The Orioles upped their record to 3-0 in Grapefruit League action as they beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 3-0, this afternoon in Clearwater, Florida.
Baltimore got much of their offense from Matt Wieters who had a big day going 3-for-4 with 2 RBI’s. Brendan Harris, Felix Pie and Matt Angle each drove in a run as well.
Meanwhile, Chris Tillman – who is definitely a candidate to start the season off in Triple-A – got through his two inning outing, but gave up a run and was plagued with control issues on the mound.
Overall, he allowed one run on three hits, and gave up a walk. Hopefully, Tillman can show some consistency on the mound as Spring Training goes on.
Pitching prospect Zach Britton made his Grapefruit League debut on the mound for Baltimore and based on his comments to the media afterwards, he admitted to being nervous.
That was evident on the mound as he had a shaky start to his two-inning outing, but he calmed down and didn’t give up a run.
The bullpen followed up with three scoreless innings from Mark Worrell, Mike Gonzalez and Jim Johnson; however, pitchers Pedro Viola and Nick Bierbrodt got hit hard during the final two innings of the game before Chris Jakubauskas came in for the save.
Veteran Randy Winn went 1-for-2 with a walk and I’m wondering where on the Orioles he would fit in?
I’m sure Winn is on a minor league/invitation-to-Spring-Training deal and if he doesn’t make the team, the veteran will move on from the organization.
Winn’s definitely been a solid player over the years (but now on a decline) and would certainly be a platoon guy – if he made the team. However, with Pie and Reimold younger than him and certainly part of the future, I don’t see him part of the Orioles when they go north.
Finally, Matt Wieters’ nice game on Wednesday had me thinking about a conversation I had with a Phillies fan (who I sat next to) in Clearwater in the first few frames of the game.
He said that Wieters overall has been a bust; meanwhile, I interjected and noted that he was merely “ok” and certainly has not lived up to the hype.
Before we all forget, 2010 was Matt’s first full season in the majors. He’s only 24 and it would have probably been impossible to live up the advance billing that was given to him before he even had his first-major-league-at-bat.
Of course, Wieters’ production in the minor leagues has not translated to the majors and everyone expected him to be a hybrid of Joe Mauer and Johnny Bench; however, he cannot be classified as a failure despite his struggles in 2010.
He showed flashes of brilliance in ’09 after a June call-up, but as we all know took a huge step back.
Wieters did finish up the year strong last season and let’s not forget he had to learn, guide a pitching staff, plus deal with a horrendous four-month stretch of losing before Showalter came to the Orioles.
I told the Phillies fan that Wieters simply needs more time to develop his hitting game and his offensive output will take time to flourish. Hopefully with an Oriole lineup this upcoming season stacked with proven veterans, mainstays, and some excellent young talent, he’ll start to hit and develop.
I’m sure most of us fans feel the same. He’s a big part of Baltimore’s future and he’ll be in the black-and-orange for a while. Let’s hope for the best.
Matt’s got another year under his belt, and I think he’ll be greatly improved at the plate from 2010.
