Today, the Baltimore Orioles got a third baseman as they acquired Mark Reynolds in a trade from the Arizona Diamondbacks. In turn, pitchers David Hernandez and Kam Mickolio are headed to the desert. This could be the start of a flurry of moves to finally start happening with the organization.
With the options left on the market, perhaps the move for Reynolds was the best the Orioles could have made. It’s a shame to lose David Hernandez, as I thought he was coming into his own as a member of the bullpen; meanwhile, Mickolo was somewhat expendable. One would think that Baltimore would now have to hit the market once more for bullpen help.
The Diamondbacks, in the trade, get rid of Reynolds’ salary along with his propensity to whiff. Hernandez and Mickolio should help them shore up their bullpen, while cutting costs and infusing more young talent into their system.
Reynolds’ upside is that he’s still young, a slugger and plays decent third base. The strikeout totals he has accumulated the past several years are scary, plus he seemingly didn’t hit his weight last season; however, you can’t deny his power and RBI output.
Josh Bell, based on what we saw in his season in Baltimore in 2010, looked overmatched and just didn’t look ready for the big show.
Reynolds should fit the bill in the short term while Bell tries to figure himself out in the minors.
Baltimore needed a third baseman and they got it. He spoke to the scribes, professional bloggers, plus sports talk radio after the deal and so far has said all the right things. Well, so did manager Buck Showalter and Andy MacPhail, along with Kevin Towers — the current GM of the Diamondbacks.
In turn, it looks like the Reynolds trade brought the end of Ty Wigginton ever wearing the Oriole uniform again. According to Sports Illustrated’s Jon Heyman, Ty Wigginton signed a two-year deal with the Colorado Rockies.
That being said, could former Marlin and current National, Josh Willingham be bringing his talents to Birdland? The Orioles still need a first baseman and another power bat, right? Oops, let’s not forget a shortstop.
In addition, the Orioles still want Koji, but so do *six* other teams. Considering his numbers last season — when he was healthy — I’d take a risk on him.
As well, the Diamondbacks went ahead and signed former Oriole Melvin Mora to a one year deal to replace Reynolds.
