The rehabbing Orioles
As long as I'm looking back on my youth - and I sure wish I didn't have to squint as another birthday approaches - I'm also reminded of how I used to collect those miniature football helmets that you'd get in gumball machines at the grocery store. You'd have to apply the logo on each side (unless it was the Browns or Steelers) and the stripe down the middle. I'd actually pair them off each Sunday, according to the schedules, with the helmets facing each other.
Then I kissed a girl for the first time and stopped playing with miniature helmets. And no, it wasn't earlier this year.
I'll post another reminder later, but I'll be away from my laptop for a large portion of tomorrow - probably until 5 p.m. - because I'm shooting a commercial for MASN. I ask for your patience - and some restraint, because I know the wisecracks are swirling in your heads right about now.
If you're heading to Bowie tonight to watch the Baysox and the Trenton Thunder, you won't be able to get Carl Pavano's autograph. Sorry. You had your chance at Camden Yards over the weekend. But Chris Ray and Greg Aquino will be there.
Ray and Aquino are each scheduled to pitch an inning tonight. Ray will come back to Camden Yards tomorrow, then return to Bowie on Thursday. The Orioles haven't said what will happen to Aquino after tonight's assignment.
Was this guy even injured? We heard something about a strained left hamstring after he allowed two runs and three hits in one inning in a July 12 appearance in Boston - news that came out of nowhere - and he went on the disabled list the next day. He's been practically unhittable with Frederick, Aberdeen and Delmarva.
I'd expect Aquino to rejoin the bullpen by the time rosters expand in September. Nobody is sure about Ray, however. He's made tremendous progress after undergoing reconstructive surgery in his right elbow, but he said yesterday that there was noticeable improvement in his command during Sunday's appearance at Delmarva. He felt much better on the mound. But he doesn't want to come back unless he's 100 percent, and the Orioles won't let him, so at least they're on the same page.
Ken Francis: the reason for the drastic decline in Cabrera's velocity is due to Orioles management trying to get him to concentrate on throwing strikes. Obviously, it didn't work. So, what we have here is a 6'9" pitcher who leads the league in walks, wild pitches and hit batsmen and who now can't throw over 90mph. I stand by my original comment, he's not hurt, he stinks. Trade him for the ever popular player to be named later.
LOL! I still have my Baltimore Colts helmet from Giant Food's gumball machine along with my Bert Jones mini poster that came folded up in a similar machine. They both made the trip across the country in a Mayflower box when my family moved to Hawaii.
question: I know Mora has a no-trade clause but what would happen if he was claimed off the waiver wire by another team and the O's decided to let him go without trying to get compensation? Would Mora still have to approve the waiver move since he would be switching teams or would he not have the option to approve since there isn't an actual trade happening?
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I'm going to say that he couldn't approve a waiver claim. And then I'm going to double-check to make sure I'm right. - Roch
Roch,
Did you get extra pay for the commercial? Can you get Jennifer a part?
But Roch.. I think I might be unhittable at Columbia Middle School too.
Commercial..... ??? I hope it's better than the Anita football thing.... :-) I kept waiting for the strip tease in the locker room to begin watching that one.
Looks like Cabrera's strength has become his weakness. The best praise they had for him was he has an electric arm and can eat innings. I thing the electricity in the arm has short-circuited because of all those innings. You don't go from 95-plus mph to 88 without something being hurt. Just listen again to his answers during his after-start press session. He refused to answer health-related questions.
Another live arm heads to the DL and the Orioles have to dip into Double-A for replacements. Let's hope the Jake Arrietas and Brad Bergesens of the organization don't blow out their arms because they were rushed to the Show.
Not only did I collect those football helmets as well, but when the Bengals changed to the striped helmets I peeled off the old stickers and added stripes with tape and a black marker!
Hey, didn't Chris Ray pitch in Hagerstown on Sunday against the Suns? I almost went to that game...
Brian,
The Anita Marks commercial reminds of the movie “The Crying Game”. Relax Roch yours can’t end up being worse.
I don't understand why all these pitchers keep getting hurt. They are treated with kid gloves throughout the minors and don't even need to complete games in the majors and still get hurt. I was explaining to my 16 year old son last night my argument for why Jim Palmer was the greatest Oriole ever and pulled up Palmer's stats to show him. The difference between Cakes and today's pitchers is astounding. The difference between Cakes and even Greg Maddux is astounding. Cakes had three straight years where he completed more games than he won. Think about that. How many complete-game losses are pitched in the Major Leagues in a season these days? Not many. He completed 40 percent of his career starts. Look at the greatest pitchers of the current era: Greg Maddux--15 percent. Mike Mussina--less than 11 percent. Even juiced Roger Clemens only completed 17 percent of his games. Palmer was clearly a workhorse, but he hardly was an anamolous. Tom Seaver and Steve Carlton completed well over 30 percent of their starts over long careers. I don't know that there can be any other conclusion than today's pitchers are being mis-handled.
Haha
Hi Roch,
I collected those little football helmets too when i was a kid (way back when)..i also had the goal post that you could hang the helmets on..ahhh the good ole days.
There must be some wonk out there who can find stats to prove what my gut tells me....that I still miss the fried chicken from the Broadway Market...wait, I mean to prove that the O's have had more pitchers lost to injury than those in any other organization.
Trading for one (from Houston) doesn't count. I mean our homegrown injuries.
I'd be happy to be wrong about that.
Peter - Why would the Orioles let Melvin Mora go without any compensation? He could have 100 RBI by Sepetember 1st.
How many of you remember the NFL helmet logos on Gatorade bottle caps (back when bottles were glass). I'm still hanging on to my Colts one.
I collected those stinkin little helmets too. And I never even liked football. Ever. When I told my dad that all I wanted for my 9th, 10th, 11th, etc birthday ("and I'll never EVER ask for ANYthing else EVER again!") was a trip to the Hall of Fame. So he took me down the road to Canton to the Football Hall.
I have never forgiven him, nor have I stopped asking for the Big Wheel he promised me when I was 5.