Friday Open Thread

I walk by ads for that all the time and always wanted to check it out. I do still want to go the galileo exhibit in the next couple weeks before it closes.

I got a good deal on tickets since we are members of please touch museum(which used to be right next door to franklin) I’m not a huge Star trek fan but figured why not.. It wasn’t even worth the money. Luckily the kids were able to enjoy the rest of the franklin so it wasn’t a total waste, hopefully you did too, it is a nice museum..

Get there early for the ‘89 O’s autograph sessions!

Nestor Aporicio is an idiot.

Where do I start?

1. You let someone walk if they’re asking for way more money than their past performance justifies. Period.
2. You let someone walk if they look like they’re going to have character issues. Working with someone’s agent for weeks and then having him pull the rug on draft day is a very bad sign.
3. Andy said, “grow the pitchers, buy the bats”, not “grow everyone”.
4. The Orioles have already demonstrated recently that they are willing to spend money on the right players. Matt Wieters and Brian Matusz are two clear examples.

5. If they knew they couldn’t sign him, they shouldn’t have wasted a draft pick.

   Obviously they didn’t KNOW they couldn’t sign him, you idiot. Do you think they should be clairvoyant now? Do you not realize that they had to draft SOMEONE in the second round, and that with any players near the top, there’s a risk that they’ll go all Strasburg on you? Do you see how they locked up Matt Hobgood in record time?
6. Givens seemed to feel he should have been a first rounder. He wasn’t. Oh, but he wants first-round money anyway! Get OVER yourself, kid, you haven’t played a day of professional ball yet. The money comes after you produce.

Nestor calls the Orioles “the worst organization in Major League Baseball”. Hack journalism, Nestor, as there are clearly several teams below them in that category, and the Orioles have obviously turned things around somewhat.

We counted on him being the guy that was going to go out there every fifth day and give us a chance to win. He was going to pitch deep in the games.

When was Koji ever going to be the guy to pitch deep into games?

Who gets married on a Friday? Druids?

Browns over Eagles…in the end the Dawg Pound is just too much for Vick to handle!!!

he’s a dog killer and monsterous asshole

And he has a good changeup to boot. Also they were impressed with his work ethic.

I dont think Tommy John surgery is that horrible a thing anymore, there are still the pitchers that dont recover but they are definitely the minority. My biggest worry is that it was an issue with his delivery that will make this a recurring problem.

Why did the Angels give a huge bonus to Adenhart a few years back?

One of the essays is titled “The American Man, Age 10”. The author, Susan Orlean, had been given the title by her editor and was supposed to write about Macaulay Culkin (this is from the early 90s) but she insisted that she instead choose someone herself. So she chose this typical ten-year old American Man named Colin Duffy and observed him for a few weeks.

It’s a really cute piece, and Colin says a ton of endearing things – he likes the idea of growing up because he can have a car and go get candy anytime he wants, he loves the idea of being married because it will allow him to sleep in his clothes if he wants to. Just silly stuff like that. Based on those silly notions, his father made this observation:

…living with Colin is like living with a Martian who has done some reading on American Culture.

And that,

I went through the draft selections, by position, (boring Friday afternoon at w*rk), and it seems that AMs philosophy is pretty clear:
Position / # signed / highest round

OF: 10 (8) Harris
SS: 2 (2) Givens
3B: 2 (31) Flacco
2B: 1 (13)
1B: 1 (3) Townsend
C: 4 (6)
P: 30 (1)

In his ’Trade Deadline Prospects Ranked" pieces. These rankings are among the prospects traded in July, not organizational. I meant to put this up as a fanpost before, but heh.

3. Josh Bell, 3B
From Los Angeles NL to Baltimore

Prior to the 2009 season, Bell’s pro career could have been categorized as "promising" but he had yet to put everything together. The former fourth round pick out of a Florida high school has improved by leaps and bounds this season despite making the big jump from high-A to double-A. He also missed more than half of the year in 2008 due to injuries. On the ‘09 season, Bell is currently hitting .296/.386/.494 with 11 homers in 334 at-bats. The 22-year-old has also banged out 30 doubles. Bell’s approach at the plate has certainly improved. After averaging a walk rate of about 8.6 BB% in his first two seasons, that number has improved to about 13.6 BB% in the past two years. His strikeout rate is also down almost 9% over 2008 (29.9 to 21.0 K%). If the Orioles club can find a one-year stopgap for the hot corner in 2010, Bell should be ready to play full-time at the MLB level in 2011.

14. Steve Johnson, RHP
From Los Angeles NL to Baltimore

It’s been a slow climb through the minors for Johnson. The former high school drafted pick has struggled with his command and control throughout his career. He’s also working hard to improve his secondary pitches. Johnson spent the majority of his time in the Dodgers’ system this year at high-A, where he allowed 94 hits in 96.2 innings. He also posted rates of 3.91 BB/9 and 9.50 K/9. Prior to the trade, the right-hander made two double-A starts. His stuff would probably be better coming out of the bullpen (He can occasionally hit 93 mph as a starter), where he could focus on one secondary pitch to go with the heater. His ceiling is that of a set-up man or No. 4 starter.