I’ve got three words for you today at the Tap Room: Excited, concerned, satisfied.
Choose one and then explain your answer.
That’s what I want from you today. That’s your barwork, if you will.
The Orioles are through the first five weeks of the season. They are 18-12 and in first place in the American League East. They are playing .600 ball, and only the Chicago White Sox have a better winning percentage in the AL.
The Orioles’ starting pitching is beginning to go a little deeper, their bullpen and defense are as good as advertised and that offense sure can score when the balls are flying out of the park.
Many Machado, Mark Trumbo and Chris Davis are among the league leaders in homers and RBIs. And the club’s on-base percentage has certainly jumped up from last year.
In one sense, Orioles fans have to be pleased, tickled, excited.
Of course, this team has obvious flaws that get exposed at times. It’s only been recently that the rotation has pitched consistently beyond the fifth inning, putting extra pressure on the sublime bullpen. And there doesn’t appear to be immediate rotation help in the minors.
The offense is streaky – we’ve seen a couple stretches where the Orioles don’t hit home runs and, consequently, they don’t score much.
And the defense took a hit with the loss of shortstop and infield stalwart J.J. Hardy, who will be out six weeks or more with a fracture in his left foot.
With all the good mojo surrounding the fast start, the Orioles are actually just 11-12 since they began the year undefeated in their first seven games.
So, in another sense, Orioles fans could be cautious, skeptical, concerned.
Me? The bartender, website guy and long-time chronicler of this baseball team?
I guess I’m slightly surprised by the start, especially given the hurdles thrown in the Orioles’ path such as the terrible weather and the injuries to Kevin Gausman, Zach Britton and Hardy.
I think hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh and company have done a good job of trying to get this offense to be less one-dimensional. And I was majorly concerned about the rotation, but a healthy Kevin Gausman eases that a touch. Losing Britton for only three games was a dagger avoided, too, for sure.
I lost that fan vibe a long time ago, but if I were an Orioles’ fan right now, I think I’d be satisfied with how the first 30 games have played out. Not overly excited, but not too worried, either.
A solid start to a long season. Lots of positives, some negatives and a decent record as the quarter pole approaches.
Your turn.
Three words: Excited, concerned, satisfied. Which one best suits your feelings toward these Orioles so far?
Let me know, and explain why.
Tap-In Question: Which word describes your thoughts about these Orioles: Excited, concerned, satisfied? Tell us why?
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So far, it's "satisfied." It's easy to choose excited because of the way the team has played thus far or concerned because of a possible regression, but I'm simply happy with where they stand right now. The rotation has exceeded expectations despite not looking very good at all at times. The offense is producing despite injury issues (Jones, Hardy) and the bullpen looks as strong as ever. There are definitely places to improve and places where things could be worse, so "satisfied" is where I'll go for now.
Exceptionally fair and rational assessment. Drink chip your way.
I'm gonna sip on a Natty Boh draft while I use all three here Dan:
Excited - Joey Rickard's defense excites me. Joey Rickard's bat excites me.
Satisfied - It's early but Dan Duquette's acquisition of Mark Trumbo ranks among his best so far, next to Nelson Cruz. Please lock him in to an extension.
Concerned - Adam Jones isn't hitting the ball hard and has been one of the easier outs in our lineup so far. Did he come back from the injury too early? His glove is okay, but he's supposed to be one of our 30 homer guys.
And I don't even have words to describe Manny Machado.
Good points all around. This club was missing a lot of what Rickard brings (obp capability, some speed, another good D glove). If he keeps it up, that's a huge addition, as is Trumbo. Jones is a concern, but some of these other guys say, it's a long season. I'm with you though, you have to hope he is healthy so he can get through the long season. Boh on me.
Pretty darn awesome
Not a word on the test, but sentiment understood. You can break the rules here at Connolly's without penalty.
Satisfied - a baseball game is 9 innings, if you divide a 162 games into 9 increments or innings you get 18. So, if you go 10-8 every 18 games that's a 90 win season. With 6 games left in the second inning of the season, the O's need only go 2-4 to be on pace for 90...this most likely earns a playoff spot. I think they go at least 3-3 or 4-2 putting them ahead of the pace needed. That extra room is important, because there will inevitably be a period where they play less than 10-8. So yes I am satisfied, starting pitching a little slow but have picked up their performance. Bullpen needs no explanation and the hitting is sporadic aside from Machado and Trumbo. However, it is a long season and AJ will get hot, Schoop starting to warm up. I could go on, but satisfied is where I am.
Sounds good. Tho that's a lot of math for a Monday morning. I'm a words guy. And a beer guy.
I realize I completed this exercise for the bats, and not with the arms, so here's my round two for another Boh. (Beer makes Monday mornings easier for some reason)
Excited - Kevin Gausman. Lets see if he can keep this up for a whole season. Finally starting every 5 days seems to have let him build his confidence up.
Satisfied - Chris Tillman looking like the Ace and leader of this rotation that he's supposed to be.
Concerned - Ubaldo Jiminez and Yovani Gallardo. Ubaldo has no consistency, ever, and we still have him for this season and next. Gallardo having shoulder issues within his first month and not looking anything close to the guy we thought we were getting. Maybe Oakland would take a Christian Walker type guy or two for Rich Hill...
The 2016 O's are a mixed bag, but as long as our boys can keep outhitting the other teams, then print them playoff tickets and see ya in October.
I'm not a believer in the Rich Hill movie. Let me see it for a full season
Predicted by every major publication to be dead last in the AL East, this has to be considered exciting for all of us fans. Exciting to see Manny become the best player in the AL next to Trout. Exciting to see Gausman pitch like his ability says he can. Satisfying to see Tillman get back on track. This could be a similar season to 2012. Got to get and stay healthy as Orioles don't have much depth at many positions. Is Alvarez poised to break out? He seems to be showing signs. Concerned about Jones and Wieters bats. Hook me up with a nice bourbon Dan!
Sliding down the bar to ya. Alvarez definitely is showing signs.
Excited! OPS is my favorite statistic. almost every hitter on this team has improved his career OPS for the first 30 games o of 2016. Our plate patience is at an all-time best as well. Tillman and Gausman give us two potential top of rotation starters. I expect the front office to get James Shields or another solid arm. Our bullpen is elite. Our defense is stellar. Kim, while still a question mark, Has been a pleasant surprise. The current team reminds me most of 2014. That's a good sign.
I will say satisfied. Deep down I'm excited but we have a lot of games ahead of us. But satisfied how with the results so far
Optimistically satisfied?
How could ANY O's fan not be excited by this team and this start? Wasn't it just 5 years ago that the month of May was considered the start of football season?