Getting into the swing of things with early Birds

With the first week of baseball in action, our longtime baseball insider Allen McCallum discusses Orioles early strengths and weaknesses and the much-discussed ABS system of balls and strikes with Nestor.

• [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Attend Faid’s next Friday before the Giants game, bring Maryland Lottery scratch-off tickets, have Harlem Globetrotters tickets available, and obtain the new pack from Roz by next Friday after regaining full health.

Orioles Season Start and Introduction of Guests

• Nestor Aparicio welcomes listeners to WNST AM 1570, discussing the start of the baseball season and his Maryland crab cake tour.
• Nestor introduces his longtime friend and former baseball reporter, Alan McCallum, to discuss the Orioles’ early season strengths and weaknesses.
• Nestor highlights the competitive nature of the Orioles this season, mentioning their five good starting pitchers and a balanced lineup.
• Nestor and Alan discuss the impact of the new pitch clock and its effect on the game’s competitiveness, noting the increased drama and controversies it has created.

Impact of the Pitch Clock and Umpire Decisions

• Nestor and Alan debate the effectiveness of the new pitch clock, with Nestor expressing surprise at how much it has improved the game.
• Allen McCallum agrees that the pitch clock adds drama and creates unexpected controversies, citing a recent incident involving the Twins.
• Allen discusses the historical context of umpire decisions, noting that great pitchers often receive more favorable calls from umpires.
• Nestor and Allen agree that the pitch clock helps reduce the influence of umpires and makes the game more equal for all players.

Lineup Strategy and Modern Baseball Philosophy

• Allen McCallum criticizes the current lineup strategy used by the Orioles, arguing that it leaves weaker hitters in disadvantageous positions.
• Allen explains how traditional lineups helped balance the strength of hitters, providing better opportunities for young players to develop.
• Nestor and Allen discuss the modern trend of “three true outcomes” (walk, home run, strikeout) and how it affects the role of the number two hitter.
• Allen suggests that the Orioles’ current lineup setup may not be optimized for success, leaving potential runs on the table.

Pitching and Bullpen Concerns

• Nestor and Allen discuss the early performance of the Orioles’ starting pitchers, noting that none have looked stellar but expressing confidence in their quality.
• Allen compares the Orioles’ rotation to those of the Red Sox and Yankees, believing that the Orioles can compete with any team in the American League East.
• Nestor and Allen express concerns about the bullpen, noting that the Orioles’ bullpen is volatile and may need reinforcements as the season progresses.
• Allen suggests that the Orioles’ bullpen strategy involves managing the current pitchers carefully and potentially making trades at the deadline to strengthen the bullpen.

Defensive Concerns and Player Development

• Nestor and Allen discuss the defensive issues faced by the Orioles, particularly in left field and center field.
• Allen emphasizes the importance of having a strong defensive left fielder at Camden Yards, given the deeper outfield and more territory to cover.
• Nestor and Allen express concerns about the defense, noting that the team has made errors and had issues with throwing to the wrong bases.
• Allen highlights the potential of players like Kobe Mayo and Jeremiah Jackson, suggesting that they could have a significant impact on the team if they develop well.

Team Management and Player Contracts

• Nestor and Allen discuss the Orioles’ management strategy, noting that many of the team’s players are represented by Scott Boras.
• Allen argues that the Orioles’ management should sign players like Jordan Westburg to long-term contracts if they believe in their potential.
• Nestor and Allen discuss the challenges of signing players early, noting that many players, including those represented by Boras, do not sign contracts until they are healthy.
• Allen suggests that the Orioles’ strategy of signing players like Basayo and Baz to long-term contracts could save money in the long run, given the escalating salaries in baseball.

Future Prospects and Team Dynamics

• Nestor and Allen discuss the future prospects of players like Jeremiah Jackson, Blaze Alexander, and Kobe Mayo, noting their potential impact on the team.
• Allen emphasizes the importance of having versatile players who can play multiple positions, citing Mateo as an example.
• Nestor and Allen discuss the team’s rebuilding process, noting that the Orioles are still in the early stages of developing their young talent.
• Allen expresses confidence in the players the Orioles have, suggesting that they have a chance to win every night with a major league pitcher on the mound.

Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks

• Nestor and Allen wrap up their discussion, expressing optimism about the Orioles’ season and the potential for success.
• Nestor thanks Allen for his insights and expresses excitement about the upcoming baseball season.
• Allen reiterates his belief in the Orioles’ potential, noting that the first few weeks of the season will be crucial in determining the team’s success.
• Nestor and Allen look forward to watching the Orioles and discussing their progress throughout the season.

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

Orioles, baseball season, pitch clock, starting pitchers, bullpen, defense, lineup strategy, analytics, player development, Scott Boras, Jordan Westburg, Kobe Mayo, Jeremiah Jackson, Blaze Alexander, rebuilding.

SPEAKERS

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Nestor Aparicio, Allen McCallum

Nestor Aparicio  00:01

Welcome home. We are W, N, S T, am 1570 Towson, Baltimore. We are Baltimore positive. We are positively in the baseball season, which allows me to get the Maryland crab cake tour back out on the road. We’ll be at fade these next Friday before the Giants game. I’ll have Maryland lottery scratch offs. I have the Harlem Globetrotters. Looking forward to get my new pack from Roz I’ll have those by next Friday, once I get my full health back and my wife’s full health back, I appreciate everybody sticking around. Last couple weeks, I’ve been in South America running around, but baseball has begun. It has been a good start to the season for the Orioles, and it allows me to bring in so my closest friends, Alan McCallum, has been my friend for 30 years. At this point, 31 I think if we’re getting up on into our fourth decade of friendship, he, of course, was our baseball reporter for many, many, many years, we like to bring him in here to chat about things, first things first, been very few seasons, and I’ve known you a lot longer than I’ve known Luke, where there’s going to be a season. They’re a competitive team. They have a chance now how it goes. It’s baseball. Who knows, right? Five really good starting pitchers. They got a lineup that’s real. They have youth, they have veterans, they have Alonso. They PIP bad that. They put bullpen guy in and Helsley. They you know, even the bullpen is a mess. Defense could be a mess, all that, but I can’t think of a time, and I’ve talked to you for a long time, and I just did an hour with Mark Messina as well, where on Sunday night, at the end of the first series, when the twins managers get himself thrown out, arguing with the machine that I wouldn’t have told you that I would have liked ABS baseball, you and Luke had more of a conversation amongst yourselves that day. It cost us a month. Month and a half ago, we got together for some crab cakes, and I see it in spring training, and it’s like, the pitch clock thing was, like, it’s a novelty till it happens, then when it happens, it’s ultra competitive, because you get in real games, not spring training games, dude, I’m five minutes into this ABS thing, and I’ve been talking about it all week, and I you know, and if you’re watching the games, my wife and I sat on Sunday in a close game. Now, Saturday was the shadows and opening days. Opening day and you’re just it’s opening day, right? But Sunday was the game where it got into the bullpen. It got into your lead, my lead, their lead, your lead, my lead, your bad bullpen, my worst bullpen, my bad defense, your phantom tags. All sorts of things were going on, but my wife is getting sick as a dog. I’m a cold I gave her, and we both sat here, and she’s like, this is more interesting. And I’m like, Yeah, this is way more interesting. And that’s why they need to add a third one, because everybody needs to have one in the ninth inning. Boy, they they made baseball better. And I text you, and I text every nerd I knew who loves baseball, and said, My God, they’ve made baseball better. And then I thought they did this Allen, to get rid of the umpires. They’re never going to get rid of the umpires, because this creates an interesting conflict. And if they just had a box that said it’s a ball and a box that said it’s a strike, it wouldn’t be like American Idol. It wouldn’t be good TV anymore.

Allen McCallum  03:07

Yeah, I had, you’re right about that. I mean, it certainly creates some drama and some unexpected controversies. It turned out for the for the twins the other day. You know, I’ve on more than one occasion, you’ve said on an August afternoon when the Orioles were out of it, you know, who’s watching the Padres and the pirates go at it on this day in August, and I would raise my hand and say, I am because I love baseball, but, yeah, it’s a sport that in the 21st Century doesn’t move as fast as a lot of people like it’s a sport where they create more and more things around the ballparks so that the people that are there just to hang out their friends and drink beer can go and entertain themselves. If the game doesn’t interest them, you’re creating a situation that keeps eyes attached to the game if it’s close, because every strike really does matter in this moment, in a way that that let’s I won’t say it is more tangible, but it’s different. It does create a theater, an attribute of theater, to the whole thing. Yeah, you like it. I like getting the calls right. And let me say this, it’s clear that umpires, by and large, are better than we generally give them credit for being but how many times have we seen the catcher raise the ball three inches back into the strike zone, and the umpire calls it, and everybody loses their mind. Or Greg Maddux, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine would be it would be a different world for them, particularly Tom Glavine, in the sense that great pitcher. Get. We’ve I’ve heard you say it. I know I’ve said it. Great pitchers get calls that other pitchers don’t get. And in theory, if you have a good catcher, the ABS system, if not eliminates, certainly reduces that quality. It makes everybody more equal, and I, I am absolutely for the game being equal for everybody. If you’re a bad pitcher and you have a good day, but your reputation says you can’t hit the corner and the umpire acknowledge, you know, calls it like that, a good catcher says, I’m sorry, I’m that’s a strike that makes a difference that makes all the difference in those games, right? Bases loaded, two, two. You throw a ball, umpire, you throw a strike. Umpire calls it a ball in the corner. Catcher says that’s a strike game. Oh, that’s, that’s the end of the inning, right? I mean, that’s, that is the ball game. So, yeah, I don’t know how you can’t, like, getting the calls right, being fair and having it be more equal for all the players on the field,

Nestor Aparicio  06:12

it’s a lot of pressure on the batter, especially early in the game, to waste one and yeah, you know, you don’t want to be the guy going Back to the dugout and the manager says, Dude, I’m taking away your privilege to even invoke it. Or if the manager says, First five innings, we’re not challenging things, or, like, I don’t, they haven’t given them enough. Two is not enough. I think they need three, right? And but I, I didn’t think I’d like it. I didn’t. I didn’t. Honestly, I’ve been in South America last couple weeks, and with the state of the country, and I know you were out doing no kings March. Peace to you. I was sick as a dog. My wife sick as a dog. She didn’t even do it. There are more important things to think about now that I’m into baseball season and I’m watching it, and I’m like, this might be the best thing they’ve ever done. I mean, like, and, and that’s I’ve been on the air 35 years. This is, this has made the game more interesting. And there have not been a lot of innovations that have done that. Yeah. I mean,

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Allen McCallum  07:14

what happened the other day, right? I guess what happened is that Shelton was looking for the catcher to call it, and the pitcher called for it. So he’s looking at the catcher, and he says he didn’t call it in time, but Helsley called for it right away. I mean, almost as soon as he saw that it was called a ball, he called for it. So I mean, it’s where you’re looking, where the ball actually lands, what the game situation is. I don’t know if, if I’m a manager, I think every team has to have a philosophy about this now, right?

Nestor Aparicio  07:48

Oh, my God. And, and it’s going to be moving too. It’s not, you know what I mean. They’re going to be changing their philosophy as situations dictate.

Allen McCallum  07:56

And you’re exactly so, like you mentioned, not in the first five innings, but if you have the bases loaded in the first in the third inning, and you’ve got a good you have any hitter up in a good count, and the the pitch can sway it one way or the other. You know, maybe you say you you are more cautious in the in the early innings, but that situation, if you, if you think you’re going to make you’re going to get the call right, you make that call. You got, you’ve got a situational awareness, right? If this is, if this is football, isn’t that you know when to use a penalty, when to to take the penalty? I don’t know. I don’t know. I’m talking about anyway. My point is that baseball is a game that strategies. It is important, and it’s a moment for the game to really start figuring out how they’re going to do things. But yeah, Orioles and twins on a Sunday afternoon. It was the last couple of innings, and let’s be clear, the twins had used all their challenges, and they were at least two or three pitches in those last couple of innings that they could have used to challenge and probably gotten it right, and they didn’t have one. So they will

Nestor Aparicio  09:09

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want that to happen again. Yeah, that’s a lesson learned for the manager who got himself thrown out in his third ball game.

Allen McCallum  09:16

So I mean, the philosophy is going to going to evolve as you get further into the seasons. But you know, again, I’m going to jump back to equality, like Yankees and and White Sox. In August, the Yankees are in contention. The whites are white. Sox aren’t. And you know, historically, Yankees are are, tend to get the calls, or at least that’s the way we perceive it. And the ABS makes it more level for everybody if you know how to use if you use it the right way. So the preferred

Nestor Aparicio  09:47

strike zone of Greg Maddux,

Allen McCallum  09:49

I think it’s a good I think it’s good for the game and and maybe the most important thing for the game is that it’s quick. If it took a minute in between every pitch,

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Nestor Aparicio  09:57

it wouldn’t be improving the game.

Allen McCallum  09:59

It wouldn’t work. But, but it’s coming really quickly, and I think that’s a great thing.

Nestor Aparicio  10:03

You went to opening day, Alan. Give me a little scouting report. How’s your sister? And I saw you went out and was full, and I wanted to go, and then I just fell apart. I mean, I was just a disaster on Thursday and Friday and Saturday around here, new new scoreboard. I didn’t look like you were in the truest Club Lounge, but you know, you were back out there, certainly a lot of energy. I like the team I and I’ve told you that I think they’re going to win 92 games.

Allen McCallum  10:32

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It was a great day like what? 80 degrees, beautiful outside. Everybody was was pumped up. It’s been a while since, since you sort of felt that energy? Well, yeah, it certainly didn’t come last year. In the last and through the end of 24 things weren’t quite as pumped up, but everybody was enthused, and there was a lot of energy. It was. It was a really good day. I like the club. We talked about the bullpen before the season got started, and I think there’s room to question that we talked about the defense before the season got started, and there’s room to be concerned about that we’re talking about innovations in the game. I hate the lineups that he’s been putting, that Albernaz has been putting out there. They’re deeply into the analytics, the way they set it up. It’s become clear to me that the game, the way lineups used to set up, it created situations where even your weaker hitters were often with either your weakest hitter was a number nine, and you sort of lived with that. But let’s take Manny Machado, for example, you’ve got a young player coming up in the majors, and he’s, you believe he’s going to be good, but you want to get him some pitches, so you put him in the number two spot early on, between a quality hitter and a guy who knows how to get on base, so that he becomes he gets more pitches to see, right? You don’t know what this kid’s going to do. He hasn’t been established yet. It created situations where young guys got better pitches, or in some situations, it may create a situation where a hitter who isn’t as strong is going to get better pitches to hit, because you’d rather face him than the quality lead off hitter or the number three hitter, and it helped balance the lineup. It helped everybody along the way. Today’s lineups create situations where your your first three hitters are your best players, period. And then the lineup literally gets weaker as you get all As you get further down. And guys that could use some help, that could use some support, are left out on their own. It’s it speaks to the belief that war is a real stat, which I don’t really think it is. It speaks to the idea that every player is an individual in a in a baseball lineup. And I believe and can and can show examples of players who were made better by the lineups they were in, guys like Scott Brosius, brochus, in the Yankees lineup, and when they were winning World Championships on a yearly basis. Right? Guys that when you put them in lineups, in other with other teams, they weren’t particularly special, but because they were the weaker guy in the Yankee lineup, the guy that you’d rather pitch to. They got better pitches. And I say that to say the way the Orioles are stacking their lineup right now, it hangs the six, seven and eight guys out to dry, because either they’re good or they’re not, they’re not going to get any help from any quality players around them. And I think that you leave runs and opportunities on the table. When you do that, and I think you you, you shoot your your shot in the if you have your, if Aaron judge is Batting second and the number two spot at the beginning of the game, he hits a home run. Great. It’s a solo home run. Where, if he’s batting third or fourth, and you have a couple guys on, that’s that’s an additional run or two. The way that lineups are being built now, I really think leave a lot of runs on the on the table, or potential runs on the table. And the way the Orioles are setting their lineup right now, I think is ultimately going to be it’s going to weaken their opportunities now, Saturday and Sunday, it was cold outside. You had the you had the shadows. There were a lot of things going on. I think it’s unfair to judge the offense based on based on that, particularly on Saturday, but in the long run, I think that they’re going to, they’re going to have to figure out something else, because, like this, this lineup is not set up to succeed.

Nestor Aparicio  14:31

That’s an interesting I mean, I didn’t know we’re going there, but I’m thinking about what the two hole used to represent. And I, I would agree with you, but there is a part of modern baseball which is either strike out or hit a home run. So exactly, it doesn’t really matter, right?

Allen McCallum  14:49

It’s three true outcome baseball, walk home run, strike out, and the number two guy used to be a guy who either was really good at getting on base or was good. Moving a runner into scoring position, doing little things that would help the number three, who is generally the best hitter, and number four, who is the the probably the one with the most power, and

Nestor Aparicio  15:09

the two hitter would see strikes because they were afraid of the three and four. This is my point.

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Allen McCallum  15:13

This is my point. So yes, Aaron judge gets an extra at bat because he’s hitting further up the lineup. Gunner Henderson gets an extra bat, in theory, because they’re hitting closer to the top of the lineup. But how many runners? How many runners would they have a chance to drive in if there were, there was another guy in front of them that got on base? So it’s, it’s a, it’s a philosophy change for the sport, and

Nestor Aparicio  15:39

I got a complimentary lineup. It’s made by chat GPT.

15:42

That’s that is exactly what I believe. Yes, Allen

Nestor Aparicio  15:45

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McCallum is here. He thinks about baseball a lot. He’s been doing that for all the 30 years that I’ve known him. How do you feel about the team? How do you feel about the pitching?

Allen McCallum  15:57

It’s really early. You know, you would have loved to see radish and Boz come out and throw seven notes, shout out innings like like Rogers. Did you know none of them have looked stellar early on. Rogers got out of situations that he created for himself. Bradish, the first couple innings looked great, and then didn’t. Boz got better, I guess, as the game as he went, went through the game, but he didn’t go deep. It’s early. I’m not judging anybody by their first start. I I believe that there’s quality in this rotation. I believe that are there better rotations in the in the American League East? Yes, I take the Red Sox rotation. I take the Yankees rotation once Cole and Rondon get in there, get back up to the majors, recovering from injury, but the Orioles rotation can compete with any team in baseball. I mean, I believe that. So we’ll see how it shakes out. I think we all know that in modern baseball, five guys in a rotation isn’t going to cut it, particularly when a couple of them are coming off of injuries that they need to recover from, and you want to, you want to care for them slowly, and the days of every pitcher going 100 pitches deep into a start that don’t doesn’t exist anymore. So it’ll have to be managed, and we don’t know anything about Albernaz In that situation, and we certainly know Elias in the front office will have their hand in that as well. But as everybody else has said, the picture that was their most consistent and through the most innings last year is in triple A right now, which speaks to something about the way that they the team is at this point, and I’m excited to see

Nestor Aparicio  17:45

them compete, concerns me, though,

Allen McCallum  17:48

we’ll know a lot in the first few weeks, right? I mean, the competition that they’re going up against early isn’t necessarily the cream of the crop in in baseball. So if they if they’re five or five to seven games over 500 you’ll feel a little better than if they’re at 500 coming through it. So, yeah, I think the first three weeks will tell us a lot about this club and

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Nestor Aparicio  18:09

what they need to do. Bullpen. I mean, I think Housley is going to be okay. I was good to see cano do something, you know, over the weekend the Nunes thing’s interesting to me, but I the bullpen. I’ll let it breathe. And if they blow three games in the first month, they blow three games in the first month, I won’t shock me. I know the defense is, you know, I’m snow cones out there throwing to the wrong bases. I think they’re going to be adequate on their best day. They’re going to make errors. All that being said, I think they’re going to bop the baseball a little bit. And I think the starters can hang into the fifth or sixth inning. And for that, I think they’re going to have a chance to win.

Allen McCallum  18:47

Okay, bullpen, we all believe that he that Elias should have done more with the bullpen. But here’s the thing, the Los Angeles Dodgers last year went out and got a couple of the best arms they could find for the bullpen, and at the end of the year, they had to throw starters out of there, because none of it worked out. Bullpens are the most volatile part of any baseball team. You can think you have an A class bullpen, and you can be scratching to find find people to fill it in July. So if you tell me that Elias should have done more to fortify the bullpen. I agree with you, and I accept that that’s it. If you tell me he’s put guys in and let’s be where kittridge and Aiken are not there right now. So a lot will determine be determined by how quickly they get back guys that you that have a track record, and you you feel decent about if you tell me that he built a bullpen where he wants to see what some guys can do early, and that, in theory, should be able to hold on enough to get them to July, and that at the somewhere around the trade deadline, he will fortify the bullpen with the. Guys out there on teams that aren’t competing contending, that can you can trade for and get to help strengthen your bullpen for the stretch in the postseason, guys

Nestor Aparicio  20:10

are actually doing it at the moment, not

Allen McCallum  20:12

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right at the moment. If you tell me that’s the plan I’m on board for that, that makes sense to me. The trick is you can’t have your season get lost early because you didn’t have enough guys to help you win now. So that’s a dance. It’s an interesting dance. We’ll see what happens. You know Tyler wells gave up some runs this weekend. I believe that he’s going to be a strong piece. I’d really love to see Cano bounce back. I’m not sure that I bring that canoe. Is a guy I’m going to bring in at this point in the season anyway, with two runners on and less than than two outs to get to get out. He’s he’s just wild enough that you could walk the bases loaded and get in trouble, but we’ll see. He certainly has more track record than some of the other guys in the pen. They’re going they’re throwing out there. So, yeah, they’ve got a lot of things to figure out, and the bullpen is probably the scariest part defensively. You know, Kobe may have made some great plays at third base already. Do. I think he’s going to win a Gold Glove? No, I do not, but if he is, if he can hold it down and he can hit, let’s go for it. Probably left and center field are the scariest places right now. Left field in particular, I’ve said this to you for years. I believe it wholeheartedly. The when the Orioles respect the defense that is required in left field, they are better when you put I can make an argument that it may be more important to put your best defensive outfielder in left field at Camden Yards than in center. It is deeper from gap, from line to gap, you have more territory to cover and to put. You can’t just put a plotter out in left field, angles, the throw, all those things are going to help determine

Nestor Aparicio  22:16

what this team were kicking the ball around. And start the weekend was not good.

Allen McCallum  22:21

And look, he hadn’t played there regularly. I’m not throwing him under the under the bus at this moment. I’m just saying that the management of defense in left field may be the most important thing at home in Camden Yards that the Orioles can can figure out. And you just can’t, you can’t, you can’t say I will live with what we get. It does. It doesn’t work that way out there. The defense hasn’t killed them yet. We’ll see what happens. We’ll see

Nestor Aparicio  22:50

what happens. Alan McCallum is our guest. He’s our longtime baseball Insider. He’s been my friend for a million years, and we love talking baseball. It is a baseball season around here, any rare baseball season where we have a chance and spending money, Alan Shane, boss, and making that investment, dude, it ain’t my money, but certainly, this is not the Angelos clan running a team anymore. No.

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Allen McCallum  23:18

And look, you know, we’ve heard for at least the last couple of years. You know Elias is failing because he hasn’t signed any of his guys. A lot of the guys on this team are Scott are represented by Scott Boris Nestor. They don’t sign early. They just don’t. So why? Why would you indict your general manager or the guy, your president of baseball operations, for not being able to sign Scott wars clients early, no, but a very almost nobody does that. But if you sign the guys you can sign. Let’s go for it.

Nestor Aparicio  23:50

Sign the guys you want to sign right absolutely.

Allen McCallum  23:54

And let me here. Here’s a case I’ll make for Scott Boris client, Jordan. What? There’s no better time to sign Jordan Westberg, if you believe in Him, than right now, where he’s injured, he’s coming off, he’s entering a season injured again. I think we all believe that when he’s healthy, he is a player that can impact a team, maybe not an MVP, but he’s the next guy in theory. I think we all believe that versatile plays decently at third base and at second base and carries himself in a way that I think a lot of people in this town like. Unfortunately, he can’t he hasn’t been healthy. But if you believe in Jordan westburg, even though he’s a Scott bores client, you say, here’s what I want to do. I want to give you, I want to sign you for five years at, I don’t know, $15 million if you’re Jordan Westburn. When you have to listen to that, I mean, I understand that gunner Henderson, there’s, there’s no reason for gunner Henderson to sign a contract with the Orioles or anybody else for that matter, at this moment his career. But if you’re Jordan westburg, I and you believe in him. You. Believe that he’s going to end up recovering and be good, or maybe you wait until he is healthy. I’ve explored that territory. It’s about the players you believe in so but the point is, they’ve signed basayo. They’ve signed baz they believe that these players are going to impact long term, and ultimately it will save them some money on the back end, because I think we’ve all seen how dramatically salaries in baseball have escalated over the last decade. I don’t know how you could say that’s not a good deal.

Nestor Aparicio  25:31

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Al McCallum is here. We are talking baseball, thinking baseball, and on the baseball front, I know you’re Jeremiah Jackson guy and got guys that hit the ball, the blaze Alexander kid. I mean, there’s just so. So there were six of these guys on the opening day roster last year. So many new guys. Anything stuck out at you that you like? You got a favorite yet, or anything like that.

Allen McCallum  25:57

It’s really too early for that look. I mean, Jeremiah Jackson might go through his career hit 120 but I like the way he approaches his at bats. I like the way the ball comes off his bat. He looks like he hits line drives, he makes contact. He seems to have an approach at the plate. That makes sense. I’ve seen Blaze Alexander, what one full game. He got a big hit, and in a bat or two here, they’re way too early to be seen. They say he’s good defensively. I believe that it’s great to have a guy who can, who can run around the field, infield and outfield. Mateo was a guy you believed in his glove on the infield, but you put him in center field, and it was, you know, you’re you’re hiding your your head, right? If he’s, there are few things that are more useful in baseball than a good player who can play in a lot of positions and bring you quality at most or all of them. So I’ve got no problem that plays Alexander. We’ll see how, what kind of hitter he matures into? Yeah, these are guys that I like, and if you’re going to start with holiday and Westberg on the shelf, I think Kobe Mayo offensively has a chance to beat to really impact this club. I’m glad they didn’t trade him away. I think they can figure this out with him. I like Jeremiah Jackson, whether there’s room for him on this club, I don’t know if, within the amount of left handed hitters that they have on in this in this organization, I’m not a guy. I’m not a huge platoon fan, but it may prove that they really need to do that if you find out that some of your left handed hitters just can’t handle going up against the toughest left handed pitchers in baseball. And let’s face it, quite a few of them are in the American League East. So you certainly have to have to figure out if if they can play and where to play them if they can. So it sounds a lot like the Orioles are still rebuilding, and in a lot of ways, that’s what I Elias is best at. I think, I think we have to get used to there’s always going to be sort of tinkering, because he wants to figure the next guy out. But I like the players that they’ve got right now enough to say, let’s give it a shot and see what they can do. I like the fact

Nestor Aparicio  28:22

that they have a major league pitcher on the mound every night. That that’s where they are. They’re not trying out Norfolk guys, and for that, I think they’ll have a chance to win every night. Alan McCallum is my dude. I will see you. We get to a ball game sometime. Okay? Absolutely, I’m looking forward to it, my dude. Alan McCallum, I am Nestor. We are W NST. Am 1570 Towson, Baltimore. Talk a lot of baseball around here, Luke and I’ll get some football into because they’re going to draft some football players later in the month. Stay with us. We’re W NST. You.