Get a good look at 37-year old righty swinging Melvin Mora as the Orioles will likely let him go in the off-season. He ran his mouth a little too much about playing time while he was not playing well. Mora has played in 111 games this season for the Orioles and he is 106 for 402 (.264 avg, .681 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 7 homers, 42 RBIs and 3 steals. Mora was excellent for the Orioles last season as he hit .285 (.825 OPS) with 77 runs scored, 23 homers and 104 RBIs. The Orioles will likely be moving in a new direction starting next season and going with youth which should be enough to push Mora out the door.

23-year old switch hitting catcher Matt Wieters is the face of the franchise going forward so why don’t the Orioles just call him up? It’s not like Gregg Zaun and Chad Moeller are ripping the baseball anyway. Zaun has played in 31 games for the Orioles this season and he is only 21 for 101 (.208 avg, .617 OPS) with 12 runs scored, 1 homer and 3 RBIs. Moeller has been even worse playing in 12 games for the Orioles in which he is 8 for 41 (.195 avg, .599 OPS) with 1 run scored, 1 homer and 1 RBI. If this is over money down the road the Orioles’ front office is being flat out stupid. Wieters has played in 34 games in AAA-ball this season and he is 34 for 121 (.281 avg, .860 OPS) with 23 runs scored, 5 homers and 23 RBIs. Give the kid a chance and he might just prove that he is more than ready to excel in the major leagues right now!

Jay Payton always seems to be complaining about playing time so with him getting to start while Adam Jones is on the deal it’s time to put up or shut up. Payton has played in 13 games this August so far and he is 12 for 47 (.255 avg, .676 OPS) with 8 runs scored and 4 RBIs. He needs to play better than that if he wants to earn a lot of playing time when Jones comes back. He is also auditioning for other teams right now who might need a outfielder before August 31st when playoff rosters freeze. Payton has now played in 101 games this season for the Orioles and he is 61 for 248 (.246 avg, .657 OPS) with 30 runs scored, 6 homers, 37 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. It’s really starting to appear as though Payton’s bark is much worse than his bite.

The Orioles felt obligated to give Freddie Bynum his first chance at a starting job replacing Luis Hernandez at shortstop. But he better get his bat going soon or he will soon go back to being a reserve infielder. Bynum has played in 27 games this season for the Orioles and he is 18 for 83 (.217 avg, .538 OPS) with 10 runs scored and 4 RBIs. If Bynum doesn’t pick up the pace soon the Orioles will turn to veteran Alex Cintron to start at shortstop. He has played in 13 games for the Orioles this season and he is 9 for 30 (.300 avg) with 1 RBI. The Orioles would be smart to switch shortstops now as Cintron is simply a better player than Bynum is.

The Orioles have recalled 25-year old switch hitting infielder Eider Torres from AAA to replace Adam Loewen on the roster. Torres will likely steal playing time at shortstop from light hitting Luis Hernandez and Brandon Fahey. Torres has played in 18 games in AAA this season and he is 25 for 74 (.338 avg, .795 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 11 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Luis Hernandez hasn’t hit much at all this season for the Orioles. Hernandez has played in 19 games for the Orioles this year and he is 8 for 39 (.205 avg, .529 OPS) with 5 runs scored and 3 RBIs. Brandon Fahey also hasn’t hit a lick this year. In 12 games for the Orioles, Fahey is 4 for 20 (.200 avg, .488 OPS) with 1 RBI. If Torres can’t beat out Hernandez and Fahey, Alex Cintron will and he’s getting ready in AAA as we speak.