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WHAT'S THAT SMELL ?........ You say it must be low tide on Lake Erie !..... No that's not it.....It smells like something is dead ......OH, It's coming from the Orioles Bullpen.....Nevermind,... nothing has been alive in there for months !!

Wow, people are finally starting to see what Jack and I said the first week of the season: That the bullpen stinks and Andrew did NOTHING to upgrade it last offseason.

"but Trembley could opt to go the bullpen-by-committee route. "

Isn't that what he has done this entire month? Sure seems that way and I don't think anyone would notice any difference.

Man, can Peterson gain some yards? He's killing my British fantasy team!

Roch: Do you have a vote in both the NL and AL MVPs? Or just the AL?

Pujols in the NL.

In the AL the logic would say Tex, but Mauer has really rallied the Twins and he'll get a lot of the anti-Yankee votes.
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If I had a vote, it would be AL, but I don't believe I have one this year. It varies. Could be Rookie of Year or Manager of Year. For the record, I'd vote Mauer for MVP. - Roch

It's hard to watch. Good thing I'm listening to the game on the radio and work at the same time. Nice to know some other guys are getting into the game.

Gotta love having Gus Johnson as an announcer. He makes the game exicting, provides objective and interesting insight, and most of all does not kiss anyone's butt.

You could call him the anti-Jim Hunter! LOL

Ravens look good though. An owner and GM that do what it takes to win. Refreshing. Would Ozzie go after Fielder or Gonzalez if he ran the O's...hmmm. Yes!

Biscotti said he'd spend what it takes to win...obviously can't say the same for O's management.

As if the IMPLOSION could not get any worse.......Hendrickson pitches tommorow.

My prediction: PAINFUL!

I haven't been this disgusted since the 21st game of the 88 season.

Unlike SOME, I'm not happy that they'll probally lose 100 games. But I don't understand the why it's better if they go 60-102 or 80-82. A losing season is a losing season. Despite some of the hypocrites calling the optimistic kool-aid drinkers, I still belive that AM is the best thing for this team. If there is any positives to come out of this, we saw Jones have a break-out season. Nick and Brian have good seasons. And most of the rookies that came up showed great promise. We'll have a great draft position. And hopefully they finish bad enough to get DT replaced.

Tillman should have been shut down at least two starts ago. He is topping out at 91/92 whereas he was getting it up into mid-90's previously. I take it as a sign of muscle fatigue. There was not much to be gained by extending a 21 year old anyway.

Hi Roch...saw you at Fell's Point a number of weeks ago...but you were having dinner and I didn't want to bother you. I really appreciate your blog..read it every day but have never written in. There are a lot of good, faithful responders who make good points and don't annoy. However, I'm going to have to cut back on reading just because of 2 idiots who have to make multiple entries saying the same exact thing for every post you make. They sometimes respond 3-4 times every entry..it has gotten old. I'll take some time away, and hope that a format change might be made when I come back after a few months...I just cant take seeing the same 2 guys with post after post after post....love your work!!

Remember when TWO years ago MACFAIL said something like "It's going to take more than one or two marquee signings to turn this team around."

Two years later, same quote, same situation. And yet no one is holding ANDREW accountable.

There is no plan.
There is no progress.
There is no accountability.
There is no hope with this regime in the warehouse bunker.

"But I don't understand the why it's better if they go 60-102 or 80-82. "

Losing may be losing but it is more likely a team goes from 80-82 to the playoffs or close to the playoffs than a team coming off 60-70 wins.

Common Sense,

I agree with everything you have said but that doesn't change the fact that watching this level of play really hurts.

Common Sense said: But I don't understand the why it's better if they go 60-102 or 80-82.

first your nom de plume belies who you really are. ya see anyone with common sense would say if the o's won 80 games this year that would be a nice improvement while losing 100 says "awful". r u sure you'not really "no sense"?

Is there anybody on this team who is ALIVE
Now the Orioles Magic Number drops to FIVE!

Five more losses and the lonely Orioles are achievers of yet another 100 loss season!

If Mr. Lightning is making progress with his plan,
Why is there so many more questions ending this season then last years?

This team is flat out TERRIBLE, AAA team, pathetic, stale, without identity!

WAY TO GO McFAIL..your team gave up more points then the Ravens...in the FIRST INNING LOL!

Common Sense,
While I would much rather the win 80 games than 60 or 59, I agree with your overall premises. I don't get why anyone would care if they lose 99 or 101 games. What, if we only lose 99 games we have some kind of bragging rights. WHO CARES!
I also think Andy has been good for the team, but Angelos and Trembley are another story.
I still think I would include Tillman in a package if it would bring Fielder or Gonzales (as long as we could extended they're contracts). I'm afraid he's going to be another Garette Olsen.

Stan in Baltimore,
I know what you mean about the two idiots, they're like the kid in the back seat that keeps saying, "are we there yet", every 30 seconds.

Wow, fkterp. My point was losing is losing. What's with the no sense comment? Some of you jacka$$es have become to sensitive. I would of love to see the team go 80-82. It would show improvement but you can sugar coat losing all you want, it doesn't change the fact. This team could go 83-79, 85-77,and 87-75 for the next 3 years and then someone would come on here and complain that we still haven't done enough to catch the Sox and Yanks although they showed improvement. Then they'll say winning isn't the playoffs. They'll win the World Series in 7 games and some idiot will complain they didn't sweep. If losing by 2 game under makes you feel better, then I doubt your common sense.

I'm a reader and very occassional poster. In the post above me, 40% of the entries are from those "nattering nabobs of negativism" (to borrow from a famous Marylander) who repeat and repeat their same tired,tedious, unimaginative mantra.
Until some guidelines are in place concerning frequency of posting, I'll read your entries, Roch, but won't waste my time scrolling further to see others' considered opinions on baseball and the Orioles. A hex on the boring egocentric B-O/Jack for spoiling the blog. May your Bass Ale turn to Iron City Lite.

I would rather try to trade for Joey Votto(if he's available) because he probally wouldn't cost them as much as Fielder or Gonzales. Just because most of us would be more willing to trade Tillman instead of Matusz doesn't mean that's who the Brewers or Padres would want. The only real free agent option that wouldn't be a one year option is Adam LaRoche. Both of these guys are under 30 and could probally hit .280 BA with 25+ HR's and 90+ RBI's. The only other real options are maybe trading for Paul Konerko or signing Russell Branyan, Carlos Delgado, Hank Blalock or Nick Johnson to a short term deal.

Stan in Baltimore:
I agree with you 100%.
It's been a pleasure to read Roch's posts all season long; insightful, informative and humorous. But the two repetitive, ad nauseam, posters are a plague. It's time to take a break for self preservation. Hopefully some new posting guidelines will be forthcoming in the off-season.

Off topic but....The team of the decade is up for debate this year. Boston will get at least a share...can the Yankees tie them with 2 championships in the decade. The Orioles were officially eliminated last September.

In the 1990's of course it was the Yank's edging out Toronto 3-2. Orioles were eliminated in 1998 when the Yankees took there 2nd.

In the 1980's The Dodgers took it with 2 WS wins. O's were eliminated late in the season in 1989.

In the 1970's Oakland took it with 3 rings. O's eliminated in 1978.

In the 1960's it was a three way tie Yankees, Dodgers and St. Louis with 2 each. O's painfully eliminated late late in the season in a game vs. th NY Mets.

OK it was a bad little stretch...LETS GET GOING !!!!!!!!!

Common Sense said:
But I don't understand the why it's better if they go 60-102 or 80-82. A losing season is a losing season.
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Certainly, winning a world series is the ultimate goal, but an "all or nothing" approach to winning or losing isn't practical in baseball or in life. There is a big difference between 60 and 80 wins.

- One is pitiful and the other is average. In school, an F is failing, while a C is passing. If you're not going to be a valedictorian, you at least need to pass the class.
- One is a big step forward and the other is a step back from an already terrible position. Positive momentum is a good thing.
- One provides 20 more reasons for fans to feel good, get more involved, generate excitement and revenue, and hopefully transmit it back to the organization, so the culture of losing doesn't get even darker.
- One provides 20 more reasons for other players to consider coming to the Orioles, instead of avoiding them.
- One puts them statistically within reach of being a challenger in the future. The other is hopeless.
- Winning physiologically increases testoserone, even for fans. 20 more shots is a good thing.

Big difference.

As the days, weeks and months go by all I predicted about Jack & Brummie and Rochs blog is more and more coming true. They have damn near successfully taken this once nice gathering spot of Orioles fans with Roch's cool sense of humor - HOSTAGE!!! Roch I told you I have seen this happen before with a couple of big outdoors blogs where jerks keep posting relentlessly and "cause trouble" and the non jerks egg them on by attacking them and giving them the spotlight they so much DESIRE!! Thus empowering them. Then the blog loses it's focus of this N that about the O's and is now near 1/2 or more Jack this & Brummie that and on and on 'til many of us are getting butt rash from just seeing it over and over. And ever INCREASING day after day!! YOU KNOW what I am saying is true. It might "give you hits" but trust me son - it's the WRONG kind of hits!! HIJACKED is what's happening Roch. IS this what YOU want your cool blog to become. If not MAN UP and take action or continue to watch the cancer spread!! 98% of the bloggers are on your side and desire this to occur. Like Willie Nelson signs - hang from the highest tree and let the sunshine come back! It's totaly in your court!

WMdFan said:
" ... In the post above me, 40% of the entries are from those "nattering nabobs of negativism" (to borrow from a famous Marylander) who repeat and repeat their same tired,tedious, unimaginative mantra ... ."

WMdFan,
NEW YORK (AP) — William Safire, the conservative columnist and word warrior who feared no politician or corner of the English language, died Sunday at age 79. As a speechwriter in the Nixon White House, Safire penned Vice President Spiro Agnew's famous phrase, "nattering nabobs of negativism," a tongue-in-cheek alliteration that Safire claimed was directed not at the press but at Vietnam defeatists.

Someday, Safire opined, his playful phrase may be used to ridicule other disruptive elements of our society. You could look it up, as the "The Old Perfesser" once said.