It's about time!

The Ravens finally earned some long overdue respect from the national sports media today when ESPN released their weekly power rankings. Where were the Ravens you ask? I'll tell you this much. They were at #10 last week and jumped 9 positions this week. That's right. The Yankee-loving, Red Sox-adoring, Brett Favre-drooling ESPN 'experts' decided the top spot. See for yourself:
I understand that lists like the 'Power Rankings' and the like are irrelevant in the long run but what fan out there is going to say that it doesn't mean anything that they're team is ranked #1? When it comes to professional sports, it's all about pride. The Ravens have pride, their fans have pride, and that pride should result in more wins and legitimate shot at a deep run in the playoffs. Go Ravens!

Terps Football, Ravens, and NFL Predictions

I'm going to start with the bad news, get that out of the way, and then talk about the NFL. The Maryland Terrapins opened up their college football season horribly on Saturday with a 52-13 loss on national television to the California Golden Bears, whom the Terps upset last season. This was the second worst loss the Terps have taken since Ralph Friedgen took over, and I watched every minute of it. This year people have been down on the Terps football team, predicting a 6-6 season overall, or perhaps worse, but I decided to give them a 7-5 record, because they seem to always somewhat exceed expectations.
However, watching Saturday night's game shows that this team is as unexperienced as advertised. The defense looked horrible, with Best and Riley killing us, and the offense was rough, with six sacks allowed by this young offensive line. The only bright spot was Da'Rel Scott who had 13 carries for 90 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown run when it no longer mattered. What a rough start. Unless the Terps step it up in ACC play, this is going to be a rough season, which includes games against Virginia Tech and Florida State amongst the up-in-the-air ACC. Let's hope that the three straight home games against James Madison, Middle Tennessee State, and Rutgers are all wins. Then we can worry about the ACC schedule.
Now to the Ravens, who looked great in the preseason, granted it was the preseason (the Lions went 4-0 in the preseason last year, and we all know what happened after that), but Flacco didn't show any signs of a sophomore slump, and the running back situation looks good. The defense, despite losing starters such as Bart Scott and Jim Leonhard, looked very good throughout the entire preseason. Tavares Gooden looks ready to step up alongside Ray Lewis at the linebacker position, and Terrell Suggs had a nice drive in the fourth game, getting three tackles and one sack. Now, Sunday is nearly upon us, and the NFL season is finally going to begin. My prediction for the Ravens is 11-5 again, but still behind the Steelers at 12-4 again. The Ravens will get a wild card spot. I predict the Ravens will get through to the AFC championship game yet again, but lose yet again. This time they will lose to the New England Patriots, not the Steelers. Of course, I hope my prediction is wrong, and that the Ravens go all the way, but this is just my prediction for now. Let's go Ravens!
Here are my predictions for the way things are going to play out in the NFL this year:

AFC North: Winner- Pittsburgh Steelers Wild Card- Baltimore Ravens
AFC East: Winner- New England Patriots Wild Card- None
AFC South: Winner- Indianapolis Colts Wild Card- Tennessee Titans
AFC West: Winner- San Diego Chargers Wild Card- None

NFC North: Winner- Green Bay Packers Wild Card- Minnesota Vikings
NFC East: Winner- Philadelphia Eagles Wild Card- New York Giants
NFC South: Winner- New Orleans Saints Wild Card- None
NFC West: Winner- Seattle Seahawks Wild Card- None

AFC Champion: New England Patriots NFC Champion: Green Bay Packers

Super Bowl Champion: The New England Patriots. I know, I hate myself, too, but it's better than the Steelers or Colts, right?

P.S. Did anyone notice that as of Monday, September 7, the Baltimore Orioles were only five games back of the Toronto Blue Jays for fourth place? If the Orioles don't have a complete fallout at the end here, fourth place is a possibility this year. Of course, as I write this, we're losing 10-0 to the Boston Red Sox.

What are the O's to do with Felix Pie?

The Orioles aren't confronted with many dilemma's they would like to have these days. Usually, they have to figure out which minor leaguer is the best candidate to be promoted in order to replace a struggling player on the big league roster. However, the Orioles are confronted with the opposite situation.

A few months ago, ESPN.com featured a piece on the O's young outfield (pictured) including Nolan Reimold, Adam Jones, and Nick Markakis. There's no argument that the trio make up one of the best young outfields in the majors. However, what ESPN did not account for at the time is the Orioles new-found depth in the outfield. With Felix Pie's increased playing time and opportunity to prove why he was once the Cubs number one minor league prospect, number 18 has suddenly burst onto the scene as more than just your everyday fourth outfielder.

Since his cycle game, Pie is batting .386 going 17 for 44 over that span of 15 games. What's most impressive is that his power numbers are drastically improving in just a short period of time. On August 12, his slugging percentage was stuck at an unimpressive .336. Since then, he's raised his slugging to .459, a 123 point increase in only a couple weeks! It doesn't appear that this recent hot streak is simply a fluke. A few weeks ago, the O's hitting coach Terry Crowley announced that he helped Pie make his swing more compact. Since working with Crowley, Pie has shown instant improvement which suggests he isn't just getting lucky.

So the dilemma the Orioles are in now is what to do with Pie. He's filled his role as the team's fourth outfielder very well but is he beginning to outgrow his role? With Adam Jones return to the lineup after a mild back injury, Pie is back on the bench except for Sunday games and the occasional spot start. I would expect Trembley to start letting Pie play more often than he has in the past. However, Nolan Reimold earned his spot in left field months ago so how does Pie factor into the O's future? I understand that Pie needs to prove himself over a longer stretch of time but it wouldn't surprise me if the Orioles have four legitimate young outfielders by the time the off-season rolls around.

Is it feasible to let Nolan Reimold take a shot at playing first base during spring training next year? He's only played one game at first in his professional career but the Orioles have been successful at converting players in the past. Melvin Mora was brought up as an outfielder and they were able to develop him into a solid third baseman, one of the hardest positions on the field. The Orioles gave Luke Scott, a career outfielder, an opportunity to play first base this season and he's filled in adequately for Huff's vacancy.

Or is it more feasible to let go of someone like Luke Scott in order to allow Reimold to be the DH next year? As much as I like Luuuuke Scott and his scorching hot streaks, I wouldn't be opposed to seeing him go. In the past, I would've been completely against trading Scott because he is only 31 and seems to have a decent number of productive years left. He also recently signed a contract extension. However, two or three years from now, do you see the 34 year old Luke Scott playing a bigger role than Nolan Reimold or Felix Pie in the O's future?

Andy MacPhail has stressed that the Orioles should have an inventory of young players. I couldn't agree more but at some point, the O's need to distribute their wealth and surplus of young players at certain positions in order to fill holes in the roster where perhaps they don't have players waiting in the wings. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the Orioles don't have incredible depth in their minor league system at first base. How about we give Reimold a shot at first and go from there?

Vick's "Great" First Night

First of all, I'd just like to acknowledge BK's latest post about the changeover in Baltimore. Usually it's about this time of year that the changeover begins. The Orioles are usually a little out of playoff contention, and the Ravens are a couple weeks from their regular season opener. However this year, the Orioles have been out of contention since the first series after the All-Star break, meaning I've been waiting for this changeover to happen for an extra month. Of course it's exciting watching all the young talent (BK forgot to mention the young offensive talent such as Matt Wieters and Nolan Reimold, and even Adam Jones and Nick Markakis), but at 52-76, not much else to look forward to, so LET'S GO RAVENS.

But that's not what I'm writing about. I'm writing about Michael Vick's great first outing. Now, I wish there was some way I could bring out the sarcasm in that statement, because Vick's outing was not "great." It wasn't even "good." Everyone, and I mean everyone, is overstating the "greatness" that was Vick's first NFL game since 2006. He went 4-4 for 19 yards. He made one pass for a first down. Otherwise, he pretty much shovel-passed his way to 4-4. That first down pass he made is what irks me. I must have watched ESPN for five minutes today and I saw that pass to Hank Baskett about thirty-seven times. People are talking about this completion like Vick is a high-school kicker who came in and saved the day by completing a game-winning touchdown pass in the super bowl. NO. Vick is a QUARTERBACK, who made a thirteen-yard first-down pass in a pre-season game. What's a quarterback's primary job? To COMPLETE PASSES. Congratulations, Michael Vick, on doing your job.

Yes, Vick has been away from the game for two years, but that didn't mean he was gonna lose every skill he ever had. He was an NFL quarterback before he went to prison. He's not just going to magically forget how to play football. If I hear one more person drool over Vick's performance in this preseason game, I'm gonna throw up. Yes, Michael Vick proved that he can play in the NFL again under a lot of pressure, but what were people expecting? Were people expecting Vick to take his first snap, run to his own end zone, and spike the ball for a safety? That's what it sounds like people were expecting, considering people love his initial numbers (an average of an amazing 4.75 yards per pass). I hate to break it to all of you, but he's not going to forget how to play football. He's not going to forget how to throw the ball. He's a professional football player. Yes, Vick has been through a lot, all due to his awful choices, but 4-4 for 19 yards should not show everyone that Vick is back and ready to run over the opposing defense.

The Changeover Begins...

We all knew it was coming, it was just a matter of when. The inevitable changeover in the Baltimore sports landscape from the last-place Orioles to the Super Bowl seeking Ravens is complete. With the Ravens first regular season game only a few weeks away, local sports fans are quickly forgetting about the O's and devoting their full attention to the Purple and Black.

As of now, the O's are in last place in the AL East and have the 3rd worst record in all of baseball at 51-75. The team is going through it's annual late-season swoon as they have only won one series since the All-Star break. Orioles fans and even team president Andy MacPhail had mild expectations for the season. Those lowly expectations are coming into fruition.

Fortunately, all hope is not lost for the O's. The young pitching staff is showing signs of potential dominance and the O's offense only has a couple glaring weaknesses. Chris Tillman, Brian Matusz, David Hernandez, and the former AL ROY contender Brad Bergesen have all shown how well they can pitch in the majors. They have also shown how there is a lot of work to be done before the staff becomes respectable. The light at the end of the tunnel that everyone speaks of is visible for the birds. For now, that light is being blocked by a different type of bird, a Baltimore Raven.

Baltimore's proudest and most elite sports team is proving that they have the capability to bring another Lombardi Trophy to the city. In their first two preseason games, the Ravens have showed what they're capable of when their first team is on the field. I know not to look too far into preseason results (the Detroit Lions were 4-0 last year in the preseason), however, the Purple and Black have dominated nearly every stat category in their first couple games. The Passing attack looks formidable even without a star wide receiver. The running game looks solid and it appears Ray Rice has the tools to be a exceptional primary back. The defense is a year older but doesn't appear to have lost their intensity even with the departure of Bart Scott and the injury to Terrell Suggs. The only unresolved spot on the team is the kicker, a position which doesn't usually make or break an entire team. I'm confident the Ravens will resolve the kicking dilemma one way or another.

There's a lot to look forward to this year with the Ravens. Joe Flacco has a year under his belt and Ray Lewis stays with the Ravens to lead one of the most dominant D's in the game today.

As for the O's, their time will come, just not this year. Let's Go Ravens!

Why is Jason Berken Still Pitching for the O's?

Uhh, did I miss something? There really is no argument left for Jason Berken to remain on the major league roster. Although Brad Bergesen is injured and Rich Hill has proved to be an incompetent big league starter, the Orioles are doing nothing but embarrassing their team and Jason Berken by letting him continue to start. I understand that the O's aren't trying to make a run for the pennant this year but I find it somewhat disturbing that they're letting a rookie pitcher start his major league career 1-9. He is the scheduled starter for Friday's game at Toronto. Chances are, he'll lose that game too and fall to 1-10.

I love how the Orioles are giving chances to their young players a shot to play in the majors. Some may argue that the O's are calling up too many of their young pitchers too early. I disagree. Guys like Chris Tillman and Brian Matusz deserve a chance to show what they can do in a time when the big league club doesn't care too much about wins and losses. However, Jason Berken's chance to show off his stuff (or lack thereof) this year has expired. He seems like a pitcher who belongs in the minors to develop his skills. As I said earlier, I don't have a problem with the O's letting their young guns work out their kinks at the highest level. But letting a young, undeveloped pitcher embarrass himself cannot be good for his psyche or his ego. As we all know, confidence in pitching is a huge component of one's success.

As for a Berken's replacement, let's go with someone who won't embarrass themselves. Who that is, I'm not really sure. There aren't many viable candidates for the job at AAA. Nonetheless, the Orioles need to be careful not to let Berken's introduction to major's get too far out of hand. When Bergesen comes off the DL, the Orioles better decide to send Berken back down to AAA.

Total Perfection + 5⅔ More!

Can you believe it?! Tonight, Mark Buehrle continued his terrific success by staying (almost) perfect!! Just one game removed from throwing the 18th Perfect Game in major league history, he took the mound in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, and calmly dismissed the first 17 batters in the Twins' lineup. Yes. You are reading this correctly. Mark Buehrle registered 45 consecutive outs. He stayed perfect for 5⅔ innings, after throwing a perfect game!This is unparalleled stuff folks. Never before has a pitcher been able to record such a beautiful streak. Never before, has someone been this perfect. Not even the Cincinnati Reds' beloved Johnny Vander Meer who pitched two consecutive no-hitters in back-to-back starts on June 11 and June 15, 1938.

As incredible as this feat is though, I would be willing to wager that years from now, people will fail to see the big picture — they often do. As time rolls by, the numbers start to lose their meaning, and they become just that... numbers. But this is an incredible achievement — this ranks right up there with Joltin' Joe's 56 game hitting streak. And would you believe it? Dimaggio ripped right into another 17 game hit streak the day after the Cleveland Indians held him to a hitless game on July 17, 1941 — hitting on all but one day of a 74 game span! Unfortunately though, years from now, people will be just as oblivious to Buehrle's start tonight as they are to the Yankee Clipper's extraordinary exploits after his record setting 56 game hitting streak came to an end in the summer of '41. And it's really a shame. Because we may never see something this amazing again...