‘Orioles Ugliness Won’t End' - More Gloom and Doom?

Well, I just got done reading an insightful article by the Washington Times’ Thom Loverro about the state of the Washington Nationals versus the Baltimore Orioles titled, ‘Orioles Ugliness Won’t End’.

Long story short, he asserts though the Nationals may be bad in 2007, they have a bright future thanks to the track record of Team President Stan Kasten & owners Ted Lerner along with his family who have made a considerable fortune in real estate.

Sadly, Loverro does not hold the Orioles in the same esteem.

“ Sometimes you have to believe what you see. And the more both teams are seen as spring training continues, fans will see how uncertain the 2007 Nationals roster is. Meanwhile, the Orioles appear to have perhaps the best team they have been for quite some time. … "This is talent wise, a better team than any we have before in the six years I've been here," Gibbons said.

Well, take heart Nationals fans. Where is all the talent is going to get the Orioles? Zipsville. Nadaland. They may have better players, but they are still the Orioles, an organization run by the most dysfunctional owner Peter Angelos in the game.”

And…

“The Nationals may suffer through a losing season, but it is an organization that is being run by co-owner and team president Stan Kasten with as impressive a track record for winning as there is in the game, and the Lerner family, whose business background is building things up, not tearing them down.:

Here’s what he says about the Orioles:

”It is a franchise run by spite and pettiness. The Orioles have had nine straight losing seasons, and watched their attendance drop from a high of 3.7 million in 1997 to 2.2 million last year. Yet the team is operated in a heavy-handed manner that is cutting off access and exposure, all based on the petty whims of the owner, through his refusal to open up to Internet exposure to their refusal to allow club management to take calls from listeners when on stations not owned by Orioles rights holder CBS radio.”… “To the Nationals' credit, they have opened up access and coverage, particularly that of new media, with open arms, and have allowed some practices that the Orioles have refused to. If it is indeed a rights holder issues, will MASN (the Orioles) try to dictate media policy to the Nationals, in the name of protecting its rights?”

Well, in light of his analysis, as unfair as it may seem, his points of contention are what a lot of fans feel in terms of the team. There has been debate about the radio situation that I and other bloggers like Mike of Orioles’ Magic have opined about that, and also that situation has raised the ire of many fans.

Mr. Loverro also implies that the Orioles under the watch of Peter Angelos are control freaks in comparison to the Nationals, & I could say as a blogger who also covers the team, there’s a lot of truth in that and the Nationals have been nothing but open to the digital media.

I know right now, MLB restricts media access to established newspapers and print media – although some teams do allow the digital media access.

It would be nice if the Orioles would allow the digital media access, even if even on a trial basis; however, the team has the right to control its product and access as needed.

Do I believe the Orioles are not going to be any better? Well, to be quite honest, the team has a lot of work still to do, and could be competitive if the right decisions are made in terms of talent and free agents.

However, the team is nowhere near as bad as it has been in the past.

In the eyes of many, perception is reality and based on how the Orioles have performed in the last decade, even though Peter Angelos does not don a uniform, he’s very much responsible for the state of the team.

I can totally see where Mr. Loverro is coming from, as a lot of Nationals fans, especially most in the Washington suburbs do not dislike the Orioles because they are a regional rival – they hate Peter Angelos. He’s reviled in Washington D.C. because of his attempt to block the move of the Expos into Washington and the mess with the TV rights.

I opined with another fan, because of the mess that has gone on with Peter and the Nationals, the Oriole perhaps might have lose a generation of fans that might have grown to appreciate both the Nats and the O’s.

In the end, although Loverro’s article may hit below the belt, he shares sentiments of what some Orioles fans feel about the team and has a bit of truth to it.