There was a new ‘Beast in the East’ this year. The Baltimore Orioles finished 12 games ahead of the New York Yankees to win the American League East. After finishing 2013 well out of contention for an AL East title, the Orioles skyrocketed to the top of the East in 2014. They continued their dominance for a short bit in the playoffs, but could not continue. There were some big players that stepped up in place of injured (or suspended) players that advanced the Orioles as far as they did. The Orioles will lose a good portion of their 40-man roster, but after losing only a few key players, things aren’t looking so bad for the O’s. They may not be the Yankees or Red Sox, but even for the Orioles this offseason has been rather… Lackadaisical.
Covering the Bases: Baltimore Orioles Offseason
It took a bit to get the Birds going. After an 11-12 opening month of the season, and a .500 May, they found themselves one game under .500 entering June. The difference between their lackluster April, and their average May was Home runs. The O’s led the league in homers, and by a pretty wide margin. At 211, they were an astounding twenty-five big flies ahead of the next closest team, the Colorado Rockies. In July, they really kicked it into overdrive when they went 17-8, although they only launched 29 long balls. In September, that number took a hit when they lost first base slugger, Chris Davis due to PED use, but were able to get things done without him. Davis would go on to miss the first eight games of the postseason.
After winning the AL East relatively easily, Baltimore swept the derailing Detroit Tigers in three quick games. They went on to face Kansas City, and the tables were turned. The talk of the series was Jeremy Guthrie’s, “These O’s Ain’t Royal” shirt that he wore during a post-game presser. Guthrie’s shirt was dead on accurate. The Royals swept the Orioles in four games, ending their dominant run in the American League. This one shirt sparked a major uproar in Baltimore even though Kansas City was superior to the Orioles in the ALCS in every way.
With only five players that qualified for, but didn’t earn, batting titles, there were many circumstances that often left the O’s shorthanded. Steve Pearce, though he only played 103 games, filled in at first base, DH, and outfield at times. He slashed .293/.373/.556 with twenty-one home runs. Adam Jones and Nelson Cruz also had major roles in the success of the Orioles in 2014. They, collectively mashed 69 long balls and 204 RBIs. On the opposite side of the ball, the bullpen was dominant, and combined for 53 saves. The rotation’s strongest thrower was Miguel Gonzalez. Gonzalez, in his second full season in the bigs tossed 159 innings, while yielding a 3.23 ERA.
In the free agent department, the O’s are taking a significant hit. Nelson Cruz, the O’s top power hitter, left for Seattle. Nick Markakis left for Atlanta. It’s no secret that Baltimore is a small market team, so it’s not a shock that they didn’t retain either of those players. The Orioles were, however, able to keep Nick Hundley, Delmon Young, Wesley Wright, Matt Tuiasosopo, and Chaz Roe. Andrew Miller also left Baltimore for a bigger market team, leaving them a bit short in the bullpen. The rest of the free agents that are undecided are Johan Santana, Josh Stinson, Kelly Johnson, Kelvin De La Cruz, Josh Rupe, Brian Roberts, and Quintin Berry. None of these guys saw valuable time, and will more than likely sign for very cheap.
The Orioles offseason has been nothing to drool over thus far. They’ve signed a few cheap guys, which is expected, and nobody that makes you say, “Oh, I like that signing.” Baltimore really just doesn’t have the money. If the best acquisition was Ryan Lavarnway, the O’s might be in for a long season.
As it was brought to my attention, the Orioles are a small market team, and only get their chance every 10-20 years to sign a premier player.Last year was that year, and it might be the last chance they get to make a real postseason push for a few years. Though they still have a few of their starters from last year, they O’s appear to be a .500 team in 2015.
To go from 96 wins to being an average, middle of the road team would be quite a stretch in some cases. In this case, I feel like the Orioles are a third place team, and will rebuild at the season’s conclusion.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @LastWordsarah. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Have you tuned into Last Word On Sports Radio? LWOS is pleased to bring you 24/7 sports radio to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. What are you waiting for?
