Mark;
Last week you commented that you didn’t understand why the Orioles were acquiring so many OF’s…..
If Colton Cowser is healthy, Cedrick Mullins will be traded by the deadline at the latest…probably for a relief pitcher, maybe a back-end starter.
The O’s moved in the deep LF wall this offseason. If they had left it they they would need both Mullins (CF) and Cowser (LF) to cover that ground.
It’s all a part of the plan to move out the O’s veterans and have the youngsters play. Notice that the position players they’re signing are so-so veteran stopgaps on short contracts. It appears the FO is willing to take a step back in 2025 in order to bring the youngsters along. If they compete – that’s great. If not – the youngsters are the future. They have a lot of money and time invested in those players. It was their business plan.
I love watching Cedrick Mullins play. But they’re not going to extend his contract. He should be a valuable trade asset during the season for a team needing a strong defensive CF that can also get on base, and then steal bases…..which turns the momentum of games.
I watch lots of games. Stats have little to do with winning. The outcome of all team sports are determined by momentum changes (or not) during the individual games. The valuable players do that better than others.–IMO – The influence on analytics have messed up the 3 top professional team sports. It’s changed the way the games are played – so that most teams are trying to do the same thing. Consequently players are interchangeable from team to team. MLB is saved some because the size of the playing fields are different in the individual parks. The NFL is messed up, but the NBA has simply fallen apart. All the pro team sports are now about entertainment and the players marketing their brand. They’re not really about sports anymore, and haven’t been for decades.