Tom Verducci of SI.com posted a pretty fantastic commentary on the current state of shortstops in baseball.

What it really boils down to is that the day of the heavy hitting shortstop is over.  It's rare that a shortstop will both hit and field at a high level.

Why does this relate to the Orioles?  Well, the comments by Andy MacPhail and Dave Trembley to look for an offensively minded shortstop are unrealistic.  They don't exist in any high numbers.  In fact, if you're looking at the position purely by OPS, you'll find that the NL East is a total anomaly.  Hanley Ramirez, Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins are the exception to the rule that shortstops, given that great defense is so necessary at their position, don't need to have an OPS over 100.  Hell, somewhere in the 80s would be fantastic.

They need to change their tune.  Finding a slick fielding SS with a BA around .270 would be perfect for this team, given the lineup of the future.

Sidebar:
The article also alludes to the necessary shift, for most shortstops (Omar Vizquel is the largest outlier in the game), to a different position as they age.  Is it realistic to say this?  I think so.  The problem seems to be ego.  Players like Tejada, clinging to past glory at shortstop, need to let go and move to a position better reflecting their abilities with the bat instead of inabilities with a glove.

So, Tim Dierkes from mlbtraderumors.com has made his predictions for free agent destinations this offseason.  It's a fine list.  As I skimmed it, looking for whom he thought the Orioles would target, I was surprised by his belief that not only would the Orioles win out on the A.J. Burrnett sweepstakes, they'd also sign Felipe Lopez to fill their vacancy at short.  "Huh," I thought, "no, that makes no sense."

While Lopez did, as Dierkes suggests, "mash" last season for the Cardinals, I just don't see that making all that much sense.  He seems like a very forced, one-dimensional player.  What I mean by that is, like Neifi Perez, he's either a very good defensive player or a very good hitter.  When his glove is on, his bat is lacking and vice versa.  With that in mind, I don't think it's clear which Lopez the Orioles will get.  He'd be an enigma.  And this team alrady has Daniel Cabrera to ffill that role.

If Lopez is right out, I'm suggesting looking elsewhere.  Elsewhere, like Japan.  Tomohiro Nioka is primarily a shortstop - played some third ('03, '06, and '07) and the outfield ('02) - and a free agent this offseason.

Why?  It's simple.  The guy has a solid, not great, glove at short - 59 errors in his 7-year career - with a fielding precentage of .983 and a career batting average of .285 (being hurt by his first 4 seasons of professional ball).  Translated over to the MLB and the batting average drops a bit but it's still quite a bit better then the output from last year's parade of wet noodles.

What's more is he can be shifted to third or the outfield if a younger player can be found and before Billy Rowell, a guy I have little to no faith in at this point, is ready to take over at the hot corner.

And finally, money.  Bringing in Japanese players yields instant results in marketing and ad revenue.  Money this team dearly needs to continue fostering their farm system.

Thoughts?  Am I insane?  Other outside the box thoughts?

So, Andy MacPhail expexts Adam Loewen to sign with the Toronto Blue Jays...

"I think Toronto is going to sign him," said MacPhail. "I don't know if it's a done deal, but I've been led to believe that is where it's headed."

This is just like screwing around with your girlfriend's best friend because you're sure your relationship is on solid ground, only to find out that she's screwing around with a banker and she breaks up with you.  It's just like that...but for baseball.

Screw you, Cito!

UPDATE: Adam Loewen has indeed signed a deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, as you'll see if you click on the link above (it's been updated by The Sun). I know you have to look out for yourself first, but this seems pretty underhanded considering all the O's have done for this kid. I'd wish him luck with his hitting, except I don't want to [Note by Stacey, 10/24/08 4:41 PM EDT ]

Well, it's that time again.  Time for us to pontificate on whom the Front Office will go after, creating wildly unrealistic trade scenarios, and ballyhoo free agent signings the likes of Teixeira and Sabathia.  None of them will pan out, but hell, it's fun to exercise our imaginations and discuss/argue/call someone an idiot for suggesting something some preposterous, so insane that only Hank Steinbrenner would come up with it.

Without further rambling and pointless dancing, my suggested moves:

Shortstop -
We all know by now that MacPhail and Trembley want an offensive minded shortstop that isn't a liability in the field and probably using Juan Castro in the 8th or 9th as a defensive sub.  We know that Orlando Cabrera, David Eckstein, Adam Everett, Rafael Furcal, Cesar Izturis, Felipe Lopez, and Edgar Renteria are available through free agency.  But where's the fun in that?  Nowhere!
How about this team continues on their path of finding young, cheap players and plugging them in?  Which brings me to Alcides Escobar (Brewers), J.J. Hardy (Brewers), Elvis Andrus (Rangers), and Joaquin Arias (Rangers). Now, I realize for a while now people have suggested going after Escobar or Hardy - even though now, more then ever, it looks like one of the two of them will be available at or before spring training - for some kind of Daniel Cabrera, or another pitcher, trade and that's still a possibility, but now we have Elvis Andrus and Joaquin Arias that have proved they can hit and field their positions pretty darn well.  With Andrus and Arias (Andrus being the more likely), the Rangers are looking for pitching and that's all.  For a while now, the Brewers were clearly looking for a good package for either Hardy or Escobar, understandably so, but what the Orioles would have to give up might be too much for such players.  With Andrus and Arias, we don't necessarily have that.  There's a massive log jam in the infield in Texas.  Michael Young and Ian Kinsler are holding down the middle infield offensively and defensively and it doesn't seem like Ron Washington is interested putting either one of the young guys at the corners as that would displace Chris Davis, Frank Catalanotto, Hank Blalock, and Travis Metcalf, and Jon Daniels has said he'll be making moves for pitchers this offseason.

Suggestion (after being long-winded) - Daniel Cabrera and a Double- or Single-A starter for Elvis Andrus.  Heck, I'd go Cabrera and Penn or someone like that.
Did I mention that Jon Daniels is a doofus?  Give him a pet rock and he'll trade you Teagarden.

Starting Pitching -
If this team is able to trade for a Andrus, Arias, Hardy, or Escobar that would ensure a larger-then-there-already-is hole in the rotation; unless, someone is interested in trying Burres again...thought not.  So, I'm saying free agents until the young guys are ready.  This means doing something similarly to what MacPhail did in '07, trading the Trashman to the Cubs for some parts.  This season it'll be more like two or three veteran signings for two or three years and trading when the youth (Tillman, Arrieta, Patton, Erbe, Hernandez, Bergesen, etc) are ready to break in.

Suggestion - A.J. Burnett (yeah), Paul Byrd, and Sergio Mitre.  First off, yeah, I'm suggesting Burnett.  While I think Guthrie has been an incredible ace for this team, it helps to have someone else be able to pick up the slack from time-to-time.  Perhaps, two guys to share anchor duty, instead of putting all that pressure on a young Guthrie.  Second, Paul Bryd.  Keeping in mind that I'm not all too excited about either he or Mitre, they make sense.  Byrd is a groundball pitcher and a great mentor for young guys.  Sure, he's not that great.  Sure, he's getting old.  But we don't need youth, we need a stopgap for a year or two.  So, why not?  Lastly, Sergio Mitre.  Mitre has gradually fallen apart both mentally and physically since being traded to the Marlins for Juan Pierre.  He pitched pretty well for the Cubs before the trade and started off fine before really falling off the wagon down in Florida first physically, then mentally.  But here's the thing, he actually pitched quite well under Kranitz in Florida.  He was locating, getting big outs, and it looked as though that trade would work out for the Marlins...until his arm nearly fell off.  And really, what's he going to cost?  He's one of those low risk, high reward guys that everyone talks about.  Whatever.

So, that's what I'm thinking.  BEGIN ARGUMENTATION AND NAME CALLING!

He's been traded for Casey Kotchman and another player, possibly Stephen Marek as mentioned by Lyle Spencer of mlb.com.

So, what does this mean for Tex this off season?  Does he resign with the Angels?  Sign with the Yankees?  Do the Angels sign Manny if he's released?  Do Os fan cry? 

As a friend has pointed out Manny is pretty much just a DH at this point in his career, so the NL is out of the question.

With regards to Teixeira, he could very well resign with the Angels.  They have the cash to spend and they're going to the World Series now that they have a more offense and have been dominating the Red Sox all season, giving him the chance to go to the playoffs nearly every year.  Then again, the Yankees have been interested in signing him to play first.  The Braves are out as they now have Kotchman, and the Os...

DISCUSS!

So, it seems the Brewers are about to sign Jay Gibbons to a minor league deal.  He'll begin in Double- or Triple-A and try to work his way up.  The Sun has the story.

He always seemed like such a nice guy, and I'm happy for him.  If only he could have hit for the Orioles when they needed him...Horseface.

I tried to find a more flattering picture then most...this is the best I could do.

via i.a.cnn.net

Since the All-Star break began I've been mulling over possible trade ideas and these are they...them.

With Takashi Saito about to hit the DL with an elbow ligament sprain, the Dodgers are going to need someone to take over the closer role.   Sure, Broxton could slide in but based on history Colletti loves his veterans.  Not only this, but their outfield is anaemic against left-handers.  What am I going on about?  George Sherrill and Jay Payton for Andy LaRoche and Chin-lung Hu.  They've pretty much given up on LaRoche and Hu after they've struggled - fancy that, a rookie's struggling under Joe Torre - with the bat but done extremely well with the glove (1 error in 92 innings for LaRoche, 1 error in 303 innings for Hu).  Then again, who is hitting for the ol' Dodgers?  The thing is, based on what I've seen, neither guy was given the chance to take their lumps.  The Orioles would allow for that.  They have time and been by doing just this with Adam Jones all season.  Then again, there's always a possibility that both really are busts.

The Twins need a bat at third.  That's a given.  Someone who can hit with pop and isn't can make decent plays at third.  Aubrey Huff for Trevor Plouffe or Steven Tolleson, Boof Bonser, and Tyler Robertson or Anthony Swarzak.  Why?  Well, Plouffe (has a funny name) and Tolleson are shortstop prospects who get on base a great deal with solid averages and speed, Boof Bonser is much better then he's pitched this season and could even be kept in the bullpen or the rotation (swingman since Albers is out), and Robertson and Swarzak are solid pitching prospects.

Carlos Marmol is absolutely falling apart and the Cubs are going to need some insurance in the set-up role.  Someone who can keep the ball in the ballpark and induces ground ball outs.  Someone who has been in "the show" for a while now, perhaps?  Chad Bradford for Tony Thomas and minor league pitchers.  Tony Thomas is in Low-A right now but could be promoted to Double-A by the end of the season, and the Os have stated they want to load up on pitchers in their system.

So, the reason I'm bringing these up is that the Os need infield prospects (duh!) and they have pieces who could very easily be moved for blocked prospects or guys in the Low-As, Tony Thomas, who will be in their system, moving up to the major league roster by the time they're ready to compete.

P.S. - I would have suggested any trade that gets this team a Alcides Escobar-type or Mat Gamel-type, but that's not going to happen.  Well, at least trading with the Brewers it's not.

Well, that idea didn't last long.

Roch is reporting that Cintron has been placed on the DL and Freddie 'Shoes' Bynum's contract has been purchased.

This is kind of cruel.  Bynum was just released, then, all of a sudden, he's looking great now that Cintron is down and Fahey's the only other option.

Where does this team go from here?  Do we see the team begin the free-fall pundits expected to see at Spring Training?  Do they dig a trench at .500 and hope to God they stay there?  What happens?

And is it bad that part of me wants to see the team start to falter?  That way trades can be made.  Huff, Sherill, Payton, Bradford, and Walker (when he returns from the DL) could be traded relatively soon after it becomes evident that the team will be sliding.  There has to be a way to pry a shortstop away from some team.  I'm still hoping for a trade with the Brewers.  They have a fantastic prospect in Double-A who could really be a difference maker for the Os in a couple years.

Heck, trade Cabrera.  I'm tried of rooting for this guy only to have him stumble over his own tree trunk of a body/fortitude and turn back into 'Wild Thing'.

Jayson Stark had this to say:

Aceless in Seattle? Bill Bavasi got booted in Seattle as much for what he wouldn't do (fire his manager, trade his Opening Day starter) as for anything he did do. So the biggest initial impact of his firing is that it means Erik Bedard is now officially on the market.

The first order of business for interim GM Lee Pelekoudas, according to one rival exec, was to "call around, and give instructions to all his scouts, to quietly get the word out that they're open for business."

So what can the Mariners get for Bedard, who has damaged his reputation significantly by showing no interest in being a true No. 1 starter?

This really is the funniest things I've heard all day.  Thank you Bill Bavasi!  If it weren't for you, this Orioles team wouldn't have a better record then the Mariners, Tigers, and Indians.  HA!

After hearing Bavasi's comments about Bedard's attitude I cannot be happier with the way things went for Andy MacPhail and our beloved Os this past off-season.

Ken Rosenthal has suggested a trade that I, quite frankly, hadn't ever considered: Brian Roberts for Rickie Weeks.

This wouldn't be straight up, of course, as Rosenthal suggests the Os would need to throw in a young pitcher or reliever to get Weeks.  Let that sink in.  Roberts is 30- and hitting .284, and Weeks is 25-years old and hitting .210 this season.  Roberts has a track record as a plus defender and an above average hitter, while Weeks, in two years, has been competent at second and hasn't hit all too well.

What also confuses me is Rosenthal's statement that "Roberts, a more accomplished leadoff hitter and better defender than Weeks" but is worth less then Weeks just because of age and that he only has one year left on his contract.  Also, that the Os could be more patient with Weeks then the Brewers were.  Even though Weeks was never projected to be as strong a defender as Roberts.

Rosenthal suggests that Weeks would become "another young, athletic building block to go with Adam Jones and Nick Markakis" despite Weeks not living up to the expectations that were thrust upon him when he was a prospect.  This isn't uncommon, however.

Here's what I'm suggesting, Roberts for prospects or guys who have some major league experience, just as was mentioned over the offseason.  SSs Alcides Escobar or Brent Brewer would be a start and adding one or two of RHPs Jeremy Jeffress, Luis Pena, Robert Bryson, or Mark Rogers.  That's a trade that will benefit the Orioles new construct of pitching and defense and trading for young guys, and filling a gaping hole, offensively and defensively, at second base and leadoff for the Brewers.  Heck, if Roberts for a group of three prospects doesn't work, throw in Bradford or Walker and request a low-A, power arm prospect as well.

That's a trade that makes sense.  Not Roberts, a two-time All-Star, and a pitcher for Rickie Weeks, a streaky hitter whose defense is good, not great, and hasn't fulfilled expectations in two and half years of playing time.