Tuesday Bird Droppings: Where the roster turnover continues

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

While the Orioles continue to slog through their 2019 campaign some 2,800 miles away, Mike Elias is staying active on the roster front. And his main order of business so far has been to cast off much of the flotsam and jetsam that he inherited in Baltimore, the failed vestiges of a now-departed O’s regime.

The latest victim of Elias’ maneuvering is outfielder Joey Rickard, who was designated for assignment yesterday to make roster room for reliever Sean Gilmartin. Rickard was plucked in the 2015 Rule 5 draft by former executive vice president Dan Duquette, and impressed former manager Buck Showalter so much that he won a starting outfield spot as a rookie. Rickard started his major league career with a .350 average and .843 OPS in his first 14 games.

It was all downhill from there. Major league pitchers exposed Rickard’s lack of pop, he faded into a fourth outfielder role, shuttled between the majors and minors for a couple seasons, and failed to impress the new Orioles management this season. He batted .203 in the majors and then, coincidentally, also hit .203 at Triple-A Norfolk leading up to his DFA. Elias decided the Orioles can do better.

Still, we had some good times. Rickard was one of only six Orioles still in the organization to play for a postseason O’s club (along with Chris Davis, Trey Mancini, Mychal Givens, Dylan Bundy, and the injured Mark Trumbo).

In a few days, Rickard’s future — or lack thereof — with the Orioles will become more clear. Even if he clears waivers and stays in the organization, though, it’s apparent that he’s not in Mike Elias’ future plans. And he won’t be the last Duquette acquisition to receive his walking papers in the coming weeks and months.

Links

Sean Gilmartin on his call up to the Orioles today - Steve Melewski
The O’s have spent much of the season cycling through one ineffective relief arm after another. Maybe Gilmartin, who was having a fine season at Norfolk, can finally be a guy who sticks around for a while.

Orioles reset: How the 40-man roster situation is making this season harder than it should be - Baltimore Sun
Among the many problems with the 2019 Orioles is that their 40-man roster is cluttered with players who can’t currently help the major league club. And I’m not just talking about the guys who are already on the major league club.

Mancini stays 17th in All-Star voting - School of Roch
The Orioles’ delightful and well-coordinated “Vote Trey” campaign is, sadly, not having much effect in the polls. Mancini hasn’t budged in the second round of All-Star voting. Still, there’d be no shame in being picked as a reserve.

Diner Question: Should the Orioles replace 'Thank God I'm a Country Boy?' - BaltimoreBaseball.com
What say you? Personally I don’t really like the song and don’t think it has anything to do with Baltimore. But good lord, are O’s fans passionate about keeping it, if these comments are any indication.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! You share your big day with recent Oriole Caleb Joseph (33), who spent five years behind the plate with the Birds and was on two postseason clubs. This year, he’s joined a slew of ex-Orioles (including Adam Jones, Christian Walker, and T.J. McFarland) on the Arizona Diamondbacks. Joseph hasn’t hit well, but he’s made two scoreless pitching appearances! Kid’s gotta eat, after all. The other ex-Oriole with a birthday today is 2003 first baseman Carlos Mendez (45).

On this day in 2007, the Orioles shook up their coaching and front office personnel. They fired manager Sam Perlozzo, who had gone 122-164 in parts of three seasons, and replaced him with Dave Trembley. They also reached agreement with Andy MacPhail to become the club’s new president of baseball operations. MacPhail served in that post until the end of the 2011 season, laying the groundwork for much of the Orioles’ success after his departure.