Did everything really go right in 2012?

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good morning. So I wasn't dreaming of a white Christmas. There's still snow on the ground. I hope Santa was good to all of you and the Bumpus Hounds didn't get your turkey. Executive vice president Dan Duquette didn't find a power hitter or a veteran starting pitcher in his stocking, so he'll make more phone calls after today. The warehouse is closed for the week, but business doesn't shut down. During last weekend's "Wall to Wall Baseball" show on MASN, we kicked around the notion that everything went right for the Orioles in 2012 and they can't rely on their good fortune to continue next season. That seems to be the shared opinion within the industry. All those one-run and extra-inning wins were a fluke. We agreed on the show that the Orioles can't count on the same winning percentage in those games, but did everything really go "right" in 2012? If they had gone right, perhaps those games would have been won in regulation or by a wider margin. If they had gone right, Nolan Reimold would have kept playing after April, Nick Markakis' hamate bone and thumb would have stayed in one piece, Troy Patton wouldn't have sprained his ankle, Endy Chavez wouldn't have strained his left oblique and right hamstring, Brian Roberts wouldn't have undergone hip surgery, Jason Hammel wouldn't have undergone knee surgery, Tsuyoshi Wada wouldn't have undergone surgery to reconstruct his left elbow. Heck, he might have actually pitched for the Orioles in 2012. J.J. Hardy wouldn't have hit .238. Matt Wieters wouldn't have hit .249. Mark Reynolds wouldn't have waited until August to start hitting. The Orioles wouldn't have needed 52 players to get through the season. They wouldn't have made 178 roster moves. Their opening day starter, Jake Arrieta, wouldn't have been banished to the minors and the bullpen. Brian Matusz wouldn't have gone from starter to lefty specialist. Tommy Hunter wouldn't have surrendered 32 home runs and his spot in the rotation. If everything had gone right, Chris Davis wouldn't have been playing right. And left. Steve Tolleson wouldn't have been in the outfield. Bill Hall wouldn't have been in the outfield. Steve Pearce wouldn't have been in the outfield. Manny Machado would have been playing shortstop at Double-A or Triple-A. The Orioles wouldn't have led the majors in errors, which led to Machado playing third base for them. The backup catcher, Taylor Teagarden, wouldn't have made his Orioles debut on July 14. Everything went right? Not quite. OK, time to hug my daughter again before she takes off for the day. Enjoy your time with family and friends. Here's my favorite song of the season (and one of my favorite versions). Let me know if you have one.