Archive for T.J. McFarland

Minor League Recap: April 20-May 3

Posted in Minor Leagues, Offense, Pitching, Prospects with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 6, 2015 by oriolesprovingground

Last week’s Minor League Recap never got completed, so this “week’s” version will combine the last two weeks of baseball. Think of it as “two for the price of one”! Although, I don’t think that’s accurate because it’s still only one post. “Double for your money” is probably a better assessment of this installment of the recap. So not only are two weeks rolled into one post, but it’s also arriving a day later than usual because I had some podcast duties on Monday night for Camden Depot. If you’re reading this because you like the Orioles minor league baseball, then check out the podcast (it’s linked in the previous post on this website) because we talk to Camden Depot’s Joe Reisel, who is our man down at Norfolk. He sees anywhere from 30-40 games per year and has great insight on the AAA squad.

Weekly Summary

Norfolk (AAA): 5-8 (W-L), 33 Runs Scored, 40 Runs Against

Bowie (AA): 8-4, 61 RS, 37 RA

Frederick (High-A): 6-7, 49 RS, 67 RA Continue reading →

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Why is Ryan Webb Pitching in Norfolk?

Posted in Minor Leagues, Pitching, Trades with tags , , , on August 15, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

Ryan Webb has been one of the best relievers in the Baltimore bullpen this year.  So when the Orioles traded for Andrew Miller at the deadline two weeks ago, they naturally made room for Miller on the roster by designating Webb off of the 25-man roster (technically a different action than optioning him to the minor leagues, but essentially the same thing).  It was a curious move at the time that has only become more curious by the fact that he’s been down in AAA for the entire time.  Today at ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog Camden Depot, I try to figure out why.

Direct Link to Article –> Why is Ryan Webb Pitching in Norfolk?

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Orioles Give Up Too Much for Andrew Miller

Posted in Pitching, Trades with tags , , , , , , on August 1, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

One of the busiest trade deadlines that I can remember is now over and the Orioles came out of it with one move.  Similar to (one of) their deals at the 2013 trade deadline, Baltimore traded one of it’s more highly regarded prospects for 2 months of a reliever, sending LHP Eduardo Rodriguez to the Boston Red Sox for left handed reliever Andrew Miller.  It’s not a strategy I typically like, although Miller has been one of the most valuable relievers in all of baseball this year.  Today over at ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog Camden Depot, I give my taken the Rodriguez /Miller swap.

Direct Link to Article –> Orioles Give Up Too Much for Andrew Miller

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Minor League Recap: April 28-May 4

Posted in Minor Leagues, Offense, Pitching, Prospects with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 6, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

It was a “.500” kind of week for Baltimore’s affiliates, as each of the teams detailed in this weekly installment won as much as they lost, with Bowie and Frederick even scoring the exact number of runs that they gave up. Frederick barely got any games in as they had to deal with a ton of rain and a couple of postponements/cancellations in the beginning of the week. Additionally, Norfolk used 16 different pitchers during the week, so no one really got a lot of innings. Feel free to use any of these fun facts as an ice breaker in the coming week.

Weekly Summary

Norfolk (AAA): 3-3 (W-L), 36 RS, 33 RA

Bowie (AA): 3-3, 22 RS, 22 RA

Frederick (High-A): 2-2, 18 RS, 18 RA

The Good:

Hitters

Norfolk (AAA): 1B Brett Wallace– 8/23 (H/AB), 2 2B’s, 2 HR’s, 2 BB’s, 9 SO’s

The former top prospect has really been struggling at the plate this season, so it’s nice to see him put together a very productive week. The 9 strikeouts are still a little bothersome, but at least some of the power is starting to show up. Even though Wallace used to be a top prospect (the key phrase being “used to be”), fans shouldn’t expect much out of him, as he’s transitioned from prospect status to “organizational depth”. Continue reading →

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Projecting the 2014 Orioles: Pitching

Posted in Offseason, Pitching, Projections with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 31, 2014 by oriolesprovingground

Last week we looked at what the Zips projection system over at Fangraphs thought the Baltimore Orioles position players were capable of in the 2014 season.  Comparing those projections to the wins (fWAR) the team received at each of the offensive positions in 2013 resulted in the 2014 Baltimore offense to be worth 4.7 wins worse than the previous year’s team.  Today we’ll take a look at the pitching staff and see if we can bring that number back into the positive.

Starting Pitcher

2014 Zips Projection

2014 Zips Projection

In 2013, Baltimore starting pitchers as a whole were one of the weakest parts of the roster.  The starters combined for only 7.4 fWAR, which placed them 24th among all major league starting rotations.  Much of that production came from Wei-Yin Chen, Chris Tillman, and Miguel Gonzalez.  Scott Feldman and Bud Norris also added about 1 win each in a little less than half a seasons worth of work for the Orioles.  Other than that, 9 other pitchers produced anywhere in between 0.5 fWAR (Jason Hammel) and -0.8 fWAR (Freddy Garcia).  I looked at how the starting rotation fared in depth at ESPN Sweetspot Network Orioles blog Camden Depot earlier in the offseason, so if you would like a more detailed analysis, you can find it here. Continue reading →

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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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