Steve Melewski
Steve Melewski

Houston takes down the big spenders, plus a look at shortstop

Houston takes down the big spenders, plus a look at shortstop
In winning the World Series, the Houston Astros did so with the No. 17 payroll in the majors and they took down the teams with the three top payrolls in the sport. It was an impressive run of winning. Houston beat Boston 3-1 in the American League Division Series and then won the last two games of the American League Championship Series to beat New York 4-3. They won a seven-game World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers payroll, per Spotrac, was $229 million and tops in the...
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Steve Melewski

Now a free agent, will O's bring back Chris Tillman?

Now a free agent, will O's bring back Chris Tillman?
It was a terrible year for right-hander Chris Tillman last season. But from 2012 through 2016, he was a very solid starter for the Orioles and they won a great percentage of his starts. It seems that five-year track record could be a big boost as Tillman hits free agency now. Even though he was one of the worst starters in the majors in 2017, yesterday MLBTradeRumors.com predicted that Tillman would sign a one-year deal for $10 million with the Tigers. He was ranked No. 47 on their projection...
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Steve Melewski

A look at Manny Machado's 2017 season

A look at Manny Machado's 2017 season
Orioles third baseman Manny Machado hit 33 homers and drove in 95 runs in the 2017 season. That was just less than the 37 homers and 96 RBIs he produced in 2016. He was also the American League Player of the Month this past August, when he hit .341 with 12 homers and 35 RBIs. In August, Machado hit three grand slams in an 11-game span. The last one came on Aug. 18 and was a walk-off slam, turning a potential 7-5 loss to the Angels into a 9-7 win. If you don't think hitting three slams in 11...
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Steve Melewski

A radical realignment plan for MLB (plus Game 7 tonight)

A radical realignment plan for MLB (plus Game 7 tonight)
Major League Baseball could be headed for an expansion to 32 teams while at the same time a reduction in games from 162 to 156. That is the potential plan being considered as written about recently in this column in Baseball America. Author Tracy Ringolsby suggests we could see Montreal and Portland, Ore., recieve expansion teams. That would lead to one league with four divisions of eight teams each. It would be a radical change for the Orioles, who would no longer be in a division with the...
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Steve Melewski

Are O's ready for a Joseph-Sisco catching tandem?

Are O's ready for a Joseph-Sisco catching tandem?
The Orioles must be prepared to lose catcher Welington Castillo via free agency. He has a player option for $7 million for next year and seems likely to decline that and see what is out there via free agency. Then the question is: Will the Orioles pursue another catcher or are they satisfied with a Caleb Joseph-Chance Sisco catching combo? Castillo did a solid job for the Orioles, batting .282/.323/.490 and set a career high with 20 homers. As expected, he raked versus lefty pitchers, batting...
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Steve Melewski

A look at more free agent starting pitchers

A look at more free agent starting pitchers
While we wait for free agency to start, we take another look at three free agent starting pitchers. You may have heard the Orioles could use some help in that regard. This past season, Orioles starters ranked last in the American League with an ERA of 5.70, which is the worst mark in team history. It was the highest rotation ERA in the majors since Colorado's 5.81 mark in 2012. O's starting pitchers also ranked last in the AL in innings (846), WHIP (1.52), opponent OPS (.837) and allowed 159...
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Steve Melewski

Week in review: Talking free agent pitchers, team payrolls and more

Week in review: Talking free agent pitchers, team payrolls and more
In looking back at the last week of blog entries in this space, today we would love to get a few more comments/opinions on any or all of them. On Monday, we discussed flamethrowing lefty Tanner Scott in this entry. The southpaw is one of the top Orioles pitching prospects. He was a sixth-round pick out of Howard (Texas) Junior College in 2014. For Double-A Bowie this season, Scott was 0-2 with a 2.22 ERA. Over 69 innings, he allowed 45 hits with 46 walks and 87 strikeouts. He had ended 2016 at...
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Steve Melewski

Presenting a top 10 Orioles prospects list

Presenting a top 10 Orioles prospects list
Baseball America started to roll out its latest top 10 prospects lists for major league teams this week. Before too long, we'll see a new Orioles list. But today, I'm taking my own shot at a top 10 list for the club. These are my own thoughts and rankings, and for this one, I didn't solicit a single opinion from a scout or team official to get their take on my list. It is just one man's list and when it comes to ranking prospects, there is no right or wrong, just a lot of opinions. Keep in...
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Steve Melewski

Talking Joe Girardi's ouster, game times and more

Talking Joe Girardi's ouster, game times and more
There are 30 teams in the majors. As of yesterday, 20 percent are changing managers. As of yesterday, 30 percent of the 2017 playoff teams will have different managers next year. The Yankees' Joe Girardi will not return to the Bronx. He has been the skipper the past 10 years, averaging 91 wins per season and finishing first or second seven times. His teams made the playoffs six times, won the World Series in 2009 and lost in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series this year. By most...
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Steve Melewski

In major leagues, you need both dollars and sense to win

In major leagues, you need both dollars and sense to win
Each year in October, it is interesting to see if the clubs that advanced to the playoffs are the teams spending the most money on players. As is often the case and again this year, the answer is no. There is no question that having a big payroll is an advantage. How can having the ability to outspend your competitors not be? But having a big payroll is just not a requirement to having a winning ballclub. According to Spotrac and using team cash payroll spending, the World Series will be won...
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Steve Melewski

A look at a trio of free agent starting pitchers

A look at a trio of free agent starting pitchers
Before long, free agency will be underway in Major League Baseball. As the Orioles look to improve their rotation, that is one area they will be looking at. The club has long been reluctant to chase free agents at the top of the pitching food chain. But maybe there are a few hurlers that could be costly, but also affordable, to help the team moving forward. We'll take a look at several such possibilities over the next few weeks, starting with these three pending free agents today. Alex Cobb:...
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Steve Melewski

Notes on DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle

Notes on DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle
On their way to a 72-68 record and an Eastern League playoff berth, the Double-A Bowie Baysox were the best hitting team in the league this season. Bowie led all clubs in batting average (.283), on-base percentage (.345), slugging (.436) and runs (697). There were several hitters that had good seasons for Bowie, including Austin Hays, Garabez Rosa, Aderlin Rodriguez, Steve Wilkerson and Cedric Mullins. But when I asked Bowie hitting coach Butch Davis which player improved the most from the...
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Steve Melewski

Does Bowie flamethrower have future in the Baltimore rotation?

Does Bowie flamethrower have future in the Baltimore rotation?
He has the best fastball velocity of any pitcher in the Orioles organization. On Sept. 20, lefty Tanner Scott made his major league debut versus Boston. He began his career throwing two 99 mph fastballs. The second was hit into right on a checked swing for a single. Welcome to the show, kid. Scott allowed two runs in one inning in his debut, but his fastball, as advertised, touched 100 mph. He averaged 98 mph on his fastball and 88.7 mph on his slider, which got swings and misses on four of 11...
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Steve Melewski

Who is your all-time favorite Oriole?

Who is your all-time favorite Oriole?
A few times in the past during one of my "10 questions for O's fans" blogs, I ask, "What question should I ask you next time we do this?" Several of you have said ask us about our all-time favorite Orioles. OK. Today is that day. Tell us who your all-time favorite Oriole is and why that player is your favorite. If you can't pin it down to one, mention a few if you care to. Don't hold back and feel free to give us the background story. Maybe you just like how he played or how well he...
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Steve Melewski

Tough time to be an MLB manager and Houston forces Game 7

Tough time to be an MLB manager and Houston forces Game 7
Dusty Baker will not return as the Washington Nationals' manager. We found that out yesterday. We already knew John Farrell is not coming back as Boston's manager. Are these two being made the fall guys for player postseason failures? You could certainly make a case for that. Baker's teams won back-to-back division titles, winning 95 games in 2016 and 97 this season. But they lost back-to-back National League Division Series in fifth games. Farrell's teams won back-to-back division titles,...
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Steve Melewski

A look at the Orioles' list of pending minor league free agents

A look at the Orioles' list of pending minor league free agents
To put in perspective how long Garabez Rosa has been in the Orioles organization, when Adam Jones was traded to the club in February 2008, Rosa was about to begin his second season on the O's farm. Signed out of the Dominican Republic at 17 in November 2006, Rosa has played 1,154 games over 11 seasons in the Orioles' minor league system. Save for a few games at Triple-A Norfolk, he's been at Double-A Bowie since the 2013 season. He is the Baysox's all-time leader in games (590), hits (650),...
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Steve Melewski

Can Chris Davis become more aggressive and increase run production?

Can Chris Davis become more aggressive and increase run production?
He faced pretty much daily criticism during the 2017 season and was easily the most criticized Orioles player. We don't keep a sabermetric stat on that, but we don't need one to know that Chris Davis took a barrage of criticism during the 2017 season. And 2016, as well. As a player with a long-term contract and the highest salary on the team, fans expected a lot and didn't get it. As fans around Birdland looked to assign blame for a team that came up short of the playoffs, they pointed often...
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Steve Melewski

MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis says O's farm has made solid progress

MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis says O's farm has made solid progress
After a year when the Orioles farm system has taken a nice step forward, we checked in with a few national analysts to get their takes. Today, we hear from MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis. Ranked well down the list when it comes to organizational rankings the last couple of seasons, the club is moving up and making decent progress. The Orioles had several players ranked among the various league top 20 prospects lists from Baseball America, including four in the prospect-laden Eastern League....
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Steve Melewski

Some Orioles payroll math

Some Orioles payroll math
The Orioles should have at least a few dollars to spend this winter, based on their current monetary obligations for 2018 and what they have spent in recent years. According to Cot's Baseball Contracts, the salary for the Orioles' opening day roster was $147.7 million in 2016 and $164.3 million last season. The Orioles have four guaranteed salaries on the books for 2017 with Chris Davis listed at $21.1 million, Adam Jones at $17.3 million, Mark Trumbo at $12.5 million and Darren O'Day at $9...
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Asked and answered: The readers respond

Asked and answered: The readers respond
Yesterday in this space, we asked the readers to answer a few Orioles questions. Today here is a look (as of late last night) at how you answered. Not everyone answered every question or in the manner asked, but hey, we had some fun reading the responses. Who will lead the 2018 Orioles in wins?: Right-hander Dylan Bundy was the easy winner here, getting 21 votes to seven for Kevin Gausman. Alex Cobb, a pending free agent, got three votes, while Chris Tillman and Brad Brach got one. Unless MLB...
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