Summary of 2005:
Before the All-Star break, the Baltimore Orioles were playing like they were destined for one of those dream seasons. On June 21, Baltimore led by two games over the division rival Boston Red Sox and had posted an impressive 42-28 record. The Orioles were also just 24 days away from celebrating Rafael Palmeiro’s 3,000th career hit and were fourth in the AL with a team batting average of .278. But after June 22, Baltimore’s dream season quickly faded. The Orioles would lose their next six games and win just 32 of their last 92 games (just under 35%). Rafael Palmeiro would be suspended for steroid use on August 1. 2, and second-year manager Lee Mazzilli would be fired just two days after Palmeiro’s suspension.
The three bright offensive points in 2005 were shortstop Miguel Tejada (.304 36 98), third baseman Melvin Mora (.283 27 88) and outfielder Jay Gibbons (.277 26 79). On the downside, first baseman Rafael Palmeiro (.266 18 60) appeared in just 100 games and the offseason acquisition of Sammy Sosa (.221 14 45) turned out to be a wasted gamble. As far as pitching, only starters Rodrigo Lopez (15-12 4.90), Bruce Chen (13-10 3.83) and closer BJ Ryan (36 saves in 41 chances) proved reliable. The Orioles finished their season with a disappointing 74-88 record, 21 games behind the division-leading Yankees and Red Sox.
Moving out of season:
After free agent closer BJ Ryan signed with the division rival Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore quickly traded Steve Kline to the Giants for right-hander LaTroy Hawkins (2-8, 3.83, 6 saves in 2005, 25 saves in 2004 for the Chicago Cubs). The Orioles also added free agent catcher Ramón Hernández (.290 12 58) and outfielder/first baseman Jeff Conine (.304 3 33), as well as former Red Sox Kevin Millar (.272 9 50) in hopes of complementing the loss of Rafael Palmeiro. as an offensive force in the daily lineup. Baltimore also traded SS Nate Spears and LHP Carlos Pérez to the Cubs for Corey Patterson (.215 13 34) to better boost their production offense in 2006. To address their starting pitching woes, the Orioles traded with the Mets for the RHP Kris Benson (10-8 4.13) in trade for reliever Jorge Julio.
2006 analysis:
Expect the offensive additions to help better protect Tejada and Mora. Newly acquired Millar and Conine will likely split time between 1B, outfield and DH. The starting five at the moment appear to be Lopez, Erik Bedard (6-8 4.00), Daniel Cabrera (10-13 4.52), Chen and John Maine (2-3 6.30) plus newcomer Kris Benson, who is expected to top Chen or Maine to the bullpen. While the addition of Benson will help, the starting rotation doesn’t offer enough to seriously compete against Toronto, Boston and New York. The departure of left-handed closer BJ Ryan will clearly be missed. The Orioles are crossing their fingers that LaTroy Hawkins can return to closing out games like he did in 2004. Relievers Eric DuBose (2-3 5.52), Chris Ray (1-3 2.66), Tim Byrdak (0-1 4.05) and Todd Williams (5-5 3.30) rounds out the Orioles’ bullpen. Javy López will most likely be designated hitter this year with the acquisition of free agent catcher Ramón Hernández joining the club.