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2010 Baltimore Orioles MLB Predictions

Written March 2, 2010 by Jack Jones

The Baltimore Orioles are expected to be a much improved team this season with their young players finally gaining some valuable experience over the past few years. The Orioles went 64-98 last year, marking the 11th time in 12 years that they finished fourth or fifth in the American League East. Baltimore was outscored by 135 runs last season which ranked 28th out of 30 big league teams. This team has a talented young outfield with Adam Jones, Nick Markakis and Nolan Reimold. They also have an up-and-coming catcher in Matt Wieters that will all be asked to step up big this season if the Orioles are to get out of the cellar of the A.L. East division. The Orioles win total for 2010 is set at 73.5 at BetUS! This trusted Sportsbook is offering a 100% match-bonus on any deposit up to $500!

Pitching:

GM Andy MacPhail paid Kevin Millwood $12 million to come in and mentor their young pitching staff, and to eat up some innings like he did last year with Texas. Millwood went 13-10 last year with the Rangers, posting a 3.67 ERA while pitching 198.2 innings. He’ll help guide young starters Chris Tillman, Brian Matusz, David Hernandez and Bradley Bergesen. Jeremy Guthrie remains their No. 1 guy, but after posting a 3.70 ERA in 2007 and a 3.63 ERA in ‘08, his ERA jumped to 5.04 in 2009 with a 10-17 record. He became prone to serve up the home run, and he’ll have to get back to his form from the previous two years if this starting staff is to keep the Orioles competitive in a very tough division. Bergesen was the surprise of the youngsters last year, posting a 7-5 record and 3.43 ERA while eating up 123.1 innings. Tillman and Matusz have the most potential, and Hernandez will have his work cut out holding off Matusz for the final spot in the starting rotation after posting a 5.42 ERA and a 4-10 record last season. Chris Ray was dealt to Texas in the Millwood deal, leaving Jim Johnson as the closer. But the team signed Mike Gonzalez in December, who just posted 90 strikeouts in 74.1 innings with Atlanta last season. These two will help close out games.

Hitting:

Brian Roberts will lead off again this season as the team’s second-baseman. Roberts has posted at least a .283 BA in each of the past three seasons, but his SB’s have declined by 10 each season from 50 SB’s in 2007 to just 30 in ‘09. He remains one of the best in the league at his position, though. Adam Jones has a ton of potential in center field, and it showed last season as he posted 19 HR’s and 70 RBI’s with 83 runs before going on the 60-day DL in early September with a left ankle sprain. Nick Markakis in right field is one of the most steady performers, posting at 100-RBI seasons in 2 of the last 3 years and at least a .293 average in all three. Nolan Reimold is entrenched in left field after a breakout rookie season, posting a .279 batting average and 15 homers in limited action. Luke Scott is the DH, but will see some time in the outfield when needed after hitting 25 home runs with 77 RBI last season for the O’s. Matt Wieters is a rare switch-hitting catcher with loads of talent, and after a decent rookie season with a .288 BA, he is primed for a big sophomore campaign. Garrett Atkins was signed from Colorado to take over at 3B, and after posting at least 99 RBI in ‘07 and ‘08 with the Rockies, he had a serious drop in production in ‘09 and lost his starting job to Ian Stewart. Atkins will need to return to form this season if the Orioles are to contend. Ty Wigginton can play 1B and 3B, and he’ll likely start the season at 1B. He has solid power with 20-plus home runs two of the past three seasons. Cesar Izturis will round out the line-up at SS, and his speed at the bottom of the order could come in handy amongst a group that lacks overall speed.

Jack’s Prediction: 5th in the AL East and UNDER 73.5 Wins – The Orioles have a very dangerous line-up, but it still doesn’t stack up against the top three teams in the AL East division. But what will hold this team down is their lack of starting pitching. Guthrie is falling fast, and Millwood will not be the answer despite a solid season last year with the Rangers. Baltimore will have to rely heavily on too many unproven youngsters at the bottom of their rotation to be competitive in the best division in baseball. The Orioles’ win total has dropped each year since winning 74 games in 2005.

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