How about a year over .500 and then raise the price of tickets? How about just a year over .500?
"g" is for good grief.

Actually, from what I've read the Mariners are in serious need of TWO pitchers...and Silva is most definitely not the difference maker they would need to help them compete with the Angels. I could be wrong, but I wouldn't count the Mariners out of the running just yet.

According to Ken Rosenthal:
"For the Mariners, the signing of Silva would put them halfway toward their goal of adding two starting pitchers this off-season. They also are pursuing Orioles left-hander Erik Bedard in a trade."

Hope springs eternal that they are still going after Bedard

Great spin job by that Oriole official... If anyone believes that malarkey I got some ocean front property in Arizona I'll sell ya.... Also according to some reports out of Seattle, they went into the off-season looking to sign 2 starters... That being true then the Bedard interest is still probably there...

And this is why it isnt always prudent to wait. We went from Dodgers, Reds, Mariners, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Mets, and Yankees interested in Bedard then...
King Pete tells three of them flat out no for no good reason whatsoever.
One goes the Japan route.
One goes for a mediocre free agent.

So from seven teams we waited long enough and eliminated five of them ourselves, nicely lowering our leverage.

Lets hope he has a good year and stays healthy.

Sounds like we're going to keep Bedard, and I'd welcome that. But let's give him the money he deserves. Six years at $17 million apiece would be more than fair, just to throw a number out. If he stays healthy, he's worth it.

Better do your homework Roch. Every report says the Mariners wanted 2 pitchers and are still very interested in Bedard.

I wish the Terps well. Hopefully none of them have Bonds or Conte as a role model.

I am done with the Orioles. This is a simple decision based on the behavior of a business that I will no longer support.

Rooting for a team is basically attitude and loyalty behavior. Since I have been a fan for 35 years I have a little experience.

I went to school at St. Bernard's, which became Holy Spirit Middle School in the 70's. It was directly across the street from Memorial Stadium, next to Eastern High. Loved the team, went to lots of games, 15 straight years of Opening Days.

Worked with Tim Nordbrook at Marshall's and did some contracting for Kenny Singleton, among others, and found the Orioles of that era to be engaging and a pleasure to deal with.

I went to Cal's record breaking game and his last game, great memories. I will never forget 2131 as long as I live.The only time I ever cried at a baseball game.

The present day Orioles bear no resemblence to the team I grew up with. From incompetent ownership, to steroid issues, to a Commissioner and Player's Union that doesn't care, I'm done.

Aside from the Moral and Ethical considerations, I feel this business no longer values me as a customer. To continue business as usual, with no regard to it's clientle, is corporate suicide, but the Orioles don't see it.

If most of you worked with people that cheated this much at work, the murder rate in Baltimore would be higher.

Thanks for the Blogs, Roch, and I may drop in from time to time, but I want to go with a Baseball Organization that has a clue about how to run a Team, and how to treat their fans.

g is for goodbye

Roch,
According to Ken Rosenthal the Mariners want two starters and signing Silva does not mean they also won't go after Bedard. See http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7580112

bob c - not sure what your comment is about.

I have been saying for several years that Bonds is one of the worst steroid abusers in sports history. Did you somehow miss that?

Or are you referring to the supposed benefits of hGH?

Well, yes, hGH does cause size to increase. One of the on-label uses of hGH is with children who have conditions that prevent them from attaining normal height. But those are children with specific conditions, not adults in prime shape. Most of the growth in adults is muscular and it does not involve increases in reflex or strength. Did you look at the publications I cited on the last post or read ANY of the comments I have posted? If my post was insufficient I can give you other citations.

bob, I know you and several others like to think I just make this stuff up. Yet, somehow, I have the scientific information to support my assertions. Forget who is saying it, look at the science! Although I somehow get the feeling that this is more about who is saying it….

By the way, since you apparently are not aware, the BALCO data indicates Bonds did not start abusing hGH until AFTER his 73 HR and the notorious head and foot growth had already happened. See, now I am rolling my eyes because there are apparently some things even a PhD doesn't know....

(By the way, how did your PhD come by her information on the affect of hGH - assuming that is the meaning of your cryptic post - on healthy, athletic individuals? Does she specialize in sports medicine? Was she involved in any of the numerous peer reviewed studies of hGH? Or does she just know? Meaning no disrespect to your relative, who I am certain is an upstanding person, but I trust the data I have seen ahead of a polite conversation - and I am sure you were very polite - at dinner.)

...WRT Roberts 'admission', I'd claim I tried it but didn't inhale! It's worked before....REALLY. How gullable can we really be? What I'd really like to hear is someone to admit that hGH and 'roids was part of the professional athlete's culture. I'd like to know how often, whether it was before or after eating or working out or in the morning or before sleep... how long it would last in the system for detection...etc --- Oh, just like Jose's book, JUICED, enlightened us.

Roch,

Call Jeff....You and him need to determine how close the O's and Mariners are in a deal??? I would bet he is gone by friday....either way he is gone by friday...possibly to reds....Let us know what your hearing!!!

Roch,

Call Jeff....You and him need to determine how close the O's and Mariners are in a deal??? I would bet he is gone by friday....either way he is gone by friday...possibly to reds....Let us know what your hearing!!!

Tom D, I'm thinking it'd be best if you got your own column. Roch, please put in a good word for the guy and set him up. The sooner the better.

Now playing: Too Much (s for) Stuff, Lyle Lovett

Satyr3206,

I realize that this blog is mostly about the O's and baseball, but I'm curious, do you plan on giving up all sports or just baseball. Because if you have problems with PED's, you might as well just give it up.

I really hope you are not a fan of the NFL. If you are, you may have to rethink your stance. I realize that the NFL has had steroid testing for 20 years, but all that means is that their players simply shifted to HGH 20 years ago. In fact, the NFL is probably already on to the next big PED since MLB (not the NFL) is helping to fund the effort to come up with a practical HGH test. When there is a reliable and practical (non-blood drawing) test for HGH the NFL players will already be on to the next non-detectable thing.

I don't mean to condone MLB players using illeagle PED's but compared to the NFL the MLB is a bunch of babes in the woods.

I'm kinda pissed Clemens won't be around to bluff his way to another comeback and pilfer another 18 million from the Yanks coffers.
(To think he and Pavano ate up 28mm last year was simply fantatstic,owing to superior general managership by whats his name. And to think I beat on poor Flanny every chance I get...)
That was one of my top 10 Oriole highlights of 2007. Damn. Well, that and seeing the AL East standings on Fenway Pak scoreboard during the playoffs. Ouch!

Looks like TOM D is becoming the new "ghost of Earl" on Rochs Blog....thought we were through with him. Wait maybe it is the ghost under a new name???

OK Judge, Dr. Tom D Esq.-

This was in the Slate article you referenced "So, why do so many athletes take HGH? One possibility is that the drug really does enhance performance but that the effect is too subtle to measure in a controlled setting. An elite athlete might be able to detect very slight improvements in strength and agility that would be invisible to lab scientists or statistical tests. At the highest levels of sport, a tiny edge can make a big difference. Athletes might also derive some added benefit by mixing HGH with other drugs—anti-aging doctors often prescribe growth hormone in combination with testosterone."

After reading some of the evidence you cited I do not know that HGH would not benefit an athlete but I do know that it is banned in MLB hence if you use it you are a cheater.

I am sure I am only using part of the info to make my point again, though.

I also don't think anyone Knows when Bonds starting taking HGH except himself and those who assisted him.

I did make it through all 100+ of the responses on the previous entry btw.

Pete Rose should not be elected to the HOF. Now you can all say you knows someone who believes that.

I agree that frequent blood testing of MLBers is required to bring integrity back to baseball but even this won't necessarily eliminate PED's because atheletes are always trying to find new ways to get an edge.

Finally I am sick of this story too but I can't ignore it and say let's just move on because then PED's will continue to proliferate. It also seems unfair to prosecute Bonds and not pursue other cheaters.

I hope I didn't throw anyone under the bus.

Several sources from MLBTraderumors to Seattle message boards are saying the Mariners are still in hot pursuit.

However the offer from Cincy also looks good with Votto and Cueto included. Votto draws comparisons to Adam Dunn, the people's cherce.

Seattle has Jones, Sherrill (who could close) and possibly prize catcher Clement (who could then go in another trade, although I do not see them giving up Jones AND Clement).

Meanwhile Roberts to the Cubs for Murton, Gallagher and Patterson looks like it may be just a matter of getting the league office to approve.

My cousin in Chicago says this the talk of the town up there. She also relates that the bloggers seem to favor Murton over Pie and wish Hendy would ship Pie out instead.

With all the noise about these 2 guys it seems something is about to break.

The Sports Casters in Cincinnati are acting like Bedard is on his way to the queen city. They have already interviewing players that could be involved in trades. They don't seem to happy about it.

I've seen most the players play live involved in the trade. Joey Votto is ready to start every day at first. Josh Hamilton has a good bat and solid but room for improvement on defense. He's also a really nice guy from what I hear.

Homer Bailey and or Jay Bruce are at least a year away from making the 25 man roster. Bailey is still really young. He reminds me a lot of Hayden Penn. He's got good breaking stuff but his fastball will rarely touch 90.

I think Joey Votto is going to be a star and is underappreciated in this possible trade. Since the Orioles haven't had a good hitting first baseman since Raffy, I think this is more of a priority than Bruce.

Satyr3206
Sorry to see you go, say it ain't so. You were a welcome voice on Roch's blog. But I can see where you are coming from. Who wants to be engaged in this steroid-era scene; this team's and owner's futility; this so not-about-on-the-field mess that is the state of our favorite game now? I can sympathize and I, too, am disgusted with it all.

I personally think that the Mitchell Report was a waste of time and money. What does it do to advance the prosperity of the game? Not that the guy and his team didn't try to do a good job, just that what they came up with wasn't worth much.

I could admit to using the game and the Orioles (lifelong fan that I am) for my own self-gratification, but I can't say yet that I'm going to Baseball Anonymous meetings. Instead, I think I'll go read Thomas Boswell's "How Life Imitates the World Series" again.

Hey maybe its just me, but I'd rather have Meche for 40 mil than Silva for 46 mil.

I read through the season ticket letter today and almost cried laughing as I did. If the Orioles honestly expect me to believe Andy McPhail wrote any of that it explains why they thought I'd pay the $5895 to renew the Plan A and Plan E seats I had in the lower box by 3rd base. I think I'll just go ahead and buy a few tickets off of eBay when I feel a good match-up come along... too bad we can't play any teams from the minors and have it count like when college teams schedule the D-1AA opponents for week one... we might make it for .500... or at least close...

It's funny how inflation doesn't wait for a winning season. Let's get real people, this is a business, an entertainment business. To realize that their costs are going up for everything at the park, from hot dogs to the cost of fuel for getting the team around, and yet somehow expect that your costs for watching should remain constant, that the actual cost to you should in fact go down each year until a winner is in town (simple economics) is stupid. Where else in the world do you expect that to be the practice? Imagine telling the movie companies that you don't think there should be ticket increases until they have an oscar winner --

There are differences, of course, but expecting something from the Orioles that you wouldn't do in your own business, and thinking that somehow professional sports teams are non-profits is ridiculous.

Tom D - You're right - it is more about who is saying it. You may be correct in all of the "facts" you post on seemingly every subject of this blog. But the way you come off, you sound like nothing more than a condescending a$$hole. You seem to suffer from some type of insecurity complex in that you want everyone to know how smart you are. You remind me of the Stewart character on "Mad TV" - "Look what I can do!". It seems that when someone doesn't agree with you, you slam them as bad as you often claim that others on this blog slam you. I'm of the belief that you an arrogant fellow; the kind of borish person that others can't wait to get away from at parties.

Supply and demand BobbyBo. Your point is well taken though that there is nothing inherently wrong with raising ticket prices. But raising ticket prices in the face of falling demand may not be wise. I guess they are trying to recoup money from the corporations who mainly give tickets to clients and out-of-towners anyway. Makes for great NY and Boston series.

Realistically money is not the big issue. And this is coming from one pretty frugal guy. It's about choice and use of time. I'd definitely pay higher prices to see a winning team and there probably isn't a value low enough that would cause me to rearrange plans midweek to watch AAAA competition. That doesn't mean I haven't been to my fair share of O's-Rays games but I would probably consider season tickets if I thought I was watching a high level of competition. Out of all of the many dumb excuses that have come from the warehouse, the greatest of all time has to be the line about not signing good players so they could keep ticket prices down! Ohhhh... thanks for that one. That Pete--always thinking of others. I should send him a Xmas card.

> now I am rolling my eyes because there are apparently some things even a PhD doesn't know.

Tom D: That's for sure. I've taught many PhDs and although they love to call themselves "Dr" they aren't. PhD means Doctorate of Philosophy. In other words, Piled higher and Deeper. I've wondered how a few of them received their degree, they couldn't have done all the work because they're absolutely incompetent as colleagues.