Jeremy Guthrie came out of nowhere -- well, Buffalo, mostly -- last year to become a solid No. 2 in the O's rotation. This year, with Bedard gone, Guts is the man, the closest thing we have to an ace. Ne ver forget that this guy was taken 22nd overall out of Stanford in '02 by the Indians. He's always had talent. 

I admit I wasn't a big believer in Guthrie when we picked him up, but that Greg Maddux impression he had going for a while last year was truly impressive. He faded down the stretch, but that happens to guys that aren't used to   throwing 170+ innings.

Can Guthrie repeat, or was he a Bruce Chen-like one-year wonder? Can he IMPROVE?

YOU make the call. Guthrie's last three seasons: 

            IP     W   L   K   BB   ERA  WHIP
05 BUF     136.1  12  10  100  49  5.08  1.47
   CLE       6.0   0   0    3   2  6.00  1.83
06 BUF     123.1   9   5   88  48  3.14  1.23
   CLE      19.1   0   0   14  15  6.98  2.02
07 BAL     175.1   7   5  123  47  3.70  1.21

That's our line: IP, W-L, K, BB, ERA, WHIP