Because You Asked - The Rise of Gru

The start of the 2022 season reportedly will be delayed, with games lost, unless Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association settle on a new collective bargaining agreement by Monday. An MLB deadline that the union says doesn't really exist.

I haven't been locked out of my mailbag. Can't do it.

You can negotiate with me, but I'm getting the last word.

You get the first by sending along questions. Thanks for your interest and humor.

The sequels keep flowing since the original more than a decade ago. You ask, I answer, you ask again as if I've been ignoring you. We laugh, we cry. And we stubbornly refuse to tamper with the length, style, clarity or brevity.

It's a mailbag. I don't expect to be audited.

Also, my mailbag messes up your mailbag's taxes and denies it a refund.

Who are we going to draft No. 1?
Prep outfielder Druw Jones. Unless it's Georgia prep second baseman Termarr Johnson, James Madison outfielder Chase DeLauter, IMG Academy outfielder Elijah Green, LSU corner infielder Jacob Berry, Cal Poly shortstop Brooks Lee or Texas Tech second baseman Jace Jung. Or someone else.

Which of these pitchers are best bets to rejoin the rotation this year: Keegan Akin, Bruce Zimmermann, Dean Kremer, Alexander Wells, Mike Baumann and Zac Lowther?
Each one could get starts in 2022. That's my expectation unless Baumann is sent to the bullpen. Zimmermann would sit atop my rankings as most likely to break camp with the team, but spring training, whenever it's held, will allow manager Brandon Hyde and his staff to decide who follows John Means and Jordan Lyles. The competition probably will include another veteran starter who hasn't signed yet. Akin had an impressive finish and solidified his chances, but he still has to earn it this spring.

How will MLB set up the schedule if the season is delayed? Will it be torn up and redone?
According to reports, which I rely on, the early portion of the schedule simply would be chopped off. Opening day would be held on the new date and games would be played in the original order.

Did César Prieto have to defect from Cuba?
Well, no one forced him into doing it, if that's what you mean. (You didn't mean that.) Prieto, two other players and the team psychologist walked away from the Cuban National Team in May 2021 after arriving in Florida for an Olympic qualifying event. MLB and the Cuban Baseball Federation reached a deal in late 2018 that would allow Cuban citizens to play in the U.S. and return home in the offseason, but former President Donald Trump reversed it in 2019. I didn't remember this, but the Internet told me so.

Anything interesting happening with Triple-A Norfolk?
The Tides are installing two new video boards for the 2022 season that combined will be the largest video display in minor league baseball. The right field board will be the second-largest in the minors at 32 feet high and 114 feet long. The 3,648 square foot display will rank second behind Las Vegas, which installed a 3,930-square-foot board with a new stadium in 2019.

I meant with the players or staff, but thanks.
That's not a question. And you're welcome.

With females entering other organizations as coaches, will the Orioles also hire a woman as coach/manager in the minor league system?
I'd say it's a possibility if they find someone who's the right fit, who meets their criteria. Gender isn't going to prohibit it. They already have women filling important roles in the organization - the majors and minors.

Where are players on the 40-man roster working out?
Anywhere but Camden Yards or the Ed Smith Stadium and Twin Lakes Park complexes. Some players have cages and mounds at home. Others go to performance centers or local high schools. And there's always a gym membership. I do miss the Sarasota LA Fitness down the road from my hotel, with its promise to cancel my membership after six weeks, and the ensuing back-and-forth over the phone after I return home that lasts for months while my credit card keeps getting charged. Mike Elias once suggested that I pay in cash. This is why he's a baseball executive and I'm just a beat writer.

Will the shortened spring training hurt the O's because they'll have fewer opportunities to evaluate some players who are on the cusp of making the team?
Everyone is in the same predicament, but the impact could be felt more with some clubs. The challenge is building innings for pitchers without risking injury. The starters are most vulnerable. Hitters can get extra at-bats on back fields and in B and intrasquad games. The Orioles will figure it out. This isn't their first delayed rodeo.

Here's one: With rosters frozen, are teams able to move players up and down among farm teams - to actually field a team, for one thing?
You're teeming with curiosity. (Impressed that I spelled it correctly?) Players who aren't on the 40-man roster can report to any affiliate. Business as usual. Players on the 40-man can't go to the minors during the lockout, which is one reason why some prospects didn't have their contracts selected late last season. It made sense to keep them off the 40-man if they didn't need to be protected in the Rule 5 draft.

What's your take on the new pitch-calling technology being used by Vanderbilt University?
The new watch-like device to hide pitch signals? Where pitch selection information from the coaching staff is received on the device, which is worn on the glove? And how teams can opt to use an earpiece for the same purpose?

Yes, that's it.
Eh.

Are Orioles talent evaluators as high on Joey Ortiz as The Athletic's Keith Law? (Not saying we wouldn't like any of our own prospects, but do any Orioles evaluators think he's a top 10 guy in our system?)
Yes. Law definitely stands out among the national guys who post their rankings, as well as the local sites. Ortiz doesn't usually crack the top 10. But the Orioles love his bat, how he makes consistent contact and is generating more velocity after adjusting his swing, and his defense at shortstop. If he isn't on their top 10, it's only because the field has strengthened over the last few years.

Have the Orioles signed any more players since Shed Long Jr.?
Yes. This one flew under the radar. They signed 24-year-old catcher Andres Angulo, a Colombia native, to a minor league deal on Sunday. He appeared in 53 games last summer with Double-A Richmond in the Giants system and is a career .235/.308/.333 hitter with 37 doubles, two triples, 11 home runs and 94 RBIs in 241 games. He's thrown out 42 percent of runners attempting to steal in six seasons. The Orioles are addressing their catching depth at the lower levels of the system.

Any special requests for Paul McCartney on June 12?
"Live and Let Tie Dye." Wait, that's the Grateful Dead.

Never mind.
I'm not going to the concert, but you can't go wrong with "Yesterday," "The Long and Winding Road," "Something," "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," "Penny Lane," "We Can Work It Out," "Helter Skelter," "Maybe I'm Amazed," and "Jet." I'd skip "Back in the USSR."

Two-part question: Are analytics helping or hurting baseball, and if so, is it possible to hear a mime get shot? (There is no intention to suggest mimes should be injured, in any manner, in the asking of this question.)
A mime is a terrible thing to waste. As for the first part of your question, everyone has their own opinions. I think analytics were neglected for too long. There are obvious benefits and we're seeing them on the farm. The data also is influencing the type of players who are drafted. The bulk of the criticism within the industry comes from the perception that veteran scouts are devalued. The eye test and in-person evaluations are deemed less important with so much video available. Jobs are lost. There's room in this game to mix the two. Gather as much data as you can and trust the opinions of scouts who are on the road. There are other things hurting baseball more than analytics.

Is Yusniel Diaz hurt the worst by the lockout and being on the 40-man? It seems with the Orioles depth that his chances were slim anyway.
His chances of making the club are slim based on more than organizational depth. The injuries and lack of production are holding him back. The Orioles need to check his health, keep evaluating him and decide whether he's still worthy of a roster spot. A full spring training would have been good for him, but he's going to start the season with Triple-A Norfolk.

Are you in favor of expanding the playoffs to 14 teams?
There's an old joke about how the NHL plays 82 games just to eliminate Winnipeg and Hartford. I warned you that it's old. I don't like my whiskey watered down. Same with my baseball. That was my first thought. The postseason is fun, but that doesn't mean everyone should be invited to the party. This isn't a kegger. But the playoffs are a joyride - which you shouldn't do after a kegger - and I'd probably end up liking an expanded field.

Who survives in a steel cage between Newman, Cliff Clavin, Reba the Mail Lady and Mr. McFeely?
This is probably a good place to stop.

Is it creepy to reach in the bag and feel something sticky way down there?
I don't need the bag to feel creepy. Or sticky. And this is definitely a good place to stop.