Replies to post #88690 on Baseball Chat (BASEBALL)

[goodluck]

Agree completely. Yes, Reimold's minor league numbers are impressive. He's been in pro ball longer than Weiters, took a little more time to develop. Looking at the potential of Reimold, Jones and Markakis--and all are 25 or under--the Orioles may be putting together the best outfield I have ever seen. Each of them can hit for power and average, field and throw. Jones is the only one with base stealing/CF type speed, but the other two can play either left or right. They have bullet arms and their speed is OK. Weiters gives them a fourth impressive very young bat, and solidity in one of the hardest positions to fill, catcher. His arm is so strong that his college coach at Ga Tech said he could have been a power pitcher, throwing in the low-mid 90s. But his bat was too strong, and switch hitting power catchers are even harder to find than 90-95 mph pitchers.

But then there's pitching. The traditional (going back decades) strength of the Orioles is their current big Q. The three guys they have brought up all show potential, although Hernandez may be the only one to show No. 1 type potential. But they have 3 guys in the minors who each show No. 1 type potential. Chris Tillman will probably be brought up later this year, he's doing well in AAA (Norfolk). Matusz and Arietta may be called in Sept, but probably will start next year in AAA, and likely won't be ready for the bigs until the middle of next year or even 2011. There are also a couple of relief pitchers in the minors who are potential closers/set up relievers that the O's are excited about. But of course you're right--Cabrera is just one example of a guy with a lot of potential who didn't pan out. Ben McDonald was another one who everyone thought was a can't miss pitcher who never lived up to his potential.

We'll see. It's been a loooonnnnnnggggggg decade for O's fans. We would love to see a repeat of the 60s/70s glory years.

[goodluck]

One more on Weiters (last one, at least unless he hits it out tonight!<g>) From an Oriole radio network blogger.

Pre-game Trembley
By Roch Kubatko on May 29, 2009 5:04 PM |

Orioles manager Dave Trembley said he didn't bother talking to catcher Matt Wieters about the humbling nature of this game.

"Wieters already knows that," Trembley said. "He's a smart cookie. He already knows that and no one here expects him to be a world beater. A lot of people, that's what they want, and I think that's commendable for the interest and everything. Everybody wants to latch on and identify and I think that's great. We needed that and it's been a long time coming for the fans here and the city. That's tremendous. But I think everybody also understands that the great ones hit .300. They're still out seven out of 10.

"Guys are going to make mistakes, but we're all confident that one, from a makeup standpoint, what sets Wieters apart and why he's here is we all feel that he's going to be able to handle when things don't go well for him. That's why I'm batting him where I'm batting him, so he doesn't have to feel like he's got to be the guy. Quite honestly, and this is no disrespect to him, he's not the guy. He's not. It's about the team. He's on the team."

A reporter asked Trembley how Wieters looked when he walked into the manager's office.

"He dressed a little better," Trembley replied, grinning. "Maybe somebody told him how Trembley is, that I'm a stickler. I'm sure somebody told him, 'Make sure you wear collared shirts, nice slacks, shoes.' He looked great. He's the same guy. I worry about him that he's so nice, that he's such a nice guy. I worry a little about that. He'll be so accommodating to everybody. That's why I'm asking, let him breathe a little bit. He's going to be here for a long time."

Brad Bergesen, tonight's starter, has been paired with Wieters 15 times in the minors.

"Bergesen has been bugging me for days, wondering if Wieters is coming. Bergesen is the happiest guy in the world that his old buddy is catching him tonight," Trembley said.

"Matt Wieters is calling the game and Bergesen can shake him off if he wants. That relationship was there. We don't call pitches from the dugout. I ain't doing that, Kranny is not doing that. We'll go over the game plan at 5:30, we'll look at the video, the scouting reports. We'll go over the other team's lineup. Then it's all them. The cake is in the oven, the hay is in the barn. Go get 'em baby."

Wieters is wearing No. 15, just as he did in spring training. He'll have lots of support in the stands, and not just from strangers.

"I have 10 friends and family here," he said. "It's a good show. I think the most important thing is my dad, my mom, my sister and my wife are all here. So those are the four people that I really wanted to be here, and it's good to see them here."

http://masnsports.com/2009/05/pre-game-trembley-4.html