Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2009.
Meet the new Rays. Tampa Bay's ascent to the top of the American League has robbed the Eastern division of its perennial doormat, but there's someone new on the block to push around -- the Orioles. It's now been 11 seasons since Baltimore qualified for the playoffs or even had a winning record, and that dubious run will likely be extended in 2009.
But it's not all doom and gloom in the Charm City. In fact, in a little more than a year Andy MacPhail -- seemingly free from the tinkering and meddling of owner Peter Angelos -- finally has the Orioles pointed in the right direction. In any other division, you know one that doesn't have four teams with 80-plus wins already in it, the O's might have even been within shouting distance of the .500 mark this year.
There is little hope of contending in the immediate future in Baltimore, but the organization's recent mistakes have almost all been caused by thinking that there was a quick fix somewhere out there. The Orioles have a rapidly improving farm system and they're not that far from being a real factor, but in order to get there, they're going to need to stay on the track MacPhail has started them down.
Our MLB editor provides weekly dispatches from major league games in Notes From the Clubhouse.
Last week, the Orioles celebrated the 25th anniversary of their 1983 World Series title. That was the last time the once-proud franchise won a championship, in case you were wondering, and it's been a decade since they were relevant.
To an outsider it might look like the latest gaffe from a front office that has been as hapless as they come since the days of the Clinton administration. But spend a few days with the team at Camden Yards and you get an entirely different vibe.
MacPhail has overhauled the organization in such a way that there's very real hope for the very near future. In perfect concert, manager Dave Trembley has changed the clubhouse culture, stressing things like accountability, respect and appreciation. It's enough to make you see the light at the end of the tunnel, if nothing else.
Manny Ramirez and the sluggish Boston Red Sox arrived in Baltimore very early this morning at the tail end of a tough 10-game road trip. Ramirez sits just two home runs away from the 500th of his career, but he doesn't appear to be letting Boston's 6 AM arrival here in the Charm City slow him down.
As Manny departed the clubhouse for a pre-game workout he pointed to Josh Beckett, the Red Sox starter tonight, and told him he was going to get to 500 homers in the next two days. Ramirez doesn't have a home run against either of the Baltimore starters in this abbreviated series -- Jeremy Guthrie and Daniel Cabrera -- but if Manny feels good, I'm not sure it even matters. He is, after all, one of the top right-handed hitters of this generation.
The other major news to report is that Boston manager Terry Francona has left the team because of a death in the family. His wife's mother passed away last night during the Red Sox's game against the Twins and Francona found out following the game. He could return to the team as early as Thursday, Boston's first off day this month. The Red Sox face the Brewers Friday at Fenway Park to open interleague play.
Brad Mills will take over the managing duties in the meantime, but he doesn't expect much to change. "This is a veteran team, the dynamics are going to stay the same," he said during his pre-game meeting with the press. Mills has been Francona's bench coach since he took over as manager in 2004, and he may eventually have a future as a manager himself, but he isn't thinking about that today. "Not under these circumstances," said Mills.
A Baltimore Oriole veteran is surveying the scene at Camden Yards and doesn't like what he sees. The team is going with unproven youngsters all over the diamond and while he's not quite ready to demand a trade elsewhere, he's reserving the right to change his mind. Ah, the sad, sad story of Brian Roberts.
"(GM) Andy MacPhail hasn't said anything to me all spring, outside of hello and goodbye. But that's fine. Who knows, he may be trying to get something done. I'll wait to see if things take off and see what's happening and if I feel it's necessary, I'll go talk to Andy and see what's going on.
What's that you say, Baltimore Sun, it isn't Roberts who wants out? It's Jay Payton? Really? Really!
Sadly for Payton, simple economic theory makes a trade unlikely. There's a disparity between the supply of Paytons (1) and the demand for Paytons (0) in the current marketplace. Such is life for 35-year olds making $5 million without the skills coveted by major league baseball teams.
Payton's ticked because the O's didn't give him a chance to compete for a starting job. My guess is that when they were handing out starting jobs they took a look at his 668 OPS from 2007 and traded for Luke Scott. They'd be lucky to be rid of him, he started a fight in Boston's dugout when they wouldn't trade him in 2005, but, short of a flu epidemic hitting major league outfields, they're stuck with him.
It's been a few weeks since there's been any talk coming out of Baltimore involving Brian Roberts being traded, but that doesn't mean that the Orioles had decided to keep Roberts around for this season. Now that the team they spent most of their time talking to about Roberts, the Chicago Cubs, starting second baseman Mark DeRosa has been having heart problems this spring, the talks are back on.
The Cubs and Orioles have resumed trade talks involving second baseman Brian Roberts, and one person familiar with the talks indicated discussions were starting to get serious.
In one of the trade proposals being discussed, outfielder Jay Payton would accompany Roberts to Chicago.
This is one of those trades that makes sense for both sides, yet neither side has been able to get it done. Well, actually, they did get it done. It's just that Peter Angelos wasn't ready to give up on the Brian Roberts Shrine he keeps in his office at the time. Apparently he's finally found the inner strength and courage to say goodbye, but with Angelos, you never know the lengths he'll go to to screw the Orioles.
The Orioles are clearly rebuilding, so moving Roberts for a package of young players makes the most sense for the organization. As for the Cubs, adding Roberts to their lineup would finally enable the team to move Alfonso Soriano to the middle of the order, and make one of the NL's best lineups even better.
Major League Mongering will look at players rumored to be on the move between now and the July 31st pseudo-trade-deadline.
With all the denying of potential moves the Cubs have done in the past week, it's a safe bet to say they're going to be up to something by Tuesday. As they're one of the more intriguing teams to watch in all of baseball right now, people are watching their every move. The MLB Trade Rumors blog has now noticed that Matt Murton, who was tearing things up in AAA and just promoted to Chicago, was a late scratch last night and on the bench today. Jay Payton, who the Cubs may be interested in, is also on the bench today. Hmmm.
So, to recap, the Cubs might be trading Matt Murton to Baltimore or maybe Texas for another catcher or maybe an outfielder or possibly some bullpen help. But then, rumor is the name of the game here, so maybe Murton's on the bench because Lou Piniella just doesn't like him and Sweet Lou and Jim Hendry are being serious when they say the Cubs aren't going to do anything before the deadline.
Just how bad are things getting over in Baltimore? If you believe some reports, the clubhouse chemistry has deteriorated to the point of physical violence, though the allegedly parties involved deny any such thing. From the Baltimore Sun:
Orioles third base coach Juan Samuel downplayed a report in yesterday's San Diego Union-Tribune that said he and utility man Freddie Bynum had a verbal and then physical confrontation before the Orioles' 7-1 victory over the Padres on Wednesday night.
"It was nothing," Samuel said. "It was no big deal, just something that was between player and coach."
The newspaper reported that the two had words during batting practice and it escalated into the clubhouse when Samuel "slammed into Bynum, launching the player into his dressing stall." The paper said that Orioles outfielder Jay Payton restored order in the clubhouse.
Bynum, who acknowledged that he had words with first base coach Sam Mejias earlier this season in Toronto, denied that an incident took place, saying, "I've never had a problem with Juan."
So what really happened? It's hard to tell -- the Union-Tribune article in question mentioned the "incident" in a brief paragraph at the bottom of an article and it's unclear whether the reporter saw things unfold first-hand, so it's not like there are many details to really think about.
Don't you hate how sometimes your co-workers make your life harder? Say, when Ted from accounting is slow to reimburse you for that business trip you made last month, or when Joe from the third floor asks you a question in a meeting when you know he saw you starting to nod off. Well, baseball is no different, which is why Jay Payton and Melvin Mora almost came to blows following Monday's game:
Angry that Melvin Mora took off for third with two outs in the ninth inning while he was at bat, Jay Payton, who made the game's final out, had words with the third baseman outside the dugout. The two were kept apart by third base coach Juan Samuel, but the argument continued outside the clubhouse as Mora and Payton needed to be restrained from going after each other.
The two eventually made up later that night, sealing the deal with a man hug. On Tuesday, the Orioles were quick to point out that the clubhouse is not filled with tension or angst, but that it's a happy-groovy-fun place to be:
"It's a heat-of-the-moment kind of thing," designated hitter Jay Gibbons said. "Stuff happens. It was forgotten about in like five minutes. [The clubhouse] is the same as it was a month ago. We had a group of eight for lunch today. That's how it is. Everybody likes each other. We're scuffling right now, but we're still having fun."
Of course, Gibbons almost punched Brian Roberts in the mouth when Roberts insisted on going to Subway for lunch again, but everything worked out fine once Roberts let Gibbons sit in the front seat. I'm thinking maybe it's time for the "unity 'stache" to make its way from the bullpen to the lineup -- there's nothing in this world that awkward facial hair can't make better.
Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2009.
Our MLB editor provides weekly dispatches from major league games in Notes From the Clubhouse.
Our MLB editor provides weekly dispatches from major league games in 
A Baltimore Oriole veteran is surveying the scene at Camden Yards and doesn't like what he sees. The team is going with unproven youngsters all over the diamond and while he's not quite ready to demand a trade elsewhere, he's reserving the right to change his mind. Ah, the sad, sad story of 
It's been a few weeks since there's been any talk coming out of Baltimore involving 
Just how bad are things getting over in Baltimore? If you believe some reports, the clubhouse chemistry has deteriorated to the point of physical violence, though the allegedly parties involved deny any such thing. From the 
Don't you hate how sometimes your co-workers make your life harder? Say, when Ted from accounting is slow to reimburse you for that business trip you made last month, or when Joe from the third floor asks you a question in a meeting when you know he saw you starting to nod off. Well, baseball is no different, which is why 
