The Dynamic Duo
Well, any series with the Yankees counts as big, but this round was bound to be extra-special. On the one hand, it was the Orioles first trip home since Perlozzo was, ahem, dismissed. And with Oriole-killer Andy Pettite, living-legend Roger Clemens, and budding Oriole-killer Ching-Mien Wang on the mound, things didn't look good for the Orioles. Then, you remember that Miguel Tejada was on the DL and this did not promise to be a lot of fun.
But then along came Guthrie and Bedard...
If you ever need to understand why teams should start building from starting pitching, look at this series. The Orioles lineup was severely outmanned against the expensive Yankees. But Jeremy Guthrie was extremely tough and, other than the Damon HR, Guthrie rarely flinched. He induced double-plays and strikeouts when necessary. He got ahead in the count and showed the world that he is a having a legitimate season. Even with his 95+ MPH stuff, Guthrie looks like a pitcher, not a thrower. That bodes well for the future and if he continues his success, it will be one step closer to the Hall of Fame for Leo Mazzone.
But as good as Guthrie was, he was nothing comapred to Erik Bedard. Ladies and Gentlemen, for the first time since Moose left, we have an ace. On a night where Roger Clemens failed to strike out a batter, Bedard struck out eight and extended his ML leading total to 129. Only two hits and one walk--despite all the 3-2 counts. He was fearless with his pitch selection and it's as if he didn't realize what team he was pitching to or what pitcher he was matched against. One word to describe Bedard: Unflappable. He is the anti-Ponson and if he's not an All-Star, something is wrong.
The third game opened an opportunity for a sweep and, instead, the game is on hold due to rain. And when I say rain, I mean I thought it was an ad for "Evan Almighty". It was a bad idea to start playing again (and I don't just say that because the Orioles would've won if they just shut the game down the first time) and it was impossible to watch the game on TV with that rain, so I can't even imagine what it was like to PLAY in it.But given the game isn't even over, I'm not gonna bother with going into that game.
As good as the starting pitching was in the first two games, it's important to see the offensive catalysts in each game and what that could mean. Patterson had three hits in Game 1, Huff with a 3-run HR in Game 2, and Jay Gibbons with a huge opposite-field double in Game 3. If those guys start doing what is expected of them, this offense becomes much better (dare I say major-league worthy). This team isn't far from playing truly competitive baseball. Of course, it doesn't hurt when Brian Roberts is ripping the cover off the ball and Melvin Mora is starting to look like the guy in which the O's invested $30M. Yes, while all is not perfect, things have definitely been worse in the Inner Harbor.
As June comes to a close, the Orioles may be on the path to righting the ship that went so awry in the first two weeks of the month. It's only fitting they play the Angels since it was in Anaheim that this whole collapse started. The struggling Trachsel and inconsisten Burres start it off. If they can split those two, I like my chances with Guthrie in the finale. That's the beauty of quality starting pitching--especially when the offense starts showing signs.
But then along came Guthrie and Bedard...
If you ever need to understand why teams should start building from starting pitching, look at this series. The Orioles lineup was severely outmanned against the expensive Yankees. But Jeremy Guthrie was extremely tough and, other than the Damon HR, Guthrie rarely flinched. He induced double-plays and strikeouts when necessary. He got ahead in the count and showed the world that he is a having a legitimate season. Even with his 95+ MPH stuff, Guthrie looks like a pitcher, not a thrower. That bodes well for the future and if he continues his success, it will be one step closer to the Hall of Fame for Leo Mazzone.
But as good as Guthrie was, he was nothing comapred to Erik Bedard. Ladies and Gentlemen, for the first time since Moose left, we have an ace. On a night where Roger Clemens failed to strike out a batter, Bedard struck out eight and extended his ML leading total to 129. Only two hits and one walk--despite all the 3-2 counts. He was fearless with his pitch selection and it's as if he didn't realize what team he was pitching to or what pitcher he was matched against. One word to describe Bedard: Unflappable. He is the anti-Ponson and if he's not an All-Star, something is wrong.
The third game opened an opportunity for a sweep and, instead, the game is on hold due to rain. And when I say rain, I mean I thought it was an ad for "Evan Almighty". It was a bad idea to start playing again (and I don't just say that because the Orioles would've won if they just shut the game down the first time) and it was impossible to watch the game on TV with that rain, so I can't even imagine what it was like to PLAY in it.But given the game isn't even over, I'm not gonna bother with going into that game.
As good as the starting pitching was in the first two games, it's important to see the offensive catalysts in each game and what that could mean. Patterson had three hits in Game 1, Huff with a 3-run HR in Game 2, and Jay Gibbons with a huge opposite-field double in Game 3. If those guys start doing what is expected of them, this offense becomes much better (dare I say major-league worthy). This team isn't far from playing truly competitive baseball. Of course, it doesn't hurt when Brian Roberts is ripping the cover off the ball and Melvin Mora is starting to look like the guy in which the O's invested $30M. Yes, while all is not perfect, things have definitely been worse in the Inner Harbor.
As June comes to a close, the Orioles may be on the path to righting the ship that went so awry in the first two weeks of the month. It's only fitting they play the Angels since it was in Anaheim that this whole collapse started. The struggling Trachsel and inconsisten Burres start it off. If they can split those two, I like my chances with Guthrie in the finale. That's the beauty of quality starting pitching--especially when the offense starts showing signs.
posted by sandyk at
10:57 AM
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