My Mets fan friends think Humber is amazing. I hope they are right, I would want a fourth player, in addition to Gomez/Humber/Heilman --- some lower level prospect with a high ceiling.

I'd still rather have Bedard. Pay the man!

Moving Bedard for the right package would not be the worst thing in the world. The O's could get some key prospects along with bullpen help and Jeremy Guthrie could take his rightful place as the ace in the rotation. We'll see what happens...

Humber may not be a bust... but he is not promising. When he was the #3 overall pick he thre 93-96... now (since coming back) he throws 88-91... thats what makes him no longer a top prospect. And basically any competitive team could trump the Mets offer... it's a matter of waiting for the right one to come along. Even if that means waiting for a Yankees/Red Sox/Indians/Tigers/Twins/Angels/Mariners/Braves/Cubs/Brewers/Dodgers/D-Backs pitcher to get injured during next season, or waiting until the trade deadline when one of those teams will be looking for a boost to get them into the playoffs.

Hey I'd take the opportunity to start up a rumor. So we know the Mets are looking for pitching and there was the rumor yesterday that they could be willing to trade Jose Reyes (although denied) so what about a blockbuster trade like Tejada and Bedard for Reyes, Humber, Heilman, and Gomez.

It HAS been pretty quiet around here.

It's true that right now that the Angels and Dodgers aren't actualy offers on the table, but they're definitely worth waiting for. I don't think there's any need to rush on Bedard. If the O's don't find a deal that's what they think he's worth they can always choose to take him into the '08 season and continue to try to get him to extend OR trade him at the deadline to a team that is desperate to gain the edge on their competitors in the hunt for the post season (ala the Braves with Teixiera this past year).

And as far as Humber...keep in mind you're talking about the same general fan base who's patience has run so thin that they're ready to give up on guys like Garrett Olson and Radhames Liz (even though Liz should never have been up here under normal circumstances).

Roch, what about some news on Tejada? I heard a deal was almost in place trading him to LAA for Wood and Saunders. Any truth to that, is he going to be out of Baltimore soon?

Yes, the Mets' offer is real and the Dodgers/Angels are fantasies for the time being, but that's not a good reason to jump at the Mets' offer. While I'd like to see Bedard signed or moved, I also think that if he gets off to a good start next year, his value will peak at the trade deadline, when a contender with a need for pitching can acquire him for a season and a half. So don't rush into anything here. Once MCabrera and Santana are off the board, the market will turn to Bedard and Tejada. Maybe we'll get lucky and the Marlins and Twins will tick off other teams so much that they will turn to the O's to make a deal now.

being just as good as santana and being recognized by the baseball press as being as good are not the same thing. talent evaluators are aware (or should be) that there's no significant category in which santana presently tops bedard, except maybe games started.

at any rate, if we're talking about bedard vs. santana for a trade package, the fact that you get an additional year of bedard and an additional of bedard for pretty cheap is worth quite a bit. i'd say for the mets humber, heilman, gomez AND milledge as a starting point.

...and, no, i'm not high. thanks.

In regards to your comments about Posada, it has been widely speculated that Posada will most likely be the full time DH by year three of his contract. If his offensive skills haven't left him at that time then the signing doesn't look as bad.

I say humbug on Humber & those other 2 for Bedard.

If Anna thought Baltimore was pergatory, she'll really get a kick out of the thought of KC..... I just hope she doesn't threaten to divorce the poor b@stard again....

I'd rather take a chance on Clement myself, if I was KC I mean.....

$$ talks... in some cities....

Reliever Antonio Alfonseca might not be the only 12-digit pitcher in the majors next year. Oneli Perez, the White Sox’s Double-A closer last season, leads the Dominican Winter League in saves and could win a job in spring training. Must be the extra finger on each hand. How would you have proceeded with your day without knowing this?

I bet their GFs like knowing this.

Hi Roch!

Just wanted to thank you for keeping us informed on the Orioles, by sharing your insight on the professional athletes and their thoughts, and the Orioles’ organization. It’s been a while since I’ve actively written as one of the original bloggers, but I still read your articles everyday.

Your articles have been a bright spot in a terrible run of disappointing years as an Oriole and Ravens fan. I can’t believe that both of those teams have similarly hit “Roch bottom”, together. My heart goes out to Baltimore fans.

Roch, an interesting blog might be to compare the fall of both the once proud Orioles and Ravens teams. For example: the lack of conditioning of both teams that have led to poor execution and a high number of injuries, the poor team chemistry/on the field and locker room problems, the use of drugs, the highly paid underachieving players, the poor coaching and execution of even basic skills, the lack of class of many players, the mistakes by ownership, and all the talk with coaches and players of both teams trying to convinced us that they were good instead of showing it, the embarrassing reputations of the organization, team and players, etc. There weren’t many who laughed at us when we were on 33rd street.

Sorry to be so negative, but unfortunately, the ugly and bad get too much attention in many sports articles, so I want to call the attention to the following refreshing article written by the SI’s Tom Verducci: “My Sportsman: David Ortiz- Ability and kindness are Big Papi’s calling cards.”

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/magazine/specials/sportsman/2007/11/26/verducci.ortiz/index.html

Here’s to better days ahead, for both teams… Let’s hope that next week is fruitful, if not, maybe we can move back to Memorial Stadium.

Roch, my problem with the Mets deal was not Humber so much as Gomez. I want to see a solid half season out of him in AA before I consider him an elite prospect.

The Mets probably do not have the depth in the system to make a suitable deal for Bedard. If they give up what he is worth, they have too little left over to build on.

I think your proposed Mets offer for Bedard was a nice framework to begin a discussion, at the very least. I don't think the Dodgers or Angels will look at Bedard until Cabrera falls off the board.

As you know, the Mets are looking for a catcher, so if you could include Ramon Hernandez in the deal, the O's could get another nice prospect along with Estrada from the Mets while getting that money off the payroll to go out and sign another player. You know, if for whatever reason Angelos feels generous someday. You might even be able to dump Huff on the Mets in a deal. Be creative.

I love us! We are a passionate bunch. Bedard is interesting for the Os. He's never made it through a good year healthy, thrown more than 200 innings in year, and he's got ONE complete game. This isn't the CG era but cmon...the guy asked out of a game after 89 pitches cause he had to run the bases. This is the guy you sign for 5/90m? As good as he was last year, you can't pay that kind of money to that player. You get Loney and a couple young pitchers from LA, you make that deal. Bedard IS NOT Johan...the only thing better is the 2 years of control the team getting EB would have...and in this day and age, that's worth a lot! If he doesn't sign an extension, trade him for the best package. If the offers stink, send EB to the mound every 5th day for the next 2 years and NEVER take him out. Then we'll see what kind of offers he gets.

I am still troubled by this finger thing.

I mean not just the imagery. There is a good line in here somewhere, but I can't make it work. Something about giving pitchers the finger or a digit exam....

Brian? Herbie? Wayward? PhilF? Satyr? Anyone? Got anything?

Roch,

CNNSI truth and rumors talked about Miggy Tejada to the Cards as a possibility. Any truth to it? Any idea what we may get back?

Kris Benson. Wow. There are only a few other places you can go that might provide a less competitive team than the Orioles. KC is one of them. Quite a career trajectory. He really facilitated our collapse last year by his non-presence. I'm always going to wonder what really went down with him, the injury, his insurance, and the O's.

Are there no other players in foreign markets who we can take a flyer on? In my book, Canada does not count as foreign player development.

Roch, it's not your blogging that has caused the malaise so please don't take it personally. I'm not sure there has ever been less to talk about (except random speculation). We all have opinions but given the lack of action we can't even critique MacPhail. However, that same lack of action is beginning to be something we can critique in just a couple of weeks. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt until then.

Other than that we can keep convincing ourselves that we will get other organizations top prospects along with everyday players for a once-great SS and a rising but oft-injured pitcher.

Roch--Thanks for your reflection on the 6-finger delivery. You've got me thinking about Pedro Martinez's incredibly long fingers imparting action on the ball. Forget the player development push into the Dominican Republic and China. Instead, the Birds should tap the Crab Nebula for some far flung intergalactic talent. How about facing 6 appendages coming at you from multiple angles? And we've got just the man in Captain Kirk to manage our team of the future.

AP Cleveland
Santana for Gibbons called a big joke...

As expected The Minnesota Twins flatly declined a 3 for 1 offer from the Baltimore Orioles for Twins great star Santana. The Orioles offered up Billy Gibbons, Kirk Hammett and John Frusciante but that was clearly not enough. Orioles Vice President in Charge of Nothing Mike Flannagan then offered to throw George Harrison into the mix, but that offer was quickly recinded when Flannagan learned that Harrison was already dead. Said Twins spokesman Rob Antony " I don't know what they are chain smoking there in Baltimore, but it can't be just tobacco. This is Santana, an all time great, and they offer up peanuts! We want to move Santana but it is going to take a Clapton or Page level performer to get in the game on this one..."

I know this isn't on topic, but does anyone else think the Orioles should shell out for a plaque or a statue at Camden Yard in honor of Wild Bill?

Jennifer - Maybe you are on to something!

We should start a Draft Brady movment for the Dancing with the Stars Lineup.

If we get enough people to email the network we can get him on. (Then we can see if he follows through on his grand idea!) Even if he says no, this will give us something to do until the 2009 season.

Anyone have the email?

I'm astounded by how ridiculous most of the posts on this blog are. People think Bedard is more valuable than Santana? That is just pure nonsense. Not even considering performance, Santana's health track record is light year's better than Bedard. Bedard has turned himself into an pitcher who can be in the argument for one of the top 15-20 pitchers in baseball, but until he pitches a full season, without needing to spend a month on the DL, to say he is better than Santana is just ludicrous.

When, and I do not believe there is an if, the O's trade Bedard, I think they will get a lot less than most on here will think is "enough". No one is giving up 2 or 3 A+ prospects for Bedard. AT BEST, he bring something in the range of what the Mets have offered. Young players are too valuable in today's MLB market.

How cheap do you think Matt Clement is going to go? I know that a question mark is by no means a short-term or long-term answer; I just always loved this guy's heart.

Not to mention his stuff. He's still young. I'd like to see somebody wager on him for a one-year deal. Could be worth the risk.

Roch -

Any thoughts on the ability to package Tejada and Bedard to get the Dodgers or Angles to offer the three to four prospects we keep hearing about.

I'd rather get quality back and if we have to give up both so be it. I'd even throw money into the equation if needed.

ooo so i can see benson play in KC maybe? not like he ever played much for the O's, but still. it's be kind of funny. with all the hype when we originally got him (and no i'm not talking about anna, though there was more of that!).

lastings is gone from the Mets. so there we have it. the NATS making a GOOD deal before the winter meetings.

yes, sit down, swallow hard. sucks doesn't it.

Roch,

The issue isn't that Santana is better than Bedard, the issue is that Bedard has two years on his contract versus one, and is younger than Santana, and is putting up comparable numbers plus his contract is considerably cheaper.

Your Mets idea trade was just horrible. I mean absolutely horrible. Gomez is unproiven who is the only chip worthwhile, and Heilman stinks. Latroy Hawkins all over again.

There's plenty of time not to panic. The Dodgers and Angels will come around, and if they don't pay Bedard more and keep him.

Frankly, I'd like to see the O's sign a couple moderate free agents. Gagne, and I think Jason Jennings stock is very low and could be had for a decent price.

As to trade I love Tejada but if we can get Wood-Saunders I think I'd bite. I'd even bite for Aybar-Adenhart. Keep Ramon. We really have no catchers ready beyond him, and teams are struggling to get a decent catcher. With the injuries and uncertainty about Loewen and Penn I think it pays to at least get one more starter like a Jennings or a Saunders.

Improving the offence signifcantly can only really occur IF we trade Bedard and IF we trade him, we better get a ransom of players back, not just a "good" haul but a "great one".

Roch -

Heard about the Mets - Nats Trade. Why wouldn't Hernandez/Huff be an acceptable offer to the Mets?

The Orioles have got to realize they're not going to get back the quality prospects everyone wants without giving up more than they think their players are worth.

They have two options. 1) Accept a lesser prospect or 2) Add more talent on your side to get the better prospects.

I imagine salary and familiarity with the players was the two primary reasons but if they weren't even in the discussion with this type of an offer what are they thinking? I would have gladly sent over several million to balance out the trade or even include a quasi prospect on our end.

Huff/Hernandez would be a better offensive tandem than Church/Schneider.

Roch, any insight as to why our FO completely dismissed Minaya when he inquired about our interest in Milledge?

Considering LF has been a black hole for us for years, I would think we should be all over it. It wasnt like they wanted Bedard or Tejada for him. I am unhappy about this to say the least.

I'm really stoked that MacPhail rejected the Mets' offer of Humber, Heilmann and Gomez.

That means that this isn't just some fire sale, and the Orioles are being patient and waiting until Cabrera and Santana get traded, and one losing bidder gets desperate.

As with free agents, all you need is one desperate bidder, and these days they seem to be everywhere.

Kris Benson in KC.
Kris Benson in Baltimore.
See a trend?
My guess is I see Kris Benson in the blue and white of Omaha when they visit the Rose City to play the Beavers in the spring.

FWIW (absolutely nothing)...if I were in the market to trade several players (a la fantasy sports), I'd like to have separate deals lined up and attempt to consummate them all at once.

Let's hypothetically say we get a SS in a trade for Bedard. That would lower either Tejada's or Mora's value because teams would absolutely know we needed to trade one of them.

However, if we wait, we don't hurt whatever the market value is for our players. So, the moral of this story is that people should back off of McPhail. Good trades have a lot of moving parts, take time and involve at least 2 teams' strategies.

Philly papers say there is no interest in Melvin Mora. I can't see Pat Gillick doing a deal to help Peter Angelos. And I agree that a week with the NY media and suddenly Erik's oblique will start hurting again!

Just as it ay be unfair to diss Humber after such a short time, it's also a bit unfair to assume he is in Bedard's class. I don't object to the O's trading Eric, but only if they get a deal that makes it worth it. As for having trouble trading him next year, it all depends on how he does. If he is a dominant as he was this past season, then the O's will have no trouble finding offers regardless of his upcoming free agent status.
If McPhail shows that he is truly on track to turn this team around with what he does during the winter meetings and beyond, then maybe it will be easier for the O's to keep Bedard. So in short, trade him if you get a gold plated deal, otherwise be patient. I don't consider Humber gold plated.

What is a rice pitcher and why would we want one? I guess I'm not up to speed on baseball lingo these days

Since we are kicking around for topics today, there is an interesting/distressing note in the current issue of Baseball America: the Cubs believe that Kevin Hart could make their starting rotation next year. Hart is the former Maryland Terrapin we traded for Freddie Bynum, and apparently the Cubs' Double-A pitching coach taught him a cut fastball, and he zoomed from Double-A to Triple-A to the majors in short order, and even made the Cubs' playoff roster.

I appreciate that this is one isolated development, but it made me wonder why our pitching coaches don't seem able to help our kids so much (or if they do, why we don't hear about it very much). Pitching is the most precious commodity in baseball, yet we virtually gave away John Maine and now potentially have traded another starter for a utility player. If we do go ahead and dump Erik Bedard anytime soon, I sure hope we get a ton of pitching talent in return. We need it.

Why are we going to trade Bedard again? Angelos needs to suck it up and shell out the money. A left handed number 1 pitcher that was homegrown and we're not going to sign him? Why even bother then because whenever we get a pitcher that's going to want money we'll trade him before he's around to really help us. Sound familiar? That's what all the small market teams do. Unless we can get an unbelievable deal, which the Mets scenario is not, then we should shell out the bucks and hold on to this guy. We can trade Tejada, Mora, Huff, etc, and get some decent prospects, and sign some solid free agents that are IN there prime, not past it. Why is it that the Sox and Yankees still have solid farm teams when they are constantly trading away people and shelling out for free agents but we can't? McPhail needs to change this culture of losing the Orioles have and trading Bedard is not the way to do it.

Trade Bedard now while his value is the highest but not to the Yankees...find a National league team to trade with so we don't see him on a regular basis.

Mets must not think very highly of Ramon Hernandez. I'd say he's staying in Baltimore for next year.

The Phils not being interested in Mora is no surprise. He's washed up unless you need a utility guy on your team. Sadly, however, he still thinks he's a .300 hitter with a .400 OBP, as well as the best 3rd baseman in the AL. Or so it seems from his comments. I wish he still was that good. Those couple of years were great to watch (until about August, of course).

And this is why the Angels would be fools if they acquired both him and Tejada (the 36 year old). Its probably safe to say that all the good teams out there have a one former Oriole limit rule.

First of all, Bedard's trade value is never going to be higher than it is right now. He's got 2 years left before he hits free agency, and that is very appealing to a team like the Angels or Dodgers when they're giving up young players also. Here's a couple of trades that I would personally like to see happen:

1. Trade Erik Bedard, Aubrey Huff, Chad Bradford, and $10 million to the LA Dodgers for Clayton Kershaw, Matt Kemp, James Loney, and Jonathon Broxton.
2. Trade Miguel Tejada, Melvin Mora, and $12 million to the LA Angels for Reggie Willits, Brandon Wood, and Ervin Santana/Joe Saunders.

Lineup:
1. Roberts 2B S
2. Willits CF S
3. Markakis RF L
4. Kemp LF R
5. Loney 1B L
6. Millar DH R
7. Moore 3B L
8. R. Hernandez C R
9. L. Hernandez SS S /B. Wood R

And, you still leave spots for your top 3 prospects - Weiters (C), Reimold (OF/DH) and Rowell (3B).

Rotation:
1. Guthrie
2. Santana/Saunders
3. Loewen
4. Cabrera
5. Liz

Bullpen:
Closer - Walker L
Setup - Broxton R
Setup - McCrory R
Setup - Hoey R
Setup - Burres L
Setup - Doyne R
Long Relief - Olson L/Penn R

"o" is for Go O's!

YES! It's catching on!!! HAHAHA! I like where you are going with this Tom D.
Seriously for those who haven't watched DWTS... its the most addicting show ever. Yes, it drags on and on like American Idol, but it's so funny to watch. I mean, Come On! If Emmit Smith can win, I'm sure Brady would surely have a shot. Hell, they should have a whole baseball edition.

Get:
Brady, strong enough, kinda cute
Millar, killer dance moves and likes the attention
Papelbon, has already pranced around in tight shorts
A-Rod, he desperately needs more media attention
Roberto Alomar, because well it's just funny.. where did he go anyways?
Raffy, that mustache just reeks DWTS WINNER!
Bonds, he won't have anything to do next year

and maybe BJ Surhoff, because he's so damn lovable! He could win, just for being so nice!

Now that right there is entertainment, especially for us O's fans who will have NOTHING to watch in October of 2008.

Any more contestants in mind?

Enter O for Oh I think I've lost my mind

I'm glad to see Andy MacPhail turn down the Met's proposed package for Erik Bedard. The O's would have been burned big time on that one.

Neither of the pitchers offered exactly inspires awe and I have no idea what the excitement is over Carlos Gomez. He hasn't hit .300 (or for that matter, even .290) at any level of the minors, and he strikes out a lot despite not being a power hitter. He can steal you a base, true, but base stealers are easy to come by.

On the other hand, Matt Kemp, mentioned as a part of a trade with the Dodgers for Bedard, is everything that Gomez isn't and would be a good addition to the team, should it come to that. (Like Roch, I'd still prefer to hang on to Erik because I getting rid of him is going to set back the rebuillding process a couple more years--the first place to rebuild a team is through the pitching staff--and I, for one, am sick of the team's losing ways. It's gotten, shall we say, a little old.)

As for the trading with the Mets, I'd think MacPhail should say, okay, if we're going to open up talks again it should be known up front that we want John Maine back.

Shut out this afternoon . Just trying ton be a little funny.I never ever used a bad or insensitive phrase on your blog. What's up? So I'll try again. Mora is supposed to be a great dancer, Stoff and [ never mind ]

Right, because Rice aces have faired so well in the majors in the last 5-10 years. I'd stay very far away from any and all of them. I'm still glad we managed to dodge that Wade Townsend bullet.

Even if Humber doesn't bust like the rest of the ex-owls, that package still isn't enough for Bedard. Quite simply, you can't trade for an ace with 2 years of good contract left without giving up your best hitting prospect (Martinez) or your best pitching prospect (Pelfrey). Usually you give up both. It was a silly proposal. Luckily I trust MacPhail to see that.

Just because the Dodgers haven't offered anything better yet doesn't mean they won't. And it definitely doesn't mean we HAVE to accept the Mets' laughable offer. We have Bedard for two years. Teams can get awfully needy around the trade deadline.

So far I must say I am really happy with MacPhail. He won me over with the Wieters signing, and his persistence and patience is exactly what we need right now. The worst thing we can do is get nervous and let go of valuable chips like Tejada and Bedard for next to nothing. I'd rather have a draft pick than a scrub like Heilman.

Roch,

I am surprised you'd be so excited to receive a package including Aaron Heilman. The guy is older than Bedard and is nothing more than a decent reliever. Humber could be very good, but not on the level of who the Dodgers could offer-- Broxton and Krenshaw. Not to mention that Bedard would hate playing in New York. He wants to be out of the spotlight as much as possible. Baltimore is a good fit for him. The only thing better would be Toronto, since it's close to his home, but I sincerely hope we can keep him.

Also, to the general readership group out there, why are we so certain that Jeremy Guthrie can be a staff ace? He had a fantastic first half and a mediocre second half. If we wanted that, we could have kept Rodrigo Lopez or John Maine. Bedard is the real thing. If he can stay healthy, he's one of the top 5 pitchers in baseball. He'd be a wonderful anchor for this team if we can somehow manage hold onto him.

Roch........ Patience my friend, patience.

I agree that Bedard is not in Santana's league however when you factor in the financials they become closer. Santana last year earned 13 mil, Bedard 3. This is not as large of a disparity based on the teams bidding for Santana however Bedard has two years left on that contract and Santana has one, and then he becomes the highest paid pitcher in baseball. So the question is what's the value when you factor in Bedard has two years before hitting the market and a very low price? I bet when both end up traded that the values will be close.
With the teams after Santana it is best for the O's to wait until Santana moves because that leaves Bedard the top pitcher on the market....... value increases. The same can be said for Tejeda once Cabrera moves, to a much smaller degree.
Best case scenario, Yankees get Santana and then the Mets will bid heavier for Bedard as to not lose in the papers. I believe however that everyone is just waiting for the Cabrera move, then the chips will start to fall quickly. The question becomes then, where does Tejeda go if Cabrera ends up with the Angels? Maybe the Cubs?

I could go crazy waiting for the Orioles to do something.

Hello Roch and everyone else - this may have been discussed while I was away, so sorry if this is an old question. What do all of you think that Erik Bedard is worth AND what do you really think it will take to sign him? I believe he made 3.4m last year.

He is arbitration eligible for the next 2 years and is not yet a free agent. I don't see the O's going from 3.4m to 18m for the next 5 years. But what about 10-12m for the next 2 years (that's a huge raise), then 15-20m for the next 3? Would 75m/5 years get him signed?

I think we all agree that he is a very good, if not great pitcher, but he does not yet have Santana's track record. Will it take Zito or even Santana $$ to get the job done?

Roch, although I rarely post here, I really appreciate your efforts to keep us informed and entertained.

My question involves Sidney Ponson: I know that his hearing is supposedly coming up early next year I believe, but has there ever been a reason given as to why it is taking so long to occur (over 2 years now)? He played briefly for the Yankees, so it isn't because he wasn't in New York as is the usual reason given for why sometimes there is a delay. Could it be that perhaps the union is actually afraid of losing this grievance on this one and the precedent that it could set, so they are pressing him to settle "out of court" as it were? Just wondering...

Joe Dalhart: Ain't it the truth! I'm waiting to see what the Orioles do with all the money they're hauling in by trading away the expensive players and not bringing in any new expensive ones.

The Dominican deal--going from almost no presence to mediocrity--is not a good sign. I hope it won't be the same in terms of new minor league coaches, trainers, scouts, and video equipment.

HB Birds Fan: It's not "rice pitcher," it's "Rice pitcher," being a pitcher who went to Rice University in Texas. The comment references a draft a few years back when the Orioles drafted a few can't-miss pitchers out of Rice University, and, thanks to the Orioles' unique scouting and player development squads, they missed.

hehe hey roch, how bout bedard straight up to the mets for john maine...

"My Mets fan friends think Humber is amazing. I hope they are right, I would want a fourth player, in addition to Gomez/Humber/Heilman --- some lower level prospect with a high ceiling. I'd still rather have Bedard. Pay the man!
Posted by: Alan in VA | November 30, 2007 11:00 AM"
I agree with you Alan and would include minor league LHP David Hernandez for the Gomez/Humber/Heilman package plus Mulvey & Estrada.

Deja vu all over again.

Anyone else get the idea that the front office is "waiting for the market to establish itself" again ?

Are you telling me that the O's couldn't use a guy like Milledge or Delmon Young ?

The more things change..........

would you rather be "6finger" perez or sixto lezcano?

ok for those of you who dont know:Rice is a university located in Texas and it is known for its excellent pitching program. And Wade Townsend. not good memories right there. anyhow, rice is a college not a baseball term so there u have it birdsfan.

ps i think roch was sarcastic because Rice pitchers a la wade townsend/and phillip humber also came from there I believe. but I digress, they usually tend to blow there arms out real quick.

Yes, I was being sarcastic. They wasted a first-round pick on Townsend by failing to sign him.

I suppose there would be lass malaise in anyone, anywhere had any faith in the Unawarehouse. For ten years they have been striving to be mediocre, never making the cut beyond merely horrible and embarrassing. Confederate money, steroids, Jon Miller, the questionable free agent signings, Uncle Pete's lies, the list goes on and on.
Baltimore is now in Missouri saying "show me".
Only then can we rejoin Maryland. Maybe at the same time we can restore "Baltimore" to the road unis.
In the meantime, it's all deck chair shuffling on the Titanic.

Before the people in this column start ripping on Bedard because the guy only has one complete game and one shutout in his major league career, you might want to compare his record to Santana's over the last two years. During the 2006 and 2007 seasons, when Bedard began to peak, Bedard had one complete game and one shutout, while Santana had two complete games and one shutout. Additionally, in 2007, Bedard had a better strikeout ratio than Santana (10.93 vs. 9.66), walked fewer hitters per nine innings (3.88 vs. 4.52), held hitters to a lower batting average (.212 vs. Santana's .225), and Bedard had a lower ERA (3.17 vs 3.33) than Santana. Bedard doesn't have to take a backseat to this guy. They are both outstanding pitchers, and if I was a GM, I would go after Bedard first, because I could probably sign him for a whole lot less than the Yankees are going to pay for Santana.