Baltimore Orioles: 8 Things They Still Must Figure out Before Opening Day

Spring training is past its halfway point, and while every team has answered some of the questions they faced heading into camp, they all still have plenty of others to figure out.

The Baltimore Orioles are no exception. In fact, they may be the team with the most questions left.

Of course, they've begun to figure some things out, but for every question answered, a new one takes its place. And while there's still time, manager Buck Showalter can't be putting it off until the last minute.

Kind of like how I do with my schoolwork.

Let's take a look at some of the questions posed to Orioles management concerning the makeup of their Opening Day 25-man roster in the final weeks of spring training.

Who's the Backup Catcher?

The Orioles traded for catcher Taylor Teagarden very early in the offseason with the intent of making him the backup catcher on the team.

Teagarden is a quality backup with a nice bat for a bench player, and he's young, so he could spell starting catcher Matt Wieters on a consistent basis.

The problem is, he started having back issues just a week or so ago, and the team isn't sure whether he'll be ready to go come April 6.

If he isn't, the Birds have another man ready to go in Ronny Paulino, but obviously, they'd rather have Teagarden healthy and on the bench in Baltimore while Paulino stays sharp down in Triple-A Norfolk.

As I'm sure you can figure out, the O's will probably need to wait until the very last minute to answer this one. It'll take some time for Teagarden to figure out whether he's healthy or not.

It isn't exactly earth-shattering stuff; Teagarden's injury won't be the factor that prevents the O's from attaining their first winning season in 15 years. But a backup catcher is a necessity for any team. We'll have to see how this one turns out.

Who Are the Starting Five?

This has been the biggest story line for the O's ever since GM Dan Duquette decided to overwhelmingly stock up on starting pitchers.

Competing for an Opening Day starting rotation spot, the Orioles have 12 guys trying to win one of five slots. To refresh, those 12 guys are Jake Arrieta, Brad Bergesen, Zach Britton, Wei-Yin Chen, Dana Eveland, Armando Galarraga, Jason Hammel, Tommy Hunter, Brian Matusz (pictured), Alfredo Simon, Chris Tillman and Tsuyoshi Wada.

What's more, according to MLBtraderumors.com, the Orioles are actively looking to add another starter.

Unless they deal one or more of their potential starters if/when they acquire another team's starting pitcher, that would make 13 candidates to pitch in the rotation.

Now of course, some guys are going to get injured and fall behind, making their chances of being in the rotation on April 6th less likely, such as Britton, Hunter and Simon.

But then there are those burning questions—will Brian Matusz keep himself from starting the year at Triple-A, or will Jake Arrieta be the Opening Day starter, or is Chris Tillman's new found velocity and spring success legitimate?

It'll probably take until the end of camp for us to know the answers to all of our questions about the rotation, but I'm sure Showalter already has some of these answers in mind.

Is Brian Roberts Going to Return to the Lineup?

Longtime Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts has been steadily trying to work his way back to game-playing form this spring, after he's been battling concussion symptoms for the better part of the last year.

No one knows if or when he'll return to the field and be the catalyst he once was for the Orioles' offense. Not even O's management.

It's honestly starting to get to the point where his career is in jeopardy, and the best thing for his health could be for him to hang up the spikes.

But he hasn't decided to give up yet, and his determination to make good on the hefty contract extension he signed two offseasons ago is admirable.

Everyone wants to see Roberts return, but no one wants to see him put his livelihood at stake. Hopefully, he can finally shake that pesky concussion of his and return as one of baseball's premier second basemen and leadoff hitters.

What Does the Bullpen Look Like?

We only know one thing for certain about the O's bullpen going into the 2012 regular season: Jim Johnson (pictured) will be a part of it, and he will almost certainly be the closer, something that Kevin Gregg isn't all too happy about, I'm sure.

Much like the rotation, the bullpen is completely up for grabs. Newcomers Matt Lindstrom and Luis Ayala will likely be a part of it as well, bar an injury. But then there are the likes of Jason Berken, Darren O'Day Troy Patton, Zach Phillips, and Pedro Strop vying for their own seat just outside the center field wall.

Then there's the possibility of some of the guys who don't make the starting rotation landing in the bullpen. Guys such as Bergesen, Eveland, Simon, and Wada could be used in a variety of relief roles.

And of course, the aforementioned Gregg, who is likely being shopped at this point in time by Duquette. However, if he isn't moved, he's guaranteed a spot in the 'pen, making it all the more crowded.

It'll be pretty fun, as well as nerve-wracking, to see how the bullpen spots are assigned and how well these pitchers perform as the season unfolds.

If Roberts Can't Go, Who Bats Leadoff?

Brian Roberts has been the catalyst of the Orioles' offense for the last decade or so, and without him, the O's just don't have the same "Omph!" when looking to score runs.

With that said, it's a tough task for the O's manager to find a suitable substitution atop the lineup, and an even tougher task for the player batting there to do the job on the same level that Roberts did.

Basically, whoever bats leadoff isn't expected to be the next Brian Roberts.

Shortstop J.J. Hardy got the largest portion of those at-bats last season, and he did a very nice job, but he isn't your prototypical leadoff hitter. Because of his lower (but not bad) average and good pop, Showalter would like to keep him lower in the order, giving him the opportunity to drive in some runs.

Other options could be left fielder Nolan Reimold, or possibly even right fielder Nick Markakis or first baseman/DH Nick Johnson due to his high OBP, though the latter isn't very likely.

I think that the favorite for the job will be utility man Robert Andino (pictured). It's pretty much assumed that he will be the Opening Day second baseman should Roberts not be ready in time.

Who Starts on April 6?

Going back to the Opening Day starter question, it seems as though there are many candidates to take the ball that day.

If you read any Orioles blogs or chat boards, such as School of Roch on MASN's website, you get the feeling that most fans out there would like to see Jake Arrieta (pictured) make that much-hyped start.

Before spring training started, Zach Britton was getting a lot of support on these same blogs and such, but he has been trying to return from shoulder soreness all of camp. At this point, he'd be lucky to break camp with the O's.

If lefty Brian Matusz continues to prove that he's ready to return to his late-2010 form this spring, then he could take the mound on Opening Day. Or Jason Hammel may get the nod, being that he's the veteran of the young staff.

And say Showalter wanted to get tricky and decided that either Wei-Yin Chen or Tsuyoshi Wada will start on April 6, since the fact that the MLB isn't familiar with them could give them an advantage. Wouldn't that be something?

So many candidates, no one sure-fire standout...

Batting Cleanup...?

The Birds don't have a single pure clean-up threat on their roster going into this coming season, so the four hole is up for grabs.

Third baseman Mark Reynolds doesn't have the average and contact percentage to be a good cleanup bat. First baseman Chris Davis needs to prove he's a major-leaguer before his pop lands him a responsibility such as the big bat in the lineup. J.J. Hardy has pop, but not enough of it to be a legitimate cleanup hitter; he's more suited to bat second or sixth.

Most likely, it'll be either center fielder Adam Jones or Matt Wieters (pictured) hitting in the fourth slot early on in the season, and neither of them are suited to be cleanup hitters, at least not in this stage of their careers. They both have some growing to do.

Regardless, the O's have some nice power potential running up and down their order. They should score enough runs to keep their pitchers in the games, if the arms can hold up their end of the bargain.

And hey, you never know. Maybe someone like Nolan Reimold or Davis will step up and force their way into batting fourth later on in the season. That would be a welcomed sight to Orioles fans and management alike.

Where Should Brian Matusz Start the Season?

After his historically bad season in 2011, former first-round draft choice Brian Matusz is having a great spring training, thanks to showing up in-shape this time.

We all know spring training can mean nothing or it could mean everything, but regardless, his success is certainly an encouraging sign for the Orioles.

Even still, some fans feel that he was rushed to the big leagues in 2009 and that he could greatly benefit from some time at Triple-A to begin the season.

Now obviously, the fans aren't the ones who make those kinds of decisions, but they could have a point, and I'm sure Showalter and Duquette have already started to discuss it amongst themselves.

It will be up to them to determine what is best for Matusz's future in baseball, and how to best help his development as a pitcher. They don't want to ruin the young lefty's career, and they certainly realize how crucial his success is to the success of the franchise.

To me, what happens to Matusz is one of the more interesting items that will be decided upon this spring.