Some Thoughts on Ubaldo Jimenez

Posted in Free Agency, Offseason, Pitching with tags , , , , , , , , , , on February 24, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

As of Wednesday February 19, Ubaldo Jimenez officially became a member of the Baltimore Orioles.  The Orioles signed him to a 4-year, $50 million contract.  While he’s expected to perform near the top of the rotation for the duration of the contract, he’s already completed his toughest task, which was passing Baltimore’s physical exam*.  The details of the contract aren’t that important (they can be found here), but at an average annual value of $12.5 million, at first glance this looks like a decent deal for the Orioles, especially if you’re last memory of Jimenez is the unhittable version of him from the 2013 All-Star break to the end of the season.

*I know the whole “passing a Baltimore Orioles physical” has been overdone this offseason, but I felt that it was my duty to make sure I had at least one joke in here about it.  Although any joke probably wouldn’t top this tweet from former Orioles’ pitcher Jeremy Guthrie.

If you’ve been reading the different opinions about the Jimenez signing, you see a lot of the emphasis on how the signing affects the team’s playoff chances in 2014.  This is important to talk about for a couple of reasons.  One is that since Jimenez will be 30 years old during the 2014 season, there is a decent chance that the first year of his contract will be his best. Second, with all the recent talk of Baltimore’s current window of contention potentially closing in the next year or two (Hardy and Markakis are free agents after 2014, while Wieters and Davis will be free agents after 2015), it appears that productive seasons from Jimenez will be more valuable to the team’s success in his first 2 years than his last 2 years.  There may be a bit of truth to both of these points, but I don’t necessarily want to focus only on 2014 in this post. Continue reading →

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Some Thoughts on Suk-min Yoon

Posted in Free Agency, Pitching with tags , on February 20, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

On Wednesday, I mentioned that at some point I would probably share my thoughts on Baltimore’s recent signings of Korean right-hander Suk-min Yoon and free agent starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez.  Well today is your lucky day as I’ve deemed myself ready to discuss Suk-min Yoon.  Hopefully soon, I’ll discuss the Ubaldo Jimenez signing as well.

I’m starting with Yoon for a couple of reasons.  First, he signed before Jimenez, and second I don’t really know much about him, so this shouldn’t take too long.  Other than checking out a couple of videos on YouTube, I’ve never seen him pitch and don’t have any additional thoughts or analysis from what is already readily available to you (the reader) if you had performed the Google search yourself.  Although according to the video I just linked to, Yoon seems to regularly throw well over 100 mph, which is amaz…wait, nope that’s in km/hr.

Anyway, the Orioles signed Yoon on Monday to a 3-year deal worth a total of $5.575 million.  The deal includes incentives based on games started that could net Yoon an extra $7.5 million or so.  Yoon is 27 years old and has 3.19 ERA over 9 seasons playing in the Korean Baseball Organization (the professional baseball league in Korea).   He’s pitched mostly as a starter in the KBO (earning league MVP honors in 2011), but has had some experience in the bullpen, including the 2013 season due to some shoulder tendonitis.

Based on what evaluators have been saying, the general consensus on Yoon is that he’s either a back-end #4 or #5 starter, or an effective reliever in the major leagues.  If that’s the case, it’s hard not to like this deal.  At best, the Orioles get a back end of the rotation starter and at worst an effective reliever for less than $2 million per year.  To help you get better acquainted with Yoon, I’ll dump a couple of links on you from people who know more about him than I do.  Highly suggest taking a minute to look at both.

Camden Depot’s Jon Shepherd talks with Korea’s Yonhap News’ Jee-ho Yoo about Suk-min Yoon

Suk-min Yoon Scouting Report by former Lotte Giant Ryan Sadowski

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What Can the Orioles Expect from Matt LaPorta?

Posted in Free Agency, Offense, Offseason with tags , , on February 19, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

The Baltimore Orioles have been busy little bees the last couple of days by signing RHP Suk-min Yoon out of Korea as well as one of the best remaining free agent starting pitchers in right hander Ubaldo Jimenez.  Everybody is talking about them, and for good reason, because they both constitute the biggest signings the team has made so far this year (sorry Ryan Webb, but you’ve been bumped).

I’m sure I’ll discuss those two at some point, but since everyone else is discussing them right now, I figured I’d talk about Matt LaPorta.  Remember him?  If you do, get reacquainted with a trip down memory lane, and if you don’t, then get to know him.  Either way, head over to the ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog, Camden Depot and see if the Orioles can find lightning in a bottle.

Direct Link to Article –> What Can the Orioles Expect from Matt LaPorta?

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Could Ervin Santana Improve the Orioles Rotation?

Posted in Free Agency, Offseason, Pitching with tags , , on January 28, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

The Orioles have had a very slow offseason.  Sure they’ve signed approximately 57 outfielders to minor league contracts with invites to spring training i the hope that one of them can play in left at the major league level, but other than that and a couple of minor trades, it’s been pretty quiet.  One place they can still improve is in the starting rotation, where there are potential difference makers (albeit few) left on the free agent market.  Yesterday on ESPN Sweetspot Orioles blog, Camden Depot, Matt Kremnitzer took a look at one of those starting pitchers in Ubaldo Jimenez.  Today, I take a look at another, Ervin Santana.

Direct Link to Article –> Could Ervin Santana Improve the Orioles Rotation?

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My (Hypothetical) Hall of Fame Ballot for 2014

Posted in Hall of Fame, Offseason with tags , , , , , , , , , , on January 8, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

Later today, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) will announce their selections for the 2014 Hall of Fame class.  Every year, members of the BBWAA cast their vote for up to 10 players.  The players who receive 75% of the vote will be honored during an induction ceremony in Cooperstown, NY at the end of July.  Any player who receives less than 5% of the vote will be removed from the ballot.  Players who receive between 5% and 75% will remain on the ballot in future years, for no more than 15 years.

The ballot this year includes 38 names, and the complete list of eligible candidates can be found here.  Due to the stance that some members of the BBWAA have taken regarding steroids and other performance enhancing drugs over the past couple of years (anything from not voting at all to not voting for players who “look” like they were using PED’s), the ballot has become increasingly crowded with hall of fame worthy talent.  This year is arguably the first year in a long time (I’m being lazy and not looking up the other years) where there are substantially more than 10 players on the ballot who should be enshrined in Cooperstown on talent alone.

Earlier this week, ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog, Camden Depot put together the hall of fame ballots from local Orioles’ blogger’s, in an effort to compare our votes to the overall voting of the BBWAA.  My votes can be found within that article (along with some analysis from Head Depot’er Jon Shepherd), and I highly suggest you head over there to read it, as the results and some of the votes are pretty interesting. With that in mind, I thought I would take a moment to explain my choices here on the Proving Ground. Continue reading →

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Looking Back on the Brian Roberts Era

Posted in Free Agency, Offense, Offseason with tags , on December 20, 2013 by oriolesprovingground

As of this past Tuesday, Brian Roberts is a member of the New York Yankees.  By signing with them, he ended his 15 year tenure within the Baltimore Orioles organization.  Today on ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog, Camden Depot, I take a look back at both the good times and the bad during Roberts’ days in Charm City.

Direct Link to Article –> Looking Back on the Brian Roberts Era

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Making Amends for Yesterday’s Winter Meetings Post

Posted in Draft, Offseason, Rule 5 with tags , , , , , on December 14, 2013 by oriolesprovingground

Yesterday’s post was meant to be funny, as it was intentionally left blank because the Orioles didn’t really do anything at the Winter Meetings.  And when I say “do anything”, I of course mean that they didn’t make any trades or sign any players to their major league roster.  They were all over the rumor mill, and it was even reported that they had several offers out to players, including right-handed closer Grant Balfour and outfielder Nelson Cruz (although the reports as to whether they actually had an offer out to Cruz were conflicting).

Additionally, they did make two selections in Thursday’s Rule 5 Draft, one in the major league portion and one in the minor league (AAA) portion.  If you don’t know anything about the Rule 5 Draft, click here to increase your knowledge and therefore your power (because knowledge IS power).  Rule 5 draft picks are not something to normally get excited about as they rarely pan out.  Still, there is a chance that a team could pick up a productive player in the Rule 5 Draft, even if the chances are slim.  If you want proof, all of the following are Rule 5 draftees: Continue reading →

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Summarizing the Orioles 2013 Winter Meetings Activity

Posted in Free Agency, Trades on December 13, 2013 by oriolesprovingground

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A First Look at Ryan Webb

Posted in Free Agency, Pitching with tags , , , , on December 11, 2013 by oriolesprovingground

Yesterday the Orioles made the signing of right-handed relief pitcher Ryan Webb official, after Webb passed his physical.  Webb signed a 2-year, $4.5 million contract with the team.  Other than the Jim Johnson trade and signing a bunch of AAAA players (guys who are too good for AAA, but not good enough to be a major league regular), the signing of Webb has been the most significant addition for Baltimore so far this offseason, which seems to be leaving most of the Baltimore fan base a little restless as numerous free agents are off the board and the winter meetings are beginning to wind down.  Since Webb has played his entire major league career in San Diego and Miami, most of you have probably never seen him pitch.  With that in mind, I am providing a first look of Ryan Webb over at ESPN Swetspot Network Orioles blog, Camden Depot.  He may be their first “major” free agent signing, but hopefully he’s not their last as the team has multiple holes to fill.

Direct Link to Article –> A First Look at Ryan Webb

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Scouring the League for Second Base Surplus

Posted in Offense, Offseason, Trades with tags , , , , , , , on November 23, 2013 by oriolesprovingground

The Orioles have a hole to fill at second base during the offseason.  That’s not exactly news.  On a rare Saturday post over (at least for me) at ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog Camden Depot, I am taking a look at teams that have a surplus of second basemen who may be willing trade partners to the Orioles.  The choices range from established veterans who may be expensive, in terms of prospects and salary commitments to former top prospects (or less established players) that may be a little cheaper, but come with a lot more risk.  Should the Orioles actually trade for any of these guys?  As always, it will depend on what they would have to give up to get them.

Direct Link to Article –> Scouring the League for Second Base Surplus

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