Orioles Notes & Rumors
As the offseason rolls on, more and more information is becoming known about who the Orioles are looking at for the multiple needs they have to fill. As of earlier today, the annual Winter Meetings began in Dallas, Texas. The year 2000, which many call the biggest and richest free agency period in MLB history, hosted the last Winter Meetings in Dallas.
During these meetings, hundreds of names are floated around in trades and free agency for all the GMs. The Orioles are not left out when it comes to the rumors of players that could be flocking to Camden Yards. While no indications have been made that these players are definite, some high profile names are being discussed as potential acquisitions.
It has been no secret that the Orioles are in search of some power for the DH position. Dependent upon what is done with Luke Scott, the O’s have been linked to David Ortiz, Johnny Damon, and more recently, even Manny Ramirez. Ramirez would have to serve a 50 game suspension upon being signed so that looks like a longshot to me. I couldn’t help but notice that all three of those players have Boston connections to Duquette. Other names I have heard are Michael Cuddyer and Prince Fielder.
According to MASN, Duquette said ” We are interested in Fielder, but doesn’t want to get the fans’ hopes up. Jerseys not on sale yet”.
That one comment should spark tons of radio calls, tweets, polls, and e-mails regarding the potential for Fielder to land in Baltimore. I personally do not see it happening, but the Orioles have surprised me before. An out of the box thought would be acquiring Carlos Lee or Alfonso Soriano to handle the DH spot. Both of their contracts are albatrosses, so the Astros and Cubs would have to pick up a great portion of money to facilitate such a move.
I know this isn’t Orioles related news, but I wanted to take a moment and reflect on the AMAZING career of Pedro Martinez. MLB.com reported that an official announcement of his retirement will come soon, but Pedro has called it a career. Being an Orioles fan all my life, I have seen Pedro pitch against us countless times. Martinez had a worldly talent, like no other. Another thing to remember is that he pitched during the “steroid area” and still posted a lifetime ERA of 2.93 over 18 seasons. I won’t bore you all with more stats, but I will definitely miss seeing Pedro take that mound. You may not get to see another like him for quite some time so I hope you took notice. He is one of the all-time greats and one day, he will be honored and enshrined in Cooperstown.
