Brian Matusz emails the fans

by Stacey on Aug 12, 2008 9:36 AM EDT Comment 40 comments

For those of you who don't visit Orioles Hangout, I thought I'd pass this along, as it's quite an interesting thing for a draft pick to do. Brian Matusz emailed the Hangout (I assume he emailed Tony Pente directly) regarding his future with the Orioles. Visit the link for Tony's entire article, but Brian's email contents are below.

With a lot of public interest in my signing with the Orioles, I thought it is important that I report to the Orioles fans how things are going.

Both the Orioles and myself have been working diligently on getting a deal done. I want to sign and will do so upon receiving a fair (not record breaking) deal. While I am not at liberty to discuss any parameters or numbers of the deal, I am hopeful that a resolution can be reached.

Thank you fans for all your positive support and messages, and I will be looking forward to seeing you at the ballpark soon.

Orioles Hangout: Brian Matusz speaks out to the fans

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OH over CC?

Matusz is really starting off on the wrong foot.

Seriously, though, this is a nice gesture, but signing a damn contract would be an even nicer gesture.

I’m sympathetic to his need to maximize this bonus just in case it’s the only payday he ever gets in professional baseball. I’m certainly not going to hold a grudge if he waits until the last minute.

But just make sure it gets done.

by dkdc on Aug 12, 2008 10:31 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

OH over CC?
Matusz is really starting off on the wrong foot.

Agreed. Hey Brian, ditch the zero and go with the hero!

The hero, in this case, would be CC. In case you were wondering.

by PhilR8 on Aug 12, 2008 10:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Is there some strategy here that I'm not getting?

Does he think O’s fans can apply some pressure to move the FO along? The Warehouse hasn’t listened to the cries of fans for a LONG time.

I’m right with the point that this has to get done (felt same way about Weiters last year, like everybody), but I can’t imagine my opinion means squat to Andy and his boss.

Has there ever been a cooler Oriole than Eddie Murray? I mean, just straight up cool. Like a bad, suave dude. You know what I'm sayin'. COOL. SC 7/24/08

by 33 on Aug 12, 2008 10:57 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

So,uhhhh...

When’s somebody going to email us over here?

by Jonny Pops on Aug 12, 2008 11:19 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Maybe they don't email us because we're mean

You’re not allowed to be mean at the OH. At least not about the players. It’s against the rules to talk trash about the players, where here they regularly get called assholes.

I’m not sure if there is a strategy to this. I know Roch had reported that the Matusz family visits O’s sites and blogs, so maybe they saw how frantic some people (especially at OH) are and thought it’d be a nice thing to do? Maybe they’re trying to make the O’s FO look like the assholes? I really have no idea.

I think this will get done. What is he gonna do, go back to college, where worst case scenario he gets hurt and doesn’t get drafted next year, best case scenario he’s a year older and gets drafted lower and a lower signing bonus. It’s par for the course these days to wait until the deadline. How many of the top 10 picks have signed?

"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 Aug 12, 2008 11:29 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I like to think of it not so much as mean

but as, uh, brutally frank.

Hell, even TrembO throws his players under the bus when they fuck up. Why should I be any different?

Yet another reason why OH has and always will suck.

by PhilR8 on Aug 12, 2008 11:49 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

but...

weren’t we cool to brandon snyder’s mum?

foghat goes with everything--birdman, 5/16/08

by j.q. higgins on Aug 12, 2008 11:49 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

if you dig around here...

You’ll find people bashing the team, the players’ performance, suggestions that Brian Burres “knows how to step it up,” and other such things that aren’t permissable on OH. They exist for the people that can’t/don’t want to deal with fans like us, and I’m happy about that, because I’m not going to stop saying that Ramon Hernandez is a lazy POS or that it’s embarrassing to watch Dennis Sarfate try to be a starting pitcher.

"Yesterday I was lying, today I am telling the truth." -- Bob Arum

Camden Chat
Bad Left Hook

by SC on Aug 12, 2008 1:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

i was that kinda fan once upon a time.

i was 11 years old then, too. if you wore an o’s jersey, you were golden. but damn, if i have to watch brandon fahey bat, i need somewhere to vent. how can anyone be positive about that!?

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

by daveh873 on Aug 12, 2008 2:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

To be fair to the OH

They can (and do) criticize a players performance. They also spend a great deal of time criticizing each other, which gets a little tired. Just no name calling :)

by Stacey on Aug 12, 2008 2:18 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

There's need to be more name calling here

Maybe we can pick a day of the week where we all make fun or one another.

"We might as well just win this game." -Adam Jones

by exitfare on Aug 12, 2008 6:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ok.

You dumb piece of shit… Yo Posts are so stupid they got locked in a Matress World and slept on the floor.

Kevbo: [to George Sherrill] George, you look a lot like Vin Diesel...

Flatbill: Let's get somethin' straight... Vin Diesel looks like me.

-From "The Making of Orioles Magic"

by dayzd toe on Aug 13, 2008 8:43 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Niiice!

by fishoutawata on Aug 13, 2008 10:26 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm just thinking strategically here

If I’m Matusz, this is a really kind gesture to the fans but really weakens your bargaining position. You’ve just upped the hopes of the fanbase and come out and said publicly that you want to sign. If you don’t sign for money reasons after that, you look like the asshole… this would allow the FO to low-ball him all the way to the deadline. I think keeping his mouth shut would’ve upped his offers better.

by punkrawka on Aug 12, 2008 12:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

You’ve just upped the hopes of the fanbase and come out and said publicly that you want to sign.

He wants to sign but only if the offer is fair.

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 12:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The FO doesn't give a $&!t about the hopes of the fanbase

and I’m guessing Matusz doesn’t either. It’s just a cynical ploy to up the ante, no douibt written by his agent.

by fishoutawata on Aug 13, 2008 10:29 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

vacuous lettter, but nice gesture.

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 12:31 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Looks like he sent the same email to Zrebiec

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baseball/bal-osdraft812,0,5214214.story

by Stacey on Aug 12, 2008 12:54 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

unless i missed something...

i don’t think zrbiec suggests that the e-mail was sent to him or the sun. it just says “in an e-mail.”

foghat goes with everything--birdman, 5/16/08

by j.q. higgins on Aug 12, 2008 12:58 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Schmuck (in his blog) said the email was sent to Zreibic, too

Schmuck characterizes it as a PR campaign from Matusz.

I guess is fair enough for Matusz to do this, considering the O’s have constant access to the media and have been spinning the negotiations their own way for the last few months.

by dkdc on Aug 12, 2008 1:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

sure...

why not, i guess?

foghat goes with everything--birdman, 5/16/08

by j.q. higgins on Aug 12, 2008 1:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

OH

I loved how Orioles Hangout went about reporting this story acting as if Matusz sent the email to their site alone…. when in reality he (probably his agent) emailed practically every baltimore sports media personality, even Roch got one sent to his old Sun address.

by UMterp08 on Aug 12, 2008 4:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Melmo - off topic

Not sure if this was worth an entire diary, but I thought Melmo’s comment in the Sun was interesting.

“I don’t have nothing to prove. I’ve already done my job. You can check my numbers with all the third baseman in baseball right now and you can see for yourself,” Mora said last night.

I checked ESPN, and you’re 7th out of 10 AL 3Bs. I’m guessing there are a few players missing because of PAs. 7th out of 10th isn’t something to crow about Melmo

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 1:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

though...

by those numbers, he’s certainly pretty close to the middle of the pack and has been trneding upward.

by VORP, he’s rated in the low 20s out of 53 overall in the majors. bears mentioning that his VORP is better than guys like blalock, eric chavez, ryan zimmerman, bill hall and chone figgins. also, pedro feliz (SEE phillies?) and scott rolen.

foghat goes with everything--birdman, 5/16/08

by j.q. higgins on Aug 12, 2008 1:18 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

that's because Hank Blalock sucks

Mora has always been hyperdefensive. Too bad he hyper misses routine fucking ground balls by pulling that OLE bullshit.

As an aside, I really don’t want to hear anyone tell me about Mora’s great glove again, and then say, “Most of the time…” It’s stupid bullshit like that play last night that weighs him down. He’s either spectacular or spectacularly lazy, and then he stands there and makes his Melvin face.

"Yesterday I was lying, today I am telling the truth." -- Bob Arum

Camden Chat
Bad Left Hook

by SC on Aug 12, 2008 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

As an aside, I really don’t want to hear anyone tell me about Mora’s great glove again,

He’s an average glove. Baseballthinkfactory justed AL defensive metrics. See here. Scott Rolen and Beltre are in the class by themselves. Alex Gordon is awful. Melmo’s glove won’t hurt or help you.

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 1:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

But...but...

Buck Martinez told me last night that even DEREK JETER had 50+ errors his first season in the minors and just look how GREAT of a fielder he is!!!

Always trust your cape. -Guy Clark

by BPinOK on Aug 12, 2008 1:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

interesting stuff in that spreadsheet

Jones is the second best CF. Markakis and Roberts were about dead average. Luke Scott is doing a fantastic job in LF. Carl Crawford is in a class by himself but Luke’s essentially the 3rd best AL LF (Payton is ranked a bit higher in LF but these figures can highly swayed by sample size).

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 1:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

as long as we're on to statistical ephemera...

hey, guess what? this season brian roberts moved into the top 5 for career franchise steals and top 10 for doubles.

fwiw, miggy rounds out the top ten for gidp. pretty amazing, actually.

foghat goes with everything--birdman, 5/16/08

by j.q. higgins on Aug 12, 2008 2:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

middle of the pack isn't something to crow about either

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 1:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Gotta love Melvin

and this quote:

I don’t care what people say. People talking about that can kiss my butt.

by Stacey on Aug 12, 2008 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dunno..

I still think Melvin has an above average glove. He made a costly mistake yesterday.. but I don’t even think it was called an error considering how hard that ball was hit. I’ll defend the guy as a good third baseman AS LONG AS he hits the way he has been since the 11LOB game. He’s not the problem of this team.

by Y Not on Aug 12, 2008 4:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The thing about defensive metrics is I trust none of them.

Melvin’s is so mistake prone - on things that aren’t called errors - that it boggles the mind. Makes the wrong throw, makes no throw, hesitates, OLE bullshit, etc.

I don’t think he’s the problem. I don’t think he’s going to be part of the solution.

"Yesterday I was lying, today I am telling the truth." -- Bob Arum

Camden Chat
Bad Left Hook

by SC on Aug 12, 2008 4:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Melmo says,

People talking about that can kiss my butt.

Wolf, wolf, wolf.

by birdman on Aug 12, 2008 4:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

isn't that it, though?

i mean, positionally, he’s always sort of been a tweener. had he ever played 3rd before the o’s converted him? even if he’s been sort of mediocre the last couple years, he has brought a modicum of stability to a position that had been a blackhole for years (maybe since brooks, barring the cal interregnum?).

foghat goes with everything--birdman, 5/16/08

by j.q. higgins on Aug 12, 2008 4:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

He not only had never played third before, but he started playing third with an outfielder’s glove. OOPS.

"Yesterday I was lying, today I am telling the truth." -- Bob Arum

Camden Chat
Bad Left Hook

by SC on Aug 12, 2008 6:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

i'm not even talking defensive metrics

just based on games that i’ve watched him play… i really think he has an above average glove. For every few games that he screwed up bad (one play yesterday) – there’s been several where he’s made game-saving grabs that have gone relatively unheralded. But I see your point as well.

by Y Not on Aug 12, 2008 7:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ok, so he's a place holder

If he produces 100 RBI I guess I can live with that, as long as he doesn’t completely stink up the joint along the way. He is certainly one of our (far too numerous) DH candidates.

by fishoutawata on Aug 13, 2008 10:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I posted this as a fanshot a couple months ago

but here is Driveline Mechanics scouting report for Brian Matusz.
http://drivelinemechanics.com/2008/06/28/draftee-report-brian-matusz-orioles-4th-overall/#more-68

Maybe in order to understand mankind, we have to look at the word itself: "Mankind". Basically, it's made up of two separate words—"mank" and "ind". What do these words mean? It's a mystery, and that's why so is mankind.
-Jack Handey

by jobe on Aug 12, 2008 1:19 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Hm.

Hmm.

I’m gonna say it. I’m kind of annoyed at these demanding little baseball queens who got drafted. I’m certain that we’re not giving Matusz the shaft here. But he’s definitely not getting a freaking major league contract with the Orioles.

If we don’t sign him, I’m not going to be particularly upset. Lick our wounds, and use the compensatory pick next year to sign someone a little less narcissistic.

by Y Not on Aug 13, 2008 10:29 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs