Since we are starting a 3 game series with the Orioles, we sent off some questions to Stacey who blogs for Camden Chat, SB Nation's great Oriole blog. Credit where it is due, the questions are from Hugo.
We've all heard about the Orioles' exciting young pitching staff. What should we expect from each of the O's young starters in 2010 and beyond?
The Orioles have three young starters in this year's rotation: Brian Matusz, Brad Bergesen, and David Hernandez. The Blue Jays will see Bergesen and Hernandez in their first series.
Matusz is an ace in the making and will hopefully spend the next decade terrorizing the AL East. He has four plus pitches and impeccable command. Bergesen is a high contact, low strikeout guy that overachieved in 2009. If all goes well he'll be a solid mid to back of the rotation starter. Hernandez was a strikeout king in the minors but that didn't translate to the majors in 2009 as he instead gave up a ton of home runs. He pitched his way onto the team in spring training but I think ultimately his home is in the bullpen
Not making the team is 21 year old Chris Tillman. He's got the potential to be a top of the rotation starter but still needs to work on his command. It's likely we'll see him in Baltimore in 2010.
The Orioles seem to be heading in the right direction, but it's hard not to look up at the giants of the AL East and get despondent. Are Orioles fans as bummed about the AL East as we Jays' fans are? Any chance of us combining our rosters next season in an effort to compete?
Yes. It's tough because when I look at the team in a vacuum and see the improvements, see the young talent, I get very excited. But as soon as I compare it to the other teams in the division and see how far they still have to go I sometimes wonder what the point to all of it is.
I don't know about combining rosters but I'd be happy to take Adam Lind off your hands.
What do O's fans expect from Miguel Tejada's return?
We expect a guy who lost some power but who can still hit. He hits into a lot of double plays so we expect to see that. I personally hope that the Tejada that was sometimes seen as selfish in his first go round in Baltimore has learned some life lessons and will be less of a primadonna.
Every year it seems like Baltimore goes to great lengths to revamp their bullpen, but every year its awfulness seems to recur. Will the Orioles' bullpen finally be better this season?
The answer to that actually lies in the rotation. Every year for the past few years the bullpen starts off well, but by the second half they are completely burnt out thanks to the ineffective starting rotation. If Millwood and Guthrie can rack up the innings and the young pitchers can hold their own I think the bullpen will be just fine.
Are you worried at all about Adam Jones' slow second half? Or are you confident that he's the star he seemed to be the first half of the season.
I still think Adam Jones is going to be a star. He's just 24 years old this year and he'll still have some adjustments to make, but the talent is there. He needs to stop chasing the breaking pitches and stop trying to pull everything over the fence and he'll be fine.
Thanks Stacey.