Orioles

In case you missed it--and apparently most of you did--the Orioles lost to the Royals 4-3 last night before about 9200 fans but frankly the turnstile count was probably close to half that. The crowd was the 2nd lowest in Camden Yards history and who could blame anyone. The Orioles and Royals match-up featured 2 of the worst teams in the majors. The Royals have already fired their manager and the Orioles might be about to show Dave Trembley the door. Despite some level of enthusiasm coming out of spring training the club is TERRIBLE. This is the 2nd time this season I have predicted that the 3rd year skipper would be shown the door but this time I mean it.

My originally call was just a reaction to the teams 1-11 start. Now after another 25 or so games the team is 12-27 follow last night's loss. All the major team statistics are in the bottom third of the majors. It seems like all their young stars are pressing. Matt Wieters, Adam Jones and Nick Markakis are the nucleus of a very good team but right now each of them is struggling. Jones seems to be struggling the most with a .245 batting average, 3 homers and 9 RBI's. Last year's All Star has also struck out 34 times. He needs to be more disciplined at the plate.

A new manager might take some of the pressure off the young players and let them salvage the remainder of the season. Now the question is who. I know this is crazy but I think Bobby Valentine--currently working for ESPN--would be the perfect guy. He has a history of winning with both veteran and young players. He is also a big enough name to take the pressure off the young players. I know he has a bit of an ego but this might be what the team needs. Another veteran manager might be Mike Hargrove. Hargrove did wonders with a very young team in Cleveland before his first stint with the Orioles from 2000-2003. Not sure if he would come back. Is there some Earl Weaver in the wings for the Orioles--I'm not sure--but they certainly could use some of the Earl of Baltimore's cache.