Orioles News - 10/12/07 - More On Mazzone's Firing - 3 Players Opt For Free Agency

Leo Mazzone, the Baltimore Orioles' pitching coach, was fired yesterday. I put that information in my last blog, but more information has come up. A possible replacement, (If he wants the job), is Rick Kranitz. Rick led the Florida Marlins young pitching staff to the 5th best ERA in the National League in 2006. Mazzone was going to take us there and higher right? Wrong. Under Leo, the Orioles had the 29th worst ERA in the League for 2 straight years, both his years in Baltimore. It wasn't hard to tell he was going to leave after longtime friend Sam Perlozzo was fired earlier this year.

Also, 3 O's decided to opt for free agency. The players that chose this are pitcher Rob Bell, pitcher Victor Santos, and Catcher J.R. House. Not big losses there, but with a bullpen that thin.... - John T.

Orioles News - 9/11/07 - O's drop 17 of 20

Baltimore lost again last night, 10-5, but this time to the Los Angeles Angels. They have now lost 17 of their last 20 games. If they go .500 or 9-9 for the rest of the season (18 games), then Baltimore would finish with a whopping 70 wins. Also, the Orioles have now used 25 different pitchers this year, after using 2 more new pitchers last night. That is now a team record. One of those new pitchers was starter Victor Santos. He did bad, as the O's gave him a lead in the 2nd inning on Ramon Hernandez's RBI double play. The lead was soon lost for the game after a 5 run Angels 3rd inning, in which they knocked Santos out of the game. From there, the Angels never looked back, keeping the lead for the rest of the game. They got a run in the 4th inning, 3 more in the 7th inning, and another run in the 9th inning. Santos' line was terrible, allowing 5 earned runs and 7 hits in 2 2/3 innings. Kevin Millar went 3-4 for the O's, with a 2 RBI homer. But it wasn't enough, as the Orioles pitching couldn't hold the lead. Baltimore left a total of 8 men on base in that game. That's poor. - John T.