Opening Night, Buck-Ball, Hendrickson and Brooks Robinson

On Friday night in the Tampa Bay-St. Petersburg area, the 2011 season will kick off – finally! – for the Baltimore Orioles.

Everyone is optimistic for the season to begin and for the first time in a long time, let's all hope that 2011 is the season where the Orioles become relevant again on the national scene.

The Orioles and Andy MacPhail during the winter tried their best to retool, rebuild and get a competitive roster on the field.

Did they accomplish their goals? We’ll see over the next six months.

Buck-Ball came rolling into in August and things have not been the same since. I never thought a manager would not make that much of a difference when it comes to coaching professionals.

I guess I was wrong. He’s seemingly inspired his players. He calls out his rivals and speaks his mind.

I appreciate it. It's awesome.

Right now, everyone is high on Buck Showalter and he’s gained a lot of a capital in his time while in Baltimore. Let’s hope he avoids an extended losing streak, much more a swoon.

As for the weekend coming up…

Showalter will start Jeremy Guthrie on Friday for game one, Brian Matusz for game two and Chris Tillman to close out the Series against the Rays. Jake Arrieta will take the mound on Monday at Camden Yards for the home opener. The pitching at times in Spring Training was shaky at times. Let's hope for some consistency and a few wins. Lord knows that we all don't want to a repeat of the first few weeks of the 2010 season that buried the team before Buck came to town.

The offense has a new look with Mark Reynolds, J.J. Hardy, Vladmir Guerrero and Derrek Lee; therefore, we’ll need to see if they deliver. Furthermore, will Adam, Jones, Matt Wieters and Nick Markakis take their games to another level?

The Orioles’ goal this year and beyond is simple: Win and take a team that has been a punching bag and a punchline into a formidable squad.

As we all know, the Orioles have not had a winning season since Bill Clinton was president. That's a long arse time. Think of it, there are some young adults now in the region who cannot remember a winning Oriole team!

>>> Read more