Saturday Bird Droppings

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado's reputation might lift him to Gold Glove - Baltimore Sun
"While Manny Machado was a rock at third base this season and has made a habit of making difficult plays look easy, Adrian Beltre will be tough to beat. His Defensive WAR was fourth best among all AL defenders; Machado was sixth. Beltre also was first in defensive runs saved, which is the one stat that might be weighed most heavily by the sabermetric crowd."

School of Roch: Notes on Matt Wieters, Dylan Bundy and Mike Yastrzemski
"From what I can glean, the Orioles mostly are in agreement that Matt Wieters should receive the offer as a win/win proposition. If he accepts it, they have him for the 2016 season at a cost of $15.8 million. If he declines it and signs with another team, they receive the compensation pick and move on without him. Not everyone was on board with making him the offer, but it seems more likely now that it's going to happen. As always, stay tuned."

2015 Orioles Roster Review, Part Four: The Solid Contributors - Pressbox Online
Paul Folkemer examines 10 players who were all solid contributors to the Orioles in 2015, including Caleb Joseph, Jonathan Schoop and Kevin Gausman. I'm sure it's full of good info, but it simply will not load on Google Chrome on my computer, so tell me what he says!.

Atlanta Braves May Not Want to Catch Wieters - Tomahawk Take - An Atlanta Braves Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and More
"If you didn’t re-sign Brian McCann, why would you pursue Matt Wieters?"

Orioles have a difficult dilemma with Paredes | CSN Mid-Atlantic
"It certainly isn’t a burning question for the Orioles though it is an intriguing one. What do they do with Jimmy Paredes?"

Stanley-Boyd football pitches second straight shutout in win over Durand - The Chippewa Herald
As it is the editorial policy of the blog to celebrate the accomplishments of any team named Orioles, we continue shining the spotlight on the Stanley-Boyd Orioles of Stanley, WI.

Happy Birthday to former Orioles Yamaico Navarro, Tim Byrdak, David Dellucci,Steve "Trashcan" Trachsel, Matt Nokes, Mike Smith, and three-time All Star starter Dave McNally. It's also the birthday of famous people such as: 1740 - William Paca, signer of Declaration of Independence; 1632 - Jan Vermeer, painter; 1795 - John Keats, romantic poet; 1887 - Chiang Kai-shek, president of Nationalist China; 1922 - Barbara Bel Geddes, actress; 1942 - David Ogden Stiers, actor; 1944 - Kinky Friedman, country rocker and attempted politician; 1945 - Brian Doyle-Murray, American comedian; 1946 - Stephen Rea, film and stage actor; 1950 - Jane Pauley, newscaster; 1950 - John Candy, comedian, object of Joe Montana's fandom; 1951 - Nick Saban, college football coach; 1961 - Larry Mullen Jr, drummer, U2; 1961 - Peter Jackson, director; 1963 - Dermot Mulroney, actor; 1963 - Fred McGriff, infielder; 1963 - Johnny Marr, guitarist, The Smiths; 1963 - Rob Schneider, actor; 1963 - Mikkey Dee, drummer, Motörhead; 1966 - Ad-Rock, Beastie Boys rapper; 1967 - Vanilla Ice, professional punch line; and 1976 - Piper Perabo, actress

On this date in Orioles history...nothing of note happened.

In world history, modern and otherwise...

1517 - Martin Luther posts 95 theses on Wittenberg church - precipitates the Protestant Reformation

1541 - Michelangelo Buonarroti finishes painting The Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel, Vatican

1876 - Great Backerganj Cyclone of 1876 ravages British India (Modern-day Bangladesh), resulting in over 200,000 deaths.

1917 - World War I: Battle of Beersheba in southern Palestine -  known as the last successful cavalry charge in history

1918 - Spanish flu virus kills 21,000 in US in one week

2011 - The world population reaches 7 billion inhabitants according to the United Nations

Consider this your discussion space for Tournament of Bands Atlantic Coast Championships for the weekend. If Sunday Bird Droppings are really late or somehow don't appear, look for me at the hotel restaurant where they serve adult beverages with the rest of the Pit Crew.