I'm sure situational hitting is a factor. So too is the fact that the O's have the 2nd fewest walks and the 2nd most GIDP.

Watching Sunday afternoon game reminds me of one of my baseball pet peeves. Other sports do the best they can to improve officiating with both football and hockey liberally using replays to get it right. Baseball of course continues not to go there. Particularly annoying is lousy ball/strike umpiring. You can say that both teams have to deal with lousy strike calling, but bad home umping is usually inconsistent which will invariably have an effect on the outcome of games.

I'm not looking electronic here, but why doesn't baseball have it's best ball/strike guys do all of the home plate work for a premium salary?

I must agree as far as the situational hitting being thee key. You can bat .300 as a team and score less than this team. ( it would be damn hard AND it would have to be THIS very team the way we waste runners)
In the early 70's the Orioles bombed other teams but never lead or was close to leading the league in avg. TIMELY hitting.
Anyway, series win. I know this is hard but do you think we could just learn from a mistake and not keep repeating the same freakin mistake like a celebrity drunk driver?

One of the best blogs around with free form instant chatter is now just a shell of itself Pete. Can't you go with the technology they use on Rochs site? I mean this blog really had it whatever it is...and now it's just another blog....but you are still a great writer!!

Pete--I liked your column on Davey Johnson. I've been telling my friends for a while now that JJ Hardy reminds me a lot of Davey.

The resemblance clicked for me when I watched JJ in the season opener against Tampa Bay run off the field at the end of the inning with his glove in his right hand. And his lope looks a lot like Davey's.

JJ's ability to make every play at short and fire overhand looks a lot like the Blade.

But his build, the burns, his movements, the way he loads up with his hands at the plate--that's Davey.

Seems like JJ has a good baseball mind like Davey, too.

Andy really needs to be aggressive and get JJ's contract extended.

Not only is Hardy, despite his 0-4 this afternoon, one of the hotter hitters in baseball, he is playing Gold Glove defense at short.

Hardy has been big for the Birds in filling the lead off role with Brian Roberts out. I think some of Nick Markakis' struggles to drive the ball (I could care less about the home runs--I miss the 40 plus doubles--) are attributable to the fact that he gets banged up in the shoulder and chest and keeps on playing. But, I think his resurgence now has a lot to do with Hardy doing well in front of him and Adam Jones thriving in the 3-spot.

Also, Nick loves his new two-tone light bat with the big knob. I told my buddies on Roch's blog today that I believe he is using the Bob Lancione signature model.

Stay Loose, Pete.

Yes it is, and Reynolds is Gold Glove compared to Mora!

It's not about situational hitting. It's about OB%. The O's are 10th in runs ... and in OB%. In fact, the difference between their BA and OB% (a close approximation for their BB rate) is 11th in the AL.

They're also tied for 13th in SB. Which is not just an indicator of how often you run, but also of team speed/athleticism. They don't go 1st-3rd well. Jones is the only guy I trust to score from 1st on a double. Etc.

And just to further prove that this isn't about situational hitting, they're 4th in the AL in BA with RISP. They're 2nd with RISP and 2 out. Heck, they're 7th in BA with runners on. All considerably better than 10th.

Sorry to rant, but this has been a problem with this organization for the 11 years I've lived in Baltimore, and rooted for the O's. The rest of the league has figured out that you need to be more patient at the plate, and the O's are still swinging like it's 1985

Once you get to watch Vlad every day it gets tough.

Pete:

Am I mistaken or did you catch a foul ball bare-handed yesterday in the booth, before tossing it to a fan?

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Pete's reply: You are not mistaken, and I have the puffy hand to prove it.

Time for accountability.

Growing the arms without solid free agent pick ups only works on rare occasions. Buying the bats only works if the bats you're buying are legitimate productive players in their prime.

Andy's plan seems to not have worked. If it has though, will someone please explain it to me. And please don't compare this teams record to where they were this time last season. Last season was one of the worst first halts ever when Andy said it was the best team he has brought north.

Mrkakis is starting to hit. But aren't people suggesting he is only because of how bad he's been for a long time now? He stillness no power and his defense has even slipped a bit. No will will ever accuse Nick of being an all star candidate.

I just think it's time someone is held acountable.nthats how it is in the real world, so why not for the orioles? If it's not Andy, then who? Isn't that a fair question?

Nat fans have reason for real hope. They actually have good young pitching. And now, they have the last manager the orioles won with.

Who's responsible for this? Please

Pete -

There has been quite a bit of talk of trying to re-sign or extend JJ Hardy, and I agree. Do you also think it's time to start at least considering a long-term deal with Adam Jones? Not necessarily now but at season's end....it sure appears to me that Adam is coming into his own and is on the cusp of stardom.

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Peter's reply: Yes.

Pete,
Mark Reynolds' defense is a liability. Players like Scott are often questioned about their defensive skills, but Reynoldss' errors are costing runs. Check out hoe many unearned runs are results of the errors and it certainly takes away from his HRs when comparinf runs generated to runs allowed. If he was hitting .280, it would be more acceptable. Heck, even .230.

He is the only ML player with over 55 chances to have a fielding percentage UNDER .900!!! That is almost unfathomable.

I’m starting to think Jim Abbott would make a better defensive third baseman than Reynolds.