Baltimore Orioles: 6 Ways the O's Can Stay Relevant
Over the last decade, the Baltimore Orioles have had a tough time getting their fans to come out to ball games and getting other teams, their fans and major sports news corporations to respect them.
Thirteen-straight losing seasons does that to a team.
Baltimore's Birds are showing some promise of growth this year, however, being just four games under the .500 mark through the season's first 54 games, as of June 2. Not bad, considering some injuries to key players and their offensive attack, or more so, the lack of one.
If they keep it up, they just might draw more attention to themselves on ESPN, and lure more fans out to the beautiful Orioles Park at Camden Yards against teams other than the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.
The following slides show a few things that could help the team out with staying relevant in the professional baseball world.
Continued Development of Young, Stud Players
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Ever since owner Peter Angelos brought in Andy MacPhail to take over a role called President of Baseball Operations in mid-2007, the O's have been in rebuilding mode. This means that the team dumps their highest paid, best players to other teams in order to get back a nice package of prospects.
This is the most crucial aspect to the Orioles' success in the short and long term. If these players don't pan out the way they were projected, we'll be seeing a rebuilding program all over again.
Players such as pitchers Jake Arrieta (pictured), Brian Matusz and Zach Britton, catcher Matt Wieters and shortstop prospect Manny Machado are going to be the ones to determine whether this team gets back into contention sooner rather than later. Living up to the huge amount of hype given to them may be hard, but it's certainly possible, and it is what their team needs.
And with contention comes relevance.
Making a Big Free Agent or Trade Market Spash
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President of Baseball Operations Andy MacPhail (pictured) doesn't like to wheel and deal. He takes all of his tradings and signings in a slow, deliberate and almost scientific form. And while some fans can't stand his method of acquiring players, you can't argue that Mr. MacPhail has nothing but the best intentions for the O's in mind when doing this.
This is why a scenario such as the one the title proclaims isn't as likely as anything else in this slideshow, but definitely is a possibility.
MacPhail is in the final year of his contract. Now while he says that doesn't affect anything he does with the organization this year, and I believe him, he may want to try something big to jump-start this team, have them finish with a strong record, and all but guarantee his re-signing.
I'm sure MacPhail wouldn't do anything without giving it careful consideration, but if the right trade or signing presents itself, expect him to pull the trigger.
A notable trade or signing always puts a team in the papers.
The Resurgence of Right-Fielder Nick Markakis
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The look on Nick Markakis' face in the picture that accompanies this slide pretty much sums up how his season at the plate has been.
A clubhouse leader, Markakis has clearly been frustrated with his performance offensively this season, and no one can figure out what's up with him.
Currently the highest-paid player on the team, Markakis is a leader by example, and if he's obviously frustrated, that can't help the team morale.
The O's need his annual .295 batting average to return, along with his 40-plus doubles a season. His great defense in right is definitely a help to the team, but until he gets his head on straight and slaps doubles into the gaps again, his team will be lacking the full effect of the franchise player.
Strong Play Only Gets Better
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For the Orioles to have stayed within five games of .500 all season long is a miracle in itself.
With the return of lefty starter Brian Matusz on June 1st, the O's should now be a stronger team, and if the offense ever decides to click, then this team could stay above the .500 mark and prove to be a difference maker in the playoff race, attempting to ruin other teams' playoff dreams.
Heck, if they keep up the pace they're on, it will be a noteworthy jump in their record from last season, when they won 66 games. That should garner them some attention.
But with the need of improved, stronger play, there is also the need for consistently good play, something the O's have lacked during the 2011 season. They've been quite a streaky team in the win-loss column, swapping winning and losing streaks like there's no tomorrow.
Preferably, things will start to go right for this team, and they will make further improvements, thus leading to more people noticing them.
Beat Down Their AL East Foes
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One thing any team needs to do to be successful is beat their division rivals on a consistent basis.
That's something the Orioles have struggled to do the past few years.
So far this season, the Birds have a 5-4 record combined against the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays, but are 0-6 against the New York Yankees.
No team can have an 0-for on the year against a contending division foe and expect to be on top of the standings when all is said and done. It's possible, but it sure doesn't help their cause.
If the O's want to win, they're going to have to roll with the big boys of the AL East, and I mean all three of them, as well as take at least half of the games they play against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Kicking the snot out of the other teams in your division always helps your record, your place in the standings, and your notoriety.
Draft and Make Minor Trades Intelligently
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When building a strong team from within, a front office needs to do everything in its power to have as many quality players as possible at the major-league level as well as all of the minor-league levels.
This means analyzing what you have and what you need, and acting upon whatever your data tells you to do.
If your team is loaded in one area, let's say promising young minor-league catchers, and you lack relief pitching, you should try to put together a nice package centered around one of your young catchers in order to land that major-league bullpen arm you need.
Most importantly, it means drafting well, something which the Orioles haven't had too much luck with the past decade.
Not every high draft pick works out, but some do, and those players make drafting intelligently worth it. If the O's can get lucky with some of their recent picks, as well as their 2011 pick that they will make in just a few days, they can have a real chance at putting their team back on everyone's radar.
Couple that with some minor transactions here and there, and the team could be suddenly loaded with raw talent.
Relevance Often Leaves as Soon as It Arrives
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Unless you're the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox, relevance is something that can be hard to keep around your franchise, because winning on a year-to-year basis can be a much harder challenge than a lot of people realize.
Too many factors go into staying relevant in the MLB world, that it's hard to keep tabs on all of them and be sure your team has got what it needs to stay on top of each one of them.
But with some good front office personnel, and a little luck, a team can hit a streak of at least a few years of being the talk of the town—everyone's town—and all will be well in their home cities.
And even with how well the Orioles have played this season, they've still got a ways to go to achieve a daily mention on ESPN's Sportscenter.
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