Episode 45: The Cheat

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Leading Off

The guys start off, as always with The Brian Roberts Watch and a trip through the Medical Wing. The only notable injury news is that of Nolan Reimold, whose season ended in surgery. Again.

A reminder that if you missed the BEVys awards show, you can find that here. We’ve gotten lots of great feedback on it, and we had a blast putting it together.

Since our last episode, 5 Orioles represented Baltimore in the All Star Game, and Chris Davis participated in the Home Run Derby. The guys go through the Birds’ contributions, and come to the conclusion that they acquitted themselves admirably. Jake whines about a nonsensical article in The Atlantic that blames the downfall of the Mid-Summer Classic on the city of Baltimore. Finally, the Orioles are making a bid on the 2016 game. Could there be a better venue than Camden Yards for baseball’s biggest exhibition?

The Podcast War

We didn’t start it, but we’ll certainly finish it. Section 336 and the Spastics seem to think that “Baltimore’s best sports podcast” is a title you can just claim… We’re not really sure what’s going on here, but you can see the gauntlet get thrown down here. Apparently, there’s some big announcement coming on August 1.

 

PEDs in Baseball

With the Ryan Braun suspension gripping the news, the guys discuss whether the steroid era is alive and strong, or waning in strength. Do the players care about steroids? Do the fans, at this point? Jake warns O’s fans not to get too far down the path of schadenfreude, as this can happen to any player, any fan base, any time.

Now that the Biogenesis thing is a… thing, is Danny Valencia getting suspended? What does that do to our roster?

 

Hammerin’ Hank

Well, he’s here. And it looks like he’s here to stay (until he proves otherwise). How excited should we be? Will he get starts against lefties? Will we see him in the field? Will we ever bother to learn his real name?

 

AL East: All Together Now

The Orioles are firing on all cylinders at this point, featuring solid starting pitching and a resurgent offense.

Pitching:

• Who is the real Scott Feldman?
• Tillman and Gonzalez are solid

Offense:

• It’s not just Machado and Davis
• J.J. Hardy and Matt Wieters are getting it done right now
• The bottom of the lineup is turning it over to get back to the top

The Orioles are getting hot at the right time. Their schedule softens up for a bit, with teams like Houston, Seattle, and the NL West coming up. Beyond the Orioles’ schedule, they HAVE to keep pace with the Rays, if they’re going to have a chance in October. The Rays are mauling the AL East right now, and it’s going to be a dogfight from here out.

If the season ended today, the Red Sox, Rays, and Orioles would be headed to the playoffs. Buckle Up.

 

Fantasy Boss

Score: Jake 2, Scott 0

Jake took the win last week, and this week’s category is walks. Who draws the most walks this week?

Scott took Davis, Jake took Markakis. Who will own it?

 

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Who had a great week? Who had a terrible week? Who made us ashamed to be Orioles fans? Find out in this week’s GB&U. The guys run through their Good, Bad, and Ugly.

 

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