Friday Bird Droppings

School of Roch: Daily dose of Duquette and wondering who will be most overhyped
In which Roch somewhat bemoans the Duq's tinkering at the edges approach.

School of Roch: Second dose of Duquette
Active day on the Duq' drama front after Buster Olney name dropped a high-profile Blue Jays prospect as having been discussed as possible compensation.

Blue Jays won't trade for GM Dan Duquette, but Rogers might - Toronto Sun
The view from our friends up north

The 17th greatest GM of all time was unemployed for a decade | HardballTalk
And he may soon be trading crab cakes for canadian bacon.

Baseball Prospectus | Pitching Backward: The Cost of Being on Baseball's Bad Side

Subscriber article looking at what Baltimore lost out on when MLB ignobly passed them up when awarding the 2016 All Star Game.

Finding a Place for James Shields | FanGraphs Baseball

Jeff Sullivan ponders who would benefit the most from adding James Shields to their rotation. Do the O's make the list? (Hint: I wouldn't have linked this if they weren't mentioned)

Camden Depot: How the Orioles Broke FIP

With magic. Orioles Magic.

Steve Melewski: After strong second half, will Lough earn bigger role in 2015?
The defense will always get him playing time, but he'll have to hit better if he wants more plate appearances.

Happy Birthday to Cord Phelps and Sherman Obando. On this date in 2010 Miguel Tejada was brought back into the fold for a season. In 2012 the O's signed Wilson Betemit.