I was speaking with a fan today and he said right before the game that the Orioles will lead the league in homers. I kind of snickered at his sentiment, but the more I thought about it – he may be right.
They showed that today as they beat the Rays, 12-6. Nick Markakis had two homers on the day with 4-RBI and was perfect at the plate, going 3-for-3.
- The Orioles slugged five homers – all in the first two innings – off Tampa Bay starter Andy Sonnastine, who must have gotten whiplash seeing the balls fly out of the park. Vladmir Guerrero, Adam Jones and Jake Fox all also homered in the huge that gave the Orioles a 2-0 record in exhibition action. The first two frames for Baltimore were something out of a video game and very thrilling to see.
- It’s too bad that the Orioles were playing in a glorified practice game today. If I what saw out of the Baltimore lineup – even without Derrek Lee – this afternoon resembles anything we may see in the near future, baseball will be exciting again at Camden Yards sooner rather than later.
- Again, I’ll say this: Based on what I have seen out of Vladmir Guerrero so far (in two games worth) he’ll potentially be a boon for Baltimore. I can see it.
- Brian Roberts went 2-for-3 and Brandon Snyder plated in two runs later in the game.
- Jeremy Guthrie was excellent, as he went two innings, gave up no hits and struck out one. Seeing him on the mound was very encouraging to see, despite his relatively short performance on the afternoon.
- The bullpen struggled a bit as Rick VandenHurk gave up a run in an inning of work; Mark Hendrickson gave up a run in his outing as well, and David Riske gave up two runs – on two homers – in 2/3 innings worked. Jason Berken also struggled as he gave up two runs.
- I’m convinced Manny Ramirez can get out of bed and hit .300 or above. Despite his sordid history and his antics over the past few seasons, he got a seemingly friendly applause from the bi-partisan (a good mix of Rays and O’s fans) crowd at Ed Smith Stadium.
Also, this afternoon Peter Angelos attended the game at a sold-out Ed Smith Stadium and noted that Andy MacPhail, “isn’t going anywhere”.
Although I think Andy MacPhail’s time in Baltimore has been mixed, I do think he’s made strides in rebuilding the minor leagues and trying to wake up a moribund organization. There’s a lot more to do, but I say give him a few more seasons to rebuild the Orioles and see what comes about.
While I am excited to see the Orioles have a good first two Spring Training games, the franchise has a lot more work to do.
