Will these players put up better stats for the Orioles in 2016?

The Orioles have a few players that they are counting on to perform better in the 2016 season than they did last year. It is pretty easy to point to starting pitchers Chris Tillman and Miguel Gonzalez, and shortstop J.J. Hardy as players who can clearly upgrade from their 2015 statistics.

In the three seasons from 2012-2014, Tillman went a combined 38-16 with an ERA of 3.42. In those years, he ranked tied for 11th in the American League in wins and was 15th in ERA. But last season, he went 11-11 with a 4.99 ERA.

In 2014, when the Orioles won 96 games and the American League East championship, Tillman went 13-6 with a 3.34 ERA and pitched 207 1/3 innings. He went 6-1 with a 2.33 ERA after the All-Star break and had a 20-start stretch where he allowed three earned runs or less.

In 2014, Gonzalez led all O's starters in ERA when he went 10-9 with a 3.23 ERA. He posted his best ERA followed by his worst last year, when he went 9-12 with a 4.91 ERA. In 2014, Gonzalez allowed three earned runs or fewer in 23 of his 26 starts. He pitched to an ERA of 2.19 in his final 11 starts.

We've seen Tillman and Gonzalez pitch much better than they did last season. A return to previous form by one or both it likely critical to the O's next season, no matter which pltcher or pitchers serve in the fifth starter's role.

Over his first three seasons in Baltimore, from 2011-13, Hardy averaged 25.6 homers per year. In fact, over that three-year stretch, he led all major league shortstops in both homers (77) and RBIs (224). But over the last two seasons, Hardy has 17 homers combined in 1,006 at-bats to rank 15th among all major league shortstops and has driven in 89 runs to rank 16th.

In 114 games last year, Hardy hit .219 with eight homers, 37 RBIs, a .253 OBP, a .311 slugging percentage and an OPS of .564. By contrast, from 2011-13, Hardy had OPS marks of .801, .671 and .738. His career mark is .720.

Was Hardy's poor offensive season a result of a player in decline or dealing with an injury? Hardy injured his left shoulder diving for a ball late during spring training in March and he began the year on the disabled list. Even though he played in 114 games, the shoulder no doubt hampered him. Late in the year, it was learned that Hardy was playing with a labrum tear in his non-throwing shoulder. His return to health and his previous form at bat would be huge for the 2016 Orioles.

Even center fielder Adam Jones could improve on his 2015 stats, when he hit .269 with 25 doubles, 27 homers, 82 RBIs and a .782 OPS. That was his fewest homers since 2011, his fewest RBIs since 2012 and his fewest doubles since 2010.

But Jones also was banged-up at times during last season and we should keep in mind that his 546 at-bats were also his fewest since 2009 and he played in just 137 games, his fewest since 2009, as well.

Can catcher Matt Wieters build on his solid finish to the 2015 season? In 15 games in September, Wieters hit .283/.361/.491 with an OPS of .851. It is a small sample size, but perhaps was an indication that Wieters was finally healthy and over his Tommy John surgery.

Wieters played in 75 games and took 258 at-bats last season, batting .267 with eight homers and 25 RBIs. Is he ready to take a heavier workload now and will his bat be ready for a good year?

On the farm: The Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds announced their 2016 giveaway schedule on Tuesday and it includes 15 different items. The Shorebirds will have three bobblehead nights with manager Ryan Minor featured on May 13 and two members of their 2011 team later in the season. A Manny Machado bobblehead will be given away on July 8 and one featuring Jonathan Schoop on Aug. 19.

After two seasons with the Single-A Frederick Keys, head groundskeeper Mike Soper is joining the San Diego Padres as assistant groundskeeper. Soper was named the Carolina League Sports Turf Manager of the Year and previously worked for the Double-A Bowie Baysox.