So how did the Orioles' offense fare in 2013?
It was a mixed bag as the club was strong in some areas and not nearly strong enough in others. Since the bottom line is scoring runs, they get good marks there. The O's scored 745 runs last year to rank tied for fourth in the American League. Only Boston (853), Detroit (796) and Oakland (767) scored more. The O's scored 31 more runs in 2013 than they did in 2012.
The O's ranked high in homers (first in the AL), slugging (third) and OPS (fourth). They rated down the list in on-base percentage (10th), walks (14th) and triples (15th).
The O's scored fewer runs after the All-Star break then before, averaging 4.8 runs per game before the break and 4.3 after. They scored just 4.0 runs per game in September.
Some random offensive notes:
* The Orioles had two of the top three in the AL in RBIs with Chris Davis first at 138, Miguel Cabrera second at 137 and Adam Jones third at 108. Davis tied for second in the league scoring 103 runs and Jones was fourth with 100.
* Manny Machado's 51 doubles led the AL. He had six more than Oakland's Jed Lowrie. Machado had 38 doubles through June and just 13 after that.
* Matt Wieters led the AL with 12 sac flies.
* The O's scored 94 runs against Toronto, 86 versus Tampa Bay, 77 against New York and 71 versus Boston.
* The O's drew 416 walks, ahead of only Chicago (411) in the AL. Tampa Bay led with 589 and Boston was second, drawing 581 walks.
* Nick Markakis hit seven homers in April and May and just three in 105 games after that. He hit 12 doubles in the first two months and just 12 more in the last four.
* Davis hit .343 batting with runners in scoring position with Brian Roberts at .340, Jones at .337 and Machado at .326.
No doubt the Orioles need more variety to their offense and they can't rely as much on the home run ball next season. They could use more speed. They definitely need to improve in on-base percentage, situational hitting and become a team that does a better job of making the opposing pitcher elevate his pitch count. How many times this year did we see the opposing pitcher start with a fast first few innings and something like 30-35 pitches after three innings?
What is your take on the offense? In what areas do the O's need to get better? How much improvement can come from players already here and how is needed by adding players?
By accepting you will be accessing a service provided by a third-party external to https://www.masnsports.com/