Baltimore Orioles

The Orioles finished above .500 for the third consecutive season, the longest stretch since ’82-’85. Most preseason predictions had the Orioles finishing in the bottom half of the division barely scraping together 81 wins, but they managed to win the division and tie for the second best record in baseball. Making it all the way to the ALCS, but ultimately were stopped by the red hot Royals. The Orioles team performed very well as group making it difficult to do decide which moves were the best to improve the team from 2014.

As soon as I took over the team, I knew that I did not want to tender Chris Davis. He hit 26 homers this past year, but hit .196 and got on base at a .300 clip. Steve Pearce performed phenomenally splitting time between first base and left field. Not having Davis in the lineup left the Orioles with a big lefty bat in the lineup. Looking at all the big lefty bats that could play first base or left field, Adam LaRoche looked to be the best bet. With the shorter porch in right field than Nationals Park, Camden Yards could yield a few more home runs for LaRoche. He can also handle himself well at first base winning a gold glove back in 2012, but could also slide into the DH role.

Next, I had to decide whether it was worth picking up Nick Markakis’ $17.5 million dollar option. This was one of the more difficult decisions because that his a hefty sum of money for a player who did not have a great season last year. Also, the Orioles did not pick up his option for next year was weighing on the decision as well. I decided to go ahead and resign him anyway because he is still a good player and did not want to risk losing him to another team going into free agency. Also, thinking like a general manager who thinks about what the player means to the team, he is the longest tenured Oriole player. The Orioles also do not have any players in Norfolk that are ready to take over for Markakis this season. David Lough could play out there, but he profiles more as a fourth outfielder.

The Orioles pitching staff is littered with great arms. After going 16-6 with an ERA of 3.54, it was a no-brainer to pick up Wei-Yin Chen’s $4.75 million dollar option for 2015. Out of the bullpen Darren O’Day registered a WHIP of 0.89 and a SO/9 of 9.6 making him a valuable piece worth the $4.25 million dollar option. Also, tendering the contracts for Bud Norris, Miguel Gonzalez, Tommy Hunter, Zach Britton, Brian Matusz, and Chris Tillman were easy decisions all performing well for the Orioles.

One area I knew needed to be upgraded was second base, mainly being manned by Jonathan Schoop in 2014. The Diamondbacks GM came in looking to trade Aaron Hill and Oliver Perez, but I declined on Perez due to his contract and already having too many arms in the pen. Eventually the deal ended as the Orioles receiving Aaron Hill, Alfredo Marte, and $5 million dollars for minor leaguers Drew Dosch and Jon Keller. Hill is on the wrong side of 30 and had a down year in 2014, but in the the previous seasons, he hit over .290.

The Mets general manager came to me looking for a starting pitcher and I had an abundance with having six starters plus Dylan Bundy on his way to the majors in the near future. The Mets GM was already in talks with the Rangers GM and then brought me in to help finish the deal. After looking at the salaries of players, only to realize that my budget was at $112 million dollars and committed around $118 million dollars. That difference was just about the size of a contract that Norris will earn through arbitration this coming year. After looking over the Rangers roster I liked what I saw from utility player, Ryan Rua and reliever, Roman Mendez. The deal ended with the Orioles receiving Ryan Rua and Roman Mendes, the Mets receiving Norris and 500k in salary from the Rangers, and the Rangers receiving Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Vic Black.

After everything settled, I ended up with a lineup of:
Nick Markakis – RF
Steve Pearce – 1B
Adam Jones – CF
Adam LaRoche – DH
Manny Machado – 3B
Matt Weiters – C
JJ Hardy – SS
Aaron Hill – 2B
David Lough/Ryan Rua/Alfredo Marte – LF

Left field is a little weak, but last year David Lough started at majority of the games out in left. The big changes were the loss of Nelson Cruz’s bat, which is going to hurt, and the replacement of Chris Davis with Adam LaRoche, who can hopefully pick up some of Cruz’s production. The pitching staff looks fairly similar to last year as well just a few minor adjustments. The Orioles team this past year was very good and if Machado and Weiters both come back healthy this year, they could make another strong run for the playoffs with this core lead by Adam Jones.

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Baltimore Orioles