snowball4

I hate this time of year. Once the World Series ends and the calendar flips to November, the long winter of our baseball discontent begins. It should be called the Baseball Dead Zone: that time of year when we scrounge for even the smallest bit of news about the Orioles, only to be left unsatisfied.

Sure, there will be awards announced (Silver Slugger, Cy Young, MVP, etc.), but it will be a long haul to the Winter Meetings. At the Winter Meetings, all of baseball seems to gather – GMs, managers, agents, and a few players. There, we might drum up a little O’s news. More likely, however, is that the meetings will only provide updates about minor league free agency, injury status, and the frustration of watching other clubs make moves while the Orioles remain maddeningly quiet.

In the Baltimore region, football will probably provide little relief from the Baseball Dead Zone (though I might remind Birdland not to be spiteful). But that is an altogether different winter of discontent. Maybe the early portion of the Terps’ basketball season will offer a little excitement?

Instead, we’ll be left to ask ourselves the same questions, as if restating them will shed new light on the answer.

  • Will the Orioles make a splash in Free Agency? Will the Orioles greatly increase their spending?
  • Will they finally address the starting rotation?
  • Who will start in left field?
  • Will Brian Roberts be back with the club?
  • How do you fix OBP and RISP?
  • Is there an affordable option to our DH problem out there on the market?
  • We’re not in position to be the Rays, or the Yankees – how do  you win now, while still trying to build the minor league system?

Sigh. I hate it. And in the Baseball Dead Zone, no one can hear you scream.