Episode 310: Nondollars and Nonsense
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Leading Off
Hi. We hope this episode finds you well – in good health and good spirits.
The Orioles are making roster moves, and making it look like they need a couple payday cash advances. As always, it’s an interesting time to be an Orioles fan.
Drink of the Week
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This Week on the Twitters
Here’s what’s going on in the world of Orioles Baseball, in 280 characters, or fewer:
Nondollars and Nonsense
MASN announced serious cuts to its broadcast schedule and on-air talent (for both the Orioles and the Nationals. This move has many components: tit-for-tat for the on-going legal dispute, COVID-19 related cashflow issues, and emotional connections to broadcasters who are suddenly disconnected from the team.
We can’t say enough how much we’ll miss Gary Thorne. We had it good, and we knew it. On the other hand, the overall stable of broadcasting talent is strong. It’s possible that Orioles fans will be in good hands for quite some time.
More troubling news on the financial front: the Orioles are asking arbitration-eligible players like Trey Mancini and Anthony Santander to defer money on their deals totaling less than $5M. This is… disconcerting.
Nondollars and Nonsense
FIRST BASE: Alex Cobb to the Angels
The Angels again, eh? Well… the Orioles got an interesting “prospect?” in exchange for a player whose contract had been a disappointment, and who offered little to the franchise moving forward. Without saying it will save Orioles Baseball, we’ll call this a Good Thing.
Welcome to the Orioles, Jahmai Jones!
SECOND BASE: MASN Streaming App
MASN has announced that it will shortly unveil an app which will allow in-market streaming. This is NOT an option for cord-cutting, but it will enable fans to break away from the television, in favor of various other devices.
We’re hoping this is a gateway drug to cord cutting. In the meantime, it’s a move in the right direction to future-proof MASN’s media consumption.
THIRD BASE: Other Roster Notes
The Orioles spent a bunch of money on international talent. Whereas spending on the international market still feels new and fresh, we’re hoping that we’ll take if for granted some day. The team did a thing it’s supposed to do. A good sign, but let’s not break out the ticker tape.
The Orioles signed cheap stopgaps for SS and 2B. They will probably play the whole season, unless they turn out to be wretched, in which case, some of the wretched internal options will take over.
Feel the magic.
HOME PLATE: Labor War and Peace
MLB and the MLBPA are negotiating the finer points of the 2021 season. Like “will there be one?” OK, perhaps that’s a bit over-dramatic. But the fact that they’re still quibbling over major details this late in the game does not fill us with confidence about a smooth start to the season, nor about the CBA negotiations for the deal that expires this December.
It’s hard to imagine that the involved parties would risk labor peace so soon after the sport’s (and the world’s) finances were rocked by the pandemic. But hey… they’re in the business of being in business. We’ll see…
Blowing the Save
Most podcasts try to end on a high note – the perfect coda to a quality program. That’s just not our style. Each week, we’ll end on a weak note, blowing the save with an item that didn’t quite fit into the episode, or something they simply need to get off their chests. It’s our version of taking the ball and pulling a Kevin Gregg.
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