Davis Led The MLB in Home RunsThe Baltimore Orioles had another good season, tying the New York Yankees for 3rd place in the AL east. The Orioles finished 3rd amongst all teams in slugging percentage (.431) and finished 5th in runs with 745. The Orioles also had a major breakout star in Chris Davis who finished 2nd in the MVP race to Miguel Cabrera. Chris led all of baseball in Home Runs and RBS’s.The Orioles offseasonThe Orioles offseason has been quiet, for the most part. Their names have been heard when talking about some major free agents, but the Orioles have made no major splash. Yet.
The Orioles traded away their Closer, Jim Johnson to the Oakland Athletics in return for 2B Jemile Weeks. Johnson, is one of the games elite closers, tying Craig Kimbrel for the MLB’s most saves with 50. Obviously, this is not good for the Orioles, loosing their closer, but getting Jemile Weeks in return is a great addition over Brian Roberts. The Orioles also signed RP Ryan Webb which is an excellent move and he would be a great setup man to whatever closer they eventually land. The Orioles 2 year deal with Closer Grant Balfour fell through. He would have been a great addition to their bullpen.What The Orioles Should DoIf I were the GM of the Baltimore Orioles, the first thing I would do is address their pitching situation. The Orioles finished almost last in every major pitching category. In reality, they have 2-3 solid starters, the rest are major question marks. I would not go “all in” for Tanaka knowing that beating the Yankees and The Dodgers in a bidding war is highly unlikely. I would go out and sign Matt Garza, or Ervin Santana. The Orioles need a strong #2 behind their ace, Chris Tillman. Then, I say they sign a cheaper free agent, Tommy Hanson to fill in the back end of their starting rotation. Re-Signing Jason Hammel would be a plus, as well.
As for the offense, their opening day lineup looks stronger than most, but still has a small gap in the outfield. Along with Nick Markakis and Adam Jones, there is still one more spot open, and there is a free agent outfielder that I think The Orioles may be able to sign for a reasonable price, on a short-term deal. Nelson Cruz. Cruz would be a HUGE power-threat behind Chris Davis. He would be affordable coming in after the 50 game suspension. He managed to hit 27 home runs in just over 100 games. In a full season, he could hit 40.
As for the closing situation, The Orioles need to sign Fernando Rodney to a 2-year deal. He is a great closer, who would do well in BaltimoreLineups
I see The Projected lineups to look like this (With Projected Additions in bold)
Nick Markakis LF/RFManny Machado 3BAdam Jones CFChris Davis 1BNelson Cruz LF/RFMatt Weiters CJ.J. Hardy SSSteve Pearce DHJemile Weeks 2BStarting Rotation
Chris TillmanErvin SantanaWei-Yen ChenMiguel GonzalezTommy Hansen BullpenTommy HunterDarren O’DayRyan WebbFernando Rodney
