Koji's Elbow

Here is what WebMD had to say about Arthrograms. Koji had one today.

An arthrogram is a test using X-rays to obtain a series of pictures of a joint after a contrast material (such as a dye, water, air, or a combination of these) has been injected into the joint. This allows your doctor to see the soft tissue structures of your joint, such as tendons, ligaments, muscles, cartilage, and your joint capsule. These structures are not seen on a plain X-ray without contrast material. A special type of X-ray, called fluoroscopy, is used to take pictures of the joint.

An arthrogram is used to check a joint to find out what is causing your symptoms or problem with your joint. An arthrogram may be more useful than a regular X-ray because it shows the surface of soft tissues lining the joint as well as the joint bones. A regular X-ray only shows the bones of the joint. This test can be done on your hip, knee, ankle, shoulder, elbow, wrist, or jaw (temporomandibular joint).

Other tests, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT), give different information about a joint. They may be used with an arthrogram or when an arthrogram does not give a clear picture of the joint.

An arthrogram is used to find the cause of ongoing, unexplained joint pain, swelling, or abnormal movement of your joint. It may be done alone, before, or as part of other tests, such as MRI, CT, or arthroscopy.

An arthrogram is used to:

• Find problems in your joint capsule, ligaments, cartilage (including tears, degeneration, or disease), and the bones in the joint. In your shoulder, it may be used to help find rotator cuff tears or a frozen shoulder.
• Find abnormal growths or fluid-filled cysts.

There's a lot more on WebMD, but that's the important part. I hope the test doesn't turn up anything serious. We need Koji to come back and take Rich Hill's place in the rotation.

Hill can go to AAA or he can get picked up by someone else. I'm tired of watching the guy. He is this year's Daniel Cabrera. He pulls a really good start out of his butt every now and then so we all get excited. Then he follows that with five crappy performances. Nine runs allowed in three and a third tonight. Let's hope Koji gets healthy so we can put him in the rotation, keep Hernandez, and take our chances with Hill clearing waivers.

Looks right now like the Red Sox bullpen might make this interesting. A reverse Mother's Day Massacre? Dare I hope?

Melvin Mora's D

Lots of figurative ink has been spilled over Melvin Mora's bat and how it should be slotted in the lineup. Less has been said about his defense. I started thinking about it yesterday, watching Oscar Salazar at third.

Salazar had a couple of tough plays and he wasn't awful, especially compared to some of his teammates' defensive performances. He pulled Aubrey Huff off the bag with one throw, but it was a tough play. A few balls skittered a few inches out of his reach but not so close anybody would call them errors. There were just a lot of tough plays that Salazar didn't make. I don't know that Mora would have, but I think he would have converted at least one or two into outs.

I looked Mora up on FanGraphs and found that he is statistically a little above average at third base. He is a solid guy who makes the plays he ought to and sometimes surprises me on tough plays. Ty Wigginton, by comparison, is a butcher. I didn't bother looking up Salazar since he wouldn't have enough chances to make it meaningful.

You can pin yesterday's ugly loss on a lot of people. Luke Scott and Aubrey Huff both made awful mental mistakes on the base paths. Matt Wieters played like a rookie. Our pitching? David Hernandez didn't look bad, but he did help Adam Dunn autograph Eutaw St.

For me, I think the defense at third was a big factor. Oscar Salazar does a lot of things well and I hope we hang on to him. More on that in another post. He just doesn't have a great glove at third. If Mora had been there, I believe he would have saved a run or two.

Catching up

True story here. I missed the entire Marlins series. I've been tied up with a project that closely resembles a job, and didn't get to see much. Big thanks for small favors. Luckily I have nothing to do this weekend except drink beer and watch the Orioles. Right now I am watching them kick the living daylights out of the Nationals. Two observations.

First, Dave Trembley seems partial to extreme shifts against left handed hitters. Just my opinion, but it seems they cause more problems then they solve. I wish he would stop.

Second, I have written that young teams like ours are going to be inconsistent. Oddly, it seems the rookies are pretty steady and the vets are the ones who are all over the place. Nolan Reimold, Matt Wieters, Koji Uehara, and Robby Andino give you exactly what you have come to expect. Jeremy Guthrie, Nick Markakis, George Sherrill, and Luke Scott are streakier than a toddler's underwear. I wouldn't mind trading a vet or two.

Fantasy Baseball Q&A

Yesterday I enjoyed talking Orioles baseball with Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove. We discuss Aubrey Huff, Melvin Mora, and Nolan Reimold.

Stadium Names

Suite 101 was kind enough to publish another of my articles on their website. It can be found here. In it I write about stadium naming rights. Parts of this article appeared in Weaver's Tantrum last year, but much of it is new material.

O's Sweep Phillies

Best series of the year? I'd say so. Playing the defending champs in their house without the DH is always tough. The fact that we faced two of their better pitchers in Happ and Hamels made it look even worse. I was thinking it would be nice if the team could get one win out of the series.

Remember all those times when we thought how nice it would be if the offense and pitching could get hot at the same time? It happened. Rich Hill allowed too many base runners Friday but he worked his way out of most of the jams and the offense had his back with seven runs. In the second game, Brad Bergesen looked like a rookie for the first time, letting the Phils get on top with a bad inning. Things really looked bad when Ryan Howard hit a home run, but the O's had a ninth inning comeback in them. Gregg Zaun hit the most unlikely Orioles homer since Cesar Izturis' opening day shot. Brian Roberts went deep a few batters later, driving in Oscar Salazar. George Sherrill closed it out. The last game was all about Jeremy Guthrie, who out-dueled Cole Hamels. What could be better?

I'd like to nominate George Sherrill for series MVP. He finished every game, although one was not a save situation. He hardly caused me any concern. Brian Roberts deserves a nod too, with clutch hits in each of the last two games.

I'd like to move to the NL East please. Maybe Andy MacPhail can succeed Bud Selig and make that happen.

Trading Aubrey Huff

Ask any Orioles blog about trading Aubrey Huff and you will get an opinion. The problem is that no two opinions are the same.

Michael at Birds Watcher says Huff is the Orioles number one trade chip. I would add that the Mets, who supposedly covet Aub, had to be impressed with his play against them.

Wayward O, Manhorse's biggest supporter, believes the Orioles would be "nuts" to trade Huff unless the offer is outlandishly good.

Anthony at Oriole Magic is surprised the Orioles didn't trade Huff last year. His trade value certainly would have been higher.

Heath at Dempsey's Army believes that the O's should trade Huff because Oscar Salazar will be a more than adequate stopgap until Brandon Snyder is ready.

Speaking of Snyder's readiness, the young man just earned a promotion to AAA Norfolk. With the future just one level away from the majors, does a Huff trade make more sense? If he succeeds at Norfolk, he would have to get a long hard look in spring training next year. Nolan Reimold only needed 31 AAA games to prove his readiness. If Snyder hits well, he could be fast-tracked also

The O's are headed on a road trip, which usually means losses and ugly play. Luckily the Phils are riding a three game losing streak and Brad Bergesen doesn't know how to get nervous. Maybe we can steal one in Philly.

A Peek at Henry Armstrong

Remember Henry Armstrong? He was the minor league relief pitcher who was a throw-in with Garrett Olson for Felix Pie. I had forgotten about him until a comment on Roch's blog jogged my memory. So how has Henry been doing?

Henry is having the best year of his young career with the Single A Daytona Cubs. As a long relief man, he has pitched 43 innings, racking up a 5-2 record with a 3.14 ERA. His supporting numbers are even better. He has struck out 44, walked only 14, and boasts a spiffy 1.25 WHIP. He has only allowed one HR.

Henry is 23 years old in a league full of 21 year-olds, so those numbers probably don't project to higher levels. Still, I hope he enjoys the very fine year he is having. Good luck Henry!

Orioles Trade Possiblities

Baseball Prospectus gives the Orioles a 0.279% chance of reaching the playoffs. Okay, safe to assume that veterans are on the trading block. Its time to start some groundless trade rumors. These are in order of likelihood.

Danys Baez--The O's have a chance to sell high this time. He's pitching very well, but his contract is up after this season and I'll be wishing him a happy 32nd birthday in September. There are several right handed relief options in the organization. He is trade bait.

Possible trade partner--The Texas Rangers are clinging to first place in the West, but they just put their closer on the DL. They have a deep farm system but have been unwilling to part with top prospects. Baez offers a reliable arm in the pen and would probably only cost a second tier prospect. This seems win/win. I hope Andy MacPhail and Nolan Ryan are reading. As they sometimes do. Never.

Aubrey Huff--Big Aub isn't going to duplicate last year's big numbers, but he is still a good left handed bat. Like Baez, his contract is up soon. Unlike Baez, there is no major league ready replacement for him in the system, so the price would be high.

Possible trade partner--How bad are the Cinncinnati Reds corner infielders? Ramon Hernandez is getting lots of starts at first base. Despite that, the Reds are only 2.5 games out of first place. Huff, a noted second-half hitter, would rock National League pitching in the Reds' hitter friendly park and carry them to an NL Central title. Wayne Krivsky came to the Orioles from the Reds and would be able to expedite the deal.

Luke Scott--I've been hearing Luke Scott trade rumors for six months and not liking them. I still don't. Scott is playing well and this is only his first arbitration year. He is a good guy and I hope he stays in Baltimore. Rumors persist though and there are contenders who could certainly use him.

Possible trade partner--The Atlanta Braves spent a jillion dollars on their rotation this winter, then left the offense in the hands of Garret Anderson and Jeff Francoeur. We saw how well that worked out. Scott would be huge for them. The Braves have a top heavy farm system, with a few untouchable prospects and a bunch of high risk/high reward guys. They would have to be creative in putting a package together.

George Sherrill--He is another one I'm not sure the O's want to trade. We don't have lots of left handed relief help in the system. Sherrill is pitching well and I believe he is under club control (arb eligible) for another year. Still, there will be a market for him at the trade deadline and the O's would be foolish not to listen.

Possible trade partner--We love trading with the Chicago Cubs, and they could really use a strong lefty out of the pen.

Jeremy Guthrie--He is under club control for the foreseeable future, he pitched well for two years, and everyone likes him. His poor performance this year has made him into a trade deadline X-factor though. Would the O's trade him? Would anyone give much up for him? A Guthrie deal seems unlikely.

Possible trade partner--The NY Mets desperately need a financially cheap way to bolster their rotation. Guthrie is that, but MacPhail will ask for an inflated price in prospects. My impression is that their farm system hasn't recovered from the Santana trade yet. A deal would be tough to make but not impossible.

Other Veterans:
Melvin Mora--No-trade clause.
Brian Roberts--Just resigned.
Ty Wigginton--Maybe, if he heats up.
Cesar Izturis--Is anybody THAT impressed with Robert Andino? Nah.
Mark Hendrickson--Does anyone want him? Anyone?
Gregg Zaun--Orioles are serious about Zaun mentoring Matt Wieters. He stays.
Koji Uehara--He would make an interesting trade chip. He's shown the ability to get major league hitters out. He just hasn't shown the stamina to be a starter. Lots of teams could use him. I think he O's want to keep him in order to make themselves more attractive to other Japanese players. He'll stay through the year.

Robert Andino is Adequate

I'm looking hard for an upside after watching the Orioles lose to Garrett Olson and the Mariners, and Andino is it. If you missed last night's game, good for you. The O's had an insane amount of base runners in the first two innings but only came up with two runs. After a rain delay, Olson settled down and actually pitched OK. It helped him that some of our batters, notably Ty Wigginton, couldn't lay off pitches out of the strike zone. Koji pitched well early, but the rain seemed to throw him off. Maybe he cooled down too much. He allowed four runs in five innings, all after the delay. Brian Bass came in and wasn't awful except for one pitch. Russell Branyan hit one to dead center that landed about 10 rows deep, right in front of the back wall. There wasn't much wind either. It was awesome. I admired it in a masochistic way. Adam Jones took about two steps back then watched.

Anyway, I was all right with the loss until the ninth. Down 6-3, we had Gregg Zaun leading off the inning against righty David Aardsma. I was SURE we were going to see a pinch hitter. Aubrey Huff and Matt Wieters were sitting there, ready to hit left handed. I even would have bought Oscar Salazar or Felix Pie. I thought Salazar was here to be a bat off the bench. Nope. I watched Zaun flail at three pitches, one of which was in the strike zone, and sit down. I really hate Dave Trembley's ninth inning management.

I don't think I'm watching tonight game against the Braves. I need a night off from the O's.

The one positive I can find is that Robert Andino is a passable backup infielder. He is a tolerable hitter, with a .254 BA. He hasn't had enough chances to establish a pattern defensively, but my impression is that he makes some spectacular plays while committing the occasional error on routine balls. Overall, I'm glad he is here. Hayden Penn, the pitching prospect we traded to the Marlins in return for Andino, is in AAA after issuing three bases loaded walks against the Brewers. He is carrying a 7.77 ERA on the year. I'm feeling pretty good about Andino and that trade.

Orioles Draft Trivia

The interminable MLB draft made me wonder how many of the Orioles' late round picks actually turn out. I decided to look at the '09 Orioles to see. Below is a list of this years O's sorted by the round in which the Orioles drafted them.

Verdict from a tiny sample? First round=good. Any later round=crap shoot. George Sherrill is an outlier since he was not drafted. Other than Sherrill, Matt Albers (23rd round) is the long shot champion.

First Round
Brian Roberts--'99
Adam Jones--'03
Nick Markakis--'03
Lou Montanez--'00
Matt Wieters--'07
Jeremy Guthrie--'02
Adam Eaton--'96

Second Round
Nolan Reimold--'05
Robert Andino--'02

Third Round
Chris Ray--'03

Fourth Round
Brad Bergesen--'04
Rich Hill--'02
Bob McCrory--'03

Fifth Round
Aubrey Huff--'98
Jim Johnson--'01

Sixth Round
Brian Bass--'00
Jason Berken--'06

Seventh Round
Chad Moeller--'96

Ninth Round
Luke Scott--'01
Dennis Sarfate--'01

Tenth Round
Ryan Freel--'95
Jamie Walker--'92

Sixteenth Round
David Hernandez--'05

Seventeenth Round
Gregg Zaun--'89
Ty Wigginton--'98

Twentieth Round
Mark Hendrickson--'97

Twenty-Third Round
Matt Albers--'01

Undrafted
George Sherrill

Amateur Free Agent
Cesar Izturis--'96
Melvin Mora--'91
Felix Pie--'01
Oscar Salazar--'94
Danys Baez--'99
Koji Uehara--'09
Alfredo Simon--'95

Orioles Draft Matt Hobgood

I know its just me but I hate it when athletes let themselves get all pudgy then ask for million dollar contracts. I'm a distance runner. You train, you get more fit, you lose fat. You don't train, you get chubby.

With the fifth pick, the Orioles just drafted Matt Hobgood, a 245 pound high school pitcher. Dude is 18 and weighs 245? Oooooookay. MLB Network said "signability" was a big factor. I'm translating that to mean that other guys wanted lots of money but Hobgood was willing to accept Moon Pies and Cherry Coke. Roch says describes his command as "spotty." One publication ranked him as the 18th best right-hander in the draft.

I hate this pick. With that said, I'm done venting. Maybe its all muscle. Maybe he'll be the next Mickey Lolich. I'm in his corner. But there would be more room for me in his corner if he could drop 20 or 30 pounds.

Here is some footage I found on youtube. Around the 1:05 mark it looks like Hobgood is out of breath from the effort of getting the ball back from the catcher.

The Legend of Steve Dalkowski

I have an article published in Suite 101 about legendary Orioles minor league hurler Steve Dalkowski. Its written for a general audience so there might not be anything new in there for old school Orioles fans. Still, who can get enough Steve Dalkowski stories? Like his 1957 season, when he pitched 62 innings, struck out 121, walked 129, and threw 39 wild pitches. In 62 innings!

No Worries

That's right, I'm not worried. The guy who named his blog for a manager who threw bases and kicked dirt isn't upset. We hit a cold streak but what did you expect when a third of your team is eligible for Rookie of the Year honors?*

I'm starting to have some questions for Dave Trembley. I don't get why Nolan Reimold didn't start Friday or Saturday. I don't get why he didn't pinch hit for Gregg Zaun last night. Zaun was badly overmatched by the A's pitcher and his 96 mph fastball. Matt Wieters was all ready to pinch hit in the eighth with the bases loaded. Instead we watched Zaun flail at three pitches he didn't have any hope of hitting.

Generally though, its fun watching the kids play. They will have bad days, but you can't get too depressed when your ninth best pitching prospect (Jason Berken) has a bad game. It happens. Right now, I am choosing to avoid the chat boards because of all the panic and negativity. Did these people really think Matt Wieters would never have a slump?

Quick Notes
The Fredrick Keys have six players going to the Single A All Star Game. Its a far cry from '04 when the Keys started 7-30.


Norfolk continues to hold onto first place in the International League.


Nolan Reimold continues to rock with a three run home run last night. Why didn't he start Friday or Saturday?


I almost missed this in Steve Melewski's interview with Adam Jones:

Jones is excited for the future and playing between Nolan Reimold and Nick Markakis in the O's outfield.

"Don't forget Lou, too. Us four could do a lot of damage in this city for a long time."

I guess AJ doesn't think too much of Felix Pie.

*Seven rookies currently on the roster. Could be eight depending who goes to make room for Koji when he returns.

Orioles Lefties

Jamie Walker is gone and Alberto Castillo is on the way from Norfolk. I haven't written much about Walker because I really like the guy. He never made excuses, never seemed cocky or difficult, and supported military charities. I could see myself sitting down with Jamie, knocking back a few beers while telling lies about women. Additionally, he was the best pitcher in a really awful 2007 bullpen and I always respected him for that. I didn't want to write bad things about the man, so I said little as he struggled over the last two years.

Alberto Castillo is a 33 year old journeyman who looks like AAAA filler to me. He has bounced around the minors since 1994 including seven years in the Independent Leagues. His career minor league ERA is 4.27. The tall Cuban was solid in 26 innings last year but nothing special. This year in Norfolk, he held lefties to a meager .209 batting average, so he gets a shot. Besides, we have little else in the system. The Walker situation has revealed a significant organizational deficiency. Here is a look at our left handed minor league options.

AAA Norfolk
Chris Waters--He's been starting and looks like quad A material. Certainly not a long-term solution as a bullpen lefty.
Bobby Livingston--A 26 year old Texan who both the Reds and Mariners gave up on. His major league ERA is 6.31.

That's it. We have no other lefties at the AAA level.

AA Bowie
Troy Patton--He's looking way too good to be called up to be a situational lefty.
Wilfredo Perez--Many people think the skinny Dominican is the future, but here is an interesting article from FanGraphs showing he is actually better against right handed hitters. He'll probably have to spend some time at AAA before coming to Baltimore.
Chad Thall--Thall has put up some decent numbers as he climbed the ladder, but is struggling at Bowie this year.
Ryan Rodriguez--Minor league filler. He just doesn't have the talent.

And that's it at AA. We just don't have lots of left handed help on the farm. That's why Jamie Walker stayed around as long as he did. That's why a guy like Alberto Castillo is getting called up. This might be something we need to address through trade.

I'm watching the first inning of the Orioles/A's. I've never seen Jeremy Guthrie pitch so badly. He has to have some nagging injury that is troubling him this year. He's just awful. Not fooling anyone.

Loving Mike Flanagan

Orioles fans have been having fun watching the young players getting their call ups and performing well. Its been some years since being an O's fan was this enjoyable. We have Nolan Reimold, Jason Berken, Brad Bergesen, and David Hernandez all making splashes. Andy MacPhail is rightfully getting credit for rebuilding the farm system. ESPN's Tim Kurkjian recently wrote a peice gushing about the job MacPhail has done.

While Kurkjian and others shower MacPhail with affection, I want to throw a little love to our Cy Young award winning Executive VP, Mike Flanagan. I was as ready as anyone for Flanny to give way to MacPhail, but its time to give credit where credit is due. Every one of the players I named in the above paragraph came to the Orioles under Flanagan's leadership. I'm working from memory here, but I think even Matt Wieters was drafted by the Flanagan administration, although MacPhail did the heavy work of signing the super-prospect.

Since we are all feeling good about the team, lets think nice thoughts about Mike Flanagan. He was a top flight pitcher, a great Oriole, and he found some good young players for us to watch. Thanks Flanny.

Rich Hill's Shoulder

Sorry for the break in posting. I was running a distance relay around Lake Tahoe. My team did very well. Sadly, the place we stayed didn't have WiFi and I was more out of touch than I expected. Normally I wouldn't be upset, but what a week to miss!

I missed Matt Wieters' debut. Jason Berken and Brad Bergesen threw gems. David Hernandez was solid in his first start. Luke Scott and Nolan Reimold hit home runs in bunches. I stepped off the airplane last night just in time to fire up the laptop and watch Rich Hill pitch seven shutout innings against the Mariners. Who would have predicted a 1-0 score in an Orioles game?

I've been meaning to type a bit about Hill's mechanics since seeing Bob Feller in the broadcast booth a week or two ago. MASN flashed a picture of Feller in his prime with his back shoulder dipped low, just like Rich Hill. I think this is the picture they showed.



That looks posed, so here is another one that seems to show his natural motion. The shoulder dip isn't as exaggerated since Feller is farther into his windup, but it is definitely there.



Here is one of Rich Hill, also dropping the back shoulder. Its a couple years old, but he is doing the same thing now.



I'm not a pitching coach and normally don't dabble in baseball mechanics. In this case though, it seems to be common sense that any mechanical quirk can be part of an effective delivery if it is integrated into the pitching motion. Feller had a Hall of Fame career with an odd motion. I don't see why Hill takes so much criticism for his similar idiosyncrasy. I think it is one of those situations where "different" mechanics are fine when you are winning but verboten when losing. Keep dealing Rich, nobody will complain anymore.

While out of touch, I missed sending happy birthday wishes to Tippy Martinez, Eric Davis, and John Miller. That's John Miller the '60s pitcher, not Jon Miller the announcer. Happy birthday guys.