Close, but I like Wilco.

Otherwise, nice post.

KVV,

Your welcome at Connolly's any time...I need another country music man over there and I'll buy you a Schlitz. Seriously, getting Mark Tex is my last hope at getting my 12 year old son (a baseballer himelf) to be an Oriole's fan. The little twerp has been an A's fan the past five years and reminded me ever so kindly last night of the 3 game sweep the A's laid on my beloved O's.

I personally will contribute $20 towards the $200 million to sign him.

Batting 4th for YOUR Baltimore Orioles...Maaaaaaarrrrrrrkkkkk Teixiera!!!

I think Teixera has to be at the top of the list. But, everyone is talking about him filling the 'hole' in the lineup that exists now. However, assuming we get him and lose Millar, Mora, Huff, and Roberts. What hole is he plugging? Even with those guys, it's a big hole. Without them, it's more like the Grand Canyon.

Nice insight into the provincialism of Baltimore. I enjoy your blog and hope you keep up the good work!

I think Teixera has to be at the top of the list. But, everyone is talking about him filling the 'hole' in the lineup that exists now. However, assuming we get him and lose Millar, Mora, Huff, and Roberts. What hole is he plugging? Even with those guys, it's a big hole. Without them, it's more like the Grand Canyon.

Nice insight into the provincialism of Baltimore. I enjoy your blog and hope you keep up the good work!

Sign him at all costs.

The Yankees have already made it well known that they are going to pay whatever it takes to sign him. So the question is, what is he REALLY worth to the Orioles? Do you try to compete with Hank and his money and hope Teixeira brings the goods and puts people in the seats or do you stay the course and continue with the slow rebuild? Given our lack of power hitting position players within the system, it's an interesting question. I believe the 20-25 million a year could be better spent on 3-4 players including 1 solid starting pitcher under 30. One player is not turning this franchise around as has been proven time and time again. It will be interesting to see for sure which way Peter and Andy go with this one decision. It could determine the course of the Orioles for years to come.

Everyone said that the O's wouldn't sign Wieters, a Boras client, and they got it done. If that had not happened I'd have virtually no hope of Tex coming here.

However, I'm hopeful that things have changed and that the O's will be a major player in the Tex sweepstakes instead of waiting around and then making a lowball offer just before he signs elsewhere. If that's what happens, then we'll just get the same old tired excuse ... "we made our offer and it just wasn't enough."

Get this guy in a BALTIMORE uniform for the rest of his career!!!

I truly believe the O's will make a run at Tex, but he'll ultimately sign somewhere else because of the absurd amount of cash it will take to bring him here.

It really makes no sense for a rebuilding team to drop 200M on one player. Teams do that when they can taste the prize, or they're at least competitive. The Baltimore Orioles are neither (yet). MacPhail has already done a fine job so far in restocking the farm, and we've got the #4 pick in the draft this June. We've also got Weiters in the equation too. In my opinion, we need to stay on that course, instead of making big FA splashes to fill holes. Besides, would Old Pete be willing to shell out that kind of coin after the whole Belle debacle anyway? I think if there's anyone you spend that kind of money on it's Tex, but I seriously doubt that's the direction MacPhail wants to go in.

Don't get me wrong, I'd be ecstatic to see him in an O's uniform. We desperately need a 1B, and a masher in the lineup. Yet, to think he'd take a hometown discount to have an entire franchise thrust upon his shoulders would be foolish. Besides, the Yankees have a lot of money coming off the books this year, and they will also need a 1B. I wouldn't be surprised if they're already preemptively tailoring his pinstripes.

I really enjoy the blog Kevin, keep up the great work.

If we don't make a serious run at Tex and the Yankees or Mets (but especially the Yankees) sign him I don't know if I can continue to follow this team considering how much of a void in our line-up and the field he would fill AND the fact he is a hometown boy and EVERYONE wants the O's to sign him... I can guarantee that attendance would make a huge jump if this kid was signed and like you said we have a lot of bad contracts coming off the books which we can put towards signing Tex, not to mention we can fill those other holes with our farm system thanks to the Bedard and Tejada deals and some decent drafts...

Don't break the bank for Teixeira. The O's probably won't be able to compete for 4-5 years anyway, so his peak years would be wasted here on finishing 5th, and by the time they are in the race, he'll be on the downswing. Maybe they can get him as a DH at the end of his career and have a homecoming then without hampering the payroll throughout the rebuilding years.

Break the bank if need be, but sign him. We need a bat in the middle of the lineup. O's payroll has dropped considerably from last season and will drop further when the contracts of the players mentioned end. $20 mill per year for 10 years is not that exorbitant considering the current climate. Tigers just gave Miguel Cabrera $152 mill over 8 years.

"and while it might sting to pay $20 million a year when he's 38 years old,"

The way baseball revenue has been climbing 20 million in 2018 probably won't be that big a hit to the overall payroll.

Two points to make:

1: It would be great to have Tex on the team, but I'm not foolish enough to think that it is going to happen. The only way it could is if we outbid the Yanks and Mets and overpay for him. The only bright side here is that being a Boras client, you know he is going to go where the most money is. So we could sneak in there, but it aint going to be for no hometown discount.

and 2: Is it smart to spend 200 million on one player, or 200 mil on player development/scouting/young talent? Right now we don't need one awesome player to put us over the top, we need as many young talented players that we can get our hands on. Tejada was an awesome player when we signed him, but as we saw, very rarely can one player turn the fortunes of a francise around.

I'd like to see us stick to the plan which is to develop young talent, THEN fill in the holes with free agents. Get as much as you can for BRob and Sherrill and pray that someone will give us some young players for any of the following: Huff, Payton, Millar, Mora, R. Hernandez, Walker, Bradford. Draft wisely and bring a new generation of players up.

I don't think Tex is the answer to our woes.

Please, folks, quit listening to the pundits and trust your eyes! The pitching is remakedly solid and very young, except Trashkill who is just standing in the way of developing another young pitcher. The pitching is also deep, we have several guys in the minors who will be ready in a year or two. Also, don't forget Mr. Patton who just may be in the rotation openning day next year.

Ask yourself, if Tex was batting 4th in the O's lineup THIS YEAR, what would our record be? The O's have had a chance to win nearly every game this year but the hitting is failing the team. Yes, we have some fielding and baserunning problems but hitting is what this team lacks and we have no middle of the lineup prospects in sight.

Thus, sign him, find a servicable shortstop, and trust the pitching is only going to get better, which I honestly believe it will. With him, the O's may be competitive next year, without him they'll lose too many 4-3 and 3-2 games.

There is a problem, however. He's with Atlanta and I understand his wife is from Atlanta.

The only way Angeloser ever regains any credibility with me is if he pulls off signing a masher who has publicly stated he wants to play here.If you ask me,he's better than Huff, Millar and Mora put together so why should that be a hole? And if he does sign other people will be interested as well.If you can't get decent value for Roberts, keep him, Weiters will be here soon at the pace he's going and by all indications Rowell won't be far behind. Then your only hole is SS, which is already a hole now, lol. Do whatever it takes,I ain't gonna live forever.

I think it might actually be Andy that refuses to get Tex. I think Angelos is willing to spend money if it is the right guy and I have heard that he loves the idea of Tex coming home and maybe being this generations Cal. I think Andy is gonna be the voice of reason and say that we are not in the position to spend that much on one player. If only we had had Andy 3 years ago we could be in position to get Tex this year.

Can we put BALTIMORE on his away jersey?

Seriously one guy @ 20mil/year might not be that great an idea. Mark T is not the consistent hitter that demands 20 mil/year. But what do I know I only buy the tickets.

The difference between signing Tex and Miggy is that there was no foundation when Miggy got here. he was pretty much the lone ranger. But MacPhail seems to have already laid a good pitching foundation. We need a big bat to protect Markakis. I think $20 mil or more would do for the O's what signing Pudge and Ordonez did for the Tigers. Sometimes you have to overspend to get a guy in to help you to that next level.

I just went over and peeked through the window of the Connolly's Corner Sports Bar and I saw that during some discussion of great second baseman, he was expressing admiration for singer/songwriter types like Wilco, Ryan Adams, the Old 97s and Drive-By Truckers, which happen to be four of my favorites, so it seems Mr. Connolly knows his stuff. Wilco's "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" seems like an appropriate song for Orioles fans over the last 10 years. "I always felt that if I held you tightly, you'd always love me like you did back then..."

I agree with Adam, who points out that McPhail will probably say "No thanks" when it comes time to pay Teixeira $200 million, since he's the one who is supposed to steer the club away from moves that could cripple it long-term. But perhaps he'll also feel like Weiters, Markakis, Loewen and Jones will still be young enough and cheap enough to gamble to a veteran like MT as the missing piece.

I think the O's are still searching for their post-Cal identity. Mark Tex could be a step in the right direction. He is one of us and I think he "gets it."

Great article. It's very interesting a very true how this is a very Baltimore phenomenon. We're insanely loyal to our own and love the local hero. You get the feeling that if Cal Ripken or Juan Dixon did what they did anywhere else it just wouldn't have been the same.

Look at the amazing core of young talent we would have if the Orioles sign Teixeira. Along with him there would be Adam Jones, Nick Markakis, Matt Wieters, Garrett Olson, Radhames Liz, Bill Rowell, Nolan Reimold, Jake Arrieta, Brandon Erbe, and if they stay healthy, Adam Loewen and Daniel Cabrera. Plus we also have the #4 pick in the amateur draft this June. I think a lot of organizations would drool at the prospect of putting those players on the field over the next 10 seasons. It is imperative that we sign Mark Teixeira. The future depends on it.

Great article/blog posting- you hit the nail on the head. Baltimore does love it's own since they know what it's like to be from a town that never gets any respect. Tex would be a great addition, but it's not going to happen after the Albert Belle signing of a few years back, plus MacPhail has enough common sense not to pony up $20 million a year for one player. Let the man work his magic- he knows what he's doing....If we were having this discussion a few years into the future from now, I think it would be a definite possibility that we could land him. However, it's just not the right time and timing is everything in sports.
By the way, Wilco is AWESOME!! I've attended 2 of their local shows in the past year, and they've been sold out. B'more/DC loves those guys.... Spiro Agnew, on the other hand, I don't think he gets much love anymore.

Teixeira will be Yank. Accept it.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Start hating Tex now and save yurself the misery of O's faithful what-could-of-been short-sighted hope.

I like Brian's comment about how the O's need some kind of post-Cal identity, and Teixeira might just provide that. On a related note, and this is coming from a guy with a name that often gets misspelled, is there a harder name to type correctly than Teixeira's? I have to check it four times each post to make sure I'm not messing it up.

Wilco, by the way, is playing in Baltimore at the Virgin Music Festival on Aug. 9, but sadly, you all will have to let me know how the show is, since I'll be in Beijing for the Olympics. I know, I know, cry me a river, KVV.

Obviously sign Tex!! The only thing is this: If the front office spends all that money on Tex, will we be able to hang on to all the pitchers, Markakis, Jones, Weiters, etc. that we are re-building with. Would signing Tex be about long-term rebuilding or a short-term infusion. Or could it be about both?

The wild card in any long term deals is to resolve the ownership issue. If Angelos would make everyone happy by agreeing to sell the club to Cal Ripken and associates within the next two-three years, momentum would shift even more. Yes, the Yankees have plenty of money but the next generation of Steinbruners looks even more dysfunctional and Tex will have seen how "Superman" A-Rod has/will be treated. New York will never be known as "Charm City". I'm more worried about Boston - esp as David Ortiz also continues to decline.

What makes everyone think that Texeira would sign with the Yankees or the Mets. I believe he would stay clear from there because of the Media there, Just like Greg Maddox did. Maddox could have had alot of money in NY, but always said he would never play there. If Baltimore has a team to worry about it would be Atlanta, and after what has happened with Barry Zito and Andrew Jones, those large contracts for 10 yrs will not happen. Look for 5 or 6 yrs at 100 million.

I really like the direction that McPhail is leading our birds. I disagree with the whole Baltimore on the jerseys things, the Oriole Way is dead, lets face it. Those good times left with people like Palmer, Ripken, Brooks and Frank Robinson. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Orioles fan, but i think that signing T-Rex too all that money, will not allow you too sign people like Markakis and especially your crown jewel, Wieters in the long run. I say stay the route and don't let all the pretty little things on the side of the road slow you down, GO BIRDS!

Forget about it! Tex is not going to sign with the O's. He wanted to see some major progress in the O's rebuilding and that just isn't happening and do you really think Peter is going to shell out 200 million!
Go MSJ!

I don't know if Wilco has been alt-Country since Being There and maybe the Woody Guthrie albums. But how about "I'm A Wheel" for some of those O's fans? "I'm gonna turn on you, turn on YOU!"

I think getting Teixeira would be great for attendance...wouldn't it? I try to get to at least 1 game a year, which I know, doesn't sound like much, but give me a break, I live 6,000 miles away in Honolulu.

I would sign Rafael Furcal ahead of Mark Teixiera.

If the O's even consider Texiera I would reccommend drafting the 1st 2 or 3 picks in this draft at SS to try to get some depth in the orgaisation and try to fill one deficiency even more than pitching and any other power bats from college or from south of the U.S. We desperately need some power in the minors.. Then draft all the hard to sign pitchers like arrietta no matter the slot.. That is how NY, BOS. and others do it..

If the O's even consider Texiera I would reccommend drafting the 1st 2 or 3 picks in this draft at SS to try to get some depth in the orgaisation and try to fill one deficiency even more than pitching and any other power bats from college or from south of the U.S. We desperately need some power in the minors.. Then draft all the hard to sign pitchers like arrietta no matter the slot.. That is how NY, BOS. and others do it and be willing to deal with boras or the yankees and boston will..

What if...

2B - B ROB
CF - A JONES
RF - MARKAKIS
1B - TEXEIRA
DH - HUFF
3B - MOORE
LF - SCOTT
C - WEITERS
SS - BYNUM

You can sigh FA's while rebuilding. Our younger prospects like Markakis, Jones and later Rowell & Weiters will need Big Tex's protection in the lineup. I think you try to bring him in and hold on to BRob. If you cant sign Big Tex then you scrap that plan & deal BRob