Mason Announces Retirement

Derrick Mason announced his abrupt retirement yesterday, telling ESPN News, "This is a decision that I've made. If I do change my mind, it won't be because of the Ravens. It'll be because of some other things - my family and talking with other people. I still got to talk with some coaches over there. As far as financially, I don't think they can do anything to sway me."

Earlier this offseason, Mason wanted a contract extension. Could this be a negotiating ploy? Maybe, but it's doubtful according to what Mason told the media. And with Steve McNair's recent murder, Mason may have taken another look at his life and decided that there was more to it than just football.

It's hard to get upset with Mason if that is the case, but it still leaves the Ravens in a massive hole. Training camp starts in 2 weeks and the Ravens didn't address the WR position this offseason other than signing Kelley Washington. And losing Mason is a huge step backwards.

Over the course of 4 seasons with the Ravens, Mason averaged 986 receiving yards and almost 4 TD's. Not huge numbers, but Mason was the Ravens go-to WR over that time. He ran perfect routes and had great hands. And there is no one on the Ravens currently able to fill his shoes.

Mark Clayton is poised to have a big year, continuing to develop with QB Joe Flacco, but Clayton is far from a #1 WR. He made some acrobatic catches last year, but is still inconsistent, disappearing for games at a time. That said, unless the Ravens do something drastic, he will be the Ravens #1 WR by default and will have to step up.

Demetrius Williams has the speed and height to break-out in 2009, but his injury issues have kept him out of 16 games over the last 2 years. Kelley Washington impressed the Ravens during their WR workout earlier this offseason, but Washington has only caught 10 passes in the NFL over the last 3 years. Then there is Marcus Smith, a second year WR out of New Mexico, who didn't catch a pass in 2008. What he brings to the table is unknown.

To say the Ravens WR options beyond Clayton are limited is an understatement. And their options outside the organization just as limited.

There was talk of trading for Broncos troubled WR Brandon Marshall earlier this offseason, but Marshall is dealing with some severe off-the-field troubles. Then there is another troubled WR in Plaxico Burress. No team has had the guts to sign Burress, coming off an embarrassing nightclub incident in which he shot himself in the leg last November. As with Marshall, a Burress suspension could be imminent, so its unknown how many games the Ravens would have them for in 2009.

Beyond Marshall and Burress, the available wide-receivers are replacement level talent. When the Ravens signed Washington, they also tried out DJ Hackett, Tab Perry and Jerry Porter. Among those names, Porter is the most enticing, but his injury issues are worrisome. And in 10 games last year with the Jaguars, he caught only 11 passes, for 181 yards and 1 TD.

The retirement of Mason leaves Flacco's development up in the air as well. Without Mason, Flacco doesn't have a security blanket that he offered Flacco in 2008. So, unless Mason is posturing for a contract extension, the Ravens will be entering the 2009 season extremely shorthanded.

I wish Mason the best, and if his retirement was brought on by McNair's murder, it's understandable. There is more to life than just football, and we, as fans, have trouble remembering that at times.

But Mason's decision to retire has knocked Ravens from Super Bowl Contenders to a fringe playoff team.

West Coast Blues

Well, after yesterday's horrible loss, I aim to depress you more. So get the prozac ready.

Since 2007, the Orioles are 14-22 on the West Coast. And starting tonight, they are back on the West Coast to face the Angels for 3 games and then the Mariners for 3.

Can you say 1-5?

At some point, the Orioles are going to have to play well on the West Coast if they want to be a competitive team, just like they'll have to play better against the Red Sox and Yankees at some point and play better in August and September at some point.

But yet the Orioles aren't making any big strides in that department.

You'd think that with good young talent like Brad Bergesen, Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Nolan Reimold and Matt Wieters on the team that the Orioles would improve their overall record. But on July 2nd they are 35-43 and a whopping 13 games out of first place. 

Is it 2002? 2003? Or 2009? I can't tell judging by the standings.

What exactly has changed from years past when Jeff Conine and Jay Gibbons were batting clean-up? When Rodrigo Lopez was our "ace"?

I don't know. The Orioles are still a bad team. I thought they'd be a little better than this once they got infused with some top young talent in the form of Reimold and Wieters. But since Wieters has been called up, the team is 12-17 and Wieters has not yet found any consistency at the plate or behind it. 

OK, this is not all Wieters' fault. Simply put, the Orioles still stink because they are a bad team. They can't close out games they should win. They can't get all 3 parts of the team (hitting, starting rotation and bullpen) on the same page.  

They just tease you with extended periods of good baseball balanced out by equal periods of bad baseball.

So it looks like more bad baseball is to come as the Orioles head out west. Maybe they don't like jet lag. Who knows.

One this is for sure is that these next 6 games are going to be as painful as watching the O's lose a game to the Red Sox in which they had a 5-1 lead going into the 9th inning.

That is all.

Well...they ARE the Orioles...

I just wanted to get a quick entry off before the inevitable happens and the Orioles lose a depressing game in which they had the lead 5-1 behind a masterful 8 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 6 K performance by Brad Bergesen before Jason Johnson and George Sherrill proceeded to piss it away with a 2-run home run to Kevin Youkilis and 4 walks that contributed to the Red Sox tying up the score 5-5 in the 9th.

The game is in the top of the 11th inning right now, and the Red Sox have a runner on third with 1 out. So I know the Orioles are going to lose. They wore those rally caps out last night. They will not come back tonight.

So I leave you with this: How long will the Orioles continue to erase every positive step they make? One huge comeback win last night, one huge comeback loss today.

Ying and Yang.

It almost makes me want to close down the Bad Oriole and free myself from this frustratingly bad baseball team.

Almost.

That's what I call a defining moment!

You want a defining moment? I’ll give you a defining moment.

June 30^th against the hated Red Sox. 

Boooooo! 

The Orioles are down 10-1 after six innings. 

TEN to ONE! 

What happens next? I’ll tell you what happens next.

Oscar Salazar! SALAZAR! Three run home run. I’m talking “Earl Weaver special”.

That brought the score to 10-5. But the O’s weren’t done yet. Felix "You say pee-yay, I say" Pie, drives in another run to make it 10-6.

We’re just getting started people!

* does bad early 90’s hip-hop dance *

The bottom of the eighth inning is where the Oriole magic really kicked in. Here's how it happened.

Matt Wieters singles, Nolan Reimold scores. 10-7.

Ty Wigginton his a sac-fly, Luke Scott scores. 10-8.

Brian Roberts singles, Oscar Salazar scores. 10-9.

* makes Macauley Caulkin from Home Alone face *

Then, Nick “the stick” Markakis lines a double into left-center, bringing home the 2 go-ahead runs.

11-10. 

ELEVEN to TEN! 

* does dance again *

Then, Flat Breezy himself comes in to the bottom of the ninth and retires the side.

O’s win. Red Sox lose. RED SOX LOSE!

Did I mention the Sox lose?

Not only is it the biggest comeback in O’s history, it’s the biggest comeback for a last place team over a first place team.

* Oh, I’m not supposed to mention that the O’s are a last place team? OK, let me do that last one over then. *

It’s the biggest comeback in O’s history. Buh-bye Sox fans.

* waves bye to the camera *

That’s what I call a defining moment. 

Hot and Cold

Aside from her looks, I’m not a fan of Katy Perry by any means, but I think she’d be the perfect person to perform at one of those lame free concerts the Orioles put on every now and then.

She could sing the Orioles new theme song: Hot and Cold.

In late May, the Orioles won 7 of 8 games, including the amazing sweep of the Blue Jays that was capped off by a Nolan Reimold walk off home run in extra innings. Then they went 2-10.

Then they came back east and won another 7 out of 8.

Then they went to Miami and got swept by the Marlins.

What gives?

I know the Orioles aren’t a good team by any means, but how can they get so hot and so cold?

In one word, it’s the offense.

The pitching has been pretty consistent over the last month, with 2 or 3 solid starts, 1 mediocre start, and then 1 terrible start each time through the rotation. And that’s fine. Even winning teams usually get that from their rotation.

But even when it was in the middle of the most recent winning streak, the Orioles erased some disappointing offensive displays by getting some huge clutch hits late in the game, like the final game against the Mets and game 2 of the Phillies series. Even though the Orioles won those games in the 9th inning, they still left 10 and 14 runners on base in those games.

And that didn’t stop against the Marlins. In the series, in which the Orioles were swept, they left a total of 22 runners on base. The difference? They didn’t get that handful of clutch hits that would have made the difference, especially in the first 2 games of the series. Let’s face it, they weren’t winning that last game after Rich Hill and Chris Ray were shelled.

It also doesn’t help that Adam Jones has a .534 OPS in June.

Luckily, the Orioles come back home to face the Nationals, who are still the worst team in the majors. But after that, the Red Sox come to town, followed by another trip to the west coast.

Ugh.

The Orioles better start knocking in those runners soon. Because it could get really ugly.

Until then, expect to see this current cold streak continue. The hot water may have gotten all used up.

****

Chris Ray is in a word, terrible. After his pathetic 1.2 IP, 5 ER performance last night (including a grand-slam from Hanley Ramirez, his second in the series, the first allowed by Danys Baez), Ray’s ERA is up to a whopping 10.13. I know he still may be battling back from Tommy John surgery, but Ray is not getting it done. As a matter of fact, I’d say he’s close to getting released. So before they do that, Rick Kranitz should step in and attempt to overhaul Ray’s herky-jerky wind-up, which has contributed to Ray’s injuries…Danys Baez, who was once the Orioles most reliable reliever, has struggled mightily as of late, allowing 6 ER in his last 2 appearances, which have amounted to just 1 IP. He allowed the 3 run home run to Ryan Howard in game two against the Phillies, and allowed a grand-slam to Hanley Ramirez in game 1 against the Marlins. Baez was once considered to be the Orioles most tradable player, but you have to wonder now, after he’s pretty much resembled a home run derby pitcher lately…Nick Markakis showed signs of life last night, going 4-4 with 2 doubles. Markakis has been “slumping” by his standards since his hot start in April, with a .744 OPS in May and June.

Back on Track?

Like a bad girlfriend, the Orioles find ways of pulling you back in just when you’re about to walk away from them.

To be honest, I was finished with the Orioles after their 2-week long offensive slump where they went 2-10. I was ready to spend more time in the yard or watching Real Housewives of Glen Burnie. Anything other than watching the O’s trot out there, go through the motions and lose another game. 

But then they started playing well again. They took 2 out of 3 from both the Braves and Mets at home and then did the impossible – they swept a team on the road! And that team was the World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies! 

Holy F---! 

So yeah, now I’m an O’s fan again, excited to watch the O’s try to continue their winning ways against the Florida Marlins. 

The Marlins have dominated the Orioles since interleague play began in 1997. The Orioles are 5-13 against the Fish and I vividly remember the Marlins sweeping the wire-to-wire Orioles in 1997 on their way to becoming the shocking World Series Champions that year. 

But all the O’s need to do to continue winning is do what they have done over the last 9 games…pitch well and get clutch hits. 

The O’s team ERA in June is 4.23. And while the offense still strands too many runners on base, they make up for it by getting clutch hits late in the game. You only need to look at the 5-4 win over the Mets last Thursday, the amazing 6-5 comeback win over the Phillies last Saturday and the late-inning 2-1 win against the Phillies yesterday (all won in the 9^th inning) to see clutch hitting at its best. 

That said, the Orioles can’t keep waiting for clutch hitting for much longer. They need to get those runners in more often in the early innings. 

So there you have it. The Orioles are playing good baseball. Every day you can say that past June 21^st is a blessing.

 

A week to forget

Win 7 of 8 games? Check.

Look like the organization has finally turned a corner with rookie players contributing? Check.

So what happened to the Orioles?

A west coast trip happened.

The Orioles must be unable to deal with jet lag or airline food because they completed another miserable west coast trip, going 1-5 and losing 5 straight games. In those six games they scored a total of 10 runs. For those who failed second grade math, that’s less than 2 runs a game.

And just when you thought the offense was offensive, remember all that solid pitching we were getting? Reality check time:

Jeremy Guthrie - 0.2 IP, 6 ER.

Jason Berken - 3.1 IP, 9 ER

Rich Hill - 0.2 IP, 3 ER (including 4 BB and 1 HBP)

As well as the Orioles were playing for a week there, winning 7 of 8 games, they completely erased all those warm and fuzzy feelings (just like they always have) by losing 7 of 8 games.

Matt Wieters, the savior of the Baltimore Orioles, who even has his own Chuck Norris-like website (http://www.mattwietersfacts.com/) is currently batting .143 with 0 HR. Nick Markakis and Brian Roberts are both mired in month-long slumps. Only Adam Jones has been consistent since opening day, but even he hasn’t hit a HR since May 26th.

Remember when we were all saying that the Orioles turned a corner 2 weeks ago? Well they may have, but then they ducked back behind the corner and started cowering like a scared little girl.

When is this team ever going to make a stride and not erase it the second they realize they’ve made one?

Rich Hill needs a complete mechanical overhaul. His delivery is so long and strenuous, it’s no surprise he’s had back injuries and trouble with control in the past. Hopefully pitching coach Rick Kranitz can reinvent Hill so he can consistently become the dominant pitcher he is at times. It’s hard to remember that we acquired Hill for a PTBNL.

Jason Berken was due for a start like his last one. He doesn’t miss many bats, and Oakland (while one of the worst offensive teams by OPS in the AL) was put together by Billy Beane, a GM who picks up players who are patient and will make you pay for mistakes. And boy did they make Berken pay for not having dominant stuff, collecting 9 hits and 3 walks in just 3.1 IP.

But it’s Jeremy Guthrie who is perhaps the most troubling of them all. Guthrie had been the team’s anchor pitcher for the last 2 years. In any given year he’s only had just a handful of bad starts. Well, so far this year, he’s only had a handful of good starts. And that handful is pretty small. The Orioles would be wise to trade Guthrie if he gets back on track because he doesn’t look to be the stabilizer he was for the last few years. And as the Orioles continue to call up their promising pitching prospects, the spaces in the rotation are few and far between.

So, are the Orioles getting better? Will they ever turn this ship around?

It’s hard to tell after the last 2 polarizing weeks.