Here is a list, certainly not exhaustive, of some of the most boneheaded things Tom Verducci has said about the Orioles this season. I hate him.

Which 2011 loser will wind up in the 2012 postseason? Rule out the Orioles, Athletics, Mariners, Mets, Pirates, Cubs and Astros for various reasons and you are left with nine possibilities. The most likely? In order: Reds, Nationals, Marlins, Rockies, Indians and Royals. The Royals? Now that is upheaval.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/tom_verducci/02/17/spring.training.preview/index.html#ixzz271ljwiJH

I don't see much room for improvement this year for Toronto and Baltimore. The key for those teams (and many others) falls not so much with the extra wild card as it does the 2013 schedule. With Houston moving to the AL West next season, we will get two 15-team leagues and year-round interleague play that require a major change to the schedule.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/tom_verducci/03/30/american.league.dominance/index.html#ixzz271kr8WIQ

For a second straight year, the baseball season comes down to Game 162 in St. Petersburg: only this time it's not about a playoff spot but the long awaited 82nd victory for a Baltimore Orioles team that hasn't had a winning season since 1997.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/tom_verducci/07/13/nationals-orioles-pirates-postseason-chances/index.html#ixzz271jJd2Hy

The Orioles can't possibly stay this lucky. Baltimore has been outscored by 24 runs, but it is charging toward October because of one of the flukiest stats in history: It is 24-6 in games decided by one run. The Orioles can't keep it up -- not .800 baseball in one-run games. If they do, they will shatter the record for the best winning percentage in one-run games in a full season: .733, a record that has stood for 104 years (1908 Pirates).

The Orioles also could smash the record for fewest one-run losses in a full season: 10, by the 1986 Red Sox, 1998 Yankees and, oddly, 2006 Blue Jays. Yes, the Orioles hit home runs late, their bullpen is very good and manager Buck Showalter is detail obsessive, all of which help Baltimore in close games. But 24-6? That's just crazy.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/tom_verducci/08/31/september-storylines-strasburg-races/index.html#ixzz271mX6im3