...And He's Gone!!! Trembley Put Out of His Misery

Dave Trembley has been fired as the Orioles manager. Juan Samuel has been named interim manager.

The only surprise here is that it took this long. After a horrible 2-14 start, the Orioles embarked on a brutal 12-game stretch against the Yankees and Red Sox and managed to go 5-7. They then split a 4-game set with the Twins and won a series against the Mariners and looked like they may have turned the corner. However, they are just 3-15 since the Seattle series and now own, by far, the worst record in baseball.

Trembley finishes his Oriole career with a 187-283 record and his record got worse with each successive year.

Is this mess completely his fault? No. Injuries to Brian Roberts, Felix Pie and Nolan Reimold (I still contend that Reimold is not healthy yet...) did the offense no favors. Neither did the offseason signing of Garrett Atkins. He doesn't have a ton to work with this season.

But his bullpen management has been terrible in 2010 and he seems to be pressing and flailing for a way to stop the losing. He's made it worse at this point and it's time for a new voice.

Trembley was not a bad manager. He managed the bullpen well (at least pre-2010), finding contributors in unusual places and spreading the work around quite well. He was, at least, no detriment to the young players who came up from the minors the last couple years. You certainly would rather have a guy like Trembley than, say, Lou Pinella when you have young, impressionable rookies in droves.

Trembley loved being the manager and loved the fans. At Spring Training, he was the last to leave the field after games or workouts, taking all kinds of time to chat and take pictures with fans or sign autographs. He wasn't faking it; he loved every aspect of his job.

But you don't keep that job if the team doesn't win. This is baseball and it just doesn't work that way. Removing Trembley probably won't do much for the Orioles in the standings but giving Juan Samuel the interim job gives Andy MacPhail the freedom to begin his search for a new skipper.

Samuel won't get the job. MacPhail is not going to give another "interim" guy the job. The search will be wide and the next guy will surely come from outside the organization.

So don't expect the Orioles to start winning just because Trembley is gone. He was in a bad situation and the situation hasn't changed.


From the Oriole press release:

The Orioles today announced that third base coach JUAN SAMUEL has been named as the club’s interim manager, replacing DAVE TREMBLEY. Samuel will be introduced as interim manager in a press conference today at 2:30 p.m. in the Auxiliary Clubhouse at Camden Yards....

From Dave Trembley's Statement:

“I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation to Peter Angelos and Andy MacPhail for the opportunity to serve as manager for the Baltimore Orioles for the past three years. The results on the field were not what any of us would have hoped for, and I understand that the organization felt the time was right to move in a different direction. While I am disappointed at the outcome, I feel it was a privilege to wear the Orioles uniform each day and I thank all the fans for their tremendous support. I hope the team will soon return to the winning tradition they enjoyed for so many years.”

Rick Dempsey talks with Brian Matusz

via MASN.

I really enjoyed this. Matusz talks breaking pitches, pickoff moves and his relationship with Matt Wieters. Hopefully, we'll look back on this video fondly in about 10 years...





BTW Camden Depot tweeted that Mark Viviano is reporting that Dave Trembley will be fired after today's game in New York and Juan Samuel will take over. We shall see..

Bullpen Management in Microcosm

Last night, Dave Trembley let Brad Bergesen work into the 8th. After two straight singles, he lifted Brad Bergesen for Jason Berken. Here's what happened next:

"I don't think the pitch count enters into it," Trembley said of removing Bergesen. "He had retired that many, he had a long inning to sit after the seventh. You certainly don't want to put him in a situation where he's going to lose the game. He's pitched so well."

Right-hander Jason Berken entered and immediately picked up a flyout. Trembley then replaced Berken with left-hander Hendrickson to face consecutive left-handed hitters, Daric Barton and Ryan Sweeney...

"I think you're going to go left vs. left there. I think that's really what you're going to do," Trembley said. "Berken hasn't faced these guys a lot. Their two best hitters are their two lefties right there. … Berken's a fly-ball pitcher. You don't want Berken to give up a home run there. He's never been in that situation before. Hendrickson has. He did a nice job the other night in the same role. That's the decision that was made."

What followed was a debacle as Hendrickson and Cla Meredith combined to blow a 5-2 lead and the Orioles lost the game.

Lifting Bergesen after the two singles? OK. You can second guess that but if Bergey gives up a three-run homer to the next batter, Trembley's getting crucified. And to some extent, I understand that Trembley is trying to limit the psychic damage to a young pitcher. That decision is fine.

But lifting Berken after one batter faced? Berken is your "long man" and, outside of Will Ohman, your most consistent performer out of the pen in 2010. He can certainly give you an inning. He's been sitting on the bench for 7 days...he's well rested. You could also make the argument that you put Berken out there for the two inning save and rest everybody else. And everybody else needs it.

But this would only be a blip if it was one game. Unfortunately, Trembley has been managing this way all season.

Will Ohman is on pace for 84 appearances, Matt Albers, 74 and Cla Meredith, 73. These are not Perlozzian levels of bullpen mismanagement but they are getting close. Meanwhile, Berken has just 12 appearances and we're closing in on Memorial Day. Why not let Berken pitch a little?

This is not how Trembley has managed his bullpens in the past. The work was a bit more evenly spread. I think the losing is messing with his head.

So it's probably time for him to go.

(As an aside, Brad Bergesen has been much improved since his return from Norfolk. 3-1, 4.26 ERA, averaging more than 6 innings a start. OK, 10 walks vs. 8 strikeouts is not good but when you are getting grounders on 67% of your balls put in play, you're certainly going to be in decent shape. This style isn't going to win you any Cy Young awards but Bergesen still looks like a fine back of the rotation starter to me.)

Trembley Explodes! Too Little, Too Late?

Orioles manager Dave Trembley reportedly gave the team a piece of his mind yesterday. According to Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun:

If you had April 21 in the "When will Dave Trembley blow his stack" pool, collect your prize. The Orioles manager had a brief, but apparently noisy, team meeting tonight to get after his players for both their effort and execution in recent days. Trembley said it wasn't one play or sequence that set him off, but rather a collection of them. I'd say Julio Lugo's hustle down the first base line and the Orioles' getting leadoff doubles in two innings last night and not budging the runners were at the top of the list.

Does this seem a bit disingenuous and forced to anyone else? I mean, if you were the manager and you were really bothered by the team not hitting the runners over or, especially, by Lugo's lack of hustle and the team was in the middle of a 2-14 streak, wouldn't you kind of blow your stack right then and there? Why would you get everyone together the day after to express your displeasure? Is this a last ditch effort by Trembley to show that he can be a tough guy when he needs to be?

Well, he's not that guy. It may serve him well in most instances but not in this one.

Meanwhile, some of the players are defending Trembley. Says Nick Markakis:

"I don't think you can blame Trembley," Markakis said. "We're the ones out there pitching and hitting. I think he's done a good job overall. There's only so much a manager can do. The rest of it is up to the players. If you're going to point fingers, you can put it on my shoulders. I'm not swinging the bat the way I'd like to.

Markakis is hardly to guy to be pointing fingers at. He's been hitting .324 and slugging .459 over the last 9 games...if only everyone was hitting so poorly.

Dave Trembley Loves the Small-Ball

According to MLB.com's Britt Ghiroli, Dave Trembley is having the O's focus on the fundamentals. You know, like bunting.

"I'm trying to add some things here that will be an emphasis on the team, and allowing us to be in a position to win more games," Trembley said. "It's the little things that obviously were prominent that might not have gotten done the way we wanted to get it done last year. So, let's brush up on it in Spring Training, but lets also emphasize the importance of it."

I'm OK with this in general. Some players should know how to bunt. The baserunning needs some work. But nobody on this team needs to be bunting on a regular basis. Maybe Brian Roberts, certainly Cesar Izturis and perhaps whoever will be hitting #2. On occasion.

But it's that last comment that concerns me, "...but lets also emphasize the importance of it." That tells me that Trembley sees this style of play as the key to winning in the American League.

This is confirmed by his quote to Roch Kubatko about the spring training hitting stations...

"Before they can get to the round where they swing, they have to get two bunts down, execute the hit-and-run, get the guy over, get the guy in and get the squeeze down before they can go to the next phase...."


The hit-and-run. It's back.

Again, I don't mind the drills, I'm just scared that Trembley might start actually using these tactics. This team isn't built for this style of ball. The only time you might want Luke Scott or Matt Wieters bunting would be with a runner on second with no outs in the 9th, down by one run. And even then I would rather take my chances with them swinging away.

If you play for one run, that's all you're gonna get. That's what Earl Weaver said.

I'm a big Trembley supporter. He'll lose me quick if he starts laying down bunts and putting on the hit-and-run on a regular basis. It's a recipe for disaster in the AL East.

Base Hits: The Long Road Home, Records Broken and Top Draft Picks Galore

I predicted that September would be ugly for the O's but after winning series' against the Yankees and the Rangers, you started to think that they would be competitive with the weaker part of their schedule. I was wrong the second time.

11 straight losses including sweeps at the hands of the Blue Jays and Indians have put 100 losses back on the table. It already has them in line for the 2nd overall pick in the 2010 draft.

               W    L    GB
Washington    53   103   --
Baltimore     60    96   7.0
Pittsburgh    59    96   7.5
Kansas City   64    93   10.5
 

Facing the Rays and the Blue Jays this final week, the Orioles are just about assured of getting the 3rd overall pick and have a great shot at the 2nd pick of the 2010 draft. My advice at this point: keep losing

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Also in this last week, Jeremy Guthrie has a chance to give up more home runs than anyone in Oriole history. He has given up 32, the record is 35. Unlikely, as Guthrie has pitched better in September but well withing reach.

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Speaking of records, it has been widely reported that Brian Roberts can reach 60 doubles this season. He has 55 with 6 games left so it is unlikely that he will reach 60. But 60 is kind of an arbitrary number. The real milestone is 58.

If Roberts hits three more doubles, he will have one of the top ten seasons for doubles since 1901. That's what I'll be looking for this last week.

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The Orioles and Sarasota have selected the firms that will renovate Ed Smith Stadium, the new Spring Training home for the team.

The plan is to "either tear down or renovate" the stadium after Spring Training 2010.

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Will Dave Trembley return in 2010? It's not looking good.

(Oriole GM Andy) MacPhail has said for months that the club won't make a decision on Trembley's option for 2010 until either the last weekend of the season or a couple of days after it ends...

MacPhail met with Orioles owner Peter Angelos last week to discuss Trembley's status, but he continues to say little about the situation...

MacPhail has talked repeatedly about the importance of avoiding a late-season swoon, which has became an annual rite for the Orioles. He made it clear Sunday that he isn't pleased with the way the club has played on its current 10-game road trip...

Macphail has also said that while the record counts, the management will have to examine underlying factors as well. Yes, they do.

But it's going to be hard to not fire Trembley at this point. That's not where Dave wants to be.

Trembley or Not Trembley? That Is The Question...

I've been seeing a few posts speculating on Dave Trembley's future as manager of the Baltimore Orioles. Or to be clear, they have been calling for Trembley's head after yet another losing season of Oriole baseball.

What strikes me as odd though is that most people are focusing strictly on the team's record. If you had a problem with Trembey's affection for the hit and run or aggressiveness on the basepaths with players who are ill-suited for the task, I could understand that a bit. Maybe even if you blamed him for the baserunning and fielding lapses, I would be with you. Maybe.

The bottom line is this: With the team Baltimore fielded in 2009, I'm not sure that anyone else could have done a better job.

The starting rotation we fielded on Opening Day included Mark Hendrickson, Adam Eaton and Alfredo Simon. We bolstered it with the likes of Rich Hill and an array of rookies who were, for the most part, rushed to fill the holes. Koji Uehara got hurt. Jeremy Guthrie is having his worst season in the majors.

The bullpen was a relative strength until the rotation fell apart. Guys were overused, fresh (and lesser arms) were brought up from the minors to help.

There was no offense to be had from the corner infield positions. Offense from the catching spot has been erratic. Overall, the lineup has had many solid performers but no stars. That kind of lineup will have trouble scoring when you are getting nothing from shortstop, third base or first base at the plate.

So this was/is a team with promise but a lot of flaws. The fatal flaw, of course, is that you compete in the AL East without a real pitching staff.

What could Trembley have done? Yelled really loud at Adam Eaton to make him pitch better? Gave a really nifty pep talk to Rich Hill and turn his season around? Shake Melvin Mora until he starts hitting like it's 2003? I don't think there's anything that Trembley could have done that would make any difference in the standings.

The truth is that Dave Trembley is not going to be judged by anything that happened on the field this year, not in a tangible way. Andy MacPhail is going to talk to his players, especially Nick Markakis and Brian Roberts and get their take on it. Has Trembley lost them or does he have their support? He's going to talk to Trembley's staff. He's going to talk to his people in the front office. He's going to talk to other coaches around the league. And then he's going to look at the record.

If Andy feels that the team could use a new voice, he'll make a change. If he feels that Trembley's philosophy of play no longer jibes with his, he'll make a change. But I really don't think Trembley has done anything wrong. I had a ton of reasons that Sam Perlozzo needed to go. Not so much with Trembley. There's nothing obvious (in my opinion) to point to since the record is a reflection of the whole organization, not just the manager.

I don't know if Trembley will be back in 2010 but that decision will be made by MacPhail and internal discussions not due to the record.

All this said, I'm OK with either scenario. Until he proves otherwise, in Andy I trust.

Base Hits: 7/16/2009

It's the traditional midseason point so let's look back at my pre-season predictions!

"I hate the Hayden Penn trade. We could have just kept Jolbert Cabrera if we needed a fourth bench player. I'd rather fail with a 24-year old pitcher than with a bunch of retreads or never-were's like Eaton, Simon and Hendrickson. So my first prediction is that Penn turns out to be way more useful to the Marlins than Robert Andino will be to Baltimore."

Hayden Penn posted in 7.77 ERA in 16 games for the Marlins and was sent to New Orleans about 6 weeks ago and has only posted a 4.50 ERA since he got back to AAA.

Andino has not been great but his slick fielding came in handy when Cesar Izturis went down with an injury. So far, dead wrong about this one.

"Alfredo Simon is out of the rotation by the end of May. He won't be with the big club by July."

Well, Simon was out of the rotation by the end of April but because of injury instead of ineffectiveness. He did suck though. So I'll call this one correct.

"Matt Wieters is here in May."

Nailed it.

"Brad Bergeson is here in July."

Beregesen came up in April due to the Simon injury but he would have forced his way into the rotation by May anyway. He's ahead of where I thought he would be. I'll call this one a push.

"Brian Matusz is here is September."

Matusz dominated A+ Frederick and is dominating AA Bowie. A September call-up looks to be in his future. So far, so good.

"The Orioles win 72 games."

The O's are on pace for 66 wins. They would have to go 32-42 to reach 72 wins this season. Not impossible but for now, I've overestimated the team.

(edit: A commenter named Brett has pointed out that I made a miscalculation; 40-48 is good for a 73 win pace. So I was close...)

"Lou Montanez won't OPS better than .750 at any level...unless he goes back to Bowie."

Montanez posted a 1.000 OPS in AAA Norfolk...but in only 10 games. In 18 games in Baltimore he put up a .6s0 OPS. Montanez is hurt but I'm correct on this one.

"Nick Markakis OPS's .900+"

Whew. I had this one wrong. Barring a white hot second half, Markakis will be lucky to reach an .800 OPS, let alone .900. So much for the Markakis breakout season.

"Felix Pie gets better in the second half."

He couldn't be much worse. But will he even get an opportunity in Baltimore?

Adam Jones hits 20+ home runs.

A couple months ago, this looked like a slam dunk but a recent homerless draught put the goal in question. Jones has 12 homers and should be able to reach 20 with little problem.

Luke Scott and Ty Wigginton provide the best Oriole platoon since...well, in a very long time.

Wigginton and Scott haven't had a straight platoon at all (no surprise) but Wigginton hasn't hit lefties well (his forte before this season) and and Scott has crushed lefties that he hasn't hit well in previous seasons. It's like Scott stole Wigginton's soul. Dead wrong.

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Baseball America's Hot Sheet, which ranks recent performances of minor league prospects, ranks Brian Matusz #1 and Chris Tillman #3. That's pretty cool.

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I don't think Dave Trembley's job is in jeopardy and it seems like Jeff Zrebiec is trying to create a story where there is none. I'm not sure what makes this column any better than idle speculation on any blog or message board. You expect a little bit more from a real "journalist"; Zrebiec didn't even bother to go as far an Ken Rosenthal and get an anonymous source.

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Fort Myers is looking less and less like the next home of Oriole Spring Training. Staying put in Ft. Lauderdale?

(edit: It looks like the Sarasota deal is back from the dead...)

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Steve Melewski has the rundown on Bowie reliever Ryohei Tanaka.

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He's been kind of overshadowed with all the other talented pitchers in the Oriole farm system but RHP Tim Bascom has rebounded from a bad 2008 season in Frederick to pitch extremely well for the Keys and now the Bowie Baysox. Bascom has struck out 57 against only 23 walks in 90.3 innings pitched between those teams. He's not dominating but it's not difficult to see him in Norfolk's rotation in 2010 and perhaps in Baltimore (either starting or relieving) in 2011.

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Adam Loewen is posting a .243/.348./.696 line at high A Dunedin. However, in the last month he is posting a .304/.424/.464 line and .364/.440/.591 over the last 7 days. In other words, he's trending up as a hitter.

Jerk.

Base Hits: 7/8/2009

This story was somewhat troubling to me. Pie and Salazar, two guys I have championed, are drawing interest from other teams in terms of trades.

Obviously, the merits of trading either of them would depend on who they got in return. If the O's got less back for Pie, I would be OK with that. The starting outfield positions are set and the Orioles have internal options for 4th outfielders in the organization (Lou Montanez, Joey Gathright, even Jeff Fiorentino). Better to get something for Pie than lose him on waivers. Salazar is another matter. I think he's already a better option at third than Melvin Mora (a player who will not be back next year) and I don't know why you would move a guy who provides some depth at the corner infield positions when that need will be glaring in 2010. Salazar provides a good bat and flexibility as he can play the corner outfield spots, third and first.

Hopefully, Salazar sticks here. If someone has to go, Pie makes the most sense.

Of course, someday we may be looking back at this and wondering why we were in such a rush to bring back Cesar Izturis in the first place. Robert Andino has displayed much better range in the field and is cheaper to boot. The only reason Izturis is starting at short for this team is the roughly $7.5 million he is owed for the rest of his contract.

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B.J. Ryan was released by the Blue Jays today. The Jays are not released from their financial obligation however and will have to pay Ryan about $15 million to finish out his contract. That's $47 million for 75 saves.

The Orioles were criticized as being cheap when they let him go to Toronto but sometimes it's just a smart move not to pay the big money.

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Replays? We don't need no stinking replays?

Dave Trembley on the edge of madness after last night's ejection.

Evidence that Dave Trembley is a cyborg:

1) He hasn't slept in a week.
2) He can replay all the team's plays in his head.
3) That odd resemblance to T.J. Hooker.
4) The built-in lie detector. Once he determined that Nolan Reimold was telling the truth about being past second base during the errant throw in the first, he really went ballistic.

Classic Trembley quote:

"You laugh, you think I'm funny. You have no idea what I've gone through. No idea. I can't talk for a week now, my hat is a mess."

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Who is Eric Crozier?

Eric Crozier is a former 41st round pick of the Cleveland Indians. He had a cup of coffee with the Blue Jays back in 2004 but he has bounced around the minors since and in 2008 he signed with the independent Atlantic League team, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. In the cultural and baseball purgatory that is Waldorf, MD, Crozier posted an .856 OPS hitting .265 with 13 homers. Hardly the stuff of legend.

This year, however, Crozier hit .314 with 8 homers in 50 games for the Blue Crabs and an OBP north of .400. The Orioles came to take a look and about three weeks ago, signed him and put him on the Baysox. In 18 games, Crozier has destroyed Southern League pitching slugging .574 and OPSing .959. Interesting "depth signing" for the Orioles and an interesting player to keep an eye on.

Base Hits: 6/4/2009

Sure, Baltimore dropped the series in Seattle but you can console yourself with the fact that the O's have played the second hardest schedule in the majors this season. Only the Indians have had it rougher. Maybe the NL East is the remedy?

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Sure the Orioles lost 3-2 last night...OR DID THEY???

Obviously, Yahoo Sports considered that first inning shot by Huff a fair ball...

On the bright side, you have to be impressed by how well Brad Bergesen and Matt Wieters work together. Two starts, both at least 7 inning outings with 2 earned runs apiece.

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I like Dave Trembley. I really do. But his odd "aggressive" base runnning and hit-and-run tactics are a bit overused and misguided. Sure, Brian Roberts and Adam Jones could be employed in these maneuvers...but Aubrey Huff?

But zknower of Camden Chat says it way better than I could. And even Peter Schmuck gets in on the act. OK, Peter advocates for the sac bunt but IF you're going to play "small ball", he has a very valid point. And IF, you're going to play "small ball" why not use Felix Pie as a pinch runner late in the game?

I'm an Earl Weaver guy...pitching, defense and the three run homer. Didn't Earl say that the 27 outs you get at the beginning of the game are your most precious commodity? (I have to stop repeating myself and just find that quote...)

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OPACY has made PETA's Top Ten Vegetarian-Friendly Ballparks for the first time. As a spouse of a woman with specific dietary needs, I appreciate that Camden Yards offers veggie burgers, veggie dogs, salads and fruit cups. It's good for the consumer and prevents me from having to eat elsewhere before the game. But the clever PETA rhetoric goes just a little too far...

Birds fans would be disgusted to know that the meat industry drugs chickens and turkeys, making them grow so fat that their legs often become crippled under their own weight. Luckily, Orioles diehards can help prevent such cruelty by choosing mouthwatering vegetarian options...

That's the new logo! Cartoon Oriole bird, engorged from feasting on it's Major league opponents, no longer able to support his mass on his own spindly legs!

Or....maybe not.

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Luke Scott leads the AL in ISO (Raw Power like The Stooges, baby) at .339, tied with Jason Bay. He leads the league in slugging at .669. Streaky hitter? Yes. Could he hit 30 this season? I think so. He being much more disciplined at the plate. His strikeout rate has dropped and his walk rate has ticked up a bit.

MacPhail may have fleeced Seattle but getting Scott as a throw-in in the Tejada deal is becoming a pretty good fleecing too.