Monday Bird Droppings: Two months ‘til Opening Day

Jan 30, 2023 - 12:00 PM

Baltimore Orioles" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2qJspUmsGJMYsKxxDaIYh708yls=/0x0:3000x1688/1920x1080/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71920344/1415670123.0.jpg" />

Happy Monday, Camden Chatters. We’re getting closer and closer to baseball! Just two months from today is Opening Day! It’s in Boston, not Baltimore, which is lame. But I guess they do sometimes have to start on the road. Game time is 2 p.m., so with two months to go, I suggest you get those leave requests to the boss so you can cut out early.

If you need something to get you looking even more forward to the start of the season, take the words of Mike Elias on MLB Network Radio this weekend when he said that not only does he expect Grayson Rodriguez to start the season in the big league starting rotation, but that he also believes Colton Cowser will make his major league debut in 2023.

Those are both things that we could have already anticipated. There is no reason to believe that Rodriguez would start the season at Triple-A, and a 2023 debut of Cowser also seems plausible. But there is just something about seeing that Mike Elias confirmed those things that make things feel pretty good about the season ahead.

It’s a confusing time to be an Orioles fan. There is so much excitement about the young players, and rightly so! But there is so much to be frustrated with regarding team payroll and the moves that weren’t made this offseason. And the ongoing ownership turmoil is just another log on the fire.

It will be less confusing if, in two months, the Orioles come out of the gate hot and keep the negative questions at bay. Or, honestly, if they are so bad that it was clear they weren’t just a few good free agents away from the playoffs. Ugh, please don’t let it be that second one. But if they muddle along, good but not good enough, that will be the hardest to swallow even if we do get to see young prospects promoted to the team.

Links

John Angelos Is Not On Your Timetable | Defector
Defector with a scathing review of John Angelos's antics both of late and as a person in general. Although I take exception with the assertion that "it is widely believed that the family will either move or sell the team" when Peter Angelos passes. Sell? Sure. Move? Nah.

Pitching in with a few ideas about the Orioles' unsettled staff - MASN Sports
Roch Kubatko takes a look at what the Orioles could do with their abundance of starting pitchers. It's true, there are a lot of them.

Orioles Sign Curtis Terry To Minor-League Deal - Rotoballer.com
In case you missed it over the weekend, there is another first baseman in the mix.

Birthdays and History

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! You have three Orioles birthday buddies, the most notable of which is Davey Johnson. Johnson is celebrating his 80th birthday today! He spent 1965-1972 with the Orioles before heading to Atlanta in a trade in November 1972. He was, of course, also the manager for the two playoff teams in the 1990s.

Also born on this day are Joe Kerrigan (69), who pitched for the Orioles in 1978 and 1980; and Walt Dropo (b. 1923, d. 2010), whose 13-year career ended with three seasons with the Orioles from 1959-1961.

On this day in 2003, Cal Ripken was elected to the Orioles Hall of Fame as its 40th member. He’d have to wait a few more years to be elected into Cooperstown.