Kuzul

The Twins haven’t won a World Series since the 1991 team beat the Bobby Cox led Braves. Ever since then it has been quite a rocky road for the team in the Twin Cities. In the playoffs, they have gone 6-21 since 2002 and 0-9 since 2004. Their most hated postseason opponents are clearly the New York Yankees, who have eliminated them the last two times the Twins have made the playoffs (2009 and 2010).

The last two years, it should be noted that the Twins weren’t 100 percent healthy going into the playoffs. They were without their MVP first baseman Justin Morneau in 2009 and 2010 and were also without All-Star closer Joe Nathan in 2010.

While the 2011 team looks to be quite the same as the team from last year, they will still need to add another ace quality pitcher to the rotation with Fransisco Liriano and Carl Pavano. They might also look at some more quality bats.  

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When I saw that Cliff Lee had signed with the Philadelphia Phillies around midnight last night, it got me thinking about a few things:

The top four of their starting rotation is so stacked, they can afford to leave their offense the way it is—balanced but not loaded like the 2010 season (due to the departure of Jayson Werth)—and still win many, many games.

The Baltimore Orioles, too, are looking at having a more balanced lineup in the 2011 season than they did in the 2010 season with the remaking of the left side of their infield with the additions of Mark Reynolds and J.J. Hardy. Assuming they can grab a solid first baseman (we’re all hoping for Adam LaRoche), then their lineup suddenly becomes even more balanced, much like the 2010 World Series champion San Francisco Giants lineup was.

The Orioles have five young starters, four of which saw big-league action last year, who have great potential pitching in the bigs. Orioles fans saw that potential shine the last two months of the 2010 season, once manager Buck Showalter took over, as he saw his young rotation pitch to a 3.16 ERA under him.

Pitching is everything.

The Giants proved that statement during the 2010 World Series, when they averaged a modest 3.9 runs per game during that set with the Texas Rangers. They won it all with good pitching.

Now that the Phillies have a rotation that includes four aces, they don’t need to worry about replacing Jayson Werth’s production.

And that’s the kind of team the Orioles are going to need to have in order to compete in the AL East: a balanced lineup with some of the best pitching in the league.

Many of the pieces are already in place: The faces of the franchise, second baseman Brian Roberts and right fielder Nick Markakis are locked up for the long term. Adam Jones and Matt Wieters have high ceilings, and both have made strides in their careers already. Left fielders Felix Pie and Nolan Reimold also are players who have good potential, and with Showalter at the helm, the possibility of that potential being reached is very good. Luke Scott helps bring some veteran balance to a young lineup, and if LaRoche or, say, Derrek Lee were signed to play first, they would do the same. Newcomers Reynolds and Hardy have both produced in their careers offensively, and are solid defensive players.

But even that isn’t the most exciting part of the Orioles’ potential. Starters Brian Matusz, Jake Arrieta, Brad Bergesen, Chris Tillman and Zach Britton are all guys whose potential is awesome, Matusz’s especially. That’s where the comparison to the Phillies’ new staff of aces and the Giants’ great pitching comes into play.

It might sound crazy, but the Orioles’ young pitchers have the potential to compare to those two staffs in the sense that they will be great and they will be the leading factor for the Orioles becoming a playoff team again. The Orioles don’t have the funds to compete with the New York Yankees or the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. Look at the guys Boston just added. There’s no way the O’s could pull that kind of thing off, especially after 13 consecutive losing seasons. And now is the best time to take advantage of the situation.

While the Red Sox got a lot better over the MLB winter meetings, the rest of the division has only gotten worse. The Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays have all lost guys, with the Rays taking the biggest blow. Now, I understand that the offseason is still early and there’s plenty of time for each team to improve, but there’s not much left on the market for any of them, and with the Rays not having large economic resources and the Yankees losing their man in Cliff Lee, there’s definitely an opening coming in 2011 for the Orioles to bounce back and at least have a .500 season.

For that to happen, Buck’s going to have to keep up whatever he was doing with his pitching staff when he took over. Sure, the bullpen still needs a lot of work, but I’m confident that Andy MacPhail is going to address that as the offseason continues, and I’m happy with what he’s done already in bringing back Koji Uehara, going hard after Kevin Gregg, signing a potential steal in Jeremy Accardo and letting go of Matt Albers.

Matusz, Arrieta, Bergesen, Tillman and Britton, along with veteran Jeremy Guthrie, are what are going to turn this ship around, not some high-profile free-agent fielders. A lineup that’s solid up and down—not a few good guys with a big free-agent bat thrown in the middle of them—a pitching staff that can make an opposing team cringe with every rotation turn and a shutdown back end of the bullpen, along with great defense is what the team needs to beat the Beasts of the East. And that’s what’s coming.

If you read the paragraph above and thought, “Well duh! That’s what every team needs to win!” then you need to read the article again. Because it isn’t necessary for every team to create in order to win. It’s what’s needed to compete in the AL East if you’re not the Yankees or Red Sox.

The cavalry is coming.

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It’s been nearly 12 hours since the Giants brought the first World Series trophy to San Francisco, but the question that’s on everyone’s mind is who’s next? 

Who will be next season’s Giants?

Who will be the team that defies the odds, utilizes one of the most talented, biggest upside starting rotations, makes the most of a rag-tag roster and seizes their opportunity to turn Major League Baseball on its head?

I’ve got one team in mind. The 2011 Baltimore Orioles.

Believe it or not, this team isn’t as bad as the 2010 66-96 record indicated. They have a new manager who has instilled a new set of beliefs, and for the first time in a very, VERY long time this team is one that believes it can win. And in a division like the A.L. East, that counts for a whole heck of a lot. Just ask the Rays.

And I know it seems like a super long-shot, but keep in mind a few of these things

-this Giants squad spent the first two-and-a-half months of the season alternating between third and fourth place.

-their offensive effort was led by a 33-year old journeyman, Aubrey Huff, who hit .290 with 26 homers and 86 RBI.

-their two-time Cy Young award-winning pitcher had arguably the worst season of his career

-the ranking veteran, Barry Zito, went 9-14 with a 4.15 ERA and worse than a 2:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio

-offensively, the Giants were a middle of the pack team, ranking seventh in the N.L. in average, and ninth in runs scored.

-no team in the N.L. was worse on the basepaths as the Giants stole a league-low 55 bases, and had the worst steal success rate at 63 percent.

-their pitching staff ranked as the third-worst in terms of walks issued, trailing only the Cubs (75-87) and the Brewers (77-85).

So, taking all of that into account, and fully realizing how unpredictable this season has been, let’s examine why, I think, the Orioles have the capability and potential to emerge as the Giants of next season.

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It’s no secret that under Buck Showalter’s reign, the Baltimore Orioles might as well be a different team. They are 26-15 since he came on board and the biggest reasoning has been the team’s pitching.

Coming into the season, the rotation was supposed to be this young group of guys that were the future.

However, that image went out the window in the heat of summer when not a single one of them had an even mediocre ERA.

Well, under Showaler, the starting rotation has finally molded into what we expected…and even more. In the 41 starts, the staff is 19-11 with a 2.93 ERA.

Considering the fact that these numbers have been put up against some of the best teams in baseball, Orioles fans have got to be excited going into next year.

That being said, here is a list of the O’s starters and how they have done under the new regime.

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Brandon Morrow, Toronto Blue Jays (pictured)
Morrow had to settle for a one-hit shutout as his no-no was broken up by Evan Longoria in the ninth. Morrow had 17 Ks as he improved to 9-6 with a 4.45 ERA.

Matt LaPorta & Trevor Crowe, Cleveland Indians
LaPorta went 3 for 4 with a HR (7) and two RBIs (27) to raise his average to .259. Crowe went 3 for 4 with a run to raise his average to .255.

Jeremy Guthrie, Baltimore Orioles
Guthrie gave up one run in eight innings to improve to 6-11 with a 4.04 ERA. He’s 3-1 in his last five starts with a 1.77 ERA.

Jerry Hairston, Jr. & Chris Denorfia, San Diego Padres
Jerry went 3 for 4 with four runs (46), a HR (9), and two RBIs (45) to raise his average to .255. Denorfia went 2 for 4 with three runs, a HR (8) and two RBIs to raise his average to .266.

Potent Middle Relievers
Randy Choate, TB       2/3 IP, 0 Runs, 2 Ks (29 Ks, 30 IP)
Ramon Ramirez, SF    1 IP, 0 Runs, 2 Ks (35 Ks, 45 IP)
Takashi Saito, ATL     Save, 1 IP, 0 Runs, 3 Ks (53 Ks, 43 IP)
Doug Slaten, WAS      1 IP, 0 Runs, 2 Ks (22 Ks, 25-2/3 IP)
Tyler Clippard, WAS   1-1/3 IP, 0 Runs, 2 Ks (75 Ks, 65-1/3 IP)
Kenley Jansen, LAD    1  IP, 0 Runs, 2 Ks (9 Ks, 6 IP)
Octavio Dotel, LAD    1 IP, 0 Runs, 2 Ks (50 Ks, 43 IP)

Originally published at LestersLegends.com.

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The Angels Series

We know.

It’s only been three games since Buck Showalter took the reigns as the Orioles skipper. But can you really blame O’s fans for the excitement flowing through the Baltimore harbor?

Having just completed their first three-game sweep of the Angels since 1999, the Orioles seem to have a new get-up in their step following the hiring of Showalter, a no-nonsense manager who has twice built teams into the upper-echelon only to be replaced in the offseason before that team won the World Series (see: 1996 Yankees, 2001 Diamondbacks). Without a doubt, Showalter is the best Orioles manager since Davey Johnson, who took the team to the ALCS in 1996 and 1997.

In a season that started with very modest goals (get back to .500), it has been very disheartening to see the O’s sink to the cellar: Of the AL East; of the American League; and of all of baseball. But when you’ve been at least twenty games out of first place since June 2nd, fans start looking for the silver-lining in the rustiest of situations (i.e. At least Garrett Atkins got a hit tonight!).

But in Showalter’s three game debut, even the silver-linings are lined with silver.

The starting pitching over the course of the three-game series was perhaps the best the staff has seen all season, with each starter recording a quality outing. Jeremy Guthrie gave up three earned runs over seven innings in the opener, while rookie Brian Matusz only surrendered one run in his six innings of the second game. The best start, however, likely belongs to fellow rookie Jake Arrieta, who gave up two earned runs over seven and 2/3 innings in a no-decision in which he deserved a Win.

Meanwhile, the Orioles bats came to life to the tune of 20 runs over the course of the Angels series. While scoring runs has proved enigmatic for the O’s throughout 2010, barring a fluky home run here or there, these three games featured timely hitting that has been amiss as of late.

Under Showalter’s watchful eye versus the Angels, the Orioles batted .454 with runners in scoring position (I can’t find the exact stat of what their season average is, but rest assured it is about half this number), while nine of the 20 runs were driven in with two outs. In a season where runners have been stranded on base longer than Desmond Hume on the Island, fans can’t help be be excited that perhaps Showalter has figured out how to get these runners home.

This Author’s Perspective

As a fan of a team that has had a losing record and missed the playoffs every season since 1997, there have been very few things to be excited about over the past decade-plus.

Off the top of my head, my most-favorite recent baseball moments have been: The O’s coming back from down nine runs to beat the Red Sox in 2009, seeing Matt Weiters on the cover of Sports Illustrated (thanks for the jinx), and Dave Roberts’ steal against the Yankees in game four of the 2004 ALCS. Three great moments, only two of which involved the Orioles. That’s how hard it has been to be a fan of the Orioles, who I wholeheartedly believe have the most incompetent owner in all of sports.

Based on the astute moves made in recent seasons, I’m going to guess that Showalter’s arrival in Baltimore had much more to do with General Manager Andy MacPhail’s efforts than whatever fat-cat owner Peter Angelos was doing to replace interim manager Juan Samuel. MacPhail has built the Orioles farm system into one of the best in the league, mostly through his mantra of “Grow the arms, Buy the bats.”

While Baltimore has yet to sign a marquee bat, a line-up featuring Matt Weiters, Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Josh Bell and other up-and-comers should be appealing for an experienced big-time bat. If these players produce as they have in the minors and at times in the bigs, they could offer some protection in the line-up for a big bat to be bought in the offseason.

If Showalter can continue pushing his young team towards the potential we all want to think is in there, then the Orioles should at least be in contention for the playoffs as early as 2011. Sure, we’ve been saying that for years, but isn’t the scent of success tickling your olfactory for the first time since we thought the first Tejada experiment would make the O’s contenders?

Maybe. Only this time, its a bit more pungent.

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With the deadline quickly approaching, fans are wondering just what their team is going to do. That is, if they haven’t made a move already.

There have been two big moves thus far and both have come in the American League’s Western Division. The Rangers acquired left-hander Cliff Lee from Seattle and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim acquired Dan Haren from Arizona late Sunday night.

As for the San Diego Padres, this is not the time to stand by and watch everyone else make moves to make their team better. It’s also not the time to make a lateral move that doesn’t make them any better than they are right now. If they want to wrap up their division, and do so in convincing fashion, then there’s a deal or two that they can make to put a pretty little bow on the NL West.

The Padres should be proud that they are still in first place at this point. Most thought they would be in last place in the division and be selling off multiple pieces to rebuild for the coming seasons.

Before the 2010 season even started, Newy Scruggs of NBC 5 in Dallas called the Padres “terrible” while broadcasting for 105.3 The Fan during spring training in Arizona. Seems that wasn’t exactly accurate.

Then, just last week during the Padres three game set with the Atlanta Braves, Fox Sports’ Jon Paul Morosi decided to throw his own dart at the Padres, essentially calling them “pretenders.” No disrespect to Mr. Morosi, but this was the same guy that expected the Padres to trade Adrian Gonzalez, Heath Bell, and Chris Young at this year’s trade deadline.

So, with just a few days left before Saturday’s non-waiver trade deadline, general manager Jed Hoyer and the Padres’ front office continue to work on the best trades that are available to them.

There have been several names thrown out there, but there’s no telling if any of them have actually stuck. We could go down the list of guys like Baltimore’s Ty Wigginton, Miguel Tejada, and Jeremy Guthrie, Cleveland’s Jake Westbrook, Seattle’s Milton Bradley among others, that have been talked about.

One name the Padres, along with the Giants, Angels, Red Sox, and others were after, was Royals’ outfielder David DeJesus. But, thanks to an injury last week, he will miss significant time which takes him off the trade market.

Orioles’ right-hander Jeremy Guthrie made it known that he would love to pitch in San Diego after a game against the Padres earlier this season, but MLB.com’s Corey Brock shot that rumor down a few weeks ago.

So who does that leave? While I’m not of the opinion that the Padres can watch the deadline go by without so much as a single trade, 619 Sports out of San Diego, via Twitter , sees things a little differently.

Are the Padres good enough to win the NL West as they are?

Not in my opinion.

Sure, they hold a slim three game lead over the San Francisco Giants, but a three game lead is nothing in the major league.

The Padres need to add another arm to the rotation and possibly another player or two to their infield depth.

Orioles’ short stop Miguel Tejada has been mentioned more than once as a possible replacement for injured second baseman David Eckstein. The Padres need to bring in someone that can stem the tide until Eck returns to the lineup. A few sources out of San Diego believe that Tejada’s addition could move him to the outfield once Eckstein is ready to come off the disabled list.

It may be a temporary bandaid, but the Padres need more than that in their starting rotation.

They currently have Jon Garland, Kevin Correia, Mat Latos, Clayton Richard, and Wade LeBlanc in the rotation, but they need another guy that can take the ball every fifth day and provide veteran leadership and ability. A guy you can count on to give you the best chance to win when the ball is put in his hands.

A few promising pitchers are the aforementioned Guthrie and Westbrook along with Arizona right-hander Edwin Jackson. I believe Houston right-hander Brett Myers would be the best fit, but he may not be dealt until the Astros figure out what they’re going to do with Roy Oswalt.

SI.com’s Jon Heyman weighed in on that exact topic via Twitter , saying that the Astros weren’t anxious to trade Myers. Heyman added that though the Astros may not be “anxious” to trade him, he thinks they eventually should.

Earlier today, a rumor surfaced that the Padres had acquired outfielder Jayson Werth from the Phillies. The Padres need another productive bat in the lineup and it was no secret that the team was looking for another outfielder.

The original rumor, reported by Jack Cronin of 1090 AM in San Diego, stated the Padres had sent “a couple of prospects” to the Phillies for Werth. I couldn’t see how the Phillies would take that little in return after all the reports that they were looking for high returns for the outfielder.

With just five days to go before the deadline, the rumors will be hot and heavy until the Padres actually make the moves they set out to make. They may be major moves or they may just be lateral moves, but the Padres can not let the deadline go by without so much as a whimper.

They need a proven starter and they need another bat in the lineup. Trades won’t stop after the July 31st trade deadline, but if the Padres want to sew up the NL West division before the end of July, they need to make the impact moves and do so now.

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Part of being the team with the worst record in all of baseball is that you become a huge seller right before baseball’s trade deadline.

As the team who fits that role, it is no surprise that the Orioles have been talked about these past weeks as being potential sellers for teams that are in the playoff race.

In return for these veterans that the Orioles currently own, team management will look for prospects who can possibly help the team in the future.

Andy MacPhail has always said that he won’t make trades just to make them, but with several older veterans on a team that has already looked towards next year, it is hard to believe the O’s will be inactive.

Now, without further ado, here are several Orioles that could be valuable to other teams.

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