Josh Land

Domenic Vadala: Looking at O's misfortunes going into offseason

Domenic Vadala: Looking at O's misfortunes going into offseason
Over the past month or so, I've gotten various comments and tweets on Birds Watcher to the extent of blaming various people for the Orioles' misfortunes. And while I don't think anyone's going to say that the likes of Buck Showalter or Dan Duquette are in any danger of losing their jobs, it's an interesting question. Who or what is to blame? I'll start by absolving the players - in terms of the effort put forth. Again, a lot of folks seem to want me to come out and say that the Orioles...
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Josh Land

Matt of Matt's Bats: With Nats running out of time, Williams should have pulled Scherzer early

Matt of Matt's Bats: With Nats running out of time, Williams should have pulled Scherzer early
This has been an unexpected year for the Washington Nationals. They started the year well below expectations until the Braves game on April 28 when Dan Uggla hit a three-run go-ahead home run in extras. Max Scherzer chocolate sauced him, and the Nats flew. In late May, the Nationals were the favorites to win the division, with a 90 percent chance to make the postseason. After mediocre summer and horrible August, their chances have plummeted down to a measly 14 percent. However, that number...
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Josh Land

Marty Niland: With the season on the line, who would you rather be?

Marty Niland: With the season on the line, who would you rather be?
For baseball fans, the season's final weeks can be a manic-depressive time when fortunes turn on a dime. At least that's how it's been for followers of the Washington Nationals. We've gone from hope to despair and back so many times in the past few weeks, it's hard to count. Remember that awful western road trip when the Nats returned with a five-game deficit to the New York Mets? Wasn't the season basically over then? How about last week's trip to St. Louis when the deficit grew to 6...
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Josh Land

Andrew Stetka: Chris Davis could prove to be O's most valuable free agent

Andrew Stetka: Chris Davis could prove to be O's most valuable free agent
As the Orioles continue to carry about a 1 percent chance to make the postseason this year, they also are approaching one of the more important offseasons in their recent history. There are plenty of big decisions to be made as the games start to dwindle. While the O's won't completely give up on the prospect of making the playoffs, reality will eventually set in and I have a feeling some players from the minors will begin to see playing time. Perhaps one of the biggest decisions the O's...
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Josh Land

Patrick Reddington: Have Nats put themselves in too big a hole?

Patrick Reddington: Have Nats put themselves in too big a hole?
Coming off a division title and a postseason run that ended in a disappointing loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLDS, the 2013 Washington Nationals had high expectations. A disappointing start, an 11-16 July and a 48-47 first half put them in a hole, however, which eventually proved too much to recover from despite finishing strong, going 32-16 over the final 48 games. The Nationals finished ten games out in the National League East and four games out in the wild card standings. "I...
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Josh Land

Zach Wilt: Chris Davis' importance to the Orioles

Zach Wilt: Chris Davis' importance to the Orioles
It's been a frustrating couple weeks in Birdland, you can feel the tension on the field. The Orioles have won just two of their last 10 games, went 11-18 in August and are 6 1/2 games back of the wild card, but at least they entered today's off-day on a positive note before heading north to Toronto. The O's avoided their longest losing streak in over four years last night when Chris Davis launched a monstrous walk-off homer in the 11th inning to help the Birds grab one of three from Tampa...
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Josh Land

David Huzzard: The cruelty of baseball

David Huzzard: The cruelty of baseball
The Nationals' 2015 season has been a lesson in the cruelty of baseball. Sure they built a roster full of injury-prone players and they had to expect they'd miss time. The ultimate outcome of how many players and how much time affected the Nationals in far more ways than just when those players were out. Clint Robinson, Danny Espinosa and Michael A. Taylor were all admirable fill-ins and helped the Nationals get to nine games over .500 and a lead in the division, but then Anthony Rendon, Ryan...
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Josh Land

Domenic Vadala: Cal Ripken Jr. belongs to fans of baseball

Domenic Vadala: Cal Ripken Jr. belongs to fans of baseball
If you're used to what I write on Birds Watcher and for that matter even here on MASN, a lot of what you read here today might come as a surprise. For the most part, I feel that writers should remain above the fray of the fan on the street when writing about the team. So most of what I try to put out there is analytical as opposed to emotional in nature. But some events rock the world. The career of the great Cal Ripken Jr. spanned my entire childhood, adolescence and into early adulthood....
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Josh Land

Matt of Matt's Bats: Giving thanks for Denard Span

Matt of Matt's Bats: Giving thanks for Denard Span
Last week, Nationals fans got the disappointing news that center fielder Denard Span, who had just come off the disabled list, needed hip surgery and would be out for the rest of the 2015 season. This is a huge blow for the team and Nats fans. In his three seasons on the Nationals, Span became a fan favorite and a Gold Glove-caliber center fielder. Since he becomes a free agent at the end of this season, and given how Michael A. Taylor has played this year, chances are Span has played his last...
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Josh Land

Matt Kremnitzer: Despite O's crumbling season, Adam Jones still raking

Matt Kremnitzer: Despite O's crumbling season, Adam Jones still raking
When it comes to the Orioles, there's a lot to be negative about right now. They just lost yet again and they've dropped 12 of their last 14 games. They ended August with only 11 wins in 29 games. Hisashi Iwakuma fired a no-hitter against them in Seattle. The Twins took all four games in a crucial series at Camden Yards. They were also swept out of Texas to complete a dismal road trip. Considering what they've done since the day Buck Showalter arrived on the scene, this horrendous stretch of...
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Josh Land

Marty Niland: Nats get most from Jayson Werth in the leadoff spot

Marty Niland: Nats get most from Jayson Werth in the leadoff spot
When the Nationals learned Friday that leadoff man Denard San would have hip surgery and miss the rest of the season, it was certainly discouraging news. Without Span's .365 OPB and base-stealing potential atop the lineup, the team's offense takes a severe hit, and with it, their chances to catch the New York Mets in the National League East. So manager Matt Williams turned to the solution he used when the Nats offense was struggling this season, and the one his predecessor Davey Johnson...
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Josh Land

Andrew Stetka: As O's slide, future starts now

Andrew Stetka: As O's slide, future starts now
As the Orioles continue to slide further and further away from the playoff picture, the start of the season's final full month will bring an opportunity to see what the future holds. The O's aren't out of it, but it's looking more and more like they'll be sitting home for the postseason. The question then becomes who are the players that will help the O's get back to October in 2016? As rosters expand, some of those players will join the team and look to make their mark. Some of those...
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Josh Land

Patrick Reddington: Innings, pitches piling up for rookie righty Ross

Patrick Reddington: Innings, pitches piling up for rookie righty Ross
At some point in the near future, and no one's saying exactly when, Nationals right-hander Joe Ross will reach his innings limit/pitch count for the season and he'll be shut down for the year. The concern in his case is that the right-hander has never thrown this many innings in a season before. Ross threw six innings on Thursday night, leaving him at 66 2/3 so far in the majors and 142 2/3 overall on the year between Double-A, Triple-A and the Nationals. Ross went up to 122 1/3 innings in...
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Josh Land

Matthew Taylor: Tallying reasons to watch O's despite recent struggles

Matthew Taylor: Tallying reasons to watch O's despite recent struggles
Let's face it, being an Orioles fan has been a depressing proposition of late. Not quite 14 consecutive losing seasons depressing, mind you, but depressing all the same. If the 2014 season was exhilarating - and it was - the 2015 season has been exhausting. Judging from the recent Orioles commentary on Twitter, fan reactions to the team's struggles have included equal parts hostility and humor. OK, there's actually nothing equal about it. Ours is a hostile fan base right now. Given the...
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Josh Land

Zach Wilt: The longball is the key

Zach Wilt: The longball is the key
It's tough to pinpoint exactly what was going wrong for the Orioles over their season-high six game losing streak. The bats had cooled, but the starting pitchers were averaging nearly a 6.00 ERA during the O's most difficult stretch of the season. Was the offense to blame or the arms? How much of a factor was tough luck? Last night in Kansas City, everything seemed to click once again for the Birds, and they avoided their longest losing streak in more than four years. On the mound, Wei-Yin...
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Josh Land

David Huzzard: It's time to plan for the offseason

David Huzzard: It's time to plan for the offseason
With the Nationals' 6-5 loss to the Padres on Wednesday night, the Nats are now 6.5 games back of the Mets, and it might be time to start thinking about next year. The first action that most people are going to want is for Matt Williams to be fired, which could and probably should happen but isn't a big difference-making move. Matt Williams' managing philosophy is to interfere as little as possible with the game on the field. In other words, if the players were playing well then the Nats...
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Josh Land

Domenic Vadala: Orioles can learn from the way Royals carry themselves

Domenic Vadala: Orioles can learn from the way Royals carry themselves
Gary Thorne and Mike Bordick brought up a great point in regards to the Kansas City Royals on Monday night. They mentioned that the team was playing with a lot of confidence, and there can be no doubt about that. You can see it written all over their faces, with the manner by which they carry themselves and, heck, even how their fans react. So could the Orioles learn a lesson from that? The answer is yes - but to a point. The Birds are an uber-professional team in a sense. Think about it: When...
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Josh Land

Matt of Matt's Bats: Examining how Nats can regain division lead

Matt of Matt's Bats: Examining how Nats can regain division lead
Think back to about a month ago, July 29, 2015. The Nationals enjoyed a two-game lead in the National League East. They won 7-2 in Miami and made a road trip up to New York. In the first game of that series, Wilmer Flores, who everyone thought was about to be traded, hit a walk-off single to win the game, and the lead was cut to one going into a start against reigning NL Rookie of the Year Jacob deGrom. The Nats lost the next game, too, and the Mets were suddenly tied for first. On...
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Josh Land

Matt Kremnitzer: Investigating Caleb Joseph's offensive improvement

Matt Kremnitzer: Investigating Caleb Joseph's offensive improvement
Caleb Joseph has already demonstrated that he's an effective defensive catcher. He was very good in part-time duty last year, displaying a strong, accurate arm and very good pitch-framing abilities. In 78 games in 2014, Joseph finished with a Defensive Runs Saved total of +8 and threw out 40 percent of baserunners. In 76 games this year, he's dropped to +4 and 32 percent, respectively, though the DRS total is still top 20 among all major league catchers. Joseph also again ranks well in...
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Josh Land

Marty Niland: Encouraging signs spark memories of Nats' 2014 run

Marty Niland: Encouraging signs spark memories of Nats' 2014 run
Funny how quickly your outlook can change. A week ago, many Nationals fans were calling for manager Matt Williams' firing, for the team to cut bait on Jayson Werth and the $42 million the team still owes him through 2017, and for the benching of Anthony Rendon, who had gone more than two weeks without an extra-base hit or an RBI. But after Williams placed the struggling Werth atop the batting order and Rendon was forced back to his natural third base position because of an injury to Yunel...
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