Baltimore Orioles 2003 Season Preview

By Adam Ulrey

Gary Matthews Jr. - The only on-base Oriole

There are very few things that I enjoy more than busting the Orioles, who are one of the worst-run teams in baseball. It seems so long ago that they were a good team, but in reality it's only been 6 years ago that they were playing the Indians in the playoffs. Since then they have slowly sunk closer and closer to the bottom of the eastern division, finishing fourth five years in a row. Former GM Sid Thrift took a fairly decent team and made them a laughing stock with bad trades, a horrible minor league system and some of the worst free agent signings. When you look at their starting players they only have three guys from their system, and they aren't exactly going to make you think of Ripken, Murray and Robinson. Geronimo Gil is an average catcher at best. Jerry Hairston plays second, and right fielder Jay Gibbons is a young power hitter. Look for this team to finish fourth again unless Lou Pinella gets the Devil Rays to play better, they just might put this once-storied franchise into the cellar. Now that would be a disgrace to this proud organization.

The infield starts with 36-year-old Jeff Conine at first base because as usual, David Segui is hurt again. Conine hit 15 homers and drove in 63 runs, while batting .273. Those are pretty lousy numbers for almost 4 million a year. He's old and overpaid, which is the theme of this team. Hairston at second has the potential to be a solid player for years to come. They love his speed (50 steals over the last two years) at the top of the lineup, but his OBP (.329) has to improve drastically or he'll find himself at the bottom of the lineup. Devi Cruz, who was waived by the Tigers two years ago and was released by the Padres, will be the new shortstop of the Orioles. There's a reason he has been released so much of late, he stinks. Cruz brings an average glove and really nothing to the table offensively. He has no speed and hasn't taken a walk in forever. He hit .263 last year and his OBP was .291. Here the Orioles have Brian Roberts sitting on the bench a young player from their system haven proven he could play. Yet he's not getting an opportunity because the Orioles bring in this has been. Another brilliant move by them. I will admit I like to two headed GM monster of Jim Beattie and Mike Flanagan, but boy do they have their work cut out for them. When you're this bad you need to play your young players who are ready. Tony Batista will handle third base, another bad fielder who has some power, but another player with a low OBP. He hit 31 homers, but batted just .244 with an OBP of .309. This team literally has no ability to get on base, which in turn gives the 3-4-5 hitters no one to drive in. The catching will be handled by Gil, who hit 12 homers, but he's another one who only hit .232 on the year. It's a bad fielding infield who will make their pitchers look worse than they are. Segui,who might be one of the biggest free agent bust of all-time, will handle the DH. He signed a 26-million four-year deal to hit for average. They could of paid anybody nearly the minimum salary for the last two years and received the same offensive output. Yet for whatever reason this team gave Segui the same kind of money that Cliff Floyd signed for, and Floyd is five times the player Segui will ever be. Just a fine example of a Thrift signing.

The outfield is ok, but defensively they are below average. Gary Matthews is not a center fielder, but by default he becomes just that. Matthews hit OK, batting .276 with 15 steals and seven homers for half a season. With his .355 OBP he is the only guy who showed any ability to get on base, and really should be the leadoff hitter. In left will be another waste of dollars, Marty Cordova. It was just three years ago that he had to sign a minor league deal to get into a camp because nobody wanted him. With the help of the Indians hitting coach he got his eye back, and parlayed a good season into a three-year 9-million dollar deal. He can't field very well and has no arm. Again another example of taking at bats away from young outfielders Larry Bigbie, Melvin Mora and Luis Matos, all who should be getting more time than they will this year. Cordova hit .253 with 18 homers, but just 64 RBIs. These are stats they could have gotten for a lot less money, but bad management comes through loud and clear. In right field will be the one young hitter you should build your team around. Gibbons hit 28 homers and drove in 69 runs for the O's in his first full season.

The starting pitching will be one of the weakest in the AL. They have a couple of guys whose upside is high. Rodrigo Lopez went 15-9 with a very good 3.57 ERA. He's a kid who can bring it and is not afraid of anybody. They went out and signed free agent Omar Daal to give them a lefty in the rotation. Last year Daal had his first solid season in almost five, going 11-9 with a 3.90 ERA for the Dodgers. Sidney Ponson, who is in every trade rumor that involves the Orioles, will look to improve on a down year. He was 7-9 with a 4.09 ERA, but the Orioles have been waiting for years to see Ponson finally reach his potential. Another free agent signing for the Orioles was Rick Helling, who was with the Diamondbacks last year. Here again is a perfect example of bad front office signing. They have John Stephens and Sean Douglas, two young pitchers who need to pitch and would have bee the perfect fourth and fifth starters for this team, but no, they will be back in Triple A or the bullpen. The fifth starter will be handled by Jason Johnson who was 5-14 with a high 4.59 ERA. Just in case one of them falters they do have the two kids, and they still have Pat Hentgen, another bad free agent signing still on the payroll.

The bullpen will be ok, but they do have a closer who has a tremendous upside in Jorge Julio. He had 25 saves and an outstanding ERA of 1.99. Kerry Lightenberg brings a very good ERA 2.97 from Atlanta and will be the primary set up pitcher for the O's. Buddy Groom just seems to get better with age, he's like a fine wine. He was the lefty out of the pen and posted a tremendous 1.60 ERA. Willis Robert (3.36 ERA) had a very good year and should help give the O's a respectable bullpen. Travis Driskell, who was a very solid starter last year, should be in the rotation this year but will come out of the bullpen. Driskell was 8-9 with a 4.95 ERA last year, but showed flashes of what he could become if given the time.

This team will be lucky to not finish dead last. When you look at their off-season signings, none of them were necessary, and in fact were a waste of money. That's nothing new for the O's, who seem to throw money away year after year to finish fourth every season. The rotation this year should be Lopez, Ponson, Stephens, Driskell and either Douglass or Johnson. Yet they bring in Daal and Helling, who the Orioles not only didn't need, but also will not make them better. You look at all the young successful teams like Oakland, Minnesota, and Montreal, they were built through their minor league system and taking advantage of Rule 5 players. Until the Orioles adopt this philosophy they will continue to bring shame to this once proud franchise.

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