Nothing's set in stone that I'll stay in the bullpen, but I kind of hope that I do," Harvey said last night while...

Elias holding same shopping list as GM meetings conclude

Elias holding same shopping list as GM meetings conclude
Mike Elias will board a flight this afternoon for the return trip from Scottsdale, Ariz., and the 2019 General Managers Meetings. Which also included anyone with "executive vice president" in their title. No trades have been consummated and aren't expected to happen at this point. I got the sense that there wouldn't be much activity from the Orioles beyond the sit-downs with executives and agents that could lead to moves made at next month's Winter Meetings in San Diego. The odds on Elias...

Harvey's on solid bullpen ground in 2020

Harvey's on solid bullpen ground in 2020
The degree to which Hunter Harvey has advanced his professional career can be measured through bullpen projections for 2020. Through the notion that Harvey might be the only sure thing for the Orioles. There are assumptions to be made, of course. Mychal Givens is slotted into the bullpen with the caveat that he could be traded, if the market cooperates, while MLBTradeRumors.com projects his salary to climb to $3.2 million. Richard Bleier is mentioned as a non-tender candidate, but I've been...

Is bullpen best for Brooks?

Is bullpen best for Brooks?
Let's take another shot this morning at addressing one of the litany of questions facing the Orioles before opening day 2020. Funny how so many of them lead to the pitching staff, whether it's the rotation or bullpen. What should the Orioles do with Aaron Brooks? The numbers make the decision appear to be simple. He's been much more effective as a reliever than as a starter, and the Orioles need to improve in both areas. The Orioles claimed Brooks off waivers from the Athletics on July 6,...

Looking at the pitch mix for the World Series teams and the O's

Looking at the pitch mix for the World Series teams and the O's
The World Series teams both have plenty of quality starting pitchers who can throw big-velocity fastballs. They just don't throw them as much as many other teams. For instance, the Houston Astros this year threw the lowest percentage of fastballs of all 30 major league teams at 45.6 percent. This despite the fact that Houston's average velocity of 94.2 mph ranked second in the big leagues, according to FanGraphs stats. As for Washington, the Nationals this season rated 15th in fastball usage...

Can Kline contribute in 2020?

Can Kline contribute in 2020?
Whether Branden Kline becomes an integral part of the Orioles bullpen, or even an extra piece that can be tossed on the Triple-A shuttle, is going to be determined much later. No one can make a declaration in October. Don't even attempt it. There's no way to construct the unit on such an early date in the offseason. Not that it ever stops us from trying. We don't know whether Mychal Givens, Richard Bleier and Miguel Castro, all of them eligible for arbitration and due raises, are going to...

Bundy done in 2019

Bundy done in 2019
BOSTON - A decision has been made regarding Dylan Bundy's final start in 2019. He's already made it. Bundy no longer is going to take the mound for the last game of the season. Manager Brandon Hyde hasn't named a Sunday replacement, but called it a "potential" bullpen game. "That's probably going to be decided after Saturday," Hyde said. "We're probably going to piece it together." Bundy will conclude the season with a 7-14 record, 4.79 ERA and 1.355 WHIP in 161 2/3 innings. The 30...

More on Brooks' relief outing and minor league award winners

More on Brooks' relief outing and minor league award winners
The Orioles went the more traditional pitching route last night in a 7-6 loss to the Mariners at Camden Yards. Asher Wojciechowski was the starter instead of an opener. No reliever worked more than Dillon Tate's 2 1/3 innings. Manager Brandon Hyde used six of them as the game marched into the 13th. The seven relief innings logged Friday night by Aaron Brooks rank among the most in Orioles history. As you might expect. Brooks was the fourth pitcher in the majors this season to throw seven or...

Orioles surrender run on infield hit in 13th and lose 7-6 (updated)

Orioles surrender run on infield hit in 13th and lose 7-6 (updated)
The Orioles finished their batting practice rounds today and retreated to the clubhouse, still a few hours left before they'd take the field again and continue their series against the Mariners. An important part of their future was scattered on the center field roof deck, where various minor league award winners were made available to fans and the media. The hardware would be delivered to them later in an on-field ceremony, before Mychal Givens surrendered a three-run homer to J.P. Crawford...

Leftovers for breakfast

Leftovers for breakfast
Last night's game was only a few minutes old and manager Brandon Hyde already had been pressed about the chances that he'd try Richard Bleier again as an opener, with Aaron Brooks being the bulk guy. Hyde has made it clear that he's unable to plan too far in advance with a pitching staff that can't offer consistent performances. And the season is running out of games. It sure worked last night, though. "This was just something we tried. I don't know," Hyde said following a 5-3 win over...

Brooks does bulk of work behind Bleier in 5-3 win (updated)

Brooks does bulk of work behind Bleier in 5-3 win (updated)
Richard Bleier emerged from the Orioles dugout at 6:45 p.m. and began making the walk to the bullpen. Coaches Doug Brocail and John Wasdin were waiting for him. So, too, was Chance Sisco, who grabbed a ball and played catch to loosen his arm. Bleier wasn't on the usual starter's warmup schedule. He wasn't in the traditional mindset. This was a reliever used as an opener and he was going to do it his way. Filling a spot in the rotation that he hadn't occupied since the minors and winter...

Orioles lineup vs. Mariners

Orioles lineup vs. Mariners
Chris Davis is playing first base tonight and Trey Mancini is the designated hitter for the series-opening game against the Mariners at Camden Yards. This is the final homestand of the season. Mancini was hit on the left leg last night, but he's staying in the lineup. He's just off the field. Anthony Santander is in left field, Austin Hays is in center and DJ Stewart is in right. Rio Ruiz is batting cleanup. Left-hander Richard Bleier is tabbed as the opener tonight, making his first major...

Notes on Wilkerson, Hays and Bleier

Notes on Wilkerson, Hays and Bleier
Stevie Wilkerson keeps showing up at the ballpark each day unsure if he's playing and having no clue which glove he'll be using if he does. The Orioles gave Wilkerson 57 starts in center field this season and used him in 71 games. He's also played left and right field, second base, shortstop and third base and served as an emergency reliever on four occasions. It's assumed that Wilkerson also is viewed as an extra catcher if the Orioles somehow run out of them. The risk grew slimmer after...

Notes on Cobb, Givens, Harvey, rotation and minors

Notes on Cobb, Givens, Harvey, rotation and minors
The contact that manager Brandon Hyde has maintained with Alex Cobb is confined to the daily medical reports that reach his desk. The ones that, Hyde says, show how the veteran starter is "recovering well." Cobb underwent two procedures over the summer that kept him in Nashville, Tenn. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. J.W. Thomas Byrd repaired a tear in the labrum that ended Cobb's season after only three starts. Cobb told MASNsports.com in June that he'd also have surgery on his knee, with the...

Castro surrenders slam to Grichuk in 11-10 loss (Harvey shut down)

Castro surrenders slam to Grichuk in 11-10 loss (Harvey shut down)
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde bumped back Dylan Bundy in the rotation to provide a little extra rest as the season moved into the third week of September. A sound plan, except that Bundy threw 31 pitches tonight in the first inning and 20 more in the second. A heavy load threatening to cancel out the benefits of a slightly fresher arm. Bundy pushed through five innings while tying his career high with five walks, the bats produced five doubles and two home runs in the first four innings and the...

Updates on Williams, Trumbo, Núñez and rotation (O's up 8-5)

Updates on Williams, Trumbo, Núñez and rotation (O's up 8-5)
Mason Williams is unable to put much weight on his left leg today after slamming into the fence last night at full speed while chasing Cavan Biggio's triple in front of the bullpen area. Williams said today that he didn't sustain a concussion, but the knee is wrapped and he has a deep bruise that brings uncertainty to his availability over the last 11 games. "My head's fine," he said. "No concussion or anything like that, so that's fine. I just feel like I ran into a wall." Maybe it's...

Updates on Trumbo, Núñez, Hanhold and rotation (tied 4-4)

Updates on Trumbo, Núñez, Hanhold and rotation (tied 4-4)
The tightness in Mark Trumbo's upper back and neck area that caused him to be scratched from yesterday's lineup has subsided and he's available to play tonight, according to the veteran outfielder and Orioles manager Brandon Hyde. The club announced yesterday that Trumbo had a strained left trapezius. "Upper back, something tightened up and it just wouldn't cooperate by the time that the game came around," Trumbo said. "So with this many extra guys, I felt like somebody else was probably...

Shepherd set to make first major league start

Shepherd set to make first major league start
DETROIT - Being chosen as the International League's Player of the Month for August will be the last honor bestowed upon pitcher Chandler Shepherd in 2019. However, the true highlight of his summer is coming Tuesday night. Shepherd has been told that he's starting against the Blue Jays at Camden Yards, a first for him in the majors after two relief appearances with the Orioles. "It's special for me. I'm obviously super excited for the opportunity," Shepherd said yesterday morning while...

Brooks trying to get back to better starts

Brooks trying to get back to better starts
DETROIT - Aaron Brooks was a solitary figure in the visiting dugout yesterday, the first Orioles player out of the clubhouse with about 45 minutes left before the game started. He'd walk to the bullpen and warm up, but not before he sat alone on the bench, leaning forward with an intense stare as if locking his eyes on an invisible object in front of him. Perhaps it was a silent pep talk, though it looked more like a stern lecture. Brooks had a miserable start last weekend, allowing six runs...