Loewen's Pitching Career Is Over

I just logged in to post this.

I hope Loewen pulls this off as successfully as Ankiel has.

"We're excited about the future, but we also want to be excited about now." - Brian Roberts, 07/17/08

by getxstoked on Jul 19, 2008 5:49 PM EDT 0 recs

Yeah...

who didn’t see this coming though. My big question…

CAN THE GUY HIT?!? And, if not, how long will it take him to replace the contributions of Huff (this year). Might this ACTUALLY be the baseball gods smiling on the O’s? Who knows? How will it end? Tune in next year… same Birdland time, same Birdland Channel.

Bam ba lamb!

"Jeremy Guthrie’s funny. Sneaky funny. Smart funny. Stanford funny."
-Kevbo

by dayzd toe on Jul 19, 2008 6:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

Looks like we posted at the same time

crazy stuff

"We’re not concerned about what other teams think. I know teams come in here thinking we’re playing the Orioles. And then 9 innings later, they got the loss, they know what we’re about." ~Adam Jones

by Stacey on Jul 19, 2008 5:56 PM EDT 0 recs

Why can't it work out

He had three plus pitches when he was like 12 years old.

My best game plan is to sit on the bench and call out specific instructions like 'C'mon Boog,' 'Get ahold of one, Frank,' or 'Let's go, Brooks.' -Earl Weaver

by Baltimo on Jul 19, 2008 6:19 PM EDT 0 recs

11

He was 11, methinks

Librarians are hiding something

by dfa on Jul 19, 2008 7:41 PM EDT up 0 recs

hmm - I never heard this

Curve balls and sliders are not good pitches for a physically immature kid. I wonder if he was slinging one of these (probably curve) as a youngster.

by drj on Jul 19, 2008 7:59 PM EDT up 0 recs

I wouldn't doubt it.

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 19, 2008 8:15 PM EDT up 0 recs

I was kidding

But I’m sure by 12 he had developed at least two kinds of breaking balls becuase by 16 I know for a fact that he had four pitches.

My best game plan is to sit on the bench and call out specific instructions like 'C'mon Boog,' 'Get ahold of one, Frank,' or 'Let's go, Brooks.' -Earl Weaver

by Baltimo on Jul 19, 2008 8:44 PM EDT up 0 recs

Plus pitches I should say

And his fastball was probably mid 80s at 16.

My best game plan is to sit on the bench and call out specific instructions like 'C'mon Boog,' 'Get ahold of one, Frank,' or 'Let's go, Brooks.' -Earl Weaver

by Baltimo on Jul 19, 2008 8:44 PM EDT up 0 recs

Didn't some member

of the local media say this spring that he would have been our best DH coming out of ST?

They must have had to re-work his contract since he had that major league provision in it that would force the O’s to get him through waivers before he could be “demoted.”

I’m glad they’re going this route. It’s a bold move that I don’t think they would have pulled off a few years ago. Best of luck to him.

"Mora looked pretty good running the bases tonight when he hit that home run," Dave Trembley.

by Bee the Ball on Jul 19, 2008 6:28 PM EDT 0 recs

I'm very interested in teh status of his contract

How are they getting around this?

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 19, 2008 7:28 PM EDT up 0 recs

I think they'll pass him through waivers...

...as I doubt he would be claimed. Given his position switch, any team that would claim him would have to keep him on the 25 man roster.

Librarians are hiding something

by dfa on Jul 19, 2008 7:43 PM EDT up 0 recs

Roch is saying

they will sever his current contract. I’ve never heard of this being done with a guy you wanted to keep. So, we kill the old contract and sign him to a new one? If that’s the case, isn’t Adam giving up a lot of money for future years?

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 19, 2008 8:16 PM EDT up 0 recs

i would guess yes

Since he’s on the arb clock now. Presumably he’ll sign as a mL free agent, which, while not resetting his service time, will allow the O’s to keep him in the minors.

by pipkin on Jul 20, 2008 12:12 AM EDT up 0 recs

Can another team just claim him if the O's (and Adam) sever his contract?

Or does he negotiate and sign where HE wants? If so, I’d think it would be the O’s, but who knows….

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 20, 2008 12:24 AM EDT up 0 recs

Holy Cow

Good luck Adam. He suppose to be a damn good hitter when he was drafted.

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Jul 19, 2008 7:01 PM EDT 0 recs

WOW

I don’t even know what to say about this. Like the birdman said good luck Adam!

Geaux Eaux's

by NawlinsOriole on Jul 19, 2008 7:22 PM EDT 0 recs

Bummer

The odds of making this change have to be slim. I ‘ve always hoped, against mounting evidence, that’s he’d pull through and be a decent pitcher. He always seemed to have the right mentality and seemed like a decent kid.

by drj on Jul 19, 2008 8:03 PM EDT 0 recs

He's still a decent kid

and hopefully he’ll be a decent MLB OF or 1B.

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 19, 2008 8:16 PM EDT up 0 recs

I will say

It is much harder to make the switch from hitting to pitching than the other way around. And as I mentioned above, a lot of these high school phenoms are just ridiculous athletes who could be professional players either way.

My best game plan is to sit on the bench and call out specific instructions like 'C'mon Boog,' 'Get ahold of one, Frank,' or 'Let's go, Brooks.' -Earl Weaver

by Baltimo on Jul 19, 2008 9:15 PM EDT up 0 recs

I'm pretty sure

that’s not true…

Ankiel is the big success story, but going to hitting after not seeing live pitching from a batter’s box for years has to be EXTREMELY difficult.

Cal talked about this in his book. He was heavily scouted as both a pitcher and an infielder, and he said he wanted to start out as an infielder because it would have been so much harder to go pitcher-to-hitter than pitcher-to-hitter if it didn’t pan out (among other reasons, including the desire to play every day).

Jamie Walker T-shirts: http://www.cafepress.com/beltwaysports

by CStoneNo37 on Jul 21, 2008 10:05 AM EDT up 0 recs

ugh

the second “pitcher-to-hitter” should be “hitter-to-pitcher”

Jamie Walker T-shirts: http://www.cafepress.com/beltwaysports

by CStoneNo37 on Jul 21, 2008 10:06 AM EDT up 0 recs

I am almost positive

that it is easier, in most cases at least. Not disputing that it would have been easier for Cal the other way around, but the guys who have to choose are extremely athletic, and in most cases it is easier for them to pick up pitches coming across a plate than having to redevelop three to four pitches at a fast pace. If you have gone the same amount of time without pitching, learning how to get your curve to break across the plate and in the spot you want it to is a lot harder than adjusting to the count and knowing when to sit on a fastball or expect something down and away with a guy on first.

When Loewen starts out with the bat he will be in a low tier of baseball, which will ease him in because most of the guys he will be able to smack around fastball from most of the guys he sees. It will become progressively harder as he sees guys who have more than one pitch, but it is easier to adjust to pitches working your way up than it is to beat guys by just throwing it by them because you only have one plus pitch; most players can’t throw high 90s anyways and overpower batters. I’m not sure if that made sense but it did to me.

My best game plan is to sit on the bench and call out specific instructions like 'C'mon Boog,' 'Get ahold of one, Frank,' or 'Let's go, Brooks.' -Earl Weaver

by Baltimo on Jul 21, 2008 6:20 PM EDT up 0 recs

Based on Roch's new post

Loewen suggested playing first base or the outfield while MacPhail just said outfield. Don’t know if that means something. I’m rooting for him as a first baseman though; because, I doubt this team will get Tex this off season, and it would be great if Loewen, with all that hyperbole, can be a difference maker at first instead.

by Dr Orpheus on Jul 19, 2008 9:16 PM EDT 0 recs

20 year contract for millar

by Y Not on Jul 20, 2008 12:36 AM EDT up 0 recs

no

we’re definitely getting texeira

by NickMarkaces on Jul 21, 2008 1:33 PM EDT up 0 recs

No way

I just don’t see the O’s offering more $$$ than teh PHN and MFY next year, and it will have to be substantially more to make up for the perceived value of palying in those two markets. Remember who his agent is, folks – Scott Boras doesn’t let his boys leave $$$ on the table. Ever.

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 21, 2008 1:53 PM EDT up 0 recs

And Santa Claus!

He’s this teams new third base prospect. Just signed him. Contract is backloaded…or, you know, whatever.

by Dr Orpheus on Jul 21, 2008 1:55 PM EDT up 0 recs

he might just be one of our best hitting prospects

and i mean as of right now. not saying top 5 or anytyhing, but still. thats scary.

"I’m sure glad he didn’t try to bunt." - DD on Melmo's game winning double, 6/17

by daveh873 on Jul 19, 2008 9:32 PM EDT 0 recs

Oh, puh-lease!!!

Just because Loewen couldn’t make it as a pitcher, he thinks that just because he’s been in the Show, he can just pick up a bat and hit major league pitching. Unike Ankiel, he was an okay hitter in high school, but remember, signed w/ the O’s straight out of school, having never hit against college or minor league pitching. Besides, he only hit one home run, according to him and had a good average but not spectacular power numbers.

This situation of taking a high school pitcher and expecting them to succeed at the pro level is why a great baseball mind like Billy Beane speaks about the O’s and specifically Adam Loewen in his “MoneyBall” book from a few years ago. Loewen is done and once again, the O’s missed a golden opportunity when he was mentioned in trades over the past few year.

Brand new season, same old Orioles.

Rexx

by Rexx on Jul 21, 2008 8:45 AM EDT 0 recs

Uhhh

Zach Greinke, Scott Kazmir, Cole Hamels, and Matt Cain were also high school pitchers drafted in the first round of the 2002 “Moneyball” draft.

Billy Beane’s a great GM, but considering how bad his 2002 draft turned out, I doubt he’s still talking trash about other teams.

by dkdc on Jul 21, 2008 9:08 AM EDT up 0 recs

I've been re-reading Moneyball lately...

It’s interesting looking at that draft in hindsight. I don’t know that the draft turned out “badly” for Beane. Maybe by his own standards, it wasn’t that great, but it’s such a crapshoot, he could’ve done worse. I mean, the two guys he drafted that have become MLB starters were Blanton and Swisher, right? He got a few solid years out of them and flipped them for prospects, which is generally where he does best.

It’s funny that the pitcher he wanted most was Guthrie, who he had no shot at because of Boras. We backed into Guts on a waiver claim, thanks to Cleveland’s incompetence. So in a completely ass-backwards way, we corrected our mistake in that draft. But yeah, looking at the names Beane was crowing about landing in that draft six years later, the general feeling is “who”?.

by Brotz13 on Jul 21, 2008 9:19 AM EDT up 0 recs

Fair enough

7 picks in the top 40 yielded two (three if you count Teahen) ML regulars, but no stars.

You’re right, that’s not a total bust for Beane, but considering the condescending tone that Beane was portrayed as having during the draft, I imagine that he’s disappointed with the results.

The Orioles 1999 draft is routinely cited as a huge dissappointment because they got just Bigbie and Roberts out of 7 top-50 picks, but they did also pick up Erik Bedard a few rounds later.

I’d take the O’s 1999 draft over the A’s 2002 draft.

by dkdc on Jul 21, 2008 10:11 AM EDT up 0 recs

Agreed.

Especially considering the ransom we pulled in for Bedard.

by Brotz13 on Jul 21, 2008 10:20 AM EDT up 0 recs

Dude, Adam went to JuCo

He did bat after high school, for a respectable .340+ AVG, iirc. No power, but still, he DID bat after high school.

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 21, 2008 10:22 AM EDT up 0 recs

If he has no power, what will we do with him?

I mean, unless he can play shortstop.

"There is a value to breaking the string of losing seasons as an organization or as a franchise. But breaking that streak can’t come at the expense of doing what you need to do to get your franchise to the point where it can reach the postseason." ~Andy MacPhail

by Stacey on Jul 21, 2008 10:29 AM EDT up 0 recs

There's a thought...

He can probably play the position as well as Cintron, right? His arm has to be better than Fahey’s, right? And if he can hit reasonably well, say .280 with respectable OBP, he’s already tons better than the whole raft of marginals we have rotating through there now. Instructional league, baby! Time to start taking grounders and learning how to turn DPs.

by fishoutawata on Jul 21, 2008 11:46 AM EDT up 0 recs

I think you have to go back to Wee Willie Keeler to find a left-handed shortstop in the majors.

"He’s in trouble. Whatever he throws me, I’m going to hit it."
-- Alex Cintron

by BrianS on Jul 21, 2008 12:36 PM EDT up 0 recs

Loewen

could learn to throw right-handed, and still be stronger than Fahey.

by Brotz13 on Jul 21, 2008 1:21 PM EDT up 0 recs

and

it would be easier on his arm

by NickMarkaces on Jul 21, 2008 1:36 PM EDT up 0 recs

Good point

Didn’t think of that

by fishoutawata on Jul 24, 2008 12:22 PM EDT up 0 recs

No power hasn't stopped Ichiro

Yeah, that’s what we need – a 6’ 6” Canadian trying to be Ichiro. How COULD it fail?

"I wasn't here for the losing years. But it feels a little like the days with Earl in charge and John Lowenstein smashing birthday cakes in the middle of the clubhouse with a bat." - John "T-Bone" Shelby

by duck on Jul 21, 2008 1:54 PM EDT up 0 recs

You're forgetting

Ichiro HAS power, he just CHOOSES not to display it. cough

by Brotz13 on Jul 21, 2008 1:56 PM EDT up 0 recs

He actually does

He’s unnatural. He’s a leadoff hitter, he needs to get on base. He doesn’t “need” to use power. I wouldn’t be surprised if he were dropped down in the order he would drive in an unreal number of runs…that is, if anyone in front of him could get on base. Watch him hit batting practice. Line drive homers.

I’ve always said that Ichiro would win the Home Run Derby if he ever entered it.

by Dr Orpheus on Jul 21, 2008 2:27 PM EDT up 0 recs

Trade bait

by fishoutawata on Jul 24, 2008 12:23 PM EDT up 0 recs

I remember

seeing Loewen’s ABs at a game he pitched at Shea Stadium a few years ago. I don’t think he got a hit, but I recall while watching him in an extended AB fouling off a bunch of pitches, versus Tom Glavine, commenting to my brother that he can almost hit. Maybe he’ll be able to develop into something hitting full time.

by Jonny Pops on Jul 21, 2008 12:50 PM EDT 0 recs

I went to a different game in that same series

And I saw Kris Benson homer off Pedro.

Not really relevant, but it’s certainly something I’ll never forget.

by dkdc on Jul 21, 2008 1:18 PM EDT up 0 recs

i was just thinking

you go tguys out there like pavano that sit back and collect their checks, and then you have loewen, at least trying to work for his contract. not that pavano could just try to be a hitter, but hey, its respectable out of loewen. i like the kid, even if he is canadian

"I’m sure glad he didn’t try to bunt." - DD on Melmo's game winning double, 6/17

by daveh873 on Jul 22, 2008 12:06 AM EDT 0 recs