Baltimore Orioles: Roster Moves the Os Must Make to Get into the Playoffs

Who would have thought coming into the 2012 MLB season that the Baltimore Orioles (45-40), after 14 consecutive losing seasons near the bottom of the American League East, would finish the first half above .500, let alone in second place in their division.

It still seems surreal to say that the Orioles sit seven games behind the New York Yankees for first place in the East at the break. The Birds just need to maintain this second-place advantage for the remainder of the year.

However, if they continue to play like they did toward the end of the first half, they need to make some major changes in order for them to make the playoffs for the first time since ’97.

One aspect of play has remained constant for the Birds the entire season—their strong bullpen.

Impressive Closer

Baltimore has led the league in bullpen ERA for almost the entire season and continues to lead the AL with a 2.75 ERA, sitting second place in the majors behind the surprising Pittsburgh Pirates, who sport a collective 2.63 ERA.

In addition, the Orioles hold the best record out of the pen with a 17-6 mark.

Every playoff team needs a great closer, and the Orioles seem to have found one over the last couple of seasons.

Jim Johnson (1-0, 1.26 ERA) has converted 26 of 27 opportunities this year. He’s tossed 37.1 innings over his 37 appearances, while he’s allowed just 19 base hits and surrendered five earned runs.

Besides his numbers, Johnson has a great attitude and always has a winning demeanor out there on the mound.

No matter what the situation is, it seems like he has it under control and there is nothing to worry about.

Impressive Bullpen

Although Johnson has transcended that type of calmness and sense of work to his other bullpen mates, Luis Ayala (2-2, 2.48 ERA) may be one of the most underrated arms out there.

He has been one of the strongest in relief this season, as he’s tossed 40.0 innings and allowed just 23 base hits.

Pedro Strop (4-2, 1.67 ERA) burst onto the scene last September and has made a name for himself as the setup man in front of Johnson.

He has been lights-out for the Birds and has put himself in perfect position for a possible promotion to closer early in his career.

There’s only one bullpen member who sports an ERA above four—Kevin Gregg owns a 4.07 ERA in 24.1 innings pitched.

Having just one member with an ERA right around four is something that the Orioles’ front office would have never predicted coming into this season.

So, needless to say, the bullpen is the one area where the Orioles do not need any roster moves.

Struggling Starting Rotation

In the starting rotation, there have been many problems, to say the least.

At the beginning of the year, though, and toward the middle of the first half, when the Birds were playing great baseball, the rotation was pitching as well as any other team in the MLB.

The Orioles starting pitching ranks 26th overall in the majors, compared to second in relief.

Collectively, they sport a 28-34 record with a 4.77 ERA, as they’ve allowed 264 earned runs over 497.2 innings of work.

Currently, only Jason Hammel (8-5, 3.47 ERA) and Wei-Yin Chen (7-5, 3.93) are still set as the No. 1 and No. 2 pitchers in the rotation. Interestingly enough, both of these hurlers were acquired in the offseason.

Hammel has been the Orioles' most surprising starting pitcher this season, and Chen has come out of nowhere (well, really Taiwan) to make a name for himself in the majors.

However, the rest of the decrepit Orioles rotation is in shambles. Jake Arrieta, who was supposed to be their ace entering the year, southpaw sensation Brian Matusz and former Texas star Tommy Hunter have all been demoted to the minors within the last week or two.

Each of these hurlers spent most of the 2011 season on the Orioles' roster. Oh, how a year changes things.

What to Do with Them?

Arrieta is 3-9 on the year with an inflated 6.13 ERA, and he has allowed 112 base hits over just 101.1 innings of work.

Before his demotion, he had allowed at least four earned runs in five of his last seven outings.

Matusz, who has been the talk of the Orioles organization over the last two or three years, is really struggling with consistency at the major league level.

This season, the southpaw sports a 5-10 record with a 5.43 ERA. He had only recorded one quality outing over his last seven starts and gave up nine combined earned runs over his last two outings.

Hunter was supposed to be one of the best young arms to come out of college in a long time. So far at the major league level, he has not been able to find the type of success he’s accustomed to.

Through 13 starts and 15 overall appearances, Hunter owns a 3-4 record with a 6.11 ERA. The Birds demoted him after he tossed just 1.2 innings and allowed five earned runs in relief against the Cleveland Indians.

Optimism in the Future?

Chris Tillman, who has been up and down for the Birds over the last couple of seasons like Matusz, tossed a very impressive game the other night.

Maybe he knew Showalter was looking for what he’s been working on at Triple-A this season.

Showalter has got to like what he saw.

Tillman tossed a career-high 8.1 innings of shutout baseball against the Mariners. Not to mention, he allowed just two base hits, good for his first win of the year.

Plus, we seem to have forgotten Zach Britton in the mix. In his rookie season with the Orioles, he went 11-11 with a respectable 4.61 ERA.

However, he got off to a strong start, going 4-1 with a 2.84 ERA in April. By the end of June, he was 6-6 with a 3.38 ERA.

He was definitely one of the Birds’ strongest starting pitchers last season, and after dealing with left shoulder impingement, Britton has been rehabbing in the minors and working hard to get back to where he was last season.

There is no timetable for his return, but he should be back after the break.

Dominant Starting Pitcher

There are three spots open in the rotation, and there are five in-house candidates for the positions.

Personally, I think the Birds have to go out and find a strong, proven starting pitcher.

They need someone who has experience in the playoffs and knows how to lead a team.

They need a Curt Schilling. Maybe not just like Curt, but they need a pitcher who can dominate and teach these young hurlers how to pitch effectively at the major league level.

The Birds already have a couple of strong starting pitchers and willing candidates.

However, if they want to make a run for the playoffs and bring a winning team back to the Inner Harbor, they desperately need a starting pitcher from outside the organization.

Strong Offense

Offensively, there is really not too much they need to do offensively.

Yes, the Birds’ offense has been struggling as of late, and runs have been tough to come by.

However, it is a 162-game season, and teams will run into slumps, unless you are the New York Yankees.

Earlier in the year, the Birds were leading the world in home runs, but they have dropped off a bit and sit with 106 on the year, good for third place in the AL.

Adam Jones is putting together the best season of his career, as he is hitting .289 with 20 home runs and 44 RBI, while he has started every game for the Birds. He is their rock, and he could use protection in the order.

That is one of the reasons the Orioles’ front office went out and bought Jim Thome, who has been one of the most prolific home-run hitters of our time. Thome sits tied for sixth place with Sammy Sosa, with 609 career home runs on the all-time list.

So, the Birds have already made an offensive roster move. Honestly, with Brian Roberts back, Jones hitting well and Thome in the mix, they have a strong core lineup.

Something Needs to Be Done

J.J. Hardy is struggling this year after he posted 30 home runs in his first year with the black and orange.

This year, he’s hitting just .224 with 12 home runs and 33 RBI.

Chris Davis has slowed down and is hitting just .271 on the year with 14 home runs and 40 RBI. Yes, his numbers are strong, but he has dropped off a bit since his impressive May.

Although Matt Wieters is hitting just .247 on the year, he has delivered 12 home runs and 44 RBI.

However, his importance to the team is not just rooted through power numbers. His main role is to work with the pitchers and make sure they are doing their job.

Once Nick Markakis returns to the lineup shortly after the break, the Birds' offense will finally be where it has needed to be since last May, when they lost Roberts due to that concussion.

With that said, the Birds could use one more power-hitting outfielder, because Nolan Reimold will be out the rest of the year.

They could always use Davis, Mark Reynolds or Wilson Betemit out there. However, if they could find possibly another slugger, they would be golden.

So, even though they have already added one of the most dominant home-run hitting sluggers of all-time to the mix, who knows how he will do in a Birds uniform? The Orioles definitely could use another power-hitting outfielder to bolster their sluggish offense.

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