The team's first-round draft pick (fifth overall) in the 2007 draft, he came amid plenty of hype to the major leagues for the first time in May 2009. Heck, then team exec Andy MacPhail even announced his promotion from Triple-A live on MASN days in advance. It became an event and must-see TV.
Baseball's No. 1-rated prospect was coming to the Orioles. He would throw out runners like Johnny Bench. On offense, he would be "Mauer with power." On off-days, he would probably drive around the Beltway selling tickets and spreading goodwill.
No one could live up to such expectations, and even though he made All-Star teams and won Gold Glove Awards with the Orioles, catcher Matt Wieters never quite did.
But as he heads to the Washington Nationals, Orioles fans hopefully have some solid appreciation for Wieters' time in Baltimore. He was part of a core group of players that, led by Buck Showalter, turned a losing team into a winner - one that made the playoffs three times in five years after missing it for 14 consecutive seasons. We should never take that for granted or underestimate it. Anyone that remembers all the losing probably never will.
Some fans kept waiting for that 30-homer, 100-RBI year and it never came. But Wieters had some decent years along the way and some very big hits. His defense was often criticized on the blogs and message boards, but at the same time, pitchers in the same clubhouse were swearing by his work and his decisions. They said they loved throwing to him.
Most fans don't care when we tell you how important it is from a media standpoint when a player is almost always available for interviews. But when you do so many interviews - almost every day once the year starts - reporters sure appreciate it. Wieters was always a pleasure to deal with. I can remember some quiet clubhouses after games the Orioles lost where some players preferred not to be interviewed. But Wieters posted by his locker to speak for his teammates. If he had a bad day, he never ducked a question about it. While Wieters was never known as a great quote, if you hit him with a pointed question, he often had an answer providing good information and valuable insight.
So after a winter where we heard at times that the Nationals were interested in Wieters and at other times that they were not, in the end, he is a National. Of course, he did not get a huge deal, but per Spotrac, his 2017 salary ranks sixth-highest among all majore league catchers.
Maybe fans can forgive Wieters for never turning into "Mauer with power." But hopefully they never forget the impact he had as a once-proud franchise finally turned the losing around and became a winner again.
Could this guy help this year?: There are probably few pitchers that have flown under the radar on the Orioles' farm more than right-hander Richard RodrÃguez. A non-roster invitee to O's spring training, RodrÃguez threw a scoreless inning in Tuesday's intrasquad game.
Sure, RodrÃguez is a longshot to make the opening day roster, but after a strong year and a half since they traded for him, he could provide the Orioles solid bullpen depth later this summer.
RodrÃguez, out of Santiago, Dominican Republic, turns 27 on March 4. Houston originally signed him out of the Dominican as an amateur in April 2010. The Astros traded him to the Orioles for cash considerations on June 25, 2015.
Last summer at Triple-A Norfolk, RodrÃguez pitched in 48 games, going 6-2 with a 2.53 ERA. Over 81 2/3 innings, he gave up 65 hits with 25 walks and 81 strikeouts. Lefty batters hit just .208 off him and right-handers hit .221. After the season, he pitched in the Dominican Winter League, going 3-0 with a 2.13 ERA. Over 17 games, he pitched 25 1/3 innings, allowing 22 hits with four walks and 24 strikeouts.
I asked Orioles director of player development Brian Graham for a scouting report on RodrÃguez.
"Live arm and a good body," he said. "Plus velocity and plus life on the fastball with a slider and sometimes a changeup. Most important is just the live arm. When you get a live arm like that, if it locks in, he has a chance to be really good."
During the 2015 season when he was dealt to Baltimore, RodrÃguez pitched in Triple-A for Houston before working at Double-A Bowie and Norfolk for the Orioles. He went 7-4 with a 2.47 ERA with 22 walks and 74 strikeouts in 83 2/3 innings. In his career, he has a walk rate of 2.37 per every nine innings, a strikeout rate of 8.93, a 1.10 WHIP and ERA of 3.17. So, yeah, pretty solid resume.
RodrÃguez is a multi-inning reliever and his fastball sits between 93-96 mph. The Orioles have some real talent from the right side in their bullpen, but RodrÃguez is another option who could be needed and provide a lift during the long season.
O's impact on Sarasota: An independent economic impact analysis commissioned by the Sarasota, Fla., county government, has concluded that the Orioles generate approximately $89 million in annual economic impact back to taxpayers and residents through the club's marketing and promotion of Sarasota tourism to its fan base across seven mid-Atlantic states combined with the commercial activity and corporate presence of the Orioles' athletic training headquarters, production of public sporting and other entertainment events, and management of youth sports tournaments and recreational programs.
Check out more on that here.