My thing OTM is if the Os are gonna get ageing and whats viewed upon as over the hill players I would rather them trade for them, give up next to nothing, have the team they are trading with eat a big majority of the tab. Rather than the Os give clowns like Garret Atkins a one year deal for 8 million.

With the thinking being, hope the player they acquire returns to form and flip him at the deadline for a better prospect than they gave up to acquire that player. In a sense using that player as a rental.

Jim Pressley I think did a pretty good job as the hitting instructor in his first year. Think about what he was able to do with J.J. Hardy. I dont think its in conceivable in the least that he could turn Figgins back into a respectable hitter. I feel the same way about Soriano. Especially in relation to Soriano with the left field line and how the ball travels down the lines at OPACY.

I like Adam Lind but, the Jays could always move him to the Of or Dh him or Dh Prince if they got him. They dont have to move Lind and if they where to, would they really want potentially another Jay Gibbons like karma going against them 18 games a year?

Ok, so maybe not the most "breaking news", but it is interesting that DD is interested in Fielder (although, who wouldn't be right)

DALLAS - Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette confirmed to MASN this morning that he's interested in free-agent first baseman Prince Fielder. However, he warns fans not to get their hopes up.

The Orioles won't get in a bidding war for Fielder, but the market may be softening for the slugger, which would allow teams on the peripheral to become involved. That includes the Orioles and Mariners.

Duquette doesn't know where the market is going for Fielder, but he's paying close attention.

If you read other related Prince Fielder articles, they state that its more of a Peter Angelos desire to sign Prince, not necessarilly a Buck or Dan thing. IMO, if PA is willing, and it doesn't prevent the FO from acquiring other pieces critical to the overall puzzle, then go for it.

I also see that no one claimed Pedro Viola, so the Orioles sent him to Norfolk. The team also waived Pedro Florimon (and the Twins later claimed him). IMO, its about time the club dumped these pretenders like Florimon, Matt Angle, Brandon Snyder and the like. They will never be ML players in any role. The fans get caught up in them because they are ranked among the top O's prospects. That's why the Baltimore farm is so pathetic as of now. In reality, outside of Dylan Bundy, Jonathan Schoop and Manny Machado, there isn't a top 500 ML prospect aanywhere else in the O's minor leagues. I'm 100% confident that under Dan Duquette and his newly formed souting team and staff (both domestically and internationally) that that will change rather quickly.

Now that the Phillies are serious players in signing free agent Aramis Ramirez, they have made Placido Polanco (at $7.5m in 2012) available. IMO, he becomes another interesting alternative for the O's who could use him at 3B or return him to his natural 2B position if Brian Roberts can't play. He won gold gloves in 2007 and 2009 at 2B. Offensively, he's average at best.

I have a suspicion from many articles i've read, that the O's are serious about signing veteran Johnny Damon (although I'm not sure the feeling is mutual). IMO, Damon could spell the end of Luke Scott's days as an Orioles player. Damon can play LF some and DH, but he's probably not suited to play everyday in LF and can no longer play CF which appears to be what the O's are looking for (a left handed everyday LFer who can also play CF if needed). That means they'd have to sign another OFer which could mean the end for Nolan Reimold too.

Does anyone have a bold prediction? I don't.

I think the offense is only a couple of players away.

We are definately watching two different teams.  The team I see has 2 good minor league hitters at 3rd base, but neither have proved themselves in the ML.  2nd base is still up in the air.  J.J. Hardy just had his first goo year in 3 years.  Can he repeat or will the injury bug hit again.  Between Chris Davis, Mark Reynolds and Adam Jones there could be close to 600 K's and a cumulative BA of close to .250 (maybe).  They might hit 75-80 HR's but as we saw last year, hitting a lot of HR's does not = winning more games.  There is only one player on the team that hits with RISP, or even just runners on base, and that is Matt Wieters.  The highest OBP, of regular players, last year was Nick Markakis at .351.  Then there was a major dorpoff to Wieters and Nolan Reimold at .328, Robert Andino at .327, Reynolds at .323, Jones .319, Vlad .317, Hardy at .310 and Lee at .302.  The team OBP was .316.  You call this only a couple of players away? 

Have to agree though on saying NO to Soriano and Figgins. 

Seth Smith would be nice and fit DD's looking for a LH OF that can play CF and LF.  But, they were offering him for Martin Prado.  Who do the Orioles have that the Rockies would want that is on the level of Prado? 

I also like Jason Kubel and he also fits the LH OF/DH mold that DD is looking for. 

Yonder Alonso would make my day as he would make Mark Reynolds expendable. 

As I mentioned in another post, I would really like to see the Orioles make a run at Bourjos and Morales.  Thaose could open up a lot more trade possibilities.

Quite hard to make a bold prediction. DD is actually doing the right things so far and when's the last time that's happened here? It must be a mirage. Yeah, that's it.

OTM I can't help that I like Matt Angle even if he never does amount to anything. I just LOVE seeing a guy blazing trails on the bases so fast that no one can throw him out. Even when you know he's going, you still can't get him. I love small ball, I really do and Jazz, hate to burst your bubble, but I think Chris Davis will be expendable long before Reynolds would be. Never know though, DD is different from any GM we've had in quite awhile.

As far as Prince, I'd much rather get Pujols, but I suppose we can't afford to be that picky. If we can get either one, it's a win for the O's. The real question I have is how confident is management and the FO with Andino and Reimold? Andino made some huge strides last season and Reimold started looking like the guy that blew us away as a rookie towards the end there. I think I'd be disappointed if we didn't give him his last chance if he comes hard out of the gate in ST. I've said it before, but I would love to get Damon in here. We need a true leader in here to lead by example and he's a great fit for that role.

I think I'd rather have Andino over Polanco. Andino plays solid D at second base and has a better bat, so that would be a downgrade at the position IMO. I think Luke Scott is already done as an Oriole, really. As far as being the end for Reimold, the thing that makes me think otherwise is that we are looking for a left handed bat to back up in center field and platoon in left, keyword is "platoon" which leads me to believe left field will be filled internally, at least initially. If not, why not say you're looking for a left handed starting left fielder that can spell Adam Jones occasionally in center? I don't think we're done with Reimold just yet.

I also think theres a decent chance Guthrie is dealt, but I'd only be on board with this if we signed a starter before that happened. I still wouldn't rule out an Adam Jones trade either depending on what happens with his contract.

I think the only thing that would surprise me more than signing Prince is seeing Yu Darvish in orange and black. If PA is willing to shell out money for Prince, that is a good sign that he would be willing to be generous on the posting fee as well. I actually think we'll have a shot at him. Is PA really ready to spend this time? This offseason is very exciting so far and nothing has happened yet, but I'm trying to keep that tempered since we always get excited during the offseason and always get let down. However, DD has the best track record of any GM we've had here for a very, very long time.

Im gonna go with what DD said at the last part of the article, dont get your hopes up for Prince Fielder - I wont. Glad in a way to see his name attached to the Orioles. The other little bit of light I read was that a slugger has to be happy with the confines of the ballpark he plays in. If its between Seattle and Baltimore, this should be a slam dunk. OPACY was tailor made for someone like Prince.

Im gonna try also not to continue to beat a dead horse but the most recent article I read stated that the Cubs may be willing to eat as much as 40 of the 54 million of Alfonso Soriano s contract. Does that not help sway interest a little bit? Its definetly gonna be an American League team that is interested in him. He played for Buck, he gives the Os and option at 2b, Lf and Dh.

The other things I found interesting was teams where calling about Jim Johnson. I kind of believe they will get a better offer for him than Jeremy Guthrie and depending on who the team was calling for JJ if they got an iron clad starter out of it, I think in the least the Os would have to be tempted.

Johnny Damon really limits the Os to what they can do. I like Damon but I liked him better 5 years ago. Having a guy like him or Luke Scott or even Jason Kubel really hinders you defensively in one form or another. None of them can throw. 2 of them cant run and 1 of them doesnt have the pop they once had.

Reports also keep surfacing about the Os looking for a left handed bat that could potentially play centerfield. Grady Sizemore would have made perfect sense but he is already off the table. Felix Pie, anyone - joking. Corey Patterson - anyone? Maybe not joking so much. If the price is right for him Id like to see C Pat back.

The only way Id like to see Placido Planco is if the Os did net Prince and Philly whiffed on Aramis Ramirez and the Os could move Mark Reynolds to Philadelphia for Planco, Blanton and maybe Worley. Doubt they would get that much, but a need is a need.

I as watching the same team as OTM I guess. I saw a team that already scored enough runs to be competitive if the pitching was average, which it wasn't. If you get the other 2-3 positions filled, or only one of the holdovers from last year has a better year, then you will be scoring more than enough runs to be competitive every night. Again that depends on the pitching which I don't see droppign a run per game off their ERA, at least not so far. You are correct in saying that hitting more HR's does not equal winning more games by itself, but if you add into that a couple guys that can get on base a little more often, and get themselves into scoring position a little more often, then those HR's become more valuable, and the players being protected in the line up by the HR hitters become even more valuable. That is the type player we need to get. Several have been mentioned here and many could fill the bill at least better than last years bunch. We are going to be in trouble with Roberts. Not even DD has the balls to cut him. he is under contract for two more years and says he will be ready for ST. just like the last two years. No good 2b will come here knowing that the position belongs to Brian as long as he can play, and hope for an injury. So you have ot gt someone like Figgins or Soriano, or several others that can play 3b, and move to 2b if needed. So if 2b is not a priority it open up for some other guys at LF/DH a corner inf.

If the pitching does not improve then it doesn't matter if you sign Prince and Albert, you are not going to win much more. Personally I think Duquette is blowing smoke about Fielder because he is positioning himself to get someone else and hopes to drive his price up so whoever gets him can't afford to compete for the player he really wants, maybe at the same position. It wouldn't be the first time he did that in his career. I just hope whoever it is that he is looking at is a top of the rotation starter.

Interesting. It seems Andino is drawing trade interest from teams who want to use him as a starting shortstop.

• Orioles infielder Robert Andino is drawing trade interest from teams who could use him as a starting shortstop, tweets MASN's Roch Kubatko.
• GM Dan Duquette said the Orioles have several "irons in the fire" and is optimistic about making at least one move during the Winter Meetings, says Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com.

Ahh, I'll just post the thing. Wonder how hot those irons are?

With the Phillies signing Pappelbon I wonder if the Braves are one of the teams interested in him or the Mets. They know him from his time with the Marlins, the Marlins just signed Jose Reyes.

I could see a number of teams kicking the tires on Robert Andino but I dont know that they would cough up anything significant. I keep going back to the Japanese SS that posted though to a mystery team. If that team is the Os who where linked to him, they would be foolish to keep Andino IMO if they got a good or halfway reasonable offer for him.

The offense is a couple of players away. If those players are Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder(fine Fielder and Ortiz). You put them at 1B and DH. Then you put Reynolds at 3B, put Reimold at LF, leave Andino at 2B, put Davis on the bench as a pinch hitter and you've got yourself an above-average offense with some depth. Not good enough to compete with the Yankees or the Red Sox, but I think with the two of them, this team could score 800 runs and be a top five offense if it stayed reasonably healthy.

If the Os are trying to win now, then why not look at a trade for Bobby Abreu? He can't hit for power, but he can get on base. Admittingly he can't run, but we don't have anyone who can do that right now in any event. It would let us play someone other than Hardy at the #1 spot. The Angels can't use him in the outfield, so they'd probably be willing to eat some of his salary and trade him for cheap. Add him and Willingham (or give Reimold another chance) and that should be an upgrade for this club.

From Roch:

DALLAS - Just to keep the rumor mill from spinning completely out of control, I'll try to slow it a little by passing along confirmation that the Orioles aren't interested in Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano.

The Cubs reportedly are trying to convince the Orioles to take Soriano and are willing to absorb most of the $54 million he's owed.

I'm told that the Orioles will pass on that offer.

Keep in mind that the Cubs approached the Orioles. I never heard that the Orioles initiated talks.

Wow, if true, talk about desperation. There's no way we should be taking that offer. A line from the movie "Rising Sun" pops into my head. Good thing DD is smart enough to say no to this, at least, I hope he is.

"Never underestimate your opponent. Never take what he offers you."

I again would say that it depends on how much of the contract they are willing to eat. The average ML salary last year was around 3.2 million a year. So how much over that isit worthit to you to havea player better than what we have. As long as he isn't blocking anyone from coming up and we don't have anyone better then why not? He plays multiple positions in the inf ant OF and doesn't suck at any of them. i grant you he has never been a gold glover anywhere either, but he would be a player that we could get to play behind Roberts until he scrambles his brains again, when we need a real full time player. In the meantime he could play some OF and be on the Sunday team.

PS it must all be taken with a grain of salt as the thread started "From Roch"

PS it must all be taken with a grain of salt as the thread started "From Roch"

You got that right 

As long as he isn't blocking anyone from coming up and we don't have anyone better then why not?

"Why not?", you ask? Here's why not. For one, he's 35. Two, he has hit under .250 in two of the last three seasons. Three, his fielding percentage over the last three seasons is terrible. Four, he had a .289 OBP last season, a .323 in 2010 and a .303 in 2009. Five, his speed is gone and hasn't stole 10 bases in four years. His slugging has remained decent, but we already have Mark Reynolds. I'm so sick of signing guys who are on the decline like this.

If, and I mean if what Roch said is true, that's reason number six. If they want him gone so bad that they are calling teams trying to talk them into taking him, it must be pretty bad. It's not even a salary dump if they are going to pay a large portion of the contract. Soriano is a shell of his former self much like Vlad is. I don't want to have to look at him all season and I don't want there to be any obligation to play him. Stay away, I don't want him and no, Damon does not fall into the same category. He is still productive and would bring veteran leadership from a guy who has playoff experience and a championship under his belt to a clubhouse that needs it. Soriano isn't known for that kind of stuff even though he did win a championship with the Yankees, but that was 10 years ago and I haven't heard too many people talk of Soriano as a leader.

Vlad led the team in BA and Soriano would have been in the top 5 hitters on our team. So I don't really see your point. People pooped on Vlad last year but he stayed healthy and hit a consistant 290 all year. He ws only good to DH and did not have DH power but we still hit enough HR and if he had hit 2nd or 3rd more it would have produced more runs. Soriano is an upgrade over much of what we had, and if he comes cheaper than someone of equal or less talent, then I see no harm in having him. If we have someone better then of course leave him alone but we can't really say that right now. I want the best 9 guys I can get to play here on the field at all times. If .250 is better than what we have for not much money then what does it hurt. you gave up noone for him, just some money. You can always cut him and if the Cubs ate most of the contract then it doesn't cost much. He is no longer an all star or an elite talent, but again as long as he is not blocking anyone from getting their chance that has shown they can do better, or there is a better trade or FA that is willing to come here, I see no harm in having him here even if it is as a utility infielder much like Figgins. I wouldn't do it until i was sure there ws not a better option, but if in the end he ended up Andino's replacement on the bench after he got traded, I could live with it, much like Figgins. 

Noone is saying he is any kind of long term answer, but we are not going to fill all the long term answers this off season and we still must field a team. I would rather do it with a guy that knows how to do it and may be able to do it without the pressure or stress on his body of playing every day. I don't like Damon because I think he is a trader and a head case and would quit or get hurt when things go south. Because he is a soldier of fortune I don't see him coming here anyway. HE is looking for another ring and is either headed to Philadelphia, St Louis, Texas or staying put, unless for some reason Florida thinks he fits with them. 

Orioles Rumors: Quentin, Floyd, Koji, Street, Erbe

By Luke Adams[December 6 at 7:04pm CST]

The latest on the Orioles:

• Baltimore has interest in Carlos Quentin and Gavin Floyd, but it's unclear if they match up with the White Sox, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. The Sox would like young pitching and the O's don't want to give that up, Connolly adds. Brad Bergesen was one name floated by Baltimore in trade talks, tweets MLB.com's Scott Merkin.
• The Orioles are talking to the Rangers about re-acquiring Koji Uehara, according to Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com.
• A club official told Connolly that there's "no chance" the team wants Alfonso Soriano (Twitter link).
• The Orioles are telling other clubs that Adam Jones is off limits, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
• Troy Renck of the Denver Post hears that talks between the Orioles and Rockies about Huston Street have "no traction" (Twitter link).
• GM Dan Duquette says he has several offers out to free agent position players and pitchers, and adds that the club was in on Kevin Slowey before the Twins sent him to the Rockies, tweets Ghiroli.
• The O's have re-signed Brandon Erbe to a minor league contract, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com.

Vlad led the team in BA and Soriano would have been in the top 5 hitters on our team. So I don't really see your point. People pooped on Vlad last year but he stayed healthy and hit a consistant 290 all year.

Yeah, you keep saying that, but in 145 games, his average was at or above .290 in only 30 games. It's not true no matter how many times you say it. He only finished with an average that high due to a great September. He was in the .270-.280 range most of the year.

As for Soriano, we'll just agree to disagree. I'm just tired of all the retreads and falling stars. Sick of it.