Much has been made of the incredible quality of the AL East. With the three best teams in the AL residing in the East and the Blue Jays playing well as well, the division has the look of a powerhouse that could last for some time. One team that is not being spoken about much but may have just as bright a future as the others is the Orioles. ESPN took a look at their amazing young outfield:
The O’s also have baseball’s most dynamic young outfield. It’s enough to make the old-timers in town reflect wistfully on the Frank Robinson-Don Buford-Paul Blair days at Memorial Stadium.
Iris full movie Jones, 23, and Markakis and Nolan Reimold, both 25, give Baltimore a threesome worth envying. They’re athletic, affordable and loaded with promise and tools. Factor in the contribution of DH and occasional left fielder Luke Scott, who has 16 homers and a .569 slugging percentage, and no one cares that erstwhile phenom Felix Pie is as big a washout in Baltimore as he was in Chicago.
With that athletic, powerful outfield and Matt Wieters being a can’t miss prospect, the O’s look poised to be an offensive force for many years to come. What about pitching, you ask:
The big trio of Tillman, Matusz and Arrieta all likely will play major roles in Baltimore’s 2010 rotation, but with that much young pitching, predicting a breakout season comparable to last year’s Rays seems a bit much. A better comparison, as far as a step forward goes, is that next year’s Orioles might be like this year’s Rangers: truly competitive while giving fans the sense that the best is yet to come. The three best teams in the American League all play in the East this year, but that number might be four by 2011.
House of the Dead movie Better Luck Tomorrow The Orioles have a pretty good shot at being competitive within two seasons, and the Blue Jays have enough young pitching that a good return on Roy Halladay may nudge them into the 90 win range within a season or two as well. With the Rays, Sox, and Yankees looking loaded for the future as well, the Al East may soon boast 5 playoff caliber clubs. That should make for some exhilarating pennant races.
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I love Nick Markakis and hope that he is a Yankee one day (although he’s having a down year, it seems).
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Moshe Mandel Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Yeah, he is having a down year, but he is a very good hitter and a good glove as well. That being said, I do not think he is a Teixeira contract type guy. I think Jayson Bay with a better glove is a good comp for his career.
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DaveinMD Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
He just signed an extension.
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Chris H. Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
He did, right? I forgot about that.
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Another things about Baltimore is that their market is not as small as you’d think. The stadium is gorgeous and used to bring in capacity crowds back in the early 90’s. Peter Angelos has been willing to open his pocketbook in the past, so if he quits his meddling (the hard task), it wouldn’t surprise me if the O’s locked up most of their young talent and became serious competitors.
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How much must it suck to be the Blue Jays? I mean they’d be the odds-on favorite to win probably 4 out of 6 divisions in the league but are probably the fourth best team in their division
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Chris H. Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Yup. Imagine playing for them, too. That’s tough.
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