Baltimore Orioles Becoming Hitters Delight

If it appears that Baltimore Orioles slugging first baseman Chris Davis is having fun with congratulatory handshakes, it is deserved. Davis has 17 homers this year already. Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

It’s been a long time since the Baltimore Orioles have been fun to follow. They went into a two-decade tailspin of being both boring and bad. But although I am not a particular fan of the Orioles’ fortunes, I have found myself checking their box scores with increased scrutiny.

That’s because they have a bunch of guys who are hitting the “Made In Haiti” logo on the ball so hard that the stitches are bursting.

Given that there is only so much time in the day, even if you are an avid baseball fan, it’s challenging to read every box score from every game with a microscope, looking for the tiniest hint of a trend or development. I read every box score, every day, but I can’t study them all with the intensity of a Talmudic scholar.

Certain teams I read every word. Certain players I read every line. Other teams, other players, I glance at every line, but I pay more attention to any player that has two hits in a game or any pitcher that is not lost in the shuffle of middle-relief, single-batter or single-inning anonymity.

In the case of the Orioles, after the 2012, happy-days-are-here-again season, I took them more seriously and began watching their young hitters. The way the boys at the top of the order have been hitting for Baltimore this season they have made it easy to like them.

After the team’s first 52 games (28-24), Chris Davis had 17 home runs and 47 RBIs–and that was before Wednesday night’s game when he went four-for-four against Washington and drove in three runs, while upping his average to .359. Manny Machado was batting .335. Adam Jones had 10 homers, 35 RBIs, and a .318 average. Nick Markasis was hitting .300 on the dot.

After so many disappointments and false starts, it’s no wonder that Orioles fans can let loose with legitimate excitement. That’s a very challenging top of the order for any pitcher to negotiate.

Last year when the Orioles began winning I was of the mind of, “Who are those guys?” I thought the O’s were a fluke and everyone would come back to earth this year. Well, Baltimore is not winning at the same rate, but those players keep proving that they are somebodies.

Machado, the third baseman, is not even 21 yet. He has the makings of a real superstar and is playing at an All-Star level this year.

Markasis has spent his entire Major League career with Baltimore since being brought up at 22 in 2006. He has been a solid bat all along, but now has some reinforcements around him.

Davis got to the majors with the Texas Rangers at 22 in 2008, but had his break-out, 33-homer, 85-RBI season with Baltimore last year. He is definitely playing at an All-Star level.

And Jones was billed as a superstar in the works before those other guys came around. A two-time American League All-Star, Jones is a multi-tool player who hits and hits with power, and fields superbly.

It’s not as if the Orioles are the perfect team. They still have holes and don’t appear likely to go deep into the playoffs. But they have a good shot of making it into the post-season and that group of foursome of batsmen is likely to continue blossoming and improving.