Finding fault with the O's decision-making

Want to know why some are criticizing the J.J. Hardy signing, despite its apparent team-friendly ramifications? Just take a look at who pitched out of the Orioles' bullpen during last night's 15-10 loss to the Red Sox:

• Troy Patton, 25
• Jason Berken, 27
• Michael Gonzalez, 33
• Mark Worrell, 28
• Chris Jakubauskas, 32

Patton probably threw the best out of all of them, and Berken was only in the game for two pitches, allowing a hit. But the latter three -- Gonzalez, Worrell, and Jakubauskas -- combined to allow eight runs in the eighth inning, which locked down the game for the Red Sox. Gonzalez and Jakubauskas have been bad all season, but Worrell was just promoted from Triple-A Norfolk, and he didn't look all that impressive either.

So why did I include the ages of those pitchers? Because despite Andy MacPhail's current philosophy to "grow the arms and buy the bats," the O's don't have that many arms to show for it. Yes, I understand that most of the young, high-ceiling pitchers in Baltimore and in the O's organization are starting pitchers, as they should be. Also, there's no sense in promoting pitchers to fill out the bullpen just because they're young and necessarily not ready to be in a major league rotation. But why has it taken so long for a guy like Patton to pitch in Baltimore this season? He seems healthy now, and he's still rather young. He should be given the chance to pitch in more than a few games, even if he pitches poorly.

The O's don't have nearly enough pitching depth. Without a doubt, they still need to get younger and better. It doesn't make much sense to hold onto guys (or pay them a bunch of money, for that matter) who won't help this current team four, five, and six years (etc.) down the road. That's not to say that there can't be a couple of guys like Jakubauskas, Mark Hendrickson, and Worrell in the team's bullpen for various stretches. Every team works with bullpen fill-ins from time to time. But these types of guys show up in the O's bullpen year after year. The only homegrown reliever who's really any good right now is Jim Johnson, and even he should probably be stretched out into a starter if the O's aren't going to deal the 28-year-old. And that's just talking about relievers, who are supposed to be failed starters or guys who can't throw multiple innings at a time. It should be much easier to assemble a decent, young bullpen corps than a competent starting rotation. Yet, the O's can't even accomplish that feat.

Where is all of the pitching talent for a team that annually picks at the top of the draft? Shouldn't someone like Hardy, and others, be used as bait to bring in prospects?

I'm essentially ranting at this point, but here's another questionable move: I turned the game off in the middle of that horrible eighth inning, but apparently Josh Bell pinch-hit for Felix Pie in the bottom of the eighth. He even singled, which is great. But in the ninth, he stayed in to play left field. For one inning, that's not really a big deal. But isn't he a third baseman, and at the very least a corner infielder? Why put him out there at all? That's another situation to examine: If Bell is on the roster, he should play. And if he's not going to play, he should be back in Norfolk playing every day. But he may only be in Baltimore for a few days, so who knows.

Nolan Reimold has been one of the O's most productive hitters this season, and it still took a few injuries to get him in the daily lineup. Vladimir Guerrero and Luke Scott will likely both return from the disabled list soon, and I have no doubt that they'll immediately return to the lineup, moving Reimold back to the bench. What kind of decision is that for a team that's nearly 20 games under .500? Don't they want to know if Reimold is a talented, cost-effective player who they can plug into the lineup for the next few years?

Basically, I don't trust the O's to make sound long-term decisions. And even the short-term ones don't always make much sense.

Red Sox avoid sweep; O's finish .500 against them

With a chance to finish 10-8 against the Red Sox, the Orioles came up short last night, falling to Boston, 6-1. Still, by winning the three-game series, the O's evened up the season series and finished 9-9 against the Red Sox -- not bad for a team that's 30 games under .500 (61-91).

The loss was a combination of bad Kevin Millwood pitching and very little offense. Millwood allowed six runs, including two home runs, in five innings pitched. He struck out five and walked just one, but he also threw only 83 pitches as he started to labor after three scoreless innings to start the game.

For Boston, John Lackey pitched seven innings of one-run ball, allowing just five hits, while striking out four and walking none. That's right: no walks for the O's offense. The O's also only put together six combined hits. Luke Scott had the team's only multi-hit effort, going 2-4 with a double. Ty Wigginton also doubled, driving in Nick Markakis in the fourth for the team's lone run.

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Buck Showalter has been playing Robert Andino a lot at third base lately, and I don't understand it. Sure, there's only 10 games left this season and Showalter may be trying to see what he has in Andino for the possibility of him being on the team next season, but Andino doesn't seem like a corner infield option. Plus, having him and Cesar Izturis in the lineup at the same time is rather unproductive.

Andino's value, if there's that much of it, comes from his fielding ability up the middle. In 2009 for the O's, he had a UZR of 5.5 at shortstop in a little over 70 games. That's pretty solid. Unfortunately, in 215 plate appearances, he hit .222/.274/.288 -- and that is not very good, at all.

After not making the team in spring training and being sent to Triple-A Norfolk, Andino hit .264/.302/.405 for the Tides this season before being called up in September. He also hit 13 home runs, but he still struck out a lot (20.1 K%) while not walking much (4.9 BB%). At 26 years old, Andino may be able to improve his approach at the plate, but it's not likely. He's an outstanding fielder, but he also doesn't get on base nearly enough or hit for enough power. If he gets a little better at the plate and plays great defense at shortstop, he would be an upgrade over Izturis, who has actually been worth -0.4 wins above replacement because of awful hitting and slightly above average defense at shortstop.

Could Andino be a cheaper alternative at shortstop next season? Sure. In the offseason, if the O's have to choose between re-signing Izturis for $2-$3 million per season for another season or two or relying on Andino and paying him the league minimum, Andino seems like the better selection. But why exactly is he playing third base? Not only does his presence there hurt the O's and not make any long-term sense, but he's also taking away at-bats from Josh Bell. Bell hasn't been very good at the plate this year -- actually he's been horrible -- but he's still a rookie and has actually shown significant improvement in his third-base defense. At 23, Bell still has time to grow and learn. Andino is essentially the same guy as before -- and he is who we thought he was, or something like that.

O's top Dice-K, Red Sox

The Orioles scored four runs off of Daisuke Matsuzaka, and Brian Matusz and the bullpen held the Red Sox to just two runs on five hits in a 4-2 O's win. Matusz didn't get the win and only pitched five innings because of a high pitch count -- he walked three and finished with 102 pitches -- but he also struck out four and gave up only one run on three hits. That's not the most effective start, but it worked.

David Hernandez got the win, allowing one run in two innings, and Jim Johnson and Koji Uehara each threw a scoreless inning. Uehara also earned his 10th save.

Nick Markakis and Luke Scott each had two hits and a walk. Both of Markakis's hits were doubles. Brian Roberts had a single and two walks, and Felix Pie, Cesar Izturis, and Josh Bell each singled. Matt Wieters went hitless but did draw a walk.

With the win, the O's pull to 8-8 on the season against the Red Sox, a monumental accomplishment considering how poorly the O's have played against not only the Red Sox in the last few seasons, but also the entire AL East. Here are the O's records against Boston since 2005:

2005: 8-10
2006: 3-15
2007: 6-12
2008: 6-12
2009: 2-16

Sure, the Red Sox are down this year, but they're still 83-67, which would be good enough to compete in most divisions that don't also include the Yankees and the Rays -- and another .500 team, the Blue Jays (currently 75-74).

At 60-90 after last night's win, the O's have 12 games left: two more in Boston, three in Toronto, three in Tampa Bay, and four at home against the Tigers. If the O's can win just three of those, they'll avoid 100 losses, which is pretty impressive considering how awful things were going a couple months ago. By the way, the O's are now 28-17 since Buck Showalter took over.

And for what it's worth, the O's are now just two games back of the Nationals (62-88).

Roberts picks up Simon with walk-off HR in the 10th

Brian Roberts led off the bottom of the 10th inning with a home run to give the Orioles a 3-2 win -- their sixth win in seven games under manager Buck Showalter. Going into the ninth and clinging to a 2-1 lead, closer Alfredo Simon allowed a solo shot to Paul Konerko to tie the game.

Besides Simon, the rest of the O's pitchers were solid. Brian Matusz gave up one run on three hits in six innings, lowering his ERA to 5.08. He also struck out four and walked two. Because of Simon's blown save, Matusz didn't get the win, but his performance was good enough to win on most nights. Koji Uehara relieved Matusz and pitched two scoreless innings. He didn't allow a hit and only needed 16 pitches to retire six consecutive batters. Michael Gonzalez did an effective job of relieving Simon and escaping the ninth inning without giving up the go-ahead run. Matt Albers also retired two batters in the top of the 10th and eventually earned the win.

Back to Uehara for a minute: He's been on a bit of a roll lately. Since giving up two runs in an appearance against Detroit on July 5, Uehara has allowed just one run -- against Toronto on July 28 -- and has struck out 14 batters and walked just one in 12.2 innings. During that span, he's lowered his ERA from 4.50 to 2.18. My beef with Uehara has never been that he isn't effective -- just that, at least earlier in the season, he seemed to tire when having to throw more than a few pitches in humid weather. Whether or not it's because he's in improved shape or just feeling better now that he's healthy, he's been outstanding lately and is looking like the best reliever in the O's bullpen.

The offense was held in check by White Sox starter Edwin Jackson through the first five innings, though they did put up two runs (one earned) against him in six innings. The O's finally got to him in the sixth with a Ty Wigginton solo home run. Then, aided by a Dayan Viciedo error, the O's loaded the bases with one out and took a 2-1 lead on a Matt Wieters RBI fielder's choice to first base. Instead of immediately throwing home, first baseman Konerko fielded the ball, touched first base, and then threw home too late to nail a sliding Luke Scott at the plate.

Besides the home runs by Wigginton and Roberts, the O's had six other hits, all singles, by Wigginton (2-4), Scott (2-4), Adam Jones (1-3, walk), and Felix Pie (2-4). Roberts also walked.

One other note: There's no question that Josh Bell is struggling mightily at the plate. In 52 at-bats, Bell has just eight hits (one double). He's also struck out 21 times while failing to draw a walk -- a dangerous sign. It's not a positive sign either that he batted ninth behind Cesar Izturis last night. He's simply been overmatched, and I'm just not sure this can be good for his development -- and I was one of the people clamoring for him to get more playing time when Miguel Tejada was still on the roster. And yet, that isn't the only problem. On a few plays in the field last night, Bell was too tentative. He was called off on a routine (though very high) pop up to third base by Izturis, and on another play, Bell failed to take charge on a pop up near the third base line, which forced Wieters to make a difficult, and awkward, catch. It was good to see Bell take charge on a tough fly ball in foul ground not more than an inning or two later after the Wieters play -- Bell made the catch -- but he has to be more sure of himself. There's no reason for Bell to get called off by the catcher on just about any pop up around third base; it's one thing for him to struggle at the plate, but he can't bring that with him out onto the field.

Buck moves to 2-0; O's have a win streak!

What seemed like a laugher in the fourth inning didn't end as one. After a five-run fourth that gave the Orioles a commanding 9-1 lead, the Angels battled back with a five-run seventh that brought them within striking distance. Still, those nine runs ended up being enough as the O's bullpen bended but didn't break, allowing the O's to escape with a 9-7 win.

First, the positives: Brian Matusz had a great rebound outing, allowing one run on seven hits in six innings. He struck out three and didn't walk a batter -- something that he's done too much this season. He got the win, his first since July 4.

The O's offense was also fantastic, accumulating 14 hits (12 against starter Ervin Santana) and nine runs. Santana wasn't fooling O's hitters last night, and they knocked him out after just 3.2 innings. Adam Jones and Felix Pie each had three hits, and Ty Wigginton and Luke Scott each had two. Pie tripled in a run in the second, and Scott belted a two-run homer in the fourth. Brian Roberts had a hit and a walk, and Nick Markakis doubled. Josh Bell also singled in a run.

Unfortunately, after a 24-minute rain delay in the bottom of the sixth inning, the O's momentum was gone and the Angels started to chip away at the lead. Matt Albers relieved Matusz, and here's what happened: single, fly out, single, double, double. David Hernandez then relieved Albers after three runs had scored, but the Angels weren't done: double, single, foul out, wild pitch (run scored). With two more runs tacked on, Hernandez left the game with an ankle injury, and Koji Uehara entered the game. He allowed a walk and an infield single before finally getting a ground ball to second to end the threat.

The O's failed to tack on any runs in the bottom of the seventh, so they led 9-6 going into the eighth. Uehara must have felt more better out there, because he struck out the side. Still, the Angels weren't done. Alfredo Simon entered the game in the ninth inning, and things got interesting. Simon allowed two straight doubles, which cut the lead to two. Then for some reason, Torii Hunter, who hit the second double, tried to steal third and was thrown out by Matt Wieters. Hunter is a great player and has made many phenomenal plays in his career, but to me, this is a benchable offense. The Angels weren't down by just one run in that situation (not that a steal is justified in that situation either); they were still down by two. And there still weren't any outs! What was Hunter thinking? He was already in scoring position, and his run didn't even mean that much. His decision just didn't make sense, but I'm glad he tried to steal and gave the O's an easy out. With the pressure slightly off, Simon got two fly outs -- while giving up a single in between -- to earn the save. It wasn't pretty, but it worked.

Two other notes: First, Roberts left the game after the rain delay with a left shin contusion. He was hit with the ball when diving back to second base early in the game, but he remained in the game. My guess is that he's fine, even if he gets the day off today just as a precaution. Second, the loss moved the Angels to one game under .500 (54-55), which is rather significant because, according to Joe Angel on O's radio last night, this is the latest in the season the Angels have been under .500 in about a decade. Must be nice, Angels fans.

Guthrie's strong start earns Showalter a win in O's debut

Jeremy Guthrie gave up three runs in seven innings and the O's offense woke up in the sixth inning to score four runs in a 6-3 win over the Angels in Buck Showalter's first game as the team's new manager.

Guthrie served up a two-run homer to Howie Kendrick in the fifth, but he allowed just five hits while striking out two and walking none. Since giving up four runs in 4.2 innings against the Rangers on July 8, Guthrie has been on a roll, allowing just seven combined runs in his last four starts -- a span of 27.2 innings. During that stretch, Guthrie has walked only two batters while striking out 17. His recent improved pitching has also lowered his ERA from 4.77 to 4.21.

On offense, Luke Scott hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning; he also had a double. Matt Wieters, though, may have had the best offensive performance of the night for the O's, finishing 3-3 with a double, two runs batted in, and a run scored. He also walked, allowing him to reach base four times. Felix Pie went 2-3 with two singles; Adam Jones singled and walked; and Josh Bell added a two-run double. Ty Wigginton went 0-2 but did walk twice. At the top of the lineup, Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis combined to go 0-8, yet the offense still scored six runs -- not bad, I guess.

As for the Showalter factor, the lineup was pretty much the same, and most things were done by the book. However, he did use the bullpen a little differently and showed some outside-the-box thinking. Here's Dan Connolly explaining the situation:

What interested me most was watching Showalter manage. During the past month, I’ve talked to a bunch of people who have worked under Showalter, and they have all spoken about his preparedness and how he puts his players in a situation to win.

And so I was intrigued by his first real piece of managing: in the ninth inning Tuesday with the Orioles up 6-3. Lefty Michael Gonzalez had already pitched one scoreless inning, and Showalter summoned him to pitch again in the ninth – even though it was a save situation and closer Alfredo Simon was warming up.

Go by the book, and bring in your closer. That’s what every manager I have ever covered would have done. But Showalter left Gonzalez in to face lefty Hideki Matsui, who struck out. Then Showalter stuck with Gonzalez to turn around switch-hitter Alberto Callaspo, and he grounded out.

With one out needed, Showalter called for Simon, even though it was no longer a save situation for the O’s closer. And Simon struck out Howie Kendrick.

Asked about the moves after the game, Showalter said: “The matchup was a lot better. Gonzo, I’ve been watching him throw the ball and talking to [pitching coach Rick Kranitz] and some of the guys. And I liked the switch-hitters turned around. The tough call was Hunter [in the eighth with one on and two outs]. That’s a tie ballgame at worst, though, and we like our chances at home with the last at-bat. Take our chances.”

That’s a guy who is not managing scared.

He followed that up with his best line of the day: “Believe me, I know the save rule and, quite frankly, it doesn’t carry much weight with me. I like the win rule a little bit better.”

Apologies for the long quote, but that's some intriguing stuff right there. I'm all for managers going against the typical bullpen philosophy of simply bringing in the closer in the ninth for a potential save. Now, I'm not a fan of leaving relievers such as Mike Gonzalez in for more than one inning, but Showalter recognized that Gonzalez has been throwing well lately and stuck with the hot hand rather than simply summoning Alfredo Simon in the ninth.

Could the move have backfired? Sure, anything's possible against the Orioles. But the move worked, and that's something that has been hard enough for the O's to find for a long time. I'm not ready to pronounce Showalter the greatest manager ever or anything because of the move, but I am ready to see what he has in store for this team.

Tillman sent down again; more roster moves coming

After a subpar performance last night, the Orioles decided to send Chris Tillman back to Triple-A Norfolk. According to O's manager Juan Samuel, the move doesn't mean a whole lot:

"We figured Tillman is not going to pitch again for five days, so why not do it now and get him on his way," interim manager Juan Samuel said. "That's the decision we made instead of waiting until" Wednesday.

With Kevin Millwood scheduled to be activated from the disabled list tomorrow and slated to start against the Twins on Thursday, the O's needed Tillman's roster spot to make the move.

First off, I don't really have a problem with the decision. The O's need to get Millwood back on the roster to make a few starts since they would obviously love to trade him and get something of value in return. That will only be possible if he's able to pitch well and stay healthy, so we'll see how that goes. Second, the front office's hands are really tied at this point with Michael Gonzalez, Brian Roberts, and Matt Wieters all expected to join the team within the next week or so. That's a lot of roster moves and decisions to make in such a short period of time.

With Luke Scott taking Frank Mata's roster spot and Millwood taking Tillman's, (at least) three more choices will need to be made. Barring possible trades or injuries, here are a few options: 1) demote Josh Bell to Norfolk; 2) release Julio Lugo; or 3) designate Matt Albers for assignment (I believe he's out of options). I guess the O's could also release Jake Fox or demote Brad Bergesen, though that would probably mean that Tillman would be promoted.

In the long run, these roster moves won't mean a whole lot. But even really bad teams have to make difficult personnel decisions.

O's lose again as Tillman can't get out of the third

Remember the O's four-game sweep of the Rangers last week that at least gave fans a faint hope that the team could play better baseball in the second half of the season? Yeah, that hasn't really happened yet.

In another hard-to-watch game, the Rays shelled Chris Tillman and blew the O's out 8-1. Tillman, like Brian Matusz the day before (1.2 IP, 6 ER, 5 H), wasn't effective at all. He gave up eight runs on seven hits in 2.2 innings, officially putting the game out of reach for the O's and their overmatched offense.

Since the All-Star break, the O's have lost all four of their games -- three to the Blue Jays, and now one to the Rays. In those games, the O's have scored just six runs, which is absolutely terrible. And not that it excuses the poor pitching performances from Matusz and Tillman, but it must be rather difficult to pitch when they're (possibly) thinking that giving up just a few runs will be insurmountable for the O's inept offense.

Speaking of offense, or the lack thereof, the O's had seven hits and one walk against Rays' starter Wade Davis, who gave up just one run in eight solid innings. The O's lone run came in the fifth inning when Cesar Izturis singled in Scott Moore. Izturis and Craig Tatum each had two hits.

By the way, the bullpen was actually very good yesterday. In 6.1 scoreless innings, Matt Albers, David Hernandez, Koji Uehara, and Alfredo Simon allowed just two hits while striking out seven Rays. Not bad, guys.

With the loss, the O's fall to 29-63 on the season.

Still, there is some good news. Luke Scott returned from the disabled list yesterday and went 1-4 with a single. And Brian Roberts is in Bowie for a rehab assignment and could be back with the O's in a few weeks. The return of Roberts to the leadoff spot would be big for the O's, who, despite the hot stretch by Corey Patterson before he got hurt, have really missed Roberts's ability to work the count, get on base, and be a nuisance on the basepaths. And although Felix Pie is talented and has improved at the plate, he is not a leadoff hitter; in the leadoff spot last night, Pie went 1-4 with a single, but he also saw just 10 pitches.

One other thing: It's time to end the Miguel Tejada experiment in Baltimore. I think Tejada is a nice guy. But not only is he playing below average defense at third base, he's adding very little offensive production to the lineup while batting second for most of the season. Sure, with injuries to guys like Roberts, Scott, and Matt Wieters, the options haven't really been there for the O's to move guys around to different spots. But Tejada, who is hitting .272/.311/.368 after an 0-4 last night, hasn't given the O's anything more than a singles hitter who doesn't get on base enough or hit for much power at all.

At 23 years old, Josh Bell might not be ready to play third base in a full-time role for the O's. And, who knows, he may never be that guy. In six games and 19 at-bats, he has five hits (all singles) but has struck out eight times. But if he's in Baltimore, he should be playing just about everyday instead of sitting the bench in favor of Tejada. The same can be said of the current platoon situation at second base between Julio Lugo and Scott Moore, though that probably doesn't matter as much with Roberts close to returning.

Basically, it comes down to this: No matter who the O's put in the lineup right now or bring up from the minors, they just aren't going to win this season or maybe even next season. So who would you rather watch while the team is bad, the current versions of Tejada and Lugo, or Bell and Moore? The answer should be pretty obvious.