Hearing from Matusz, Gregg and Lindstrom (and Showalter)

Hearing from Matusz, Gregg and Lindstrom (and Showalter)
SARASOTA, Fla. - Let's start with left-hander Brian Matusz, who allowed three runs on six hits and struck out three over two innings. "I felt really good," he said. "It felt nice to be back out there on the mound and let it fly a little bit. I felt strong. Threw a lot of strikes, attacked the zone. It felt really good to be back out there. "The Pirates executed really well and took advantage of the mistakes I made and put the ball in play. But overall I felt like I attacked the zone...

Wieters and Hester give scouting reports

Wieters and Hester give scouting reports
SARASOTA, Fla. - Matt Wieters caught Tsuyoshi Wada's bullpen session yesterday, so I decided to get a quick scouting report on the Japanese left-hander before today's early workout. "I think he's going to be a good pitcher," Wieters said. "He's going to be a mix-it-up guy. It was just a bullpen session, but he was throwing all four pitches on both sides of the plate, and that sort of lets you know that he has confidence in all his pitches and we're not just going to have to throw...

A few more items from today's trade

A few more items from today's trade
One member of the organization insisted today that the Rockies provided "by far the best offer" that the Orioles received for pitcher Jeremy Guthrie. Some teams wanted the Orioles to eat a lot of salary and they weren't dangling prospects in return. The Orioles and Guthrie were $3 million apart and headed to arbitration this morning. The Orioles weren't going to split the difference, and they most definitely weren't going to pay him the $10.25 million that he sought. They deemed it to be...

Hearing from the two newest Orioles

Hearing from the two newest Orioles
Jason Hammel was all set to report to spring training in Arizona with the Colorado Rockies. After today's trade to the Orioles, along with Matt Lindstrom for Jeremy Guthrie, the 29-year-old right-hander will now be heading to Sarasota soon to join his new team. "Obviously, it was a surprise this morning," Hammel told reporters via a conference call this afternoon. "My plans had basically been finished for spring training in Arizona, but that doesn't change anything. Baseball doesn't...

Duquette: "We didn't have any offers of young prospects for Jeremy"

Duquette: "We didn't have any offers of young prospects for Jeremy"
Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette just completed a conference call with reporters that also included new pitchers Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom. He described them as being dependable, durable, qualified major league pitchers. Hammel is viewed as capable of replacing Jeremy Guthrie's innings in the rotation, and Lindstrom will work the back end of the bullpen with experience as a closer and set-up man. Duquette referenced Jim Johnson as another power arm in the back of the 'pen,...

Looking more closely at the Jeremy Guthrie trade

Looking more closely at the Jeremy Guthrie trade
This Jeremy Guthrie trade is not playing to rave reviews with fans or media. Guthrie was a popular player who pitched well for this team and the early response from fans is that the Orioles did not get enough in return for the right-hander. This morning, he was sent to Colorado for pitchers Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom. Keep in mind that the closer a player gets to free agency, the less value the player has in a trade. Plus, Guthrie is coming off a year where his ERA increased from 3.83 to...

Guthrie headed to Colorado (updated)

Guthrie headed to Colorado (updated)
The Orioles had an arbitration hearing scheduled today with pitcher Jeremy Guthrie in St. Petersburg, Fla., but it's been postponed amid rumors that he's about to be traded. And according to a source, a deal is close with the Rockies that would bring pitchers Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom to Baltimore. Hammel, 29, was 7-13 with a 4.76 ERA in 32 games - including 27 starts - for the Rockies last season. He's 34-45 with a 4.99 ERA in 169 games, including 115 starts in six seasons spent with...