Keith Law's List of the Top 100 Prospects, Number One: Matt Wieters

This afternoon, ESPN's Keith Law came out with his 100 top prospects list, and guess who was his top pick: Matt Wieters. As most fans of the black and orange know, Matt Wieters is one of the important pieces of the future with the Baltimore Orioles and the overwhelming majority of the media have been praising him since the day he was drafted.

If you don't have ESPN Insider, here's a bit of what Law has to say about Wieters:

Wieters is typically compared to one of two current big-leaguers: Mark Teixeira and Joe Mauer. Those are tough comps to hang on a player who has yet to sniff the big leagues, but in Wieters' case, they're merited.

Wieters' similarities to Teixeira don't end with their common alma mater of Georgia Tech or the fact that each was selected with the fifth overall pick (Teixeira in 2001, Wieters in 2007). Like Teixeira, Wieters is a switch-hitter with plus hit and power tools from both sides. He's a little more fluid from the left side with slightly better raw power, but he could stand on his head and still be short to the ball and get good extension on his follow-through. His plate discipline is strong and improving, and he's filled out since college, adding power to the point where he's at least major league average right now. He does glide a little bit on both sides, but it has no discernible effect on his ability to hit.

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Ramon Or Matt?

On top of the pitching concerns, and the debate over what free agents to sign, there's one other issue that's been on my mind -- perhaps on the minds of other fans as well.

Who will man behind the plate?

Aside from Daniel Cabrera, one of the other guys who left me distressed during more than any other is Ramon Hernandez. Despite a year where he improved with the bat, his play as the starting catcher for the Orioles left very little to the imagination.

At times he lacked focus -- almost to the point where he was lazy -- others, he just seemed unable to block balls and showed very little hustle behind the plate.

For the reason alone, we might as well give someone else a shot -- Matt Wieters.

The guy's story of his time in the minors has become nothing but a folk legend amongst the most ardent of fans, so why not see if he can cut in the majors?

Recently, Spencer Fordin of the orioles.com pondered about Matt Wieters after he answered a question about him in his latest mailbag...

Will Matt Wieters be starting for the Orioles on Opening Day? And will there be any other significant Oriole prospects that may have a role on next year's team? -- Mike V., Rochester, N.Y.

Wieters, who's on the short list for best prospects in baseball, represents an interesting quandary for the Orioles. If they bring him up on Opening Day -- and he's provided every indicator that he'll be ready by then -- they run the risk of losing him to free agency a full season earlier than they would if he spends the season's first month at Triple-A Norfolk.

That didn't bother the Orioles when their previous top prospect, right fielder Nick Markakis, took the team by storm in Spring Training. Baltimore elected to start Markakis in 2006 despite the fact that he had never played at Triple-A, and had just 33 games at Double-A under his belt. And after some initial struggles, he became one of the team's best players.

With Wieters, the fifth overall pick in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, the Orioles may elect to play it safe. The catcher didn't sign until moments before the deadline to come to terms or go back to college, and Baltimore can expect a similar tussle when free agency rolls around. In this case, it pays to be careful, even if it means waiting an extra month.

While I see where Spencer is coming from, I don't think the issue of service time should come into play -- especially when he have someone seemingly as talented as Wieters in the wings.

However, the big issue is with Hernandez's contract. I would fathom at this point, since Ramon has one year left at I think $8 million plus, the Orioles would attempt to move him this off-season.

I say let Wieters play for a job in Spring Training, and if he tears it up, he should be behind the plate for Opening Day 2009.

Guthrie Pitches a Gem, But O's Lose Late in Extra Innings 3-2; the Rundown

On Sunday, the Orioles played hard; however, they lost to the Toronto Blue Jays, 3-2, in the bottom of the tenth inning thanks to a Aaron Hill sacrifice fly.

The match-up yesterday had our own Jeremy Guthrie take on one of the best hurlers in the game, Roy Halladay.

Guthrie pitched 8 strong innings, and only gave up two runs on three hits. He walked none while striking out 6; meanwhile, perennial Cy Young candidate Halladay went nine innings, also gave up two runs on six hits and struck out five.

Brian Roberts and Kevin Millar drove in runs for the Birds.

The Orioles could have possibly rallied in the tenth inning, but J.R. House, who came in as a pinch hitter singled, but got picked off of second base after he took to big a curve around first base.

Chad Braford took the loss for the Orioles.

We have a ten-game homestand where the Rangers, Twins and the Devil Rays come to the Yard.

***

The Baltimore Examiner, Washington Post, Orioles MLB site, & Orioles Hangout have a recap of last night's game.

The Orioles are glad that Matt Wieters was signed, and he serves as a shot in the arm for the franchise which has been moribund for the past decade. The front office brass were afraid that he was not going to be signed...

Roch Kubatko is his blog has thoughts on J.R. House, his big blunder yesterday and if he'll be on the roster this week. Also, the O, By the Way Blog has thoughts on the game yesterday, Bedard, Santana and other things...

With Chris Ray on the shelf, Danys Baez will be the closer...

Kevin Millar extended his streak of consecutive games reaching base in the 9th inning on Sunday. The streak is at 46, and it is the longest in the majors this season.

Matt Palmer and Jon Gallo take a look at the "5 Most Despised Sports Figures in Baltimore History", and it's no surprise that Peter Angelos made the list. However, he's not number on the list - that honor belongs to Bob Irsay, former owner of the Colts.

We all lamented a few weeks ago that Cal Ripken may be the last Oriole Hall of Famer; however, the famous O's mascot, "the Bird" is getting a shot at a Hall of Fame -- um, the Mascot Hall of Fame...

Finally, sadly an O's fan got roughed up in the Yankee Series a few weeks ago outside the stadium, and it has dampered his love for the black and orange. From what I read, the police response was abhorrent and it's too bad that he had to go through all of this.

Quick Hits: More Weiters and the Rundown...

The Baltimore Orioles no doubt have had a good week, and the signing of Matt Weiters was a sign that the team is serious about the future. It not only showed the fan base the team is committed to a goal, but also showed to the world that we are ready to move past this down decade.

Despite the chatter online and on the radio, the team got the deal done, and I as a fan am glad. Although Weiters may or may not ever see time in an Oriole uniform, reading the various articles online from the major newspapers and scouting sites say he is the real deal.

Considering the team’s tenuous history recently with draft picks, Wednesday served to be a day to remember.

As well, with the team playing solid baseball as of late and winning 4 out of 6 games against both the Red Sox and Yankees, things do not look that bad.

Looking back, Sam Perlozzo was a good guy and wanted to be here; however, a change had to be made and putting Dave Trembley in the managerial position has perhaps salvaged 2007.

The O’s may or may not reach the elusive goal of .500, but the second half of the season has been fun to witness and it says a lot about the guys on the field.

When the 2007 season ends, the first order of business should be to hire Dave Trembley as the “manager” of the Orioles. The second: Sign Erik Bedard long term. The checkbook might as well be opened now, because if the organization waits, his price will become astronomical later.

The Oriole take on the Blue Jays in Toronto this weekend for a three game series, and Heathir Irvin of Oriole Magic has a series preview. Also, check out the scouting report of the series from the Baltimore Sun.

***

The Baltimore Sun has audio on their site of the phone conference that Matt Weiters and Scott Boras had with the scribes and media last night.

Roch Kubatko in an article in the Baltimore Sun has more details about the signing of Weiters, and some of the drama they had to ensue. A great read, and it gave me a little perspective on the business of baseball along with how anxious and nervous the team was to get the deal done. As well, Roch takes a look back at the week in Oriole-land in his blog, Roch Around the Clock.

Kevin Millar has Q&A up on the Orioles MLB site.

Finally, young Oriole super fan, Ray Daughtery will be featured on This Week in Baseball which airs this weekend on your local FOX affiliate.

The Good Daniel Cabrera Shows Up & Dominates: O's Whoop Up on The Yankees, 12-0: Matt Weiters, The Rundown...

Like I have said time and time again, Daniel Cabrera probably has the best physical tools of any pitcher on the Oriole roster and could be an elite one if he could keep his head in the game.

Last night, he did in one of the most intimidating places to play in baseball -- Yankee Stadium.

The Orioles smashed the Yankees by a score of 12-0.

Kevin Millar homered and reached base five times for the Orioles and Daniel Cabrera pitched two-hit ball into the seventh. In the third inning, Aubrey Huff hit a grand slam and Baltimore quickly put the game out of reach.

The Orioles just plain abused Jeff Karstens last night, and took advantage of not having to face Roger Clemens in the series.

Brian Roberts, Corey Patterson, Nick Markakis, Kevin Millar and Melvin Mora each drove in a run, while Jay Payton drove in two.

Baltimore systematically shut down the Yankees on Tuesday night, and it is quite an accomplishment considering what New York has done within the last month.

In light of the win by the Orioles, the Bronx took out a few moments before the game to honor Phil Rizzuto who had passed away earlier in the day. Yankee fans, who are no doubt savvy about their history held up signs and honored a legend in pinstripes.

***

Besides the huge victory by the Orioles, the bigger story of the moment is whether the Orioles will get the deal done to sign their first round draft pick, Matt Weiters, by tonight's 11:59pm deadline.

However, it looks like the two sides are off in terms of millions (um, about 5 million or so) in getting the deal done.

A lot of fans are hoping he'll get signed and will be the catalyst for even further change with the team; alas, Scott Boras is notoriously tough to deal with and the Orioles may not want to pay the price tage he wants.

With so few picks in the draft, the Orioles may be hard pressed to sign him or may nor do so if they stand by their price.

Weiters and Boras want in the area of $10 million, while MLB advised the team not pay more than 2.5 million; therefore, things get more complicated as the Tiger's first pick, Rick Porcello signed for well over $7 million, and yes, he's a Boras client.

Roch Kubatko has his thoughts on the Weiters situation.

Well, if you have a moment, read some of the blogs on the WNST website. Reading of their website and some the opinions they have for me and a good group of fans is like a liberal watching the Fox News Channel; however, I admire their passion and I think they have perhaps the best sports talk radio station in Baltimore.

Drew Forrester of WNST believes that the Orioles will sign Weiters; meanwhile, Nestor Aparacio believes that history is about to repeat itself and the team will not sign him.

What do I think: I have no friggin' clue what will happen, but if the price is too astronomical - pass.

***

The Washington Post, Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Examiner, Orioles Hangout, O, by the Way Blog, & Oriole Magic have a recap of last night's game.

As mentioned yesterday, J.R. House is back in the big leagues and The Baltimore Sun has more on the development.