The Baltimore Orioles during the 2010 season we're probably one the worst teams in baseball but near the end of the season the O’s had new life after new manager Buck Showalter came in and turned things around for the O's. Towards the end of the season in 2010 Showalter’s had the best winning percentage at .596 with 34 wins, 23 losses in 57 games. Showalter this year will manage the club for a full season and we will see if he is the man for the job.
The O's this offseason have acquired and signed some nice free agents on trying to help them become a better team. They acquired third baseman Mark Reynolds from the D-Backs, shortstop J.J. Hardy and infielder Brendon Harris from the Twins, signed free agent first baseman/DH Derek Lee to a one - year deal, and signed starting pitcher Justin Duchscherer for a one - year deal. I think these players will help the O's become a better team but only on the offense of side. Their pitching is still pretty young and by adding Duchscherer it shows that they needed an older guy in there to help them have a pretty good number two pitcher. Duchscherer last year had an ERA of 2.82, 2 wins, 1 loss, and 18 strikeouts. The O's number one guy has got to be Jeremy Guthrie only because he has been part of this team for a long time but I really think spring training will decide the whole O's starting five in 2011. Guthrie posted a 3.83 ERA, 11 wins 14 losses, and 119 strikeouts. The next pitcher on my list is a kid who I think in the future will be the O's go to guy, Brain Matusz.
Now he's a young kid but he will only get better, he's got a rocket arm and throws a lot of great pitches and his off-speed stuff is outstanding. In 2010 he had an ERA of 4.30, 10 wins, 11 losses, 143 strikeouts; he's a good left handed pitcher to have on your team at the age of 23. The last two pitchers on this rotation are two pretty young guys in Jake Arreta who is coming off of a rookie season with a 4.66 ERA, 6 wins, 6 losses, 52 strikeouts and then Brad Bergeson who has been on the team for two years now, last year he posted a 4.98 ERA, 8 wins, 12 losses, 81 strikeouts.
Now we talk about how the O's line-up in 2011 will be a lot better than it was in 2010 and that's because they went out and picked up some pretty good free agents who know how to win. The only question mark that the O's picked up this offseason that I think needs to have a better year and cut down the strikeouts is third baseman Mark Reynolds. Reynolds in 2010 had 211 strikeouts, the most in the majors last year. He's a good young player and can
also play first if they need him too. Reynolds now makes that line-up a lot stronger with the power he brings to the table he just needs to work on keeping his eye in the zone and swing at better pitches, Reynolds in 2010 hit .198, 32 home runs, and drove in 85 RBI's. The key player that the O's picked that will also bring power and leadership to this ball club is Derek Lee. Now we don't know if Lee will be playing first or if he will DH is season but having his bat in the line-up is going to help them a lot more, Lee in 2010 hit .260, 16 home runs, and drove in 80 RBI's. Another key free agent the O's picked up was shortstop J.J. Hardy, I'll tell you what I think this was a great move by bringing him in after losing Migeul Tejada last season. Hardy is young and is a great fielder; he is also a nice bat to have in the line-up, Hardy in 2010 hit .268, 6 home runs, and drove in 38 RBI's. With now having Lee and Reynolds in the line-up I think it will help out outfielder Adam Jones who has always been the guy on this team to get things done.
Now the O's can rely on a few other players in this line-up. Jones is a great young outfielder with a lot of speed and power. As Jones gets older I think he will only get better and I think we should watch out for him in 2011. Jones had a normal type year last season hitting .284 (career high), 19 home runs, and drove in 69 RBI's. The Baltimore Orioles are also in the workings with signing free agent Vladimir Guerrero to a one - year deal worth $5 million dollars. Guerrero if he plays for the O's will most likely DH for them in 2011.
So the O's have showed that they are trying to become a better team in 2011, do I think they will good? No but I do think they will be a tougher team to play against, if you remember at the end of the 2010 season they played a lot better and they just went out there and had fun. I think the moves the O's made this offseason will help them for the better, just my issue is how good will their pitching hold up this season?
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