Together We Play: A Baltimore Orioles Franchise (MLB 13: The Show)

[zkiesel]

Orioles Offensive Woes Understandable

The Orioles currently sit with a record of 7-9 and hold down the 4th place spot in the A.L. East, 6 games behind the division-leading Yankees. Many fans are growing frustrated with the team's offense and are calling for changes to be made. But in context, the team is lucky to be 7-9.

The Birds have one of the toughest April schedules in baseball. So far they have played the Rays, Twins, Yankees, Red Sox, and Dodgers. Those are all very good teams, and half of those have been on the road. In addition, all of those teams have very good pitching staffs. The O's have faced David Price twice and beat him once. They faced Clayton Kershaw, CC Sabathia, and Clay Buchholz. So while the offense is struggling, they've done well against the low-middle tier of pitchers in the league.

There are rumors that the Orioles are considering calling up top 2B prospect Jonathan Schoop to take over the everyday second base duties. Brian Roberts, Alexi Casilla, and Ryan Flaherty have all been underwhelming at the position. Expect GM Dan Duquette to evaluate their status on the upcoming west coast road trip. If they show no signs of improvement, he may pull the trigger and bring up the youngster.

[BlueJays09]

Great job...following...tough schedule is right...also as bad as my Jays April schedule lol. Check my dynasty if you want! (link in sig below)

[CaptainWright]

Following. I was considering starting one with the Orioles but I decided to do the Royals once I meet the requirements to start a thread here.

[zkiesel]

Quote: Originally Posted by CaptainWright

Following. I was considering starting one with the Orioles but I decided to do the Royals once I meet the requirements to start a thread here.

The Royals are good, too. Both have really good stadiums. Naturally it was a no-brainer for me to choose the Orioles since I've been an O's fan from Baltimore from birth.

[zkiesel]

Dodgers Dominate Orioles, Win 4-1

If not for an Adam Jones solo home run in the bottom of the 9th inning, Zack Greinke would have pitched the 2nd straight complete game shutout against the Orioles. He was dominant throughout the entire game, picking up 13 strikeouts while walking none. This goes back to the point made earlier about the Orioles having to face so many great pitchers this month. It will definitely wear on them.

Wei-Yin Chen dropped to a dismal 0-4 record with the loss. He was only able to get through 5 innings, while giving up 3 runs. He is the only Orioles pitcher with an ERA over 3.00 however, so the pitching staff as a whole has been fine.

The O's (7-10) are back in action tomorrow afternoon against the Dodgers (11-6). First pitch is set for 1:35 PM. Miguel Gonzalez (0-0, 2.61 ERA) will go up against Chad Billingsley (2-1, 1.56 ERA).

Los Angeles Dodgers at Baltimore Orioles
Apr 20, 2013	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Los Angeles (10-6)	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	4	11	0
Baltimore (7-9)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	5	1
W: Zack Greinke (2-2) L: Wei-Yin Chen (0-4) S: N/A

Los Angeles Dodgers
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Carl Crawford, LF	3	1	1	1	2	1	0	.317
Mark Ellis, 2B	5	0	1	0	0	2	0	.220
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B	3	1	2	2	2	0	1	.273
Matt Kemp, CF	5	0	1	0	0	3	0	.233
Andre Ethier, RF	5	1	1	0	0	1	0	.303
Hanley Ramirez, SS	5	0	0	0	0	1	0	.350
Ramon Hernandez, DH	5	0	0	0	0	1	0	.278
A.J. Ellis, C	4	1	2	1	0	1	0	.393
Jerry Hairston, Jr., 3B	4	0	3	0	0	0	0	.264
TEAM TOTALS	39	4	11	4	4	10	1
BATTING: 2B: Carl Crawford (3) HR: Adrian Gonzalez (3) RBI: Carl Crawford (7), Adrian Gonzalez 2 (4), A.J. Ellis (7)
BASERUNNING: SB: Carl Crawford (2)

Baltimore Orioles
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Nate McLouth, LF	4	0	0	0	0	1	0	.111
Manny Machado, 3B	4	0	0	0	0	1	0	.177
Adam Jones, CF	4	1	1	1	0	1	1	.250
Chris Davis, 1B	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	.286
Wilson Betemit, DH	4	0	0	0	0	3	0	.189
J.J. Hardy, SS	3	0	2	0	0	1	0	.328
Ryan Flaherty, RF	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	.125
Nick Markakis, PH-RF	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.179
Taylor Teagarden, C	2	0	0	0	0	2	0	.250
Matt Wieters, PH-C	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.302
Brian Roberts, 2B	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	.133
TEAM TOTALS	32	1	5	1	0	13	1
BATTING: HR: Adam Jones (3) RBI: Adam Jones (6)
FIELDING: E: J.J. Hardy (3)

Los Angeles Dodgers
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Zack Greinke (W, 2-2)	9.0	5	1	1	0	13	1	4.50
TEAM TOTALS	9.0	5	1	1	0	13	1

Baltimore Orioles
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Wei-Yin Chen (L, 0-4)	5.0	4	3	2	3	7	1	4.84
Tommy Hunter	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
Brian Matusz	1.2	5	1	1	1	1	0	1.13
Tsuyoshi Wada	1.1	2	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
TEAM TOTALS	9.0	11	4	3	4	10	1

[zkiesel]

O's Call Up Schoop, DFA Roberts

In a somewhat shocking move, the Baltimore Orioles have called up 21-year old second baseman Jonathan Schoop from Triple-A. The move also corresponded with the team designating long-time 2B Brian Roberts for assignment. The O's were clearly fed up with the lack of production at second base in April, and made the move for Schoop, who was tearing the cover off of the ball at Norfolk.

Schoop is not a great defensive player, but has a great bat with huge potential. He will be the everyday second baseman, and manager Buck Showalter said that he expects Schoop to start the season batting 9th, but could move his way up the batting order if he does well.

[zkiesel]

Writers Analyze Schoop Call-Up

Following the Orioles' call-up of their most recent young future superstar, Jonathan Schoop, MASN writers Roch Kubatko and Steve Melewski, and MLB.com writer Brittany Ghiroli analyzed the move.

Roch Kubatko (MASN): "I've been waiting for awhile for this call-up to happen. I finally get to use the headline "Orioles Scoop Up Schoop"! But seriously, Schoop has been highly thought of within the organization for years. It's great to see him finally get his chance with a big-league ball-club, and hopefully he can produce as well as Manny Machado has in his short time here."

Steve Melewski (MASN): "Jonathan is one of the best prospects not only in the Orioles organization, but in the majors. His defense still needs a bit of work, but his bat is comparable to Manny Machado's. He's got raw power and the ability to hit the ball real hard. He's still maturing, but he'll only get better. And he was the best option at second base for the Orioles, so there was no reason to keep him holed up at Triple-A."

Brittany Ghiroli (MLB.com): "This is one of the most surprising moves in the majors so far in 2013. I would have expected the O's to give Roberts more of a chance, but they felt Schoop was ready. With the way they handled Manny Machado last season, I don't think anyone can second guess the decision. Naturally everyone hopes for the best for the youngster, and I know he's as excited as the fans are to get on that field."

[zkiesel]

Orioles Swept By Dodgers, 5-1

The Orioles were no match for the Dodgers in this series at Camden Yards this weekend. They were outscored 13-2 during the series, and never once faced the Dodger bullpen. The Oriole offense has been extremely bad over the past few weeks, and especially leading up to this weekend series. Very few hitters are not struggling, and the Orioles hope the upcoming series against the Blue Jays helps those bats.

Orioles rookie 2B Jonathan Schoop made his MLB debut this afternoon, and got his first MLB hit on the 2nd pitch he saw. He dropped a single into right field in the 1st inning, and accounted for 1 of only 4 hits received by the O's this afternoon.

The Orioles (7-11) are back in action tomorrow night against the Blue Jays (12-7). First pitch is at 7:05 PM at Oriole Park. Chris Tillman (3-0, 1.89 ERA) looks to keep up his amazing start against Mark Buehrle (1-1, 3.60 ERA).

Minor Leagues Note: 2B Ty Kelly was promoted from Double-A Bowie to Triple-A Norfolk to replace 2B Jonathan Schoop, who was promoted to the Orioles today.

Los Angeles Dodgers at Baltimore Orioles
Apr 21, 2013	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Los Angeles (11-6)	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	5	11	0
Baltimore (7-10)	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	4	0
W: Chad Billingsley (3-1) L: Miguel Gonzalez (0-1) S: N/A

Los Angeles Dodgers
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Carl Crawford, LF	5	0	1	2	0	1	0	.308
Mark Ellis, 2B	5	1	2	0	0	1	0	.234
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B	5	0	2	0	0	0	0	.282
Matt Kemp, CF	4	0	1	0	1	2	0	.234
Andre Ethier, RF	4	1	2	1	1	0	0	.314
Hanley Ramirez, SS	5	2	2	2	0	1	1	.354
Ramon Hernandez, DH	4	0	0	0	1	1	0	.227
A.J. Ellis, C	3	1	1	0	0	1	0	.390
Jerry Hairston, Jr., 3B	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	.250
TEAM TOTALS	38	5	11	5	4	7	1
BATTING: 2B: Andre Ethier 2 (2) HR: Hanley Ramirez (5) RBI: Carl Crawford 2 (9), Andre Ethier (10), Hanley Ramirez 2 (13) HBP: A.J. Ellis

Baltimore Orioles
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Nate McLouth, LF	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	.125
Jonathan Schoop, 2B	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	.250
Nick Markakis, RF	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	.183
Adam Jones, CF	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.236
Matt Wieters, C	3	1	1	1	0	0	1	.303
Wilson Betemit, 1B	3	0	0	0	0	2	0	.179
J.J. Hardy, SS	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	.313
Nolan Reimold, DH	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	.135
Ryan Flaherty, 3B	3	0	0	0	0	2	0	.105
TEAM TOTALS	31	1	4	1	0	7	1
BATTING: HR: Matt Wieters (5) RBI: Matt Wieters (10)
FIELDING: PB: Matt Wieters (2)

Los Angeles Dodgers
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Chad Billingsley (W, 3-1)	9.0	4	1	1	0	7	1	1.37
TEAM TOTALS	9.0	4	1	1	0	7	1

Baltimore Orioles
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Miguel Gonzalez (L, 0-1)	6.0	6	2	2	3	2	0	2.70
Tommy Hunter	0.1	3	1	1	0	1	0	1.29
Troy Patton	0.2	0	0	0	1	2	0	0.00
Darren O'Day	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	6.00
Tsuyoshi Wada	1.0	2	2	2	0	1	1	2.25
TEAM TOTALS	9.0	11	5	5	4	7	1