So the All Stars were announced yesterday evening, and the Nats and O's each got just one lone representative. This really isn't a surprise for two teams who are way below even through the 1st half of the season. Dmitri Young is a decent choice for the Nats. Obviously there won't be any pitching representatives from this team with its awful staff. So an everyday player makes the most sense. Ryan Zimmerman is a player I would argue could have made it over Dmitri Young. He has more RBI and runs, which I feel are the most important stats for an offensive player, but he is only batting .245. Young's .340 batting average is a lot more impressive, and he is slugging over .500 as well.
Brian Roberts definitely earned his place for the Orioles. He is one of the best leadoff hitters in baseball, plays good 2nd base, and leads the league in SB. Miguel Tejada was another possibility before his injury, but it would be odd to see him rewarded in somewhat of an off year. There is also a lot more competition for the All Star spot at SS then there is at 2B. Erik Bedard and Jeremy Guthrie are having good years pitching, but neither has too much of a track record, especially Guthrie. Bedard's strikeout totals are impressive, but there are too many players with a better win-loss record and superior ERA this year in the AL for Bedard to get a spot.
Showing posts with label jeremy guthrie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jeremy guthrie. Show all posts
Monday, July 2, 2007
Monday, June 4, 2007
Guthrie Let Down Again
Does Chris Ray have a problem with Jeremy Guthrie? It seems like Ray just doesn't want to do Guthrie right. Yesterday's homerun offered up by Chris Ray meant another blown save after Guthrie has gone 8 innings versus a division leading team. That type of game makes it hurt to be an O's fan.
The good news for the O's is that Jeremy Guthrie is showing no signs of slowing down. Against the West leading Angels, Guthrie went 8 innings with no walks, 3 hits, and just 1 earned run. Now unlike the game against the Red Sox, Guthrie looked shaky in the 8th inning before coming out. I understand why you might go to the closer in that situation after 2 hits and a run in the previous inning. However, shouldn't a starting pitcher have the right to close out his own game when he has the lead after 8 innings? Especially after the Boston debacle on Mother's Day, I would have given Guthrie control over this game.
Guthrie now has a WHIP under 1.00, and an ERA of 2.76. Hands down...right now he is your best pitcher. If you need to get 3 outs against a division leader with their best 3 hitters coming up...wouldn't you want your best pitcher on the mound?
Chris Ray has had a great young career for the Orioles. He has stepped in nicely for BJ Ryan, and I'm proud to have him as an Oriole. However, his failure in clutch situations against tough teams has me a bit worried. His 4 losses this year were against the Angels, Yankees, and twice to Boston. Those are games that the O's can't afford to be losing when they have a lead. Blowing a game to potential playoff teams is what is keeping the O's out of playoff contention.
If you take the 4 blown saves by Ray that ended in losses for the O's, and flipped them into wins. The O's would be at 31-26 right now. Thats just 1.5 games back of Detroit for the Wild Card. I'm a bit suprised by this, but the O's aren't that far away from being Wild Card contenders. They just completed a 6 game winning streak before the Angels took 3 of 4 from them. However, another prolonged winning streak, and the O's can put themselves right in the mix for the 4th playoff spot.
I know other O's teams over the last decade have had great starts to their seasons, only to return to 4th place by September. I truly hope this O's team has the right mix of guys and a little bit better luck, so they can show themselves and their fans that they can be a better team.
The good news for the O's is that Jeremy Guthrie is showing no signs of slowing down. Against the West leading Angels, Guthrie went 8 innings with no walks, 3 hits, and just 1 earned run. Now unlike the game against the Red Sox, Guthrie looked shaky in the 8th inning before coming out. I understand why you might go to the closer in that situation after 2 hits and a run in the previous inning. However, shouldn't a starting pitcher have the right to close out his own game when he has the lead after 8 innings? Especially after the Boston debacle on Mother's Day, I would have given Guthrie control over this game.
Guthrie now has a WHIP under 1.00, and an ERA of 2.76. Hands down...right now he is your best pitcher. If you need to get 3 outs against a division leader with their best 3 hitters coming up...wouldn't you want your best pitcher on the mound?
Chris Ray has had a great young career for the Orioles. He has stepped in nicely for BJ Ryan, and I'm proud to have him as an Oriole. However, his failure in clutch situations against tough teams has me a bit worried. His 4 losses this year were against the Angels, Yankees, and twice to Boston. Those are games that the O's can't afford to be losing when they have a lead. Blowing a game to potential playoff teams is what is keeping the O's out of playoff contention.
If you take the 4 blown saves by Ray that ended in losses for the O's, and flipped them into wins. The O's would be at 31-26 right now. Thats just 1.5 games back of Detroit for the Wild Card. I'm a bit suprised by this, but the O's aren't that far away from being Wild Card contenders. They just completed a 6 game winning streak before the Angels took 3 of 4 from them. However, another prolonged winning streak, and the O's can put themselves right in the mix for the 4th playoff spot.
I know other O's teams over the last decade have had great starts to their seasons, only to return to 4th place by September. I truly hope this O's team has the right mix of guys and a little bit better luck, so they can show themselves and their fans that they can be a better team.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Guthrie
I don't think I'm alone among O's fans when I state that I am starting to love Jeremy Guthrie. He has been absolutely spectacular in his 6 starts this year, and is performing better than any of our starters over that stretch of time. His era is currently at 3.02, but that includes several lousy bullpen performances at the beginning of the year. With my math, his era has been 1.91 as a starter. With a .232 BAA and 1.02 WHIP, it certainly doesn't look like an aberration that he has given up so few runs. His BB/K ratio is good and so are his homerun totals. At some point Guthrie may drop off in his performance, but I don't think he will slide far. He appears very athletic out on the field. I loved watching the O's game against the Nats when he almost beat out an infield hit by busting his ass down the line. At the same time though, he seems to be a very cool guy on the field. He doesn't seem to get worked up, and has a very efficient business-like approach on the mound.
Its amazing to me that the O's got this guy for practically nothing with the way he has been playing. I understand a bit why Cleveland couldn't keep him. They have a pretty good rotation, and Guthrie didn't really show them much according to his stats.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/g/guthrje01.shtml
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Jeremy%2520Guthrie&pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=425386
However, he had a good year in the minors in 2006. Perhaps he just wasn't accustomed to coming out of the bullpen, which is all he did with Cleveland besides 1 start.
Guthrie is making it very easy for O's fans to forget the O's acquired Jaret Wright this past offseason. I truly don't care about the progress Wright may be making, because his spot has been taken by somebody who is pitching like an All Star lately. Its pretty impressive that a guy who was waived back in January is now proving his worth as a big league starter.
Its amazing to me that the O's got this guy for practically nothing with the way he has been playing. I understand a bit why Cleveland couldn't keep him. They have a pretty good rotation, and Guthrie didn't really show them much according to his stats.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/g/guthrje01.shtml
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Jeremy%2520Guthrie&pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=425386
However, he had a good year in the minors in 2006. Perhaps he just wasn't accustomed to coming out of the bullpen, which is all he did with Cleveland besides 1 start.
Guthrie is making it very easy for O's fans to forget the O's acquired Jaret Wright this past offseason. I truly don't care about the progress Wright may be making, because his spot has been taken by somebody who is pitching like an All Star lately. Its pretty impressive that a guy who was waived back in January is now proving his worth as a big league starter.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Baez hurting the O's
I thought Danys Baez's signing was a good one by the O's this offseason. While he isn't a great pitcher, he is very capable of helping a bullpen out. However, he is severely struggling right now, and its really hurt the Orioles lately.
Since last Sunday when he gave up 2 runs without getting an out against the Red Sox, Baez has only had one solid outing. He has pitched 4 more times, and given up 2 runs in 3 of those 4 outings. Baez has two losses over the last week, and all 3 of his losses have come in May. When this month started he had a 2.92 ERA, but now he is sporting one of 6.10. He isn't just blowing things in meaningless situations though. His pitching has directly led to 3 losses in the last week. That is way too much damage for a setup man to cause a team. The O's have deserved better lately, and its a shame their bullpen has let them down.
The good news for the O's is that the rotation has remained solid despite several injuries. Erik Bedard has lowered his ERA over his last 5 starts, and his team has won his games 3 times, despite Erik now getting the W's. Jeremy Guthrie backed up his Red Sox gem with a great game this weekend. 7 innings and 10 k's was surely impressive, and it looks like Wright's spot has been adequately filled.
Hopefully the team uses their day off tommorow to get things on track before the Jays come to town. It would be great to see the O's redeem themselves after getting swept by Toronto last week.
Since last Sunday when he gave up 2 runs without getting an out against the Red Sox, Baez has only had one solid outing. He has pitched 4 more times, and given up 2 runs in 3 of those 4 outings. Baez has two losses over the last week, and all 3 of his losses have come in May. When this month started he had a 2.92 ERA, but now he is sporting one of 6.10. He isn't just blowing things in meaningless situations though. His pitching has directly led to 3 losses in the last week. That is way too much damage for a setup man to cause a team. The O's have deserved better lately, and its a shame their bullpen has let them down.
The good news for the O's is that the rotation has remained solid despite several injuries. Erik Bedard has lowered his ERA over his last 5 starts, and his team has won his games 3 times, despite Erik now getting the W's. Jeremy Guthrie backed up his Red Sox gem with a great game this weekend. 7 innings and 10 k's was surely impressive, and it looks like Wright's spot has been adequately filled.
Hopefully the team uses their day off tommorow to get things on track before the Jays come to town. It would be great to see the O's redeem themselves after getting swept by Toronto last week.
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