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March 31, 2008

Tough day at the Yard

ESPN just did a story on Brenda Frese’s twins. No kidding. Did everyone else miss this angle?

Here’s another catchy one: Her top-seeded team is down by 10 at the half.

I made a quick pit stop at Sliders after the game because it had been days since a drunk stumbled over to me, tried to shake my hand and told me that we were cool.

My favorite part is when the friend – and there’s always the voice-of-reason friend in these scenarios – apologizes profusely for his buddy’s behavior and drags him away, just as I’m about to adjust his dental records.

I wasn’t clear why manager Dave Trembley brought Matt Albers into the sixth inning of tonight’s game, given that Albers is the long reliever, but he was outstanding. He retired all eight batters he faced, throwing only 26 pitches, and gained an immeasurable amount of confidence in the process.

I guess it’s official: Dave Trembley knows more about managing than I do.

I won’t bother taping any ankles before tomorrow night’s game, because I’m also certain that the training staff knows more about treating injuries than I do.

But can any of them blog like this guy? Ha!

Aubrey Huff was given “the treatment” tonight by fans who haven’t forgotten or forgiven his appearance on Bubba the Love Sponge’s show back in November. I’m hoping the booing was an Opening Day thing and will go the way of the Dodo bird because it’s going to get old real fast.

I can see letting Huff have it if he’s insisting that everything he said about Baltimore is true and the residents need to just get over it or he’ll also stop hitting Tampa Bay pitching this season. But he’s admitted his mistake numerous times. He can't erase the past, or the tapes from the show. It was fair to tear into him months ago, but it’s March 31 and the season’s started and it’s really time to move on.

The booing started to feel forced by the ninth inning, as if it mistakenly was still the cool thing to do. Meanwhile, Huff had a single, missed a long home run by a few feet and crushed a ball that first baseman Carlos Pena smothered with a lunging stop. In a game where quality at-bats were scarce, Huff had a few of them.

He gets the point. People are mad that he dissed the city and embarrassed himself and the organization with his conduct on the show – and we’re not just talking about the Baltimore rippage. But it’s done. Teammates are tired of it, though they had some fun at his expense earlier in the day because that’s what guys do. We pile on. And then we jump off and defend our friends. I’m not suggesting that fans unfurl banners supporting Huff on Wednesday. But I don’t see the need to make the jeering a nightly obsession. It’s already gotten tired.

Maybe we can find another cause.

 

We can start a rumor that Albers didn’t donate a buck to some charity at the cash register at his local supermarket. I was guilted into doing it again a few days ago. The next time I decline, I’ll make sure everyone knows and you can walk past the press box and boo me every time I try to file a blog entry.

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 10:35 PM | | Comments (47)
                    

In need of a rally

The Orioles are losing, 6-2, and Melvin Mora was just called out on strikes, and called for interference, to end the eighth.

Mora drifted toward first base and prevented catcher Dioner Navarro from throwing to second as Brian Roberts broke for the bag.

It's been that kind of day.

Jeremy Guthrie was charged with five earned runs (six total) and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings. He walked one, struck out two and hit a batter.

The Rays got a few soft singles, and Mora committed an error in the third that hurt, but Guthrie wasn't particularly sharp.

Manager Dave Trembley is using his two long relievers, Matt Albers and Brian Burres, to finish up. Albers threw 26 pitches while retiring all eight batters he faced. I didn't think we'd see either pitcher this late in the game.

The attendance: 46,807.

A lot of people must have chosen to watch the game at home. Or at their favorite bar.

Now there's an idea.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 5:19 PM | | Comments (24)
                    

New to the nest

The Orioles signed infielder Alex Cintron to a minor league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Norfolk.

Cintron signed with the Cubs during spring training and was subsequently released.

How long before he's in Baltimore?

The Rays lead, 3-2 in the third inning. One of their runs in the third was unearned after Melvin Mora misplayed a slow roller from Carl Crawford. Jeremy Guthrie allowed three hits in the inning, including B.J. Upton's two-run single, and also hit a batter.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 3:56 PM | | Comments (10)
                    

Leading 2-0

The air must be heavy because Carlos Pena and Kevin Millar crushed the ball and it didn't leave the park.

I thought Millar had a three-run homer in the first, but he settled for a two-run double when left fielder Carl Crawford leaped at the warning track and had the ball bounce off his glove. Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis both scored on the play.

Millar did his Ray Lewis dance during the introductions.

Aubrey Huff was booed during the intros and again when he came to the plate and flied out. It got louder as he returned to the dugout.

You know the Rays are loving it.

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 3:29 PM | | Comments (9)
                    

Before the first pitch

The weather isn't ideal for baseball, especially the opener. Sure puts a damper on the festivities.

The tarp is off the field, but I sense that a mist will fall throughout the day. We'll just have to deal with it.

Team president Andy MacPhail walked through the clubhouse earlier, shook hands with the players and wished them luck.

Jeremy Guthrie seems pretty loose, as always. No trace of nerves.

The media doesn't talk to the starting pitcher before a game, but he initiated conversation with me as soon as I walked through the doors.

Then again, so did a lot of guys. It's like they've never seen me in a suit before.

"You are kidding!" Aubrey Huff said after doing a double-take.

"Wow," Brian Roberts said, shaking his head and grinning.

Jay Payton simply walked past me and said, "You look funny in a suit."

I'm breaking out the jeans on Wednesday.

The Sun ran the lineups in today's editions, but I'll post them again:

Brian Roberts - 2B

Melvin Mora - 3B

Nick Markakis - RF

Kevin Millar - 1B

Aubrey Huff - DH

Ramon Hernandez - C

Luke Scott - LF

Adam Jones - CF

Luis Hernandez - SS

Jeremy Guthrie - P

And for Tampa Bay:

Akinori Iwamura - 2B

Carl Crawford - LF

Carlos Pena - 1B

B.J. Upton - CF

Cliff Floyd - DH

Willy Aybar - 3B

Eric Hinske - RF

Dioner Navarro - C

Jason Bartlett - SS

James Shields - P  

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 1:29 PM | | Comments (22)
                    

It's finally here!

Happy Opening Day!

Anyone going to the game today? Be sure to grab a coat and an umbrella. If the drive to my daughter’s high school was any indication, the forecast is calling for cold and drizzly conditions, with a 70-percent chance of me complaining about it before the first pitch.

Make that 80.

It could be worse, of course. I’ve seen snow on more than one occasion.

Remember the year that the Orioles lost a fly ball in right field because they were playing in a blizzard?

I seem to recall second baseman Jerry Hairston trying to make the catch because he was the only guy who saw the ball among the Frisbee-sized flakes. I thought he was going to end up on the warning track.

I’ll be filing blog entries throughout the day, as usual. The clubhouse opens to the media at 11:30 a.m., and I plan on arriving at the ballpark no later than 11 so I can get set up in the press box. I also have to file a notebook and write a sidebar – a story that plays off the game. I hope readers of this blog understand that I’m doing other things, so there will be gaps in the entries. Same as spring training. The Sun won’t cut me a paycheck every two weeks just to have me blog.

It’s always a zoo on Opening Day. Members of the media who don’t normally cover the team request a credential so they can roam the field during batting practice, watch the game for free and basically get in the way of the regulars who have a job to do. And inevitably, one cameraman in the cramped dugout will try to physical move a reporter out of the way so he has a clear shot of this subject, and that reporter will threaten to make him eat the camera or carry it out of Camden Yards in a place he never imagined it would fit.

It depends on my mood.

Anyway, time to jump in the shower and find something nice to wear. It’s a tradition of sorts that the media dresses up for the first game – at least by reporter standards. It’s almost like photo day at your elementary school.

Be back shortly.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 8:59 AM | | Comments (49)
                    

March 30, 2008

The workout

As I type this entry, bullpen coach Alan Dunn is hitting bouncers to Daniel Cabrera after the right-hander throws a "pitch" to backup catcher Guillermo Quiroz. The ball often clanks off Cabrera's orange glove. Pitching coach Rick Kranitz is standing behind the mound, offering counseling.

If Cabrera's fielding doesn't improve, it won't be for lack of effort. He's putting in the extra time. 

Earlier, third base coach Juan Samuel hit grounders to Luis Hernandez at shortstop. And Adam Jones was the first player out of the clubhouse after the team meeting, roaming center field while holding a bat and appearing to time his jumps against the center field fence. It looked like Jones was counting off steps. Anything to get more comfortable out there.

Jones admitted earlier that he's going to be nervous tomorrow. Extremely nervous. Try to make him feel at home if you're at the game.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 4:27 PM | | Comments (31)
                    

Workout notes

As I'm sure most of you have heard, the Orioles released Jay Gibbons and kept Scott Moore.

Team president Andy MacPhail and manager Dave Trembley noted how there weren't enough at-bats available for Gibbons, and he needs a steady amount. MacPhail relayed Gibbons' response as "I agree completely."

Also, Luis Hernandez will be the starting shortstop on Opening Day. The lineup doesn't have any surprises:

Brian Roberts - 2B

Melvin Mora - 3B

Nick Markakis - RF

Kevin Millar - 1B

Aubrey Huff - DH

Ramon Hernandez - C

Luke Scott - LF

Adam Jones - CF

Luis Hernandez - SS

Jeremy Guthrie - P

Brandon Fahey is regarded as the fifth outfielder, ahead of Moore and Huff, according to Trembley.

Randor Bierd is wearing No. 51 because he says it's his lucky number.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 2:37 PM | | Comments (25)
                    

March 29, 2008

Back in Baltimore

Can someone please turn up the heat?

I grabbed a 6:10 a.m. flight to BWI and heard the pilot announce that it's 34 degrees here. My tan faded in two minutes.

The Orioles set up heat lamps for players to stand under while signing autographs on the field as part of the FanFest activities. Meanwhile, I was told to suck it up.

Maybe I'll just think warm thoughts.

Nice of Southwest to keep its counter closed until 5 a.m. Made my 4:20 a.m. arrival at the Fort Lauderdale airport seem a tad unnecessary.

Does anyone else find it awkward to drive their car for the first time after using a rental for six weeks? I couldn't get the seat adjusted properly and I couldn't remember how to work the radio. It felt like I was sitting too low and the steering wasn't quit right. And who chose those CDs?

It just seemed weird. Always does.  

Chris Roberson, Chris Heintz and Eider Torres are here despite not making the 25-man roster. Scott Moore is grouped with Kevin Millar and George Sherrill while waiting to find out whether he's made the team. That can only happen if Jay Gibbons is released. Otherwise, Moore will be optioned to Triple-A Norfolk.

Maybe he'll regain his stroke down there. He was scuffling late in spring training. Too many strikeouts.

Heintz is signing with Adam Jones and Daniel Cabrera. It's like being the third tenor.

The new scoreboard is impressive. The picture quality is outstanding. Such a drastic difference from the old one.

The out-of-town scoreboard also has video capabilities now. You'll like it.

Anyone notice that only two of the 12 pitchers on this team came up through the Orioles' system? Everyone else started out in another organization.

If you saw Adam Jones in center field in the first intrasquad game, and again late in spring training, you'd think two different players wore No. 10 in camp. The improvement was dramatic, and manager Dave Trembley pointed this out while meeting with reporters before yesterday's game.

Jones misplayed a fly ball so badly in the intrasquad game, he eventually lost his footing while failing to make the catch. He turned the wrong way, tried to spin back and almost did a summersault and a cartwheel at the same time.

I would have given him a higher score if he had stuck the landing.

While I doubt that many guys are excited to be playing an exhibition game in D.C. especially after their FanFest commitment, they do welcome the chance to perform under the lights, as they'll be doing for most of the season. All but one Grapefruit League game was played during the day. It's an adjustment.

I just hope they don't start dropping fly balls.

 

 

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 11:04 AM | | Comments (40)
                    

March 28, 2008

Mad, crazy finish

The Orioles were down to their last strike, trailing 3-1, when they rallied to beat the New York Mets, 4-3.

And this is a group of players who couldn't wait to board the bus for the airport. Way to hang in there.

Chris Heintz led off the ninth with a single against Mets reliever Doug Pelfrey, who retired the next two batters. Luke Scott, who dropped two fly balls today, doubled to cut the lead to 3-2. Jay Payton followed with a single to tie the game.

Extra innings loomed. And nobody was happy about that.

Not to worry. Luis Hernandez singled and Eider Torres looped a single into shallow left field to complete the comeback.

Kevin Millar, Aubrey Huff and Nick Markakis cheered from the dugout in their street clothes.

Eider Torres is now the most popular guy on the team. And he'll be heading to the minor league camp after tomorrow night's game.

Meanwhile, Tike Redman cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk. He has 72 hours to accept the assignment, as Jon Leicester did yesterday, or opt for free agency.

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 4:46 PM | | Comments (29)
                    

Where are the fundamentals?

The Orioles are getting sloppy again. Maybe they're just distracted with thoughts of flying out of here later today.

Luke Scott dropped a fly ball in left-center field to start the bottom of the second inning. Daniel Cabrera got the next two outs, walked Brady Clark and drilled Jose Reyes behind the right shoulder to load the bases.

Reyes went down hard, but he stayed in the game.

Kevin Millar walked to the mound to chat with Cabrera while the Mets' trainer checked on Reyes. He was probably reminding Cabera that he was leading off the bottom half of the inning and didn't necessarily want a fastball between his numbers.

Scott singled and moved to third on Adam Jones' double in the third inning. Second and third, no outs and Brandon Fahey coming up. Fahey sent a pop up to shallow center field, and Jones broke for third as if certain that the ball was going to drop. It didn't, and Jones was doubled off second.

Manager Dave Trembley hung his head as Jones returned to the dugout. Bench coach Dave Jauss gave Jones an encouraging pat on the back.

The game is tied, 1-1, in the third after Brian Roberts doubled with two outs to score Scott.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 2:03 PM | | Comments (22)
                    

Lots of news

Where to begin?

I'll go with the rotation, where Brian Burres is the No. 5 starter. With no game being played April 1, he won't make his first start until April 6. He'll be available in relief the first two games.

Daniel Cabrera is the No. 2 starter - surprise! - followed by Steve Trachsel and Adam Loewen. The Orioles' logic behind the decision revolves around wanting to keep Cabrera as close to pitching every fifth day as possible. No extended breaks, which seem to benefit Trachsel more when he gets extra work with pitching coach Rick Kranitz.

Matt Albers will be the long man out of a bullpen that includes everyone you expected: George Sherrill, Jamie Walker, Chad Bradford, Greg Aquino, Dennis Sarfate and Rule 5 pick Randor Bierd.

Bierd and Sarfate will be multiple-inning guys if necessary. Aquino will be a set-up guy and backup closer.

Rocky Cherry went on the disabled list, retroactive to March 22, with a strained right shoulder.

Jay Gibbons will accompany the team to Baltimore while we all wait to find out whether his 15-day suspension has been overturned. The Orioles don't have to set their roster until 3 p.m. Sunday. You can bet Scott Moore and Tike Redman are more than a little curious.

Trembley said he won't announce his lineup until he posts it on Opening Day.

Loewen won't be at FanFest because he's starting tomorrow night's exhibition game in D.C. Everyone else will be there.

If you go to D.C., say hello to pitchers Ryan Keefer and Julio Manon. They'll be with the club for one night.

Whew! I think that's everything for now.

 

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 12:07 PM | | Comments (25)
                    

The lineup

The clubhouse didn't open to the media today until 11 a.m., three hours later than usual, so I spent the morning packing two suitcases and making runs to the dumpster so The Sun wouldn't have to purchase our spring condo.

We'll be meeting with manager Dave Trembley at 11:45 a.m. I'm hoping he'll finally reveal the identity of the fifth starter and confirm that Steve Trachsel, Daniel Cabrera and Adam Loewen are following Jeremy Guthrie in the rotation. Maybe the Jay Gibbons situation will get resolved.

Here's the lineup:

Brian Roberts - 2B

Melvin Mora - 3B

Nick Markakis - RF

Kevin Millar - 1B

Aubrey Huff - DH

Ramon Hernandez - C

Luke Scott - LF

Adams Jones - CF

Brandon Fahey - SS

Daniel Cabrera - P

I'll try to count how many times Jones bunts today. He's been doing that a lot lately.

I still don't understand why he did it yesterday with runners on the corners and no outs in the first inning of an exhibition game. There's no way he should be going up there thinking, "We need to stay out of the double play. I'll give up an out here to move Tike Redman to second."

Afterward, Trembley noted how the Orioles let Nationals starter John Lannan off the hook in the first. That would be one way of doing it.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 11:26 AM | | Comments (8)
                    

March 27, 2008

A 2-1 loss

Maybe the bats will awaken when the truck transporting them pulls up to Camden Yards.

The Orioles' only run today scored in the first inning. John Lannan, a left-hander who won't make the Opening Day roster, held them to three hits over six innings. Lannan is good. He could take Shawn Hill's turn on April 13th.

The Nationals went ahead in the seventh when Dennis Sarfate hit Ryan Langerhans with two outs, threw a wild pitch and gave up a single to Jesus Flores.

Steve Trachsel was excellent. Six innings, one run, four hits, one walk. We'll take that. His curveball was very good, but he'd like to do a better job getting his splitter down.

Trachsel said he hasn't been told where he fits in the rotation, but he's lined up to be the No. 2 starter. The Orioles selected his contract from Triple-A Norfolk after the game - a mere formality - and optioned Jim Johnson.

Jon Leicester accepted his assignment to Norfolk rather than opt for free agency. Include him in the Tides' rotation, which stands to be pretty good.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 4:19 PM | | Comments (25)
                    

Game update

The Orioles and Nationals are tied, 1-1, in the fourth inning.

Dmitri Young just singled for the Nationals. Then he hopped on his motorized scooter and went to first base.

The guy receives a generous contract extension from the Nationals and shows up at spring training looking like the Chrysler Building.

Estimates here place him at 300 pounds.

His left thigh, I mean.

Nice guy. Just needs to mix in a salad once in a while.

Young told reporters here that he didn't swing a bat until reporting to camp. But he did win 18 separate chicken wing eating contests.

Or maybe it was 300. I wasn't taking notes.

Anyway, the Orioles scored their run in the first inning when Chris Roberson walked, stole second base and advanced when Young fielded Tike Redman's grounder and threw late to third. Adam Jones sacrificed Redman to second - no idea why - and Roberson scored on Oscar Salazar's grounder to short.

Felipe Lopez led off the third with a long home run off Steve Trachsel, who's allowed three hits.

Luis Hernandez fielded a routine grounder in the second and fired the ball over Scott Moore's head, almost wiping out half the Nationals' team. Players scattered as though someone threw a stink bomb at their feet. Or Young was inviting himself over for dinner.

That was Hernandez's sixth error, which is no way to celebrate being the Opening Day shortstop.

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 1:59 PM | | Comments (32)
                    

The lineup

Chris Roberson - RF

Tike Redman - LF

Adam Jones - CF

Oscar Salazar - 2B

Scott Moore - 1B

Chris Heintz - DH

Guillermo Quiroz - C

Brandon Fahey - 3B

Luis Hernandez - SS

Steve Trachsel - P

Fahey will move to left field later in the game.

Manager Dave Trembley said if Fahey is going to be on the team, he'll need to play different positions. I took that statement to mean Luis Hernandez is the Opening Day shortstop, and Trembley didn't deny it. But he also said the Orioles could work out an arrangement where Hernandez and Fahey split time at shortstop this season.

Trembley also said he can't have guys on this team who are one-dimensional.

Trembley noted that Jeremy Guthrie is throwing more changeups in fastball counts, which is important. Guthrie is "softening up his game." Too many hitters know he's usually around the plate, and they can sit on the fastball.

Trembley also wants him to pitch inside more.

"I'd like to see him move some feet," Trembley said.

Adam Stern is here from the minor league camp. I wasn't even sure he was still in the organization.

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 11:55 AM | | Comments (32)
                    

Last Florida road game

The inventor of the Egg McMuffin and the founder of Popeye’s Chicken both died this week.

I have nothing to add. And I really wish I did, because there has to be a joke in there somewhere. A little help, please.

I’m sitting in the press box at Space Coast Stadium, home of the Washington Nationals. It’s a nice facility that sits in the middle of nowhere. You look beyond the center field fence and you see a lot of brown grass, dirt and gravel. But I made it here in a little under 2 ½ hours. It usually takes three.

Don't ask.

One of the parking lot attendants here – and by “parking lot,” I mean grass field – told me they’re expecting a sellout. The place holds about 8,000, including standing-room. I guess people want a catch a preview of the 2008 World Series.

I haven’t seen a lineup today, since I went directly from my condo to the ballpark, but the last time I checked, Adam Jones and Luis Hernandez/Brandon Fahey were the only regulars on the trip. (I’m not sure whether Hernandez or Fahey is regarded as a regular. Soon, though).

I believe Chris Roberson is batting leadoff and Chris Heintz is the cleanup hitter, but I’ll check on that.

If you can’t get enough of me – and really, who can? – come to the Sports Legends Museum on Wednesday and catch a little Orioles talk, beginning at noon. I’ll be joined on the panel by Sun columnist and former spring training roommate Peter Schmuck, MLB.com’s Spencer Fordin, The Examiner’s Sean Welsh and PressBox publisher Stan “The Fan” Charles.

Tickets for the event are $25 and include admission, free parking at the museum, the program with the speakers and a box lunch (just don't leave it near Schmuck or it'll be gone in 10 seconds).

Contact Rachel Childress at 410-727-1539, ext. 3013 or 

RachelC@BabeRuthMuseum.com.

I’m heading down to the field. We’ll talk later.

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 10:33 AM | | Comments (21)
                    

March 26, 2008

An 8-2 loss

This game would be a lot less disturbing if it was played in early March.

Two dropped fly balls. A diving attempt on another that led to a triple. Poor relief pitching - though the extra outs are a nuisance.

Matt Albers let two inherited runners score in the fifth. He allowed three hits in 1 2/3 innings. Less than a week ago, he was the popular choice among most of the media here to be named the fifth starter. I wouldn't put money on it now.

The Cardinals scored three runs off Greg Aquino in the seventh. Only one was earned.

Randor Bierd allowed a run in the eighth.

Jay Gibbons is hitting .200 after going 1-for-4. He also dropped a fly ball near the left field line in the seventh.

Asked about Gibbons' play in left, manager Dave Trembley responded: "Probably the best way for me to tell you is there's room for improvement. That's probably the most direct and honest approach."

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 4:09 PM | | Comments (53)
                    

Game update

The Orioles and Cardinals are tied, 2-2, in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Jeremy Guthrie took a five-hit shutout into the fifth - yes, he was scattering those hits - but Aaron Miles singled and Skip Schumaker tripled to left field, with Jay Gibbons missing on his diving attempt. Jay Payton just dropped a fly ball in center to bring home the tying run.

Guthrie loaded the bases with one out in the first, but the Cardinals couldn't score.

Consecutive doubles by Gibbons and Payton gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead in the fourth, and the Orioles added an unearned run in the fifth on a Melvin Mora single after Miles and left fielder Chris Duncan collided while chasing Scott Moore's fly ball.

Moore finally had a ball hit to him at second base. He fielded Miles grounder and threw him out.  Bravo.

Former general manager Hank Peters will throw out the ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day, with Rick Dempsey on the receiving end, as a way of honoring the 1983 world championship team.

The concession stands will include a few new menu items. Anyone hungry for corn dog bites? How about garlic and herb fries?

They'll also serve ballpark sliders and steak-umm burgers. And before you ask, I have no idea how a steak-umm qualifies as a burger, but we'll soon find out. 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 2:26 PM | | Comments (33)
                    

Cuts coming

Four players have been informed that they'll be reassigned to minor league camp later this week.

Oscar Salazar will head to Sarasota, Fla. after tomorrow's game in Viera. Chris Heintz, Eider Torres and Chris Roberson will accompany the team to Baltimore, participate in FanFest and fill out the roster for the Saturday night exhibition game against the Nationals in D.C.

Cutting Heintz means Guillermo Quiroz will be the backup catcher. We knew that already, but this makes it official.

It sounds like Quiroz often will be paired with Adam Loewen.

Trembley really likes Heintz and envisions him working with the young starters at Triple-Norfolk. He's also a big fan of Salazar's and repeated that the veteran infielder could be an asset when the Orioles play interleague games without a designated hitter.

The last roster spot apparently will be determined after tomorrow's game. If Gibbons has to serve his 15-day suspension, and that's not set in stone yet, it's down to Scott Moore and Tike Redman. If Gibbons remains on the roster, there's no room for either player.

Looking around the majors, former Oriole Jorge Julio will make the Indians' Opening Day roster. Imagine that. And Jon Knott hit his third homer for the Twins yesterday.

The Mets are still in the market for a right-handed hitting corner outfielder, but I'm told they have no interest in Jay Payton.

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 11:49 AM | | Comments (39)
                    

The lineup

Scott Moore - 2B

Melvin Mora - 3B

Nick Markakis - RF

Kevin Millar - 1B

Jay Gibbons - LF

Jay Payton - CF

Ramon Hernandez - C

Luis Hernandez - SS

Jeremy Guthrie - P

You'll notice there's no designated hitter today.

Moore is making his second consecutive start at second base in place of Brian Roberts. He played six innings yesterday and didn't have a ball hit to him. Hard to believe, but it's true.

His only play came when he took a throw from Aubrey Huff.

 

Posted by Roch Kubatko at 9:59 AM | | Comments (9)