Miguel Tejada facts

So for some reason, I thought it would be funny to do a "Miguel Tejada" facts that is like the incomparable Matt Wieters Facts, but instead of great feats of baseball prowess and inhuman strength, they would be amazing ways to screw over a team.

A quick disclaimer: I don't have anything against Miggi and I certainly don't blame him for the 2-11 start to the season, I just think this is an opportunity to be somewhat funny. (Or at least I try.)

So here are some early attempts. Please feel free to add more to the comments.

Fact #1: Miguel Tejada once led off an inning by grounding into a double play.

Fact #2: Miguel Tejada has actually grounded into a quadruple play. The Orioles had to start their next turn at bat with one out.

Fact #3: Miguel Tejada's allegedly tainted vitamin B12 shots are just a placebo. While researchers have noted a placebo effect, that effect is a positive steroids test.

Fact #4: Coaches measure Miguel Tejada's speed from home to first base using a sundial. Unless it's a routine pop-up. Then they use orbits of Haley's Comet.

Fact #5: The only time Miguel Tejada hits Eutaw Street is when he's getting a sandwich at Boog's.

Fact #6: In 2007, Miguel Tejada was within 1,500 games of Cal Ripken's consecutive games played streak. After having his streak snapped just 1,480 games shy of the record, Tejada has set out to beat Cal's other incredible record: 350 GIDPs. That's not even remotely funny, just depressingly accurate.

Terrible, right? I'll try harder next time.
 

Blogging the Mitchell Report: Part 4 ... I'm DONE.

I'm done reading the Mitchell Report. I didn't finish it and I never will, and I'm not going to post the rest of the info here. Why? Because it's all a huge waste of time.

For one, exactly what I said would happen ended up happening. ESPN ran a full list of "named names" on their ticker, with no explanations, grouping in Brian Roberts with guys like Paul Lo Duca and David Segui, which is absolutely ridiculous. Roberts is only in there because Larry Bigbie said that Roberts told him he did it. Not quite the same as having scans of signed checks or sworn testimony to federal investigators. Meanwhile, it seems Segui and Lo Duca were the "hook up" everywhere they went.

But more than anything, at some point while reading the report I stopped feeling angry or even disappointed in the players whose names I was seeing. I just felt bad for them.

At first I couldn't really figure out why, but then it hit me. Out of THOUSANDS upon THOUSANDS of players who played during the "steroid era," all of 62 names were listed.

What portion of one percent of the players who are or were actually juicing do you suppose that represents?

I used to really hate the thought that guys I liked and rooted for might be on performance enhancers. But if the report did anything, it was make me realize once and for all that this is not just a few players. It's not a couple guys, or a couple teams, or a couple guys on each team. And it sure as hell is not just 62 players over the last 15 to 20 years.

The biggest thing I took away from the report is that, as much as the media plays up the outrage, it's not like these guys were running around in their little steroid cliques, shooting up in dark alleys so no one would see. It was out in the open. It was joked about in the clubhouse.

If I were named in the report, I'd be the first one demanding the best testing available. I'd be screaming for the implementation of daily piss tests for everyone in the league, because there's no way I'd let people go on assuming that I'm part of some tiny portion of the baseball playing world that is so unscrupulous as to take steroids. I'd be saying, "You've got 60 names? Great. Now let's get 1,000 so you can really start to see."

I'm done being outraged about specific players. I'm done listening to other people's outrage about Mr. ABC and Mr. XYZ and how "now there's proof!" Because the names in the Mitchell Report are meaningless.

The fans will relish this opportunity to shun the players that have been named.

You'll say, "Miguel Tejada's a dirty cheater! I KNEW Roger Clemens was a jerk! Brian Roberts and his squeaky clean image are DONE FOR," and then boo them and make signs and yell "CHEATER" every time they visit your team's ballpark.

But it's stupid.

Because the names listed are nothing more than a few fish hooked in an ocean of performance enhancing drug users, and you're blind if you think there aren't at least four or five on your favorite team. Even if none of the names made it into the Report or onto ESPN's ticker. That's the real lesson from the Mitchell Report.

Blogging the Mitchell Report: Part 2

You can get to a collection of all the posts in this series by clicking here.

Download a PDF of the full report here -- 6.5 MB, 409 pages.

What you've all been waiting for, but not as juicy as people thought it'd be...

Miguel Tejada (an Oriole until yesterday, this incident IS from when he was with the Orioles, stemming from the Palmeiro suspension): Report page 105, PDF page 153.

"Tejada told investigators that he generally brought injectable vitamin B12 with him to the United States when he returned each season from the Dominican Republic.
...
Larry Bigbie, a former Orioles player who we interviewed in our investigation, confirmed that he observed Tejada injecting himself with vitamin B12 in the clubhouse restroom. The report that four players on a major league team were self-administering an injectable substance should have been a cause of concern, even if the players said that the substance they were injecting into themselves was vitamin B12."

So not a whole lot on Tejada we didn't already know, and no clear evidence. Maybe there's more later in the report.

More real shockers...

Ken Caminiti and David Segui (another former Oriole) are in the report. They both admitted their steroid and HGH use, and the report acknowledges that.

Paxton Crawford (no-name Red Sox pitcher who made all of 15 appearances from 2000 to 2001): Report page 111, PDF page 159.

"Crawford admitted to using steroids and human growth hormone while with the Red Sox. He described an incident in which syringes he had wrapped in a towel were spilled onto the floor of the Red Sox clubhouse, which he said caused laughter among his teammates."

(Emphasis added.)

Outed of the raid of Balco:

Barry Bonds
Jason Giambi
Jeremy Giambi
Armando Rios
Garry Sheffield
Benito Santiago
Marvin Benard
Randy Velarde
Bobby Estalella:

Report page 113, PDF page 161.

"Among those baseball players brought to Balco by [Bonds trainer Greg] Anderson was Barry Bonds. Bonds has received 'the clear' and 'the cream' from Balco on a 'couple of occasions'. According to Valente, Bonds does not like how 'the clear' makes him feel.

Other players that Anderson has obtained 'the clear' and “the cream” for from Balco are Benito Santiago, Gary Sheffield, Marvin Benard, Jason Giambi and Randy Velarde. Sometime [sic] the substances are given to Anderson to give to the athletes and sometimes the athletes are given the substances directly. . . .
...
The Giambi brothers came to Balco and informed them that they had taken a steroid some time ago and wanted to see if it was still detectable in their systems. Valente recalled that the particular steroid they took can stay in a person’s system for up to 18 months. The urine that Balco collected and sent out for testing came back positive for steroids."

Those quotes are from federal investigator interviews of Balco Vice President Jim Valente. He has since denied saying what was attributed to him in the federal investigation reports.

"Anderson eventually admitted that he had supplied performance enhancing substances to Benard, Estalella, Rios, and Santiago. Anderson also stated that 'Barry Bonds never took any of the clear or the cream from Balco.' Anderson said that he provided Santiago with human growth hormone a few months before the interview and had sent that substance by FedEx 'in the past' to both Estalella and Rios. During their search of Anderson's home, agents found documentary evidence 'corroborating these admissions.'"

More to come...
 

Why I'm Not So Upset About The Orioles Three-Game Losing Streak

Normally I'd be devastated by a three-game losing streak like this. The O's had a four-game winning streak and a lot of momentum going for them, they are facing a couple of good teams in short series at home and it would have meant a lot to show those clubs that the O's are for real.

But it's April 26 and that's all B.S.

The O's have been "showing teams that they're for real" for the past few Aprils now. I didn't believe it until I looked it up, but the Orioles have finished April at or above .500 for the past four seasons. And where did it get them? Not once in those seasons did they finish within five games of the break-even point.

Image from baltimoresun.com

That's why early this month I told myself that I wasn't going to get worked up about what happens in April.

Lots of crap teams jump out of the gate hot and put up decent April records. The good teams get better as the season goes on.

And if you look at how the team has played, these guys should feel lucky to still be one game over .500.

Erik Bedard was supposed to be the ace of the staff, and he's putting up Bruce Chen-like numbers.

Melvin Mora seems to have dedicated his April to making a bloopers reel for his six kids.

Razor Ramon Hernandez, One of the best all-around catchers in the Majors, is hurt and has been replaced by Paul Bako, honestly one of the worst all-around catchers in the Majors.

Aubrey Huff in April has been in 2007 as Aubrey Huff in April has been throughout his career -- bad.

But those things will change. Huff will get hot, Hernandez will come back from his injury, Mora can't be this bad in the field forever (right?!?) and Bedard will return to form (he did have a 5.97 ERA on June 1 last year before basically dominating for the last three months of the season to get it down to 3.76).

It's fun to project out numbers less than 20 games into the season and say things like "Ian Kinsler is on pace for 64 homers" or "The Orioles are on pace for 96 wins," but then reality sets in. Because this is baseball, and the season is long.

Every team is going to have winning streaks and losing streaks and every player is going to have slumps and surges, but at the end of a 162-game season everything will end up where it should be. The best players will separate themselves from the flukes and the best teams will rise to the top of the standings.

So for now I'm just trying to sit back, enjoy the baseball and be pleased with how the O's have kept their heads above water despite the issues and injuries. ... But seriously this team better not be sucking like this in May or I'm going to flip.
 

Useless Random Facts: Miguel Tejada's Streak

If Miguel Tejada continues to play every game of every season, he would tie Cal Ripken Jr.'s consecutive games played record (2,632 games) in the 94th game of the 2016 season. Tejada would be 40 years old.

Miggy's contract with the Orioles only takes him through 2009. Assuming he keeps the streak alive and doesn't receive a contract extension before then, he'd finish that contract having played in 1,566 straight games. That would put him third on the all-time consecutive games played list behind only Ripken and Lou Gherig.

Tejada is currently seventh on that list, and he's also one of only seven players in history to play more than 1,000 consecutive games.

He is 23 games behind Joe Sewell for 6th, 37 games behind Billy Williams (not to be confused with Lando Calrissian) for 5th, and 127 games behind Steve Garvey for 4th.

Tejada could top all of those during the 2007 season.

(Now ... is it bad that I can't stop chuckling at the line in the Wikipedia entry on Garvey that says he's a "native born Tampan"? High brow, I know.)

Arenas Scores 60 On Kobe ... Is He The Biggest Thing In Area Sports?

This area is dominated by Redskins coverage, so normally you'd think the most famous Redskin is instantly the biggest local sports star.

But a couple weeks ago, Washington Wizard Gilbert Arenas released his signature Adidas shoe. Then "Agent 0" shirts started popping up all over the place (I want one). And then last night he busted 60 points on Kobe Bryant in L.A.

Who is the biggest star in the Beltway Sports world? Gilbert Arenas (Wizards) Alexander Ovechkin (Capitals) Ray Lewis (Ravens) Steve McNair (Ravens) Joe Gibbs (Redskins) Clinton Portis (Redskins) Sean Taylor (Redskins) Miguel Tejada (Orioles) Umm ... Nick Johnson? (Nationals)    Free polls from Pollhost.com

So that got me thinking: Who is the biggest star in the Beltway Sports world?

My first task was to narrow it down to one player per team. Much like Michigan coming in second in the Big Ten and still thinking they should have been in the national championship game, how can you be the biggest star in the area if you're not the biggest star on your own team?

I then decided that, since football is the king of American sports at the moment, the NFL teams could each have one defensive and one offensive representative in the poll.

So here's who I came up with:

*Gilbert Arenas (Wizards) - The shoes, the shirts, the scoring prowess ... Gil's even got the craziness that leads one to give an opposing coach the finger (times two) and get an elaborate system set up in one's house so that one can train and live in higher altitude conditions for better stamina. It seemed like Arenas spent the offseason making a name for himself as a personality, and now he's proving again that he's one of the best players in the NBA. Yet he wasn't going to be an all-star last year until Jermaine O'Neal got hurt, and Coach Rat Face Krzyzewski supposedly would have cut Arenas from Team USA had he not "suffered a groin injury" and taken himself out of contention.

*Alexander Ovechkin (Capitals) - One of the top two or three stars in the NHL right now ... but that's like saying "one of the top two or three comics on MADtv." It's hard to be the biggest star in the area when you're on the least talked-about team (in the "big four" sports, anyway), but he won the Calder Trophy last year for the NHL's top rookie and he is currently tied for the league lead in goals with Marian Hossa and Brendan Shanahan.

*Ray Lewis (Ravens) - The guy's got an MVP award, and the only other person on this list who can say that is his teammate, Steve McNair. Unlike McNair, Ray Ray brought a Super Bowl to this area. That's something no other player on the list can say. His off-the-field issues with the law seem to be far behind him, but I think it's always somewhat limited his superstar status.

*Steve McNair (Ravens) - If you're simply going by "whose every game is scrutinized and written about the most?," McNair is probably only behind Joe Gibbs in that category. Acquiring McNair gave the Ravens instant championship credibility, but the fact that his best years were all in Tennessee may hurt his chances in this poll.

*Joe Gibbs (Redskins) - Gibbs coached the Redskins to three Super Bowls in 12 years before retiring to do NASCAR stuff, then saying he could never work for Dan Snyder, then doing just that when Danny backed the cash truck up on his front lawn. Back when Gibbs was winning Super Bowls with Mark Rypien at quarterback this probably would have been a no-brainer -- or even when Gibbs first returned in 2004 -- but now he's in the midst of his second losing season in the three years since his return.

*Clinton Portis (Redskins) - The only local star who tries harder than Arenas to propel himself into the limelight is Portis, who has made a habit of putting on wacky outfits for press interviews. This season he also made a habit of getting hurt and now Ladell Betts is making 100-yard games look easy.

*Sean Taylor (Redskins) - Like Ray Lewis, Taylor is a ferocious hitter and a defensive leader. Also like Lewis, Taylor has some serious allegations on his rap sheet.

*Miguel Tejada (Orioles) - Tejada made headlines in the 2005-2006 offseason when he asked the Orioles to ship him out of town because he was tired of losing. He later backed off, then went out and posted monster numbers for a mediocre Orioles team despite trade rumors following him all season. Miggy batted .330, hit 24 home runs and knocked in 100, but many fans thought he lacked the enthusiasm and hustle that he showed when he first came to the O's in 2004.

*Nick Johnson (Nationals) - It was hard to pick a star from the Nationals now that Alfonso Soriano signed a megadeal with the Cubs, but while rookie Ryan Zimmerman got a lot of love last year, Nick Johnson is still the Nationals' best player. His .948 OPS in 2006 was good for eighth in the National League, better than New York golden boy David Wright, better than Braves slugger Andruw Jones and, get this, better than 2006-teammate Soriano. His injury history has been a problem, though, and 2006 was the first year he missed less than 30 games.

So who do you think the local sports world revolves around the most?

I'll post the results and some thoughts later.

"If he is not happy, I'll punch him."

The best quote of the MLB offseason is courtesy of Orioles third baseman Melvin Mora, in reference to Miguel Tejada. Here's the rest of the context from The Baltimore Sun article:

Mora said he spoke to Tejada about five days ago and the shortstop was "excited about every move the Baltimore Orioles made." ...

"He's fine," Mora said. "He says he is 215 pounds of muscle. That's what he tells me. He says that he is going to hit 40 home runs this year and drive in 200. I was like, 'You can drive in 200.' You know how many people we left on bases [last year]?

"If he is not happy, I'll punch him," Mora said. "He's happy. Sometimes, he says something because he wants [to win], but now he is relaxed and quiet. He knows the front office is making some moves. When we talked the other day, he said, 'Wow, did you see who we signed?'"

On an interesting side note, Mora said he'd be willing to move to left field if it was in the best interest of the team. The O's need a good hitter in left ... unfortunately Mora's 2006 isn't really what the team has in mind, I don't think. A .733 OPS isn't going to cut it, but Mora's 34 and I'd like to think he'll rebound.

If he's moving to left to make room for Aubrey Huff then we have all sorts of other problems to talk about, because Huff is terrible against lefties just like the rest of the Orioles and he can't field.

By the way, J.D. Drew has signed with the Red Sox, so I'm sure we'll be able to add him to the list of mediocre sluggers that torch the Orioles once they go to the Sox or Yankees.

Time To Put This Steroid Saga To Bed

OK maybe not the whole steroid saga, but at least the part that involves Jason Grimsley's identification of Brian Roberts, Jay Gibbons and Miguel Tejada as anabolic steroid users.

And here's why. (The Baltimore Sun)

Grimsley's lawyer sez:

"As to all five players named, Jason did not attribute steroid use to any of them."

And the clincher:

"There was no mention of Roberts or Gibbons at all ... The agents didn't even mention Roberts or Gibbons."

You can take that to mean Tejada was mentioned by someone at some point, I guess, but I'll assume that's the lingering effect of Rafael Palmeiro's now-infamous vitamin B-12 defense.

The L.A. Times isn't looking so hot right about now.

U.S. Attorney's Office Refutes L.A. Times Report

The newest twist in the Jason Grimsley affidavit saga has been provided by the U.S. Attorney's office in San Francisco, which issued a statement saying that the Los Angeles Times' report claiming that the names supplied by Grimsley to investigators included Orioles Miguel Tejada, Jay Gibbons and Brian Roberts.

Here's a link to the article in The Baltimore Sun.

U.S. Attorney and lead investigator Kevin V. Ryan said in a statement, "please be advised that these reports contain significant inaccuracies."

So now instead of questioning Grimsley's motives or knowledge of the situation, supporters of the supposedly accused can now question the accuracy of The Times' report as well.

Gibbons had the best reaction to the situation upon hearing the statement:

"What a shocker. This is all inaccurate? ... Like I said before, this is a complete joke."

Gotta love sarcasm.

Roch Kubako has some interesting takes, including a conversation with David Segui, who admitted to being named in the affidavit.

Segui says he doesn't even know how or why Grimsley would have known whether or not Roberts, Gibbons and Tejada were using performance enhancing drugs. Segui also said Roberts was "about as milk and cookies as you can get."

Kubatko also points out that Gibbons has always been one of the most outspoken players in the Majors about the need for steroid testing.

Here are the links to Roch:
Initial reaction
On Gibbons and Roberts (bottom few paragraphs)
Speaking with Segui

The Possible Fallout

By now it's all over the place.

The original story in The L.A. Times.

ESPN.

The Baltimore Sun ... x2.

SI.com

All of them say basically the same thing. Jason Grimsley, who was caught in June receiving a shipment of Human Growth Hormone, said in an affidavit that three Orioles were using anabolic steroids when he was on the team in 2004 and 2005.

Miguel Tejada, Jay Gibbons and Brian Roberts.

Tejada has been through this suspicion before. Jose Canseco speculated in his book that Tejada was on the juice because he bulked up and got a big payday when he put up power numbers. Then Rafael Palmeiro said he thought he might have tested positive because of some vitamin shots that Tejada gave him. However, the league went out of their way to say that Tejada had never tested positive.

Gibbons and Roberts have never been subject to any real documented suspicion, but I'm sure people have wondered.

The problem is, they test for anabolic steroids. This isn't human growth hormone, which the league does not test for. Wouldn't these things have shown up?

I guess that's the Orioles optimist in me coming out. I even wanted to believe Rafael Palmeiro until it became impossible.

But all this has me wondering what Peter Angelos' reaction will be.

The team will wrap up its ninth straight losing season this afternoon and Angelos was the subject of a fan protest a couple weeks ago. He's got to be feeling some heat to make things happen. Will the second team steroid scandal in as many years be what leads him to blow the team up?

Many thought Tejada should have been traded in the middle of the season and some still think he will be traded this offseason. Gibbons' injuries have had many questioning the contract extension he received last year, and he's a man without a position now that he's said he doesn't want to be a fulltime designated hitter and Nick Markakis has stolen his spot in right field.

But the big question mark is Brian Roberts. He's arbitration eligible and it seemed his extension was going to be a high priority for the team this offseason. If Angelos decides to blow up the team, can you really just deny arbitration to one of the game's most valuable second basemen with no replacement and only an implication and no proof of guilt?

Potentially, Angelos could feel the need to cleanse himself of this whole mess by creating a team almost entirely of players acquired or promoted after testing started. There's still no way to know that they're definitely clean, but at least there would be no Grimsley accusations and it would be hard to prove anything if they haven't been caught.

Markakis, Ramon Hernandez, Corey Patterson, Kevin Millar... It's a start, but not a very good one.

Of course this is purely specualation, and given Angelos history of an "ohhhh things will get better in time" attitude, it's hard to believe he'd actually feel the need to start over from scratch, but who knows what his reaction to this news will be?

One thing is for sure, this can't help in the efforts to lure big name free agents like Alfonso Soriano, Carlos Lee or Jason Schmidt. All of which means ... yes ... more years of sucking!

Your Worst Case Scenario

It's 3 a.m. on Sunday, October 1, and for some reason I'm awake and seeing this article from ESPN.com.

Basically, the names that Jason Grimsley implicated when he was taken in by police after a raid of his home have now been leaked, and they include three major players on the Baltimore Orioles.

Miguel Tejada, Brian Roberts and Jay Gibbons were all said by Grimsley to have taken anabolic steroids.

I guess the question is, do you trust a guy who was trying to save his own ass when he names three of the biggest names from his former team? I'd argue you do not, but it makes you wonder.

At the moment I'm skeptical. When I wake up on Sunday and have a clearer mind, that mood may turn to devastated.

I hate this.

Quick Hits: Covering all the in-season sports (and football)

Here's a nice thought about our local baseball teams:

The Orioles would have to go 22-22 over the remainder of the season to avoid a 90-loss season. The Nationals would have to go 22-23. Neither are likely to happen.

The Nationals certainly have the easier road if they're going to make that push, but if they should be beating teams like the Braves (10 meetings before the end of the season) and Phillies (nine meetings), they wouldn't be behind them in the standings. The Nats have 29 of their last 45 games against teams that are currently under .500.

The Orioles, on the other hand, get a murderers' row from here out. The only currently sub-.500 team the O's see before next season are the Devil Rays, who they'll play 6 times. Other than that it's the Yankees 10 times, the Twins and Red Sox six times each, the Tigers four times, and three-game sets against the Blue Jays, Rangers, Athletics and Angels.

Ouch.

---

Miguel Tejada was fined but not suspended for giving some Toronto fans the finger on Wednesday. Major League Baseball traditionally does not suspend people for that offense.

Tejada apologized for the gesture in a statement saying, "I was frustrated and should not have let things get to me. I am sorry and hope people will accept that and know that is not the kind of person I am."

I don't think anyone's too offended. I'm more offended by his recent run of strikeouts and pop-ups with the tying runs on base.

---

Preseason football for the Redskins and Ravens started over the weekend, and as much as I hate to talk about it because it's meaningless and stupid and there's nothing more annoying than being at Champp's and seeing people hoot and holler over no-names that won't be on the team in three weeks, it did provide me with an opportunity to rail against it yet again.

As always, the preseason is a source of significant injuries.

The Ravens managed to finish the first of four preseason games in good health. Derrick Mason sustained a mild concussion when catching Steve McNair pass up the middle, but he says he'll be fine.

The Redskins weren't so lucky. If they have three more games like Sunday's before the season starts, they won't have enough guys to take the field for the opener.

Clinton Portis was the big name injury, partially dislocating his shoulder when making a tackle after an interception. Portis is expected to miss the rest of the preseason, but the extent of the damage won't be known for a few days when doctors can assess the inflammation. He didn't hold back his frustration for TV viewers, saying he should have been taken out of the game before the play.

The 'Skins also had injuries to reserves Chris Clemons and Kerry Carter. Clemons, a linebacker, will be out for at least two weeks with a knee sprain, and running back Carter is done for the year with torn knee ligaments.

The Washington Post's Mike Wilbon says everything that I'd like to, and he's better at this than I am, so I'll just link to his column on why preseason games should not exist.

Of course, everyone in Baltimore's excited that Steve McNair expertly ran a scoring drive for the Ravens, but I refuse to get excited before it counts.

By the way, both teams lost, not that anyone should care.

---

D.C. United played to a 1-1 tie with Real Madrid of Spain's La Liga last Wednesday. Madrid, which features David Beckham, Ruud van Nistelrooy and a host of Brazilian nationals (Robinho, Roberto Carlos, Emerson), went up 1-0 in the 22nd minute on a goal by Roberto Carlos. United's Alecko Eskandarian scored just three minutes later to tie it.

After the game United midfielder Ben Olsen told reporters, "We're not going to win the [European] Champions League now, but I think we showed ourselves well and showed the league well."

Madrid star Ronaldo didn't make the trip to America.

D.C. United resumes MLS play on Wednesday at Giants Stadium in New Jersey where they'll take on the New York Red Bulls, who got smoked by Real Madrid rival FC Barcelona, 4-1, on Saturday night.

The Red Bulls are currently occupying the fourth and final playoff spot in the MLS East and are only four points out of second... but they're 21 points behind first-place United.

Take that.

---

The Mystics finished their regular season with a 93-81 loss to the New York Liberty on Sunday.

The Mystics now go on to face first-place Connecticut Sun (still a stupid name) in the first round of the playoffs. The best-of-three series kicks off on Friday at Verizon Center, with games two and three to be held Sunday and next Tuesday (if necessary, of course) in the Mohegan Sun casino in Uncasville, Conn.

It's awesome they play in a casino.

It's lame that the team is named for it.

I Hope You Can See This, Because Miggy's Doing It As Hard As He Can

In Wednesday afternoon's 4-3 loss to the Blue Jays, Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada got a little frustrated. After striking out in the eighth inning with the tying run on second base, Tejada apparently took some heckling from the Jays' faithful, and responded with an "obscene gesture," if you want to use the vernacular supported by ESPN.com and The Baltimore Sun in covering the topic. Normal people would just say he gave them the finger.

I prefer to say he shot 'em the bird.

Here's the evidence:

Thanks to Leitch at Orioles Hangout for capturing the gesture for all to see.

My initial question upon hearing about this was what is it about saying the words "middle" and "finger" next to each other in that order that doesn't pass the litmus test for what is acceptable in the mainstream media? For a profession that prides itself on describing things truthfully, clearly and concisely, using "obscene gesture" instead of "middle finger" leaves too much open to interpretation. That could cover everything from an "Italian chin flip" to an Ace Ventura-esque air humping.

But that's a journalistic morality debate for a different day and a more popular blog.

At Orioles Hangout, posters are concerned that Tejada will get suspended for the gesture, which would end his consecutive games played streak that stands at 1,033 games (as of August 10).

But outside of the streak ending, I just can't think of this as anything more than a humorous incident. This isn't a scandal. He didn't throw a baseball at someone. He didn't punch someone. In two weeks this will be completely forgotten.

When you're in the heat of competition sometimes you get annoyed and lose control, and giving the finger is such an easy and quick response. Most people have shot the bird to an overly aggressive driver or to someone taking 16 items to the Express Checkout at the grocery store. Sometimes you think someone has disrespected you by not voting to put you in the All-Star Game so when you hit a big shot you flick them off with both hands on the way back up the court. I once took off my goalie catching glove in an ice hockey game and flicked off a ref. It happens.

And as long as it's not something that you're doing chronically, it's not really worth any kind of outrage.

I'll admit that this is slightly worse than Gilbert Arenas' middle fingers directed at Celtics coach Doc Rivers because Miggy's ire was aimed at fans and not competitors, but any fans heckling a player probably aren't responding to middle fingers with the shock and awe that comes with never having seen obscene gestures.

Actually, Tejada probably made their day. They'll be telling their kids and grandkids about the day a former MVP shot 'em the bird.

Granted, as I said after the Arenas incident, if this was Gary Sheffield flicking off a group of O's fans I'd be calling for a lifetime ban. But then again, if it was Derek Jeter or someone else without a history of being a world class jerk, I'd probably just figure the fans were at fault. (Yeah, I know everyone hates Jeter and thinks he's overrated, and I agree that he doesn't deserve the national media hype he gets for every play he makes, but I can't take anyone serious who's questioning his credentials as a baseball player.)

As far as I'm concerned this is good for a bit of comic relief in another bad Orioles season. Now don't get me wrong, while I think it's funny once in a while, I don't want to see my favorite team's players making obscene gestures on TV all the time...

Unless they're really creative with it.

Quick Hits: Deadline passes, United loses, football still hasn't started

Well that was anti-climactic. Alfonso Soriano AND Miguel Tejada are still with their respective teams.

Tejada told The Sun he wasn't surprised despite all the deadline rumors. Perhaps more importantly, he told Sun reporter Roch Kubatko, "This team, we can win ... I want to play baseball here."

The O's also will be sticking with Jeff Conine, Rodrigo Lopez, Javy Lopez, Latroy Hawkins and Kevin Millar, all of whom had at least some trade talks surrounding them. They can still be dealt until August 31 if they pass through waivers.

There's still some speculation that Tejada will be traded in the winter, but my feeling has always been the same. Why sign Melvin Mora and Jay Gibbons to extended deals if you were looking to rebuild? They need to keep Tejada and go out and buy up a couple big name free agents with all that MASN money that Peter Angelos will supposedly be rolling in once he gets the network on Comcast.

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As for Soriano, I don't think too many people thought that he would still be with Washington after 4 p.m. Earlier in the week ESPN even reported that Soriano to the White Sox was as good as done, but no deal ever materialized. Team President Stan Kasten told The Washington Post that the Nats would attempt to re-sign Soriano in the off-season but "if it doesn't get done it doesn't get done."

That's optimism.

I know GM Jim Bowden was adamant about getting top dollar back, but when it's pretty clear that the team's not going to be able/willing to throw a competitive offer at Soriano after the season's over, don't you have to get something in return, even if it's not full value?

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Of course, as soon as I mention D.C. United in this blog for the first time in probably 10 months, they decide to end their own unbeaten streak by tripping two Real Salt Lake players in the penalty area (not at the same time), resulting in a pair of late penalty shots that turned a 1-0 United lead into a 2-1 loss. The most frustrating part was that the second trip occurred on the end line where the offenseman had no angle to shoot and seemingly no passing options.

The second most frustrating part is that the loss and a New England Revolution tie cut United's lead in the East down to 19 points with 11 games to play. How will they ever hold on?...

D.C. United is back playing Tuesday night at 7:30 against the Columbus Crew, but not on TV and it doesn't count in the standings. It's a U.S. Open Cup match, which, as far as I can tell, is just an excuse for MLS teams to kick the crap out of a bunch of amateurs.

More exciting is this Saturday's MLS All-Star Game, in which the best of the MLS will face off against last year's English Premier League champs, Chelsea F.C., in Chicago. The game is at 5:30 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN.

There are seven D.C. United players on the MLS All-Star team (forwards Jaime Moreno and Alecko Eskandarian, midfielders Christian Gomez and Freddy Adu, defenders Bobby Boswell and Joshua Gros, and goalkeeper Troy Perkins). Chelsea is chock full of familiar faces from the World Cup, including Ukraine's Andriy Shevchenko, Germany's Michael Ballack, Ghana's Michael Essien, Portugal's Ricardo Carvalho, and England's Joe Cole, Frank Lampard and John Terry.

One of my loyal readers (hi mom!) e-mailed me today wanting to know what the deal is with soccer refereeing, since it seems to be more uneven than the other popular American sports.

I haven't watched a ton of soccer and I'm no expert, but it seems to me to be pretty similar to basketball in that there are some things that you know are likely to get called no matter who is refereeing (like slide tackling someone in the box, D.C. United), and other things you have to feel out early in the game. Just like in basketball, refs establish early on what kind of contact will be allowed and as long as they are consistent there shouldn't be any complaints. It's probably just more noticeable in soccer because if a foul is called it could result in a goal in a low-scoring game (and in the case of a penalty kick, an easy goal in a low-scoring game) , whereas in basketball it means you go to the free-throw line for a chance at two points in a game where both teams are probably going to score at least 80.

There. Now you're informed and have no excuse not to watch the MLS All-Star Game.

That means you, mom.

Blog Quotes of the Week: July 21-28

It's almost the weekend, and since it's once in a blue moon that means it's time for Blog Quotes of the Week! (I had some time so I figured what the heck... Let's make with the funny.)

But first some stuff.

If you didn't pick it up based on my link at the end of my last post, I've become a bit of a soccer fan since the World Cup. That's right. I get Fox Soccer Channel and GOLTV and I think that makes me pretty special.

So this Saturday D.C. United puts their 14-game unbeaten streak on the line against Real Salt Lake, who is in last place in the West. D.C. United pretty much runs the joint, leading the East by 20 points. The game is at 9 p.m. Eastern on Comcast SportsNet. If you enjoyed the World Cup for more than just the violence, you should take some time to check out one of the most dominant franchises in all of sports.

Monday is the MLB trade deadline, and that could mean goodbye to a pair of the area's superstars, Miguel Tejada and Alfonso Soriano. I think for the good of the Nats Soriano HAS to go, and he has to fetch a score of hot prospects. As for Miggy, I just don't think they can get enough value to make it worth trading him when he's still locked up for another three years at what is now looking like a bargain contract. That being said, the O's do have to make some changes... We'll know on Monday.

And Roch makes this segue easy...

Roch Kubatko on the state of the Orioles:

"The more people I talk to who are close to the Orioles, the more I'm convinced that Miguel Tejada stays. And that no trades are imminent. And that it's a really, really bad idea to give up 10 runs in one inning."
-- Roch Around the Clock, July 26

Federal Baseball's Basil on Nats trades:

"When Brad Wilkerson was traded, I was sad intellectually, which might just prove I'm stupid; when Alfonso Soriano is traded, I'll be sad emotionally, which might just prove I'm human."
-- Federal Baseball, July 27

Roch (again) on the Orioles ineptitude with runners in scoring position:

"The team bus departed the stadium without Miguel Tejada. Rather than take his usual seat, he was left on base."
-- Roch Around the Clock, July 26

Capital Punishment's Chris Needham, not impressed with Nats GM Jim Bowden's one good trade:

"The man's a ham. He sees a TV camera or a reporter with a recorder and his chubby little cheeks engorge with blood like a teenager first discovering late-night Cinemax."
-- Capital Punishment, July 26

And since, as any Camden Chat reader knows, a list of funny quotes can NOT be complete without a LarryBigbie3 quip:

"The old Baltimore logo(s) kicked trucks of ass."
-- Camden Chat, July 28

So that's it. Enjoy your weekend.

And please, PLEASE if you see anything hilarious on a blog or message board about local sports, e-mail me with the quote and a link at cstone@beltwaysportsbeat.com. As always, feel free to self-nominate, you attention-craving narcissists!

For You Orioles Stat Geeks

With the Orioles having some marginal success (15-14 from May 28 to June 28), I decided to look at some numbers. With everyone focusing on the improved pitching, I noticed that a lot of the hitters have stepped it up in June as well.


As I jinx everyone on the Orioles...

PLAYER		SEASON				JUNE
		AVG	OBP	SLG		AB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Jeff Conine		.254	.333	.424		59	.305	.379	.492
Brandon Fahey		.264	.315	.347		46	.261	.333	.413
Jay Gibbons		.274	.312	.495		7	.429	.429	.429
Razor Ramon		.287	.351	.524		93	.290	.356	.613
Javy Lopez		.276	.323	.429		90	.289	.319	.467
Nick Markakis		.250	.326	.337		59	.322	.385	.390
Luis Matos		.205	.282	.339		47	.255	.352	.383
Kevin Millar		.242	.349	.376		71	.254	.357	.408
Melvin Mora		.290	.355	.427		93	.247	.311	.301
Scorey Patterson		.282	.324	.429		100	.270	.305	.330
Brian Roberts		.314	.383	.415		109	.303	.374	.394
Ed Rogers		.211	.200	.211		9	.111	.100	.111
Miguel Tejada		.314	.367	.517		99	.293	.343	.404

An interesting thing that this table displays is that the guys who are having better-than-their-season OPS months (with more than 10 ABs... sorry Gibby... and Kris Benson) are Conine, Fahey, Hernandez, Javy, Markakis, Matos and Millar. Surprisingly absent from that list are Mora, Tejada and Roberts.

So ranking OPS for June, you get:

1) Ramon Hernandez .969 (and that was including an 0-for-23 skid)
2) Jeff Conine .870
3) Miguel Tejada .802 (even on a "down" month, Tejada's one of our best players)
4) Javy Lopez .786
5) Nick Markakis .774
6) Brian Roberts .768
7) Kevin Millar .766
8) Brandon Fahey .746
9) Luis Matos .735
10) Corey Patterson .635
11) Melvin Mora .612 (Melvin what are you doing down here?)

Granted, from June 1 to June 28 the team is two games under .500, and that's when these stats were accrued, but with Tejada and Roberts not on their normal pace and Mora scuffling, it's good that the O's have some other guys stepping it up, because every team is going to have stretches when their top guys aren't red hot and typically over the last 8 or 9 years the Orioles have been the kind of team to let those stretches crush them.