Wishing the best for Baltimore

Besides spending my weekend consuming bar food and cold beer, the Baltimore Orioles were a focus throughout my short vacation to Bird Land.

Yuck.

I must admit, I expected better of the Orioles this season than last. I thought they had a legitimate chance at finishing as high as third place this season. The lineup looked really promising: a star in the making in Adam Jones, a terrific hitter in Nick Markakis, future best catcher Matt Wieters, and promising leftfielder Nolan Reimold. On top of that, they went into the season with smart veteran acquisition Kevin Millwood to lead a young rotation of Brian Matusz and Chris Tillman. They signed Mike Gonzalez to close games after a solid season in Atlanta, and Miguel Tejada and Garrett Atkins to fill holes at the corners of the infield. They also had recently extended the contract of one of the league's best second basemen, Brian Roberts.

What the hell has gone wrong?

Manager Dave Trembley just didn't inspire everyone. The rotation underperformed. Atkins has been horrific, Tejada nothing to write home about. The bullpen has been a disaster to say the least, and that itself might be too kind of a statement. The ballpark is empty and the only fans around Camden Yards come from New York and Boston.

The team has Jake Arrieta, six feet four inches tall and 225 pounds of pure prospect. A strikeout pitcher, teamed up with Matusz and Tillman should give Baltimore a rotation to someday compete with Tampa's David Price, Jeff Neimann, and Wade Davis. If they all pan out, they could compete with the pitchers of New York and Boston.

But they have to get there first. Much like the Nationals having a bright future, Baltimore does too -- but they need to make other moves to help. Millwood was the right idea, but the Orioles must have more starting pitching depth. It is time to get the bullpen to a respectable level, and that means spending money. Peter Angelos has the cash to buy middle relievers and a closer, and definitely should agenda item number one this offseason. Though Tejada and Atkins sounded right in January, the Orioles need to make a big for Prince Fielder or Adrian Gonzalez in the upcoming seasons to put a presence next to Wieters, Markakis, and Jones, while solidifying the corner position. Adrian Beltre would make some sense this offseason for Baltimore too, perhaps, assuming he opts out of his $5 million player-option from Boston.

I wish nothing but the best for the Orioles. On top of a great ballpark and solid historical franchise years, the city deserves to be great again. The days of 1996 and 1997 are far behind. Cal Ripken's rumors of taking the team over would probably help tremendously, but to get better now, the Orioles must find a leader for this team. Get a manager who can guide young players, earn the respect of veterans, and recruit good veteran pitchers to help a young staff. Birdland should be cheerier in the future. I sure do hope so.

JMO