Two weeks ago I boldly (and stupidly, according to my podcast co-host Patrick Guthrie) proclaimed that that Jim Johnson was the best closer in baseball. Then he blew three consecutive saves. On Thursday, I highlighted the Orioles stellar defensive play this season. Last night in Toronto they committed two errors.
I’m not saying I’m a jinx or even that I necessarily believe in those sorts of things, but if for some reason I am, I need to be a little more careful with my proclamations regarding my favorite baseball team.
And yeah, maybe I am a little superstitious. I do turn my hat to the side when Pedro Strop comes into a game — that didn’t work yesterday either.
Chris Davis‘s offense has been discussed on a national level all season long, but after nearly two months of solid productivity some are putting him in American League MVP discussion. Jason Churchill of ESPN.com discusses why it’s not such a crazy thought afterall.
Davis went 4-for-4 Wednesday, raising his average to .329. He added home run No. 14, tying him for the major league lead. His .690 slugging percentage leads all of baseball, too, and he’s drawn 24 walks to aid his on-base percentage of .420, good for No. 4 in the game.
All fair points. As Churchill goes on to point out, Davis .376 BABIP suggests that his batting average and on-base percentage will slide down a tad. His power numbers on the other hand…
I’m not going to be the blogger that jinxes Davis. So I’ll flat out say he won’t keep up this pace of 52 homers and 155 RBI. Plus there’s this guy in Detroit named Miguel Cabrera that’s pretty good. But boy, would I like to be wrong about this too.
Most of the talk is with your pillow isn’t it Zach??????????????????
Don’t worry Zach, spy is still feeling silly for saying the Orioles needed “to find a #4 hitter”.
You mean to tell me they knew he would do this , the last off-season ? I believe they were lucky just like last year , just plain lucky,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,too bad they don’t have the same luck with pitchers or they could be a threat to go to a world series………………..
Yes, that is what I’m saying. Davis hit .270 with 33 diners last year. I’ll put that up against any current #4 guy in the league, given the other hitters they have around them.
Look, would I like them to pick up a circa 2004 CC Sabathia to solidify the shaky rotation? Absolutely, but those guys are few and far between, look it up.
As Zach has pointed out so many times thie past two years, offense is NOT this team’s Achilles heel, starting pitching is. But you gotta develop that and fill in with cheap free agents – not like the idiot Red Sox who forked over $26 million to Ryan Freaking Dempster. That’s just stupid.
The bucks need to go to player development, not over priced junk. They werent getting Greinke, he wanted to stay out west and never even talked to teams from the side of the country.
They are doing the right things, they just need a couple of these pitchers to come through.
Sorry MGW , I believe the O’s were just plain lucky with Davis , as he could have gone in either direction,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
I’m not sure he can keep this up , I hope so , but remember , he is still unproven,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,the main problem is still a number one pitcher , if the O’s make it to the playoffs thery will face (most likely) the opther teams number one pitcher twice in a five gamer and three times in a seven gamer,,,,,,,,,,,,which means they do not have much chance in a short series against a team with a true number one,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,this being the teams only problem (second base will work out) you would think Peter the Great would spring for one in a trade or free agency especially since the O’s track record with number one pitchers is like the Ravens track record with wide outs,,,,both stink at it,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,it is still fun to watch the O’s now it’s just a bummer they don’t have much of a chance in a short series………………………………
Hey Zach how about you turn your attention and put your jinx mojo to good use? How about you talk about the Yankees 21-1 record in 2013 when they score first or better still talk about Mariano’s (isn’t that a girl’s name?) 18 straight save conversions in 2013? Like I expressed several weeks ago when the home team is going good, the best thing to do is be humble, smile inside, hope that it continues but do not say anything about it out loud.
By the way , has anyone mentioned they juiced up the ball this year…………………………