posted March 4, 2008 at 18:59 EST in MLB Betting Trends

Starting Pitching:

In baseball, you don’t have much if you don’t have starting pitching meaning the Baltimore Orioles don’t have much. They traded their ace Erik Bedard to the Seattle Mariners and now head into the current season with Jeremy Guthrie, Daniel Cabrera and Adam Loewen as their top three starters. Guthrie finished 2007 with a record of 7-5, Cabrera led the league with 18 losses while Loewen missed the entire season with a stress fracture in his left elbow. Troy Patton and Garrett Olson, two unproven youngsters, are expected to round out the starting rotation.

Their front five is among the worst in the MLB.

Relief Pitching:

With Chris Ray and Danys Baez expected to be out most – if not all – of the season with Tommy John surgery, the Orioles will look to a number of scrubs to seal games. Chad Bradford and Jamie Walker are the only returnees from last year’s bullpen but both are decent.

The biggest hole in the Orioles bullpen is the closer spot. Walker and Bradford are better at setting the table for a closer and that guy might be George Sherrill, who was acquired as part of the package in return for Bedard.

Hitting:

Miguel Tejada has been traded and Brian Roberts is rumored to be dealt soon. The heart of the lineup includes Nick Markakis, Aubrey Huff, Ramon Hernandez, Luke Scott, Melvin Mora and Kevin Millar. Outside of Markakis, there isn’t much to be excited about. Center fielder Adam Jones, the jewel centerpiece in the Bedard trade, will likely bat near the bottom of the order until he gets accustomed to the pros.

The Orioles had (in 2007) and have a lack of power up and down the entire lineup. Furthermore, if Roberts is dealt, they’ll have a problem at the top of their order as well. There aren’t any evident answers to that problem on this roster.

Regular Season Win Total 65.5:

The Orioles won 69 games last year and despite what Kevin Millar says, the Orioles look much worse as a team in 2008.

By the way, Millar said that the World Series goes through Baltimore this year.

Baltimore is without an ace, without a superstar bat and no closer. That’s a recipe for disaster.

Erik Bedard was 13-5 for the Orioles last year and chewed up 182 innings during an injury-plagued season. The next closest starting pitcher was Daniel Cabrera and his nine wins were accompanied by 18 losses.

The rebuilding project in Baltimore has started and it will likely end with less than 65 wins this season.

Free Pick: Under 65.5 Wins

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