The Orioles got swept by the Blue Jays over the weekend. They are now 1-5 on the season which has them in last place in the A.L. East, 4 games behind the Blue Jays. The Orioles have been outscored 27-19 so far this season as they have been having offensive and bullpen troubles so far this year. The Orioles are only hitting .236 as a team with a .689 OPS and that’s pretty awful for a team with a nice collection of hitters. The Orioles have a full week playing at home for three games against the Rays starting today and then they leave for Oakland for a four game series starting Thursday Night.

The Orioles deserved better than they got in Tampa. Sure, they were outscored 12-11 by the Rays but they could have just as easily won all three ballgames. New closer Mike Gonzalez blew a ninth inning lead in the opener (which the Orioles lost). The silver lining here with the Orioles as they played hard in all three games and they got solid starting pitching. They begin a three game series with the Blue Jays this weekend and despite the fact that the Jays are 2-1 on the year they aren’t anywhere near as good as the Rays.

It’s about time for the Orioles to give up on using Daniel Cabrera as a starting pitcher and make him the closer for 2008.  With Chris Ray and Danys Baez out most, if not all of 2008, the Orioles have a need.  Cabrera has unhittable stuff and he might be able to handle coming in for 1 inning and throwing 100 mph gas.  Cabrera is having another rough season as a starter and he is 9-17 with a 5.51 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP.  In 194.1 innings, Cabrera has allowed 191 hits, walked 104 batters and whiffed 160.  For his career now, Cabrera has pitched in 115 games (114 starts) and he is 40-48 with a 4.97 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP.  Cabrera has now worked 651.1 innings in his career and he has allowed 610 hits, walked 384 batters and whiffed 550.  If the Orioles look at recent history they will see a few pitchers who were awful starting pitchers that turned into excellent stoppers when they could just let it all go for 1 inning at a time.  Jose Mesa was awful as a starter with the Orioles and Indians as he was 27-40 with a 5.03 ERA in that role.  The Indians converted him into a closer and he is 53-69 with 321 saves and a 3.97 ERA as a reliever.  LaTroy Hawkins was really stinky as a starting pitcher with the Twins as he was 26-44 with a 6.17 ERA.  Out of the bullpen however, Hawkins has been good as he is 30-32 with 75 saves and a 3.28 ERA.  Eric Gagne also wasn’t a great starter as he was 11-14 with a 4.61 ERA for the Dodgers.  Out of the bullpen, Gagne is 17-9 with 177 saves and a 2.47 ERA.  For Cabrera to be able to join these standout relievers he would have to throw strikes which has been a problem for him his whole career.  The Orioles are now 64-86 which has them in 4th place in the American League East only 2 games ahead of the Devil Rays for the basement.

The Baltimore Orioles need to start earning their hefty paychecks.  Owner Peter Angelos is not cheap and he should be very upset with the product on the field of play because he has spent a lot of money on players.  Yet, the Orioles are stumbling this season with a 61-82 record which has them 25.5 games out of first place.  In fact, the Orioles are only 1 game ahead of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and that is a joke.  Memo to Peter Angelos…..get a GM that has a clue.

If the Orioles don’t start playing better baseball soon they will wind up in last place in the American League East.  They have only won 1 of their last 10 games.  The O’s are now 59-76 with has them in 4th place in the American League East, 22 games behind the Red Sox.  The Orioles offense has been nothing to write home about this season as they have scored 620 runs this season.  But, you can’t blame that on Nick Markakis or Brian Roberts.  Markakis has followed up a strong rookie season with another good year.  He is hitting .292 with 78 runs scored, 16 homers, 89 RBIs and 16 stolen bases.  Brian Roberts has been a pest for opposing teams at the top of the Orioles’ batting order.  He is hitting .302 with 90 runs scored, 10 homers, 49 RBIs and 39 stolen bases this season.  Leo Mazzone is proving that he can’t make pitchers’ with little talent into dominators.  Lefty Erik Bedard is having a breakout season for the Orioles as he is 13-5 with a 3.16 ERA and he has also whiffed 221 batters in 182 innings.  Mazzone has done a good job with young starter Jeremy Guthrie who the O’s appeared to have stolen from the Cleveland Indians.  Guthrie is 7-5 with a 3.62 ERA so far this season.