If we don't trade Roberts, and I like the guy a lot, then we need to sign him long term right now. If we don't want to sign him long term then trade him now because he's hot and getting his average up after it was unusually down earlier this year.

Now that Pacman Jones wants everyone to call him Adam Jones, will our Bird center fielder consider changing his moniker to Tetris or Pong Jones?

Halo Jones?

Roberts' game is all about speed, defense, and drawing walks. Two of these three decline with age. Sell high: if you can get two Adam Jones-type prospects for Roberts, do it.

The bad news is that Pacman is now dropping his nickname and would like to be referred to as ...Adam Jones. I think our AJ may want to change his monicker in this eventuality . Hackman is not recommended . I agree on Roberts , he is vital and he is anything but over the hill, unless he has the same vital statistics agent as Tejada. Even when he is on second he is a genuine stolen base threat. His bat from the right side isn't overwhelming but on all othre counts, good , good and good. Perhaps it all comes down to his agent and Andy having a heart to heart on the potential to extend.

Roch--Veal left on the table will go bad. Heating up again just won't do.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Does that also apply to T-Bone Shelby? - Roch

First of all, thank you Allen, that was exactly what I was going to say & what I was thinking..... I didn't even mention the Ref scandal, I would have really been roasted by the guru if I had huh? :-)
Hear the joke about Commish Stern during the playoffs, when he was in LA? Some wit asked him how if felt to be the new Vince McMahon....

Imus probably should just stay clear of any references at all toward the race topic....no matter what he intended, however, Pacman Jones is not exactly a sympathetic creature, I don't care if he is green with pink dots.

No to trading Roberts, he is only 30 & could still be very good for several more years. I won't cry if they deal Payton for used jockstraps & a 4 pack of RedBull. The RedBull might be the deal breaker though. Walker, Bradford, Millar, Burres, & Mora could go too, they can probably get some decent return on them in the right deals. NONE of them figure in after next year, maybe not even next year. I say keep Huff just because of his contract, the fact they can't trade all the hitters, & because he can be the Vet DH who can play 1B or 3B when needed too. Mora, Payton, & Millar don't have those traits or are older. I say hold onto Sherrill too, unless they GET a very good offer from someone. If they love Millar so much, he could probably be resigned for next year when he is released by whoever after the end of this year. I would only do that if they can't sign or trade for a power hitting 1B this winter though.

I hope that Montanez at least gets a Sept callup to see what he can do in the Show plus reward the guy in a way for a very good, solid year.

When i read this blog entry's title my heart skipped a beat... and not in the good way.

Just from reading that article, I think Sir MacPhail will be trying to lock up Mr. Roberts for awhile. And I think Mr. Roberts might actually agree to do it.

B-Rob is one of the best 2B in the league and there is no argument against it. He had what, like 50 stolen bases last year. So I don't think he's slowing down anytime soon. He's in great shape and the fans of Baltimore love him. He works the count and can usually put the ball wherever he wants. Sorry but a couple of prospects are not worth trading him. Like Roch said, it would have to be a "knock you on your a$$" offer!!

Plus it can't hurt the team by having a skilled, hard working, and caring vet on the team like Roberts.

Anyone who listens to Imus knew he was making a sarcastic point. If Dave Chappelle said the same EXACT thing everyone would assume he's being sarcastic. What is the point the media is trying to make though by bringing this up? They are basically training white guys now what it is appropriate to speak and think. These are multi-cultural training wheels. In another decade or so what Johnny Miller said about Rocco will get him a Pulitzer and what Imus said about PacMan will get him thrown in jail. That's the direction were heading. This is political correcness gone way too far.

I have been asking the question all along. Why trade Roberts. I even asked Peter Schmuck when I saw him several months ago who the Orioles could possibly replace him with in the leadoff spot. Schmuck did not have an answer.

Let's face it. The Orioles should not trade Roberts for the same reason they never traded Cal Ripken. Because his value to the Orioles goes far beyond what he does on the field. Sure, he is a great leadoff hitter, and a great catalyst for the team. But he brings the people out to the ball park, and his contributions to Johns Hopkins Childrens Center among other charities cannot be underappreciated.

The Orioles are not going to win the pennant this year, and probably won't win it next year. However, as long as they are rebuilding, they might as well build around their best players. They have already committed to building around Markakis. They should come to the same conclusion with Roberts as well.

Just like Roch stated, ONLY if I were completely floored by the offer would I let BRob go. Then it would simply be because I HAD to not because I WANT to.

Roberts will command a 4-5 year deal. I think his agent screwed up once already signing a short deal. Won't do it again (or he should get a new agent). Reyes to the O's is a pleasant pipe dream. You just don't part with that kind of player unless you are overwhelmed (just like us with Roberts). It would take a very high level prospect plus several of the ML guys you mentioned just to start talks. He led the NL in steals the last 3 years and all of MLB in the last two. He leads the Mets in hits, runs, 3B, total bases, stolen bases, and usually plays good D (though numbers are down along with his teammates). I'm not sure they are dying to part with him.

Still have to rebuild this season. We are not buyers unless we are buying for 2010. Why do we keep talking about stopgap SSs? We have one. Get a young talent at the deadline or offseason. What do we do about 2B if we trade Roberts???

Good luck to the Birds in Chicago!

No we won't ever seen Hernandez again at Camden Yards ... at least not in an Oriole uniform.

Regarding Bynum, has anyone ever talked to him about going back to the right side of the plate? Clearly he can't bat left handed. He should give it a go on his more natural side of the plate. Who knows? He certainly can't do worse than he is now.

As for Roberts, he either needs to be traded or signed long term. I love the way he plays and would love for him to stay an Oriole, but the team needs to commit one way or the other. They can always try and resign him as a free agent when he's up for it.

Hey Roch, do you think the Orioles will go after SS Cristian Guzman in the offseason? Should they?

I agree... unless you can get two position players (especially a SS and 2B) that you see being legit ML starters in 2009, Roberts is worth hanging on to and signing for a couple of years. Players with his skill set (high OBP, good baserunning IQ, sees lots of pitches, pretty good with the glove) are not easy to come by, and the skills aren't as likely to deteriorate as much with age. He's still hitting 40-50 doubles each year. And an asset in the community. He's also consistent year to year, and stays fairly healthy, except when he gets plowed into by Bubba Crosby.

I'm going to pass on playing GM. This season's been so much fun, I feel like it's 1989 all over again. I like the way they're playing, and I want to see them win with the guys they've got. Heck, I even miss Freddie Bynum already.

Though Roberts should think about trading his pre-at-bat music. That praise music or whatever it is isn't exactly crowd-pumping material.

Personally, I like Roberts and don't want to see him go anywhere. Add to that the fact that I just don't see anyone offering a deal that (as Andy has said all along) makes the team better by pulling the trigger, I don't see him going anywhere unless he is unreasonable with his contract extension demands or openly asks out.

Not to mention we already have a GAPING hole at SS right now...do we really need to make the entire middle infield a catastrophe?

A package containing several of the following players would be needed:
1. Josh Vitters, 18, 3B, 1st round pick, 2007.
2.Tony Thomas, 21, 2B, 3rd round, 2007.
3.Donald Veal, 23, LHP, 2nd round, 2005

Other than these guys, their system is pretty weak. Ceda and Gallagher are supposed to be good but Ceda sounds like another Ponson, framewise. (Guy has been up to 280 lbs) and Gallagher hasn't been very impressive.

Pitching wins championships... but not if you're stuck with a revolving door at 2nd base and shortstop. There isn't a single longterm option in their system right now. The Tides currently have Fahey, Hernandez, Bynum, McCoy, and Torres sharing time up the middle. I don't know much about McCoy, so I'll assume he doesn't have a high ceiling. The Baysox have a handful of 24 and 25 year olds I've never heard of too. Yet again, I'll assume low ceiling. Keys: ditto. JeromeHoes, 2B, taken in the 3rd round this year is only 18, so we won't be seeing him for awhile. Greg Miclat, SS, taken in the 7th round is 21. I', guessing since he was taken that "low" (a relative term) he isn't close to the majors, if he ever will be.

This team is in dire need of some quality prospects up the middle. Trade Roberts if you can get some. If not, sign him long term, hes the face of the franchise right now and a big reason they're winning games. If you trade him for beans you're taking a step back, especially with the fans who are starting to come back.

If they don't trade Brian Roberts, they're not taking rebuilding seriously.
Roberts turns 31 in October. He'll turn 32 after next season, when he'll be a free agent. His value is much higher now than it will be in 2010.
Though it's pleasant to watch the Orioles float above .500 this year, they are not contenders, and they won't be next year either.
I like Brian Roberts a lot. But if they don't trade him this summer, they're simply not serious about winning 95 games sometime in the future.

Almost nobody is untouchable; the key is what do you get in return. There seems to be more of a willingness to stick with the Orioles by Roberts now that there seems to be progress than there was at the end of last season. I for one would love to see him spend his entire career with the O's. But if someone wants to overpay to get him, we do have plenty of holes still left to fill. Just don't give him away.

Well, what color IS he? I wonder how many more jails this country would have to build if we did not have the NFL & NBA where blacks are given the opportunity to vent their anger at each other and not the rest of society?

Looks like "Felix" Herandez will have more career homeruns than Luis.

I'd like to see B-Rob retire as an Oriole BUT is someone wants to pull a Mike Ditka and empty their stable for us you have to make that deal.

The only way Luis Hernandez is seen in Camden Yards is if he buys a ticket.

You mean Fernando Cabrera.

I have a hard time playing GM when discussing Roberts. As a fan I dislike any player associated with steroids, I do not believe a word coming from the mouth of anyone associated with using them. If I were a GM maybe I would have comprehensive information about his usage and could therefore make better decisions. In the end I have to look at the Orioles starting pitching, the expectations for the rest of the year and for 2009. If the determination is we can win enough games without Roberts to keep fans interested I make a deal this summer or winter. I do not foresee him signing an extension once we hit the offseason, looming free agency will be too tempting.

Who listens to Don Imus?

I agree with Drew. If you don;t want to trade Roberts, you got to sign him long term. If he doesn't want to sign, then get what you can for him before he just walks away and we get nothing in return.

BC

I think Roberts actually has a higher average from the right side this year than the left side. Granted he has more power from the left side- but I would say his right side is far from a minus. Maybe someone else can find the stats on this but I am almost positive I saw he had a better average hitting from the right side.

Brian Roberts will, in all probability, remain with the Orioles this year, but O's are likely to swing a deal for a shortstop. Alex Cintron is a backup shortstop - at best.

Roch - agree that the O's have to be completely overwhelmed by an offer to get rid of Roberts. He gives this team a chance to win and seems like he actually likes the city, never mind that trading him would give the O's the worst middle infield in baseball.

Chances that walker and bradford are dealt - 99%
Chances that Sherrill is dealt - hoping for less than 10%

where is mike bordick?

o is for revolver ocelot

Don't forget that if we keep Roberts and he leaves in 2 years, we would get a first round pick and a second round pick in the draft for him.

Don't trade him now---if the Os are competitive and we have a chance at Mark T, then Roberts would be an important part of the equation...we already have good young pitching in the minors---next year, it could be: Roberts, Mora, Nick M, Tex, Huff, Scott, Weiters, Jones and hopefully somone like Mark Belanger....so hold on, Roberts will bring a lot AFTER the season if we need to trade him.....

I would only trade Roberts if we can get a above-average SS or 2B in return (plus other players). Our infield is struggling as it is with no SS and aging corner spots. I shudder to think of having a Cintron/Salazar middle infield (or even Fiorentino/Redman/Hernandez). We would be hearing a lot of 'base hit up the middle" when the opposing team is up to bat.

There's no sense in keeping Roberts if we can get a good middle infielder, a good outfielder, and a minimum of 2 good pitching prospects.

I want the O's to trade Roberts. But I'm not going to give him away for the garbage the Cubs have offered. Cedeno is a nobody. And we have 10 guys just like Veal and Gallagher in the minors. None of those guys have a chance at being a star. We don't need to trade for 3 mediocre players. I'd rather have 1 stud propect over that.

Andy would have to be really blown away by the trade bait, and after hearing his comments that the deal for Roberts to the Cubs wasn't even close in the winter/spring, we'll see another Tejada-like haul if B-Rob is traded. I say we hold onto him unless we get 4 (studs) for 1.

If we fall out of the race, and we haven't yet, I'd trade Roberts for some talented young IF propects to sure up 2b and ss. We seem to have major league outfilders, major league arms, major league catcher not far away...now's the time to get infielders. I wouldn't worry about 1b/3b...they seem to be in abundace..

Roberts has been one of the few bright spots in the O's lineup the past few years, so it would be very hard as a fan to see him leave. This season has been surprising fun to watch for many of us, but I also think that we all realize that the post season isn't in the cards for this team just yet, and there is still work to be done.

If (and only if) the O's can get deal in place that brings some real young talent to the organization, that's probably what they should do, but I'd like to see Roberts stick around for a while.

MLB really does not have many good lead off hitters. A lot of them are just hitters who bat lead off. If the O's can get 4-5 soon to be MLers then I can see it. Otherwise lets keep him. He seems to like everything about baltimore but the losing. And we aren't losing. Trade Bradford, Walker or Payton. They don't seem to be needed with the rest of the pen pitching well and Scott being the power bat in LF we been needing.

Don't trade Roberts. Leadoff men are hard enough to come by. The same thing for George Sherrill. You'll always need a closer especially with a young rotation. BTW, now that "Baltimore" will be on the road jerseys next year what will you complain about? The Cardinal and Dodger fans don't even think about it.I think it is a regionwide inferiority complex. Get over it.

As much as I would like to see a Marlin's like rebuilding purge I think keeping Roberts might be a good idea. True leadoff guys are hard to find and harder to develop.

If I never hear about that idiot Pacman again I will die a happy man.

Going to the Beach today to see some dolphins. Will let you know if Jason Taylor shows up.

I'm sorry but Cedeno, Gallagher and Veal do nothing for me. There is a reason the Cubs have tried mulitple infielders other than Cedeno. Gallagher has been passed over a few times as well for callups.

Yawn.

Roch,
The rebuilding plan hasn't been completely "scraped"?

-hey, I'm an editor by trade.

Anyway, I'm with you. I keep Roberts unless the O's get a blockbuster group of good minor-leaguers.

I'd rather have Roberts on our team than have this Gallagher kid smashing water mellons with a sledgehammer in the clubhouse...

You have to make the trade, unless he signs a long term deal. I'd love to keep him, but if we are left with nothing but a 4th or 3rd place finish after years end, then we needed to have moved him...

O's front office: DON'T WAIT. SIGN OR TRADE!

You have to make the trade, unless he signs a long term deal. I'd love to keep him, but if we are left with nothing but a 4th or 3rd place finish after years end, then we needed to have moved him...

O's front office: DON'T WAIT. SIGN OR TRADE!

Listen guys lets not fall into the trap of thinking we are doing a great job with this rebuilding . We are 38 and 36 and peopl have fallen into the trap that we are close to where we want to be. Couldn't be any further then the truth. We have 1 starting pitcher on this team repeat 1 starting pitcher and he should be a number 3 guy at the very best. We need a first baseman , who can hit more then 246, a shorstop, a 3rd baseman who can hit more then 240 and not hit into 100 double plays a year. The outfield is respectful and we can live with it. The catching position will be adressed soon with weiters, but please tell me where on earth are you going to get 7 ball players to fill all thos eholes. The bullpen is 4th in the league in era and that my friends is the only reason this team is staying afloat. So yes if we get overwhelmed with a trade offer for Brian we must take it because we don't have anybody is this organization the can help us. We all tend to fall into the same trap but we need to be truthful and 10 years of making bad drafts and bad management decisions will take years to correct.

Brian Roberts at age 34 or 35 is not going to be the player he is today at age 30. He will already be declining when the Orioles expect/hope to contend, in two years or more.

Gallagher-Cedeno-Veal and a fourth should have been good enough over the winter, and the Orioles shouldn't need a spectacularly good offer to trade him now.

Dave, the idea that Roberts is worth TWO Adam Jones-level prospects is completely unreasonable. (What would you say if the O's gave up Wieters and Tillman for Robinson Cano?)

Speaking of playing general manager, can we play manager a little bit? Why is Melvin Mora batting third? Maybe this has been debated ad infinitum, but I'm not an everyday reader. I did some playing around today on the Lineup Analysis tool (http://www.baseballmusings.com/cgi-bin/LineupAnalysis.py) over at Baseball Musings. Quite simply, Mora shouldn't be hitting above 6th in the lineup, and even that's debateable (I plugged in everyone's current season statistics except for Cintron; for him I went with more conservative career numbers since he's had so few at-bats). It's really interesting how the best lineups come out. Typically, Markakis would lead off, Scott or Roberts second, and then some combo of Millar/Huff at three and four with Roberts/Scott at five, Mora/Cintron at six and seven and, Hernandez eight and Jones nine. Interestingly, the best lineups have the O's scoring 5+ runs game (compared with 4.39 today; thanks Luis and Freddie!). Shockingly, even the worst of these sans-Luis and Freddie lineups are +.2 runs/game more than the O's current run scoring pace. Over a 162 game season, that's three additional wins (10 additional runs scored equals roughly one win, pitching held constant). For those not familiar with this type of analysis, OBP is an important driver of the optimal order, but SLG can make up for OBP in the middle of the lineup. The high OBP is why it usually puts Markakis first.

The point is this: no team with Millar, Huff and Scott 3-4-5 and drains like Ramon Hernandez and Melvin Mora has any business competing for the playoffs, or even pretending to compete for the playoffs. Thus, even if they seem to be in contention at the trade deadline, if you get an offer for Roberts that is too good to turn down, they should pull the trigger. For everyone who is going to argue otherwise, please take a look at the Seattle Mariners: they outperformed significantly last year, mortgaged the farm for a run at the postseason, and have fired their GM and manager. Stay the course; this team is still at least two years from contention. All moves should be made with an eye toward 2010.

One interesting thought might be to trade Roberts and Sherrill to the Indians since they are in a weak division, right on the verge of contention and built to "win now." A quick hot streak could convince them to keep Sabathia and reload for another playoff push.

If Fernando Cabrera has a 0.75 ERA, why is he not with the Orioles? Get him up here and send down Buvhich! Or, if they want a 4 man bench, they better get Montanez up to bring some offense. They need to look at the hitters who have .300 averages and can hit for power/average in their farm system. Clearly, Montanez is one of them.

As for Roberts, I am definitely keeping him unless anybody can point out a player that is similar as him, and can be tradeable? If another team empties their farm system for Roberts, then I'm leaning on the other side. But no can do for now or later.

The Os two games over .500 the third week in June was unpredictable. However, the Os are rebuilding. Stay with the plan. If they can get great value in return for anyone on the team they should do the deal. The rebuilding designed to make the Os competitive over the long term. All short term fixes, ie a AAAA SS for this year is a waste of resources. Let Andy make any trade that overwhelms him.

Come on Roch.... It's not a tough call at all. If the right deal is presented, you pull the trigger. Seems like you and a lot of others are letting that 38-36 stuff dilute your orange kool-aid. We still have far ways to travel... keep your eye on the rail and your hand on the throttle.... Translation... Rebuild, don't get sidetracked, full speed ahead.

A player will try to help his team to win, that should be a given. BUT, does a player try to help the team that he might be playing on, come September. If Brian knew that he would be playing for the Cubs in September and that any win might mean the difference in the going to the playoffs or not, would Brian chose to play "a little off" his game? I would hope not, but then when given the choice of using steroids or not, he choose poorly then too. (Just thinking out loud.)

I concur with the thinking that Brian Roberts should be
retained unless the O's are offered an extremely sweet deal.
Roberts is only 30 (31 in October) and it seems to me his
2008 numbers project favorably with his career averages.

btw: re the "rebuilding plan"
i think you meant it hasn't been "scrapped"

necissito updates por favor.

I think tonight is gonna be a good night for guthrie, where are the lineups y0?

u is for gUthrie

Above it says: "Roberts' game is all about speed, defense, and drawing walks. Two of these three decline with age. Sell high: if you can get two Adam Jones-type prospects for Roberts, do it."

I don't know which two decline, but with Rickey Henderson it was none of the three until he was about 43. Speed and defense I suppose but with really good players, they compensate with experience. Roberts is more valuable to the Orioles than either Tejada or Bedard because he fulfills mutiple roles of infield defensive anchor and leadoff hitter. You can win the WS with Roberts, and you can do it before he turns 35. Trade him and you have two glaring holes in the middle of the infield unless somehow, in short order, you find a replacement who is either leadoff/2B or leadoff/SS. Nobody else in the organization currently approximates a leadoff hitter, much less a top-quality one.

I might trade Sherrill though because he has likely peaked in value and he will cost maybe $4-5M next year in arbitration.

As for leftovers, I doubt Moose Skowron could be salvaged at this point either, or even Rob Deer for that matter.

FLAT BREEZY 4 LYFE

To defend Luis Hernandez a little, he's got just 42 at bats so that .190 batting average doesn't say a lot. Over his entire minor league career he has never been a great hitter, though. If the kid played defense like he did for us last year, I'd take him over the other stopgap options we've used since I don't see Cintron being much of an offensive force. If we aren't going to get any production out of the position, we may as well get a defensive wizard. But I've got no problem with MacPhail grabbing whatever he can, provided it costs us little and we aren't committing to whatever we grab for more than this year.

By the way, did Bukvich deserve a bullpen spot any more than Aquino? I guess he's a better "long" option, but Aquino has much better numbers at Norfolk.

Barry, I like "Tetris Jones" because he's a piece of the puzzle that fits the Orioles foundation for long-term success.

I watched the last 2 Norfolk games on MASN and they look very crappy. Everybody on that team has reached his highest level, or is on the way down and/or out, including several who should still be in Bowie.
Zero position prospects, except as spare parts.
Remember, I know what a crappy AAA team looks like, having watched the Portland Beavers for the past 8 years.
Wonder if they're gonna throw the O's out of Norfolk like they were thrown out of Rochester?
McPh and Tremvbley have been magicians with what they have.

Roch

I never liked the idea of trading Roberts. Unless he 'privately' tells the FO that he wants out, I say keep him. The one thing about building a young team is you need a few veterans around to show the kids the ropes. Roberts is a solid player on teh field, and a star in the community as well.....

On another note, any insight into the potential trade partners for a SS?

Roch

I never liked the idea of trading Roberts. Unless he 'privately' tells the FO that he wants out, I say keep him. The one thing about building a young team is you need a few veterans around to show the kids the ropes. Roberts is a solid player on the field, and a star in the community as well.....

On another note, any insight into the potential trade partners for a SS?

oo would have to be knocked on my butt to trade Roberts at this point. Sign him for 3 years and 30 mil.

Not taking the time to Google this, but is Imus' partner the same Warner Wolf who did play-by-play for ABC's short-lived foray into Monday Night Baseball duirng the 70's, somehow getting along with Cosell and I forget which ex-jock, without any of the drama that made Monday Night Football worthy of a TV movie (OK; it was essentially the Cosell bio in disguise, but give John Turturro kudos for playing both Howard and Billy Martin recently)? I know that Wolf also held down the sports desk for the NYC Eyewitness News team about the same time, but if he's sunk to being Imus' wingman, he can at least take solace in getting his first national media exposure in what must be about 30 years!

what we need to do is ink Roberts long term AND find him a quality double play partner at SS. With Adam Jones and Weiters well on the way,we could be set up the middle defensively for a while!!

No joke . Is Don Imus alive ? Could he possibly be done over by a taxidermist? Na! That wasn't even close to being funny. BUT, I'm sure his wife married him for his looks. Roch or Schmuck or even Herbie can come close. Scoop on Imus from the warehouse. Mr. I will ride Big Brown carring our flag during the baseball pre- game stuff [ All Star Game.] Bonds has turned down appearing riding around the field in a Vet. Clemmons will throw out the first pitch. Mark Mac. will work the dougouts. All this is 100% true. TRUE!!!!

I think they need to sign Roberts because getting a lot of mid level prospects just doesn't seem to make sense. Any moves that are not done based on the Orioles record this year would be a mistake. This team is still a long way from contending and their short term pitching situation is a mess. They have but one dependable starter...the record is good to see, but they just are not that good - but are at least headed in the right direction.

Stick with rebuilding. I like Roberts, but I like the idea of the Orioles winning more. That means loading up the farm system .. and may also mean focusing on getting some solid, close-to-major lead prospects instead of demanding the moon. I'll be sad to see BRob go ... but I'll be happy to see the haul the O's receive in return.

Which is more important to be loyal to, a player who has given your team's fans years of enjoyment despite really difficult times for the team and done more than any other Oriole since Ripken for the community or some stupid buzzword about rebuilding? Seriously! Sometimes I think sports fandom makes people forget their humanity. We're talking about human beings here. You can't really "blow them up."

Roch, I'm with you. If some team is throwing the farm at the O's, then let's deal. It's a no-brainer. As you said, we're still in rebuilding mode. But anything less should mean Brian stays. He's the one 5-star vet who has the character, work-ethic, talent, marketability and probably a dozen other virtues that make it worth the team's while to have him stay - unless, of course...
Go O's - let's get some runs for Jeremy tonight...

Sorry Anne-- totally disagree. If we were guaranteed a better team by trading Roberts and he went to a contender, I think everyone wins. Sports is not about reflecting traits that we should value as people. It's about being supporters of a club and the end goal is a championship.

There are many people with a better personality, more compassion, and more integrity than Brian-- though among athletes he is very admirable (if we conveniently discard the roids thing). Maybe it's a product of watching professional sports in this country for the last 3 decades, but the whole athlete as "role model" angle is worn out. I watch sports for what it is-- competition among some of the most talented individuals to play that sport. While I'm ranting, I also get annoyed by the morons who throw out the line that "these guys are playing a kid's game" so they should be held to different standards. Drawing is a kid's activity, but I don't think elite artists have to deal with that amazing logic. Anyway, just a few thoughts...

if we get aramis or lee other wise he,s more important to our team.

Roberts has to stay...this team would be an absolute debacle without him. Go ahead and trade Walker, Bradford, or Sherrill: bullpen arms can be easily replaced. I can think of Rocky Cherry, Greg Aquino, Fernando Cabrera, Loewen and Penn just off the top of my head, not to mention Randy Keisler and Tim Spooneybarger, who we signed recently to minor-league deals and have big league bullpen experience. Trade Mora, Millar, or Huff and bring up Scott Moore or Mike Costanzo. Who plays 2B if we trade Roberts? Who hits leadoff? I could potentially see Markakis hitting leadoff due to his high OBP and decent speed, but there is no one that can begin to replace Roberts and all the things that he does for this team, either via trade or call-up.

Also Roch, what do you think is the likelihood that MacPhail will go after Teixeira (duh), Dunn, Orlando Cabrera, and Furcal this offseason? I know we're "rebuilding", but Cabrera aside, they're all fairly young and in the prime of their careers, they fill positional needs that can't be filled within the organization, and we have the resources.

No way you trade Roberts unless overwhelmed and MacPhail already proved that with the cubs.. That is why he is still here I don't see anyone with an extra power guy or two like jones stepping up and it would take that plus pitching to pull the trigger.. MacPhail knows his value to this team as well or better than us..

C'mon now... it has to be Adam Q*bert Jones...

Both Sherill and Roberts should kept and in fact, given long-term deals. Markakis and Guthrie should be extended. All this talk about dealing our few marketable players for prospects makes very little sense. What ends up happening is we create more holes and extend the time frame for us to be competitive.
Bringing in too many prospects is a crap shoot as not all of them will end up being everyday, productive players. The much bally-hooed Miggy/Bedard trade did yield some positives but we're dreaming if we think we'll get 10 guys for Roberts & Sherrill.
As a long-suffering O's fan, I'm as optimistic as the next guy but I have this feeling that Jones is another Alex Rios-not bad but not a superstar. We need to hang on to the established players, for the sake of being competitive and to appease the rapidly dwindling fan base. From the tone of the posts, the O's will create a public relations nightmare if Roberts is dealt, even straight up for Albert Pujols!

Congradulations to Brian Roberts for 1,000 career hits as an Oriole.

McPhail has already given you the answer. Only one team has been interested enough in Roberts to stay in the game; that team has had a good situation at 2B since the season started and teams just dont pay big for a 2B. He wont bring in the haul we all expect (gee fans overrating the value of the local kid? what a shock!) so if he is traded, we will all be disappointed. let him play out his contract and take the compensation picks. If he resigns at the team's price even better.

O's on the road beat first place Cubbies riding a 14-game home winning streak.

How about a blog on that???