NumerOlogy

The picture accompanying this post comes from the Baltimore Sun, which ran an amusing story last Thursday about Opening Day starting pitcher Jeremy Guthrie (pictured on the right). Apparently he got tired of staring at Nick Markakis‘ golf bag, so he pulled it out of the outfielder’s locker, filled it with baseball equipment and towels, and carried it out to the field. Guthrie served as Nick’s caddy, even going so far as to wear a spare #21 Markakis jersey. My eyes could be failing me, but it looks like Nick’s bag may even be in Orioles colors, which would be a nice touch.

Speaking of jersey oddities, Mike Costanzo became the latest Oriole to wear the normally-vacant #18 last Friday. It seems that although Mike showed up for a road game against the Cardinals in Jupiter, his #66 jersey did not. When he entered the game at first base in the middle innings, he wore #18, just as Ramon Hernandez had done in a similar situation earlier this Spring. I know that college basketball teams are required to have a spare “blood jersey” in case of an accident, but has #18 become the O’s “amnesia jersey”?

Unfortunately for Costanzo, that was his last appearance for the Birds in the foreseeable future, as he was subsequently reassigned to minor league camp. Other recent cuts include outfielder #25 Luis Terrero, pitcher #54 Lance Cormier, and catcher #65 Omir Santos. Costanzo’s willingness to play anywhere on the field and his powerful bat made a good impression, but he needs some experience at AAA. Hopefully he’ll get to do some more catching at Norfolk and work on making more consistent contact; a late ‘08 callup to Baltimore is not out of the question.

With fewer than 40 players left in major league camp, let’s take a closer look at the fight for the last few available roster spots. Assuming that the Orioles go north with both in-house shortstop candidates (Brandon Fahey and Luis Hernandez, the latter of whom is out of options), infielder Scott Moore and outfielders Tike Redman and Chris Roberson seem to be the threesome jockeying for the last spot on the bench. One of them will get a reprieve, as Jay Gibbons begins the season by serving a 15-day suspension for his indiscretions with Human Growth Hormone. Further complicating matters is the possibility that Brian Roberts and Jay Payton could be traded, bringing in someone like Ronny Cedeno to start in the middle infield. Then there are the rumblings of a veteran middle infielder being picked up (Felipe Lopez, Mark Loretta, and Juan Uribe being the most frequently mentioned). Whew!

Fortunately, the pitching situation is a little more clear-cut. The battle for the fifth slot in the starting rotation seems to be down to Matt Albers and Brian Burres, with Jon Leicester fading fast. The loser of that competition will almost assuredly be the long reliever in a seven-man bullpen, joining veterans George Sherrill, Jamie Walker, and Chad Bradford. Three newcomers have also been sufficiently impressive: Rule 5 draftee Randor Bierd, former Diamondback and Brewer Greg Aquino, and ex-Astro Dennis Sarfate. Assuming my math is correct (a dangerous assumption), that adds up to seven pitchers, leaving Rocky Cherry as the odd man out. That would be a shame, since he’s only surrendered one earned run in Grapefruit League play, but it stands to reason that he won’t be stuck in Norfolk all year long.

Five more cuts today, as the Birds’ roster continues to take shape. #19 Ben Davis, #49 Hayden Penn, #71 Bob McCrory, #72 Fredy Deza, and #74 Zach Dillon are all headed to the minor league camp in Sarasota. McCrory’s the only cut that surprises me, as he’s had an impressive Spring. Of course, the new organizational focus seems to involve not rushing folks to the major leagues. Besides, Bob should get his shot in a month or two, when the bullpen is beset by its next round of bomb-outs/elbow injuries. The Orioles still have 45 players in camp, with open competitions at shortstop, utility infielder, backup catcher, fifth starting pitcher, and a handful of bullpen slots.

Mini-update from Roch Kubatko’s invaluable Spring Training coverage. Yesterday, catcher Ramon Hernandez arrived in Jupiter, FL to play the Marlins, but forgot to bring his orange #55 jersey with him. With the top half of his uniform sitting in his locker in Fort Lauderdale, Ramon wore #18 for one game only. As we’ve seen on the Spring Training Roster, #18 is the lowest number not claimed by a player or coach (not counting retired numbers, of course). It has most recently been worn by a string of catchers: Javy Lopez (2004-2006); Chris Widger (2006); and Alberto Castillo (2007), who spent some time in Baltimore while Ramon battled injuries last year. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find photographic evidence of Hernandez in #18 yesterday. If anyone comes across a picture, you can send it to kevin AT oriolesnumbers.com.