tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck/307 2012-01-29T16:49:50Z Baltimore Sun Ravens, Orioles: Sports news and opinion from Peter Schmuck Movable Type 3.36 tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.313989 2012-01-29T16:36:14Z 2012-01-29T16:49:50Z

The Maryland men's basketball team couldn't sustain a solid game against Duke and nearly let Saturday's victory over Virginia Tech slip away, but it's pretty obvious that the program is moving quickly in the right direction. The Terps are young...

Peter Schmuck The Maryland men's basketball team couldn't sustain a solid game against Duke and nearly let Saturday's victory over Virginia Tech slip away, but it's pretty obvious that the program is moving quickly in the right direction. The Terps are young and inexperienced, which was evident again in the final minutes yesterday, but they have enough talent to be reasonably competitive with all but the elite teams and things will only get better with the next incoming class of recruits. What you're seeing right now is a team still learning how to play together. That's evident in the number of ill-advised shots that the Terps are taking and the number of uncontested points they are giving up in the paint -- particularly when fatigue starts to set in late in games. That's tough to watch sometimes, as it was when the Plumlee brothers were nailing down the victory for Duke, but it's part of the developmental progression that new coach Mark Turgeon knew the team would have to go through to get back to the upper reaches of the ACC. That won't happen this year, but if you had told me the Terps would have 13 wins overall and be 3-3 in conference at this point in Turgeon's first season, I wouldn't have believed you. The Terps are ahead of schedule. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.313886 2012-01-26T16:12:24Z 2012-01-26T16:30:29Z

There has been a lot of chatter on the various blogs and Orioles fan sites about the direction that Dan Duquette is taking the game in his first months as executive vice president, and a lot of it is pretty...

Peter Schmuck There has been a lot of chatter on the various blogs and Orioles fan sites about the direction that Dan Duquette is taking the game in his first months as executive vice president, and a lot of it is pretty skeptical. With good reason. The Orioles have spent the past decade half-stepping their way into oblivion, so fans have every right to wonder if Duquette is just playing to ownership's desire to keep the MASN spigot open and the payroll spigot closed. It's going to be up to him to prove that's not the case. I think it's a little more complicated than that. Obviously, Duquette got the job because he convinced the search committee that he can make the team competitive by tapping into the second tier of the international market with a couple new sets of eyes overseas. The result has been a handful of signings that are intriguing but unspectacular, which means that we'll all have to wait and see how things shake out. That's certainly convenient for the team and MASN, since it buys both some time to keep fans interested, but -- to his credit -- Duquette has not given himself a huge window to get results. He has followed up Andy MacPhail's four-year plan with a one-year plan, since he said at the outset that his goal is to be a winning team this year. How will that be possible? Some feel that it isn't, considering that the Orioles didn't make any impact free agent acquisitions, but Duquette appears to be trying to do (in his own way) what Billy Beane did in Oakland in the early 2000s. He has thrown out a big net to add a bunch of contingent starting pitchers and role players, making the team much deeper in a lot of areas without necessarily making them much better. He's stressing on-base percentage after inheriting a team with two of the league's biggest strikeout guys and farming the Pacific Rim to beef up the rotation and bullpen. Will it work? Will Michael Lewis right a sequel called "Foreign Currencyball"? Orioles fans can only hope. That will depend heavily, ironically enough, on the young pitchers who were already here. Duquette also is banking heavily on a successful comeback by Brian Matusz and the continued growth of Jake Arrieta and Zach Britton. If he gets that, the Orioles have a chance to be a .500 team, but isn't that what MacPhail was gambling on last spring? tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.313448 2012-01-18T14:53:05Z 2012-01-18T15:03:17Z

The Orioles just announced their promotional schedule for the upcoming season and I'm going to give them some love for the way they are unveiling the six statues of the six Hall of Famers who have had their numbers retired...

Peter Schmuck The Orioles just announced their promotional schedule for the upcoming season and I'm going to give them some love for the way they are unveiling the six statues of the six Hall of Famers who have had their numbers retired by the club. The team will honor one of them each month of the season in order of the retirement of their uniform numbers, beginning with Frank Robinson on April and ending with Cal Ripken on Sept. 6 -- the anniversary of the night he broke Lou Gehrig's consecutive games record. On each of those nights, the club will give every fan in attendance a 7-to-8-inch miniature replica of the statue being unveiled. Can't think of a better way to do it. I realize the Orioles took a lot of heat for the Brooks statue situation -- and they deserved criticism for not being more publicly supportive of the project -- but that doesn't mean this can't be another nice honor for Brooks, Frank, Cal, Earl Weaver, Jim Palmer and Eddie Murray. And it basically guarantees six huge crowds at Camden Yards, so everybody wins. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.313291 2012-01-15T01:17:07Z 2012-01-15T01:32:46Z

The San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints just put on a show for the ages. The Saints rallied from a mistake-riddled first half and an early 17-point deficit to take the lead late in the fourth quarter, and then...

Peter Schmuck The San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints just put on a show for the ages. The Saints rallied from a mistake-riddled first half and an early 17-point deficit to take the lead late in the fourth quarter, and then the two teams traded lightning touchdown drives until the 49ers won the game on a terrific throw and catch from Alex Smith to former Maryland star Vernon Davis with nine seconds left. Simply amazing. The two teams scored four touchdowns in the final four minutes, and it looked like the Saints were going to pull it out when Drew Brees hit Jimmy Graham for 66 yards and his second touchdown of the game with 1:48 to go. But Smith connected with Davis for 47 yards to get into field goal range and then took one shot for the win. Don't know about you, but it was one of the greatest playoff games I've ever seen and I've seen a lot of them. I'd like to think the Patriots/Broncos game tonight will deliver some drama, but it doesn't look like it's shaping up that way. Oh well, the Ravens probably will have to go through Foxboro to get to Indianapolis, but they've beaten the Pats there in in the playoffs before. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.313121 2012-01-11T19:30:26Z 2012-01-11T19:47:30Z

Frankly, I have no idea how the loss of Luke Scott is going to affect the Orioles. It all depends on whether Scott would have have made a successful comeback from the shoulder injury that cost him a chunk of...

Peter Schmuck Frankly, I have no idea how the loss of Luke Scott is going to affect the Orioles. It all depends on whether Scott would have have made a successful comeback from the shoulder injury that cost him a chunk of the 2011 season. I suspect he would have come back healthy, because nobody works harder to get in shape and stay there, but it's still hard to say whether this is going to be a significant loss. What I do know is that the clubhouse just got less interesting. Scott was fearlessly outspoken, which ruffled a lot of feathers around here. He questioned President Barack Obama's citizenship and regularly preached the joys of both his evangelical Christianity and the Second Amendment. In the great liberal stronghold that is Maryland, he certainly alienated his share of fans, but if you got a chance to meet him it was impossible not to like him. He'll have a new audience in South Florida, and I'm sure the local media will have some fun with his occasional opinions on the presidential race. I'll miss his unsinkable optimism, his unbelievable hot streaks and his mammoth home runs. I won't miss his unbelievable six-week hitting slumps or his footwork at first base. The Orioles still have more than a month to add another power bat, if that's really what Dan Duquette intends to do. I'm guessing Buck Showalter will turn left field over to Nolan Reimold and give him an extended chance to re-establish himself as the player he was in 2009. The DH slot remains problematic, though Showalter has indicated that he would like to rotate some regulars through it to spell them in the field. That's may be the plan, but one more power bat certainly wouldn't hurt. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.312965 2012-01-09T15:36:23Z 2012-01-09T15:53:11Z

Everybody -- including me -- wanted the Ravens to play the Texans this Sunday in the first home playoff game of the John Harbaugh era, but if you think that this is a walkover matchup for the Ravens, think again....

Peter Schmuck Everybody -- including me -- wanted the Ravens to play the Texans this Sunday in the first home playoff game of the John Harbaugh era, but if you think that this is a walkover matchup for the Ravens, think again. The Texans have a lot going for them, including -- not except for -- rookie quarterback T.J. Yates. While everybody has been swooning over Tim Tebow the last few weeks, Houston's third-string quarterback has held things together and kept the Texans on track for an upper-half seed in the postseason. He looked pretty good against the Bengals and he's got Arian Foster to keep the pressure off him. The Texans could jump up and bite the Ravens in the tail-feather area if Joe Flacco spends too much time going downfield on third and short and wastes a bunch of possessions. Don't misunderstand. Given the choice among the available opponents going into this past weekend, I chose the Texans, but only because I never imagined that Tebow and the Broncos ewould be available. Certainly, I'd rather have Denver coming here and the Patriots playing the Bengals, but the planets are only going to line up so much and then it's up to the Ravens to just win. Will they? I would think so. They're 8-0 at home this year and Harbaugh is undefeated after his four regular-season bye weeks. They beat the Texans by 15 points at home earlier this season, and that was when Matt Schaub was healthy. Yes, they should win, but that doesn't mean they will, so let's hold the Tom Brady talk until after the game. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2012:/sports/schmuck//307.312812 2012-01-05T06:15:16Z 2012-01-05T06:24:38Z

My gut tells me that the Cincinnati Bengals can take the Texans on the road this weekend, but I think it would help the Ravens' chances of reaching the Super Bowl if Houston was the first team to visit M&T...

Peter Schmuck My gut tells me that the Cincinnati Bengals can take the Texans on the road this weekend, but I think it would help the Ravens' chances of reaching the Super Bowl if Houston was the first team to visit M&T Bank Stadium for a playoff game during the John Harbaugh era. That's open to debate, of course. The Steelers likely will show up here if the Bengals win, and I know a lot of fans think this would be a great time to catch them. The Steelers are very banged up and will be playing with a gimpy Ben Roethlisberger and without Rashard Mendenhall, so they might not even get past the Broncos. If they do, however, I'd like to see them face the Patriots and give both of those teams a chance to punch themselves out before the AFC championship game. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.312641 2011-12-30T18:34:11Z 2011-12-30T18:45:00Z

It's almost hard to believe that the 2011 regular season has come down to this, since there were several seemingly golden opportunities for the Ravens to lock up a high playoff seed a lot earlier. No use crying about it....

Peter Schmuck It's almost hard to believe that the 2011 regular season has come down to this, since there were several seemingly golden opportunities for the Ravens to lock up a high playoff seed a lot earlier. No use crying about it. The Ravens have not played well on the road and need a victory over the Bengals on Sunday to finish with a .500 record away from M&T Bank Stadium. That will be no small feat with all the issues that John Harbaugh and the Ravens staff have had to deal with the past week or two, but I do believe the Ravens are the better team, so I'm still picking them to win. The case can be made that the Bengals have more to play for, but I'm not buying that. Obviously, the Bengals want to get to the playoffs, but they aren't a real Super Bowl contender. If they get in, they'll have to win three straight playoff games on the road, which is asking way too much of a team that hasn't beaten anybody of consequence this year. The Ravens could face the same fate if they don't beat the Bengals, but they are an experienced playoff team that has beaten a lot of good teams on the road in the regular and postseason over the past four seasons. If the Ravens win, however, they will be in position for a very strong Super Bowl bid. I think that should give them the edge in the motivation department. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.312471 2011-12-24T13:51:50Z 2011-12-24T13:58:21Z

Clearly, no one is feeling terribly apprehensive about today's game against the Cleveland Browns, who will be starting Seneca Wallace at quarterback and playing for absolutely nothing on a day they'd rather be home with their families. This ought to...

Peter Schmuck Clearly, no one is feeling terribly apprehensive about today's game against the Cleveland Browns, who will be starting Seneca Wallace at quarterback and playing for absolutely nothing on a day they'd rather be home with their families. This ought to be an episode of "Fear Factor" for them, because the Ravens are still smarting from last week's embarrassing loss to the San Diego Chargers and are going to be very motivated to put on a big offensive and defensive show. The spread on this game is almost two touchdowns and it's still pretty attractive. I'll be very surprised if the Browns score a touchdown today. I won't be surprised if they don't score at all. The only way this is a game is if the Ravens get into the egg nog too early. So, go ahead, enjoy this Christmas treat, because the angst will return in earnest on Monday when the Ravens start preparing to play the Bengals in Cincinnati in the final game of the regular season. That's no gimme, and it might just determine whether the Ravens have a real chance to reach the Super Bowl. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.312100 2011-12-15T14:46:25Z 2011-12-15T14:55:22Z

New baseball operations guru Dan Duquette has made no secret of his desire to make international player development a high priority in the Orioles organization, so the pursuit of several Asian pitchers should not be considered surprising and should not...

Peter Schmuck New baseball operations guru Dan Duquette has made no secret of his desire to make international player development a high priority in the Orioles organization, so the pursuit of several Asian pitchers should not be considered surprising and should not necessarily be criticized. Perhaps Duquette -- unlike some his predecessors -- simply is being realistic and recognizing that none of the best free agents are going to come to Baltimore at just about any price unless he can show them that the club is close enough to being competitive for them to make a real difference. Of course, all that depends on the Orioles signing foreign (and domestic) players who make a contribution, and every one of the players coming out of Japan, Taiwan and Korea -- with the possible exception of Yu Darvish -- is a gamble. It's almost impossible to predict what they will do in the American major leagues, but if Duquette guesses right, he's got a chance to have a book written about him in a few years. Maybe they'll call it "Yen-ball." tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.311832 2011-12-10T22:59:32Z 2011-12-10T23:05:05Z

It was a sloppy game that featured five turnovers (by both teams) and an off-side penalty on Army that iced the game for the Midshipman, but in this rivalry, a win is a win. The Midshipman took advantage of those...

Peter Schmuck It was a sloppy game that featured five turnovers (by both teams) and an off-side penalty on Army that iced the game for the Midshipman, but in this rivalry, a win is a win. The Midshipman took advantage of those mistakes and two late field goals by kicker Jon Teague to defeat the Black Knights for the 10th consecutive time. What a finish for Teague, who had suffered through a very frustrating season that featured more special teams breakdowns and blocked kicks than he'd prefer to remember. I'll be weighing in on his big day in my column for the Web site and the Sunday print edition. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.311830 2011-12-10T21:46:43Z 2011-12-10T21:54:44Z

Army's Black Knights appeared to be falling out of the 112th Army-Navy Game in the second quarter, but they rallied for two touchdowns to tie the game at 14-14 going into intermission. The Midshipmen have answered back at the start...

Peter Schmuck Army's Black Knights appeared to be falling out of the 112th Army-Navy Game in the second quarter, but they rallied for two touchdowns to tie the game at 14-14 going into intermission. The Midshipmen have answered back at the start of the second half, taking advantage of a 48-yard kickoff return by Alexander Teich to score on their first possession. Kriss Proctor went in from two yards out for his second touchdown of the game to give Navy a 21-14 lead, but this game seems to be building up to an exciting finish. Army quarterback Trent Steelman just threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Malcolm Brown to tie the game. That was just the second completed pass of the game. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.311827 2011-12-10T20:19:08Z 2011-12-10T20:25:35Z

Navy quarterback Kriss Proctor just scored on a keeper play to get the Mids on the scoreboard first. It took most of the first quarter for anyone to score, because Navy fumbled the ball deep in Army territory to end...

Peter Schmuck Navy quarterback Kriss Proctor just scored on a keeper play to get the Mids on the scoreboard first. It took most of the first quarter for anyone to score, because Navy fumbled the ball deep in Army territory to end a sustained drive. The Black Knights returned the favor a few minutes later and Navy pounded the ball in with about a minute left in the quarter. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama made an appearance in the CBS broadcast booth. Obama is spending the first half of the game on the Navy side of the field. He will switch to the Army side at halftime. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.311825 2011-12-10T19:47:43Z 2011-12-10T19:58:34Z

Even though this is the 112th edition of the Army-Navy Game, it's hard not to get pumped up about it when you witness the pageantry -- from the morning march on by the Corps of Cadets and Brigade of Midshipmen...

Peter Schmuck Even though this is the 112th edition of the Army-Navy Game, it's hard not to get pumped up about it when you witness the pageantry -- from the morning march on by the Corps of Cadets and Brigade of Midshipmen to the moment when the President of the United States marches to the middle of the field to toss the coin. For the record, Army called "tails" and it was tails. Navy, wearing blue jerseys and white helmets decorated with a gold anchor, kicked off. President Obama and Vice President Joseph Biden were joined on the field by Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and other Washington dignitaries. No doubt, the Cadets and Mids were eager for the game to begin, since they have been in their seats in the 36-degree cold. tag:weblogs.baltimoresun.com,2011:/sports/schmuck//307.311823 2011-12-10T17:59:21Z 2011-12-10T18:05:37Z

Of course, I don't have to remind anybody on this blog of that. With Annapolis right in the neighborhood, we all appreciate the contribution every student at the Naval Academy and West Point makes to our country. The football players...

Peter Schmuck Of course, I don't have to remind anybody on this blog of that. With Annapolis right in the neighborhood, we all appreciate the contribution every student at the Naval Academy and West Point makes to our country. The football players will get a little more attention today, but the entire Corps of Cadets and Brigade of Midshipmen is in the house to celebrate this friendly rivalry that dates back to 1890. If you're keeping historical score at home. That was the year Idaho and Wyoming were admitted to the union and Yosemite National Park was created by an act of Congress. Before you give me credit for being a fount of arcane information, I lifted those facts from the year-by-year section of the game program.