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The Winter Meetings are coming to a close in Texas, and so far it’s just amazing how much press the Marlins are getting – and how little we’ve heard about the Yankees. Seriously?

As for the Orioles, while we’ve gotten sound-bites and news out of Dan Duquette (he seems to be quite chatty, unlike MacPhail) and Buck Showalter, little has happened on the organizational front.

They made a minor transaction, re-signing minor league Brandon Erbe, while losing a couple of farmhands; however, the Orioles have been talking about bigger and better things.

For now, the Orioles have not made an impact move, but they have their eyes on Prince Fielder from a distance. In addition, they are rumored to be into Cuban slugger Yoenis Cespedes and looking for a pitcher or pitchers via trade – specifically the White Sox’s Gavin Floyd.

The Orioles don’t seem to have many pawns available in a trade, and the ones they have – Adam Jones, Jim Johnson, Robert Andino and Jeremy Guthrie – really are not available due to the depth on the roster. However, Brad Bergesen’s name has come up from time to time and they do have some young players that can move in minor deals.

We all want the team to get better and for Jim Duquette to make a move. I do think that the new general manager wants to wheel and deal to show that he still ‘has it’ – in addition to making the Orioles more competitive.

Finally, Duquette thinks that the Orioles can reach the .500 level – or inch above it. Um, I don’t think that is going to happen unless there is a serious overhaul with this team and the front office opens up the wallet big-time. Plus, the young talent – especially, the pitchers – would need to take a serious step forward and avoid the up-downs during a long season.

As painful as it may be to hear, the organization has to focus on rebuilding from the bottom-up and not worry about their win-loss record in 2012. They don’t have any impact minor leaguers to fill-in key positions in case of injury, or bait in need of a trade.

I want the Orioles to be American League contenders; however, I am a realist – I just want them to not finish up with a sub-70 win record.

It’s a pathetic thing to say.

I know as a fan – and customer – about wanting a competitive team on the field, especially against the Yankees, Rays, Jays and Red Sox; however, it should not come at the cost of potential young talent at the major and minor league level.

Despite little happening this week (so far), one would think that the Orioles – out of desperation and an upset fan base – will make some moves.

I am hoping for something – anything – to happen to improve the baseball situation in Baltimore.

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The Winter Meetings started Monday in the deep heart of Texas, and the Orioles along with the other 29 teams in the sport are conducting business for next year. Right now, Baltimore needs pitching, pitching and more pitching as Buck Showalter and Dan Duquette have stated to the masses during the past few days.

As most everyone in the media has stated, the Orioles will be trying to build up their teams via trades, and not the way the Miami – formerly the cheap Florida – Marlins are going.

However, despite the Orioles’ reluctance to get into the high-dollar purchases on the market, Dan Duquette mentioned that the organization may be in the Prince Fielder hunt.

I do believe it? Who knows.

Do I see him as an Oriole hitting rockets over the right field wall at Camden Yards. No.

Fielder is one of the elite hitters on the market, he’s still in his prime and Baltimore desperately needs an impact bat in the middle of their lineup.

I think Fielder will go wherever the money is, considering that Scott Boras is his agent and there’s little need to sign somewhere now, especially when the two have time to create their own market.

However, if I were him, I would stay in Wisconsin. He's got a good situation there, full of talent and it may be his best chance to win. Then again, do the Brewers have the money to sign him?

Now, considering what the Orioles have gone through the past decade and half, would they shell out the money for Fielder? Attendance at Camden Yards has fallen greatly, the Orioles really don’t have much buzz in the mid-Atlantic right now – the Nationals have sapped it up, and the fan-base needs someone and something to get excited about.

Lord, would I love to see him in the black and orange. I will pay more to see a player of his caliber in Baltimore. In addition, if he were signed by the Orioles, it would show the sport that they mean business and are beyond desperate to get out the American League East cellar.

Sadly, signing Fielder would be a very bad move right now for the franchise. The Orioles have a lot to fix - from top to bottom - and spending north of $20 million for a slugger isn't a very good way to spend money.

They may be better off just spreading any free money in terms of their budget on several players to plug in several holes – not just one. Plus, if the Orioles don’t get better while he’s in town, a Fielder contract could cripple the organization financially. Then again, Fielder also could be traded as well.

However, if the Orioles were to bid on Fielder, Boras may use the organization in much the same way that he leveraged a deal for Mark Teixiera.

Fielder – in terms of his offensive output – is a pretty much a sure thing, and he’s durable. However, his body is a concern (he looks more like a center for the Packers than a ballplayer) and he may not age very well at all.

I would think the man would need to take better care of his physique and cut down his body fat, but as is the case is with C.C. Sabathia – as long as you produce, it’s not a concern. It's only a problem when you stop doing so.

Also, would Fielder want to endure another protracted rebuilding process during the prime of his career? Remember in the middle part of the last decade, the Orioles signed Miguel Tejada as their big bat.

For the most part, Tejada did his job – alas, let’s not forget, where did the Orioles end up?

They were certainly not contenders.

I’ll say this again and again: Prince Fielder will not be coming to the Orioles.

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This week, the annual MLB Winter Meetings will be taking place in Dallas, Texas. Once again, fans and the baseball world are looking forward to what happens.

While the Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Nationals and a few other teams seem to be in the headlines nationally right now, one has to wonder what the Baltimore Orioles will do.

As James noted on Friday, the Orioles have made some moves – albeit, minor – and have been rounding up their new front office under new general manager Dan Duquette.

However, the Orioles don’t seem to be a factor at this year’s winter meetings – of course, what I am writing is based on what I’ve read as of today.

So far, based on what we’ve all gotten from the local media, Baltimore will be looking for value signings and getting talent via trades. Right now, it doesn’t look like the Orioles will be in play for some of the bigger bats and arms out there.

That may or may not be the case; however, we as fans would like the Orioles to make an impact signing.

At this point, we know Baltimore will more than likely not contend for anything in 2012 and are still in a rebuilding phase.

Then again, signing a big name – as prudent as it may or may not be – would show the baseball world that the Orioles do mean ‘business’ and want to make waves in the sport.

Right now, Baltimore needs pitching – both starting and relief.

The young arms – from what we saw last season – perhaps were not ready for primetime. Zach Britton had his ups and downs; Jake Arrieta got hurt; we all know about Brian Matusz; Brad Bergesen struggled and Chris Tillman could not muster any consistency.

Much like I said last year, the Orioles really need to get some veteran arms (even if Jim Johnson becomes a starter). There has been talk of pitcher Jeremy Guthrie perhaps being available for trade; however, he should not be sent on his way as the team needs someone who can pitch around 200 innings a season and stay healthy.

Obviously, Baltimore has a hill to climb in the American League East. However, fans want to see a competitive team on the field – night in and night out. The organization needs to really do a better job of developing some arms and impact players who can contribute at the Major League level.

We all know that the Orioles are rebuilding, and have a good complement of young players, but fans want to see a winner.

Baltimore should use this week to start inching closer to that.

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So far the Orioles have added Matt Antonelli and Taylor Teagarden. Antonelli and Tegarden will come in as perspective bench players in the infield and catcher respectively. The Orioles are also in the process of luring KBO relief pitcher Chong Tae-Hyon away from Korea and to Baltimore, these moves while solid are in fact very minor.

Many Orioles fans are waiting for the earth-shaking rumble caused by Prince Fielder crashing through the gates of Camden Yards - but that will not happen. New GM Dan Duquette has basically stated in as clear terms as possible that the Orioles will not be inquiring about Prince Fielder.

With the Winter Meetings less than a week away I look for the Orioles to make some moves to secure the starting rotation, add some more depth to the upper minors and the bench and probably address left field.

I know these moves aren't exactly drool-worthy but that doesn't mean they aren't good moves, or at least potentially good moves. The Orioles are a dreadfully thin organization and they need to make moves like these. The Orioles are not a Prince Fielder nor a CJ Wilson away from competition. Even if the Orioles were to add one of those players any success next season will once again rest on the shoulders of the young players. Brian Matusz, Zach Britton and Matt Wieters in particular.

I swear I am getting sick of typing that. I feel like I have been typing a sentence similar to that for the last five years. The Orioles struggles to develop their young stars have been well-documented and dissected a million times over. Hopefully, Dan Duquette has recognized this problem and I think he has. Duquette has spent a lot of time this past November adding key members to his front office and it appears that he is not done. Duquette apparently wants to bring in former Brewers pitching coach Rick Peterson (a man who is reportedly in-line for the Boston Red Sox pitching coach job) to be the "Minor League Pitching Coordinator". This is, of course, a new position and one that is sorely needed.

Something is going on with Orioles pitchers. in his Top 50 Under 25 blog, blogger, stat-guy and twitter prophet Keith Law ranked Zach Britton at 31 (notably ahead of players like Jeremy Helickson and Ivan Nova) but warned of him coming down with "Oriolepitcheritis". I assume that Oriolepitcheritis is a condition where a young pitcher inexplicably struggles in the majors after cruising through the minor league system. Bringing in a respected major league pitching coach to oversee the development of your minor league arms is a fantastic idea. Of course, one then must ask this: "Why not just make Peterson your major league pitching coach?" But that is why Duqette is paid the large bills so I will give him the benefit of the doubt in that regard.

The Orioles have also be linked with recent Cuban defector, 26 year-old outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. I really hope the Orioles make this guy a legitimate offer. Apparently he has a ton of talent, if a little raw. He could fill a real void in left-field and it would finally end the quasi-urban legend that Peter Angelos refuses to sign Cuban defectors because of some bargain he struck with Castro.

As it stands right now the Orioles have not changed much but it is still early. I get the feeling we may have seen Jeremy Guthrie pitch his last game as an Oriole and that makes me a very sad internet personality. Jeremy Guthrie is a gamer, he played on some bad teams and never seemed to get any run support. He deserved a much better career record than he has earned so far. I get the feeling that Duquette looks at a guy like Tommy Hunter and thinks he is basically another Guthrie, maybe with a bit more upside. Guthrie meanwhile is a respectable trade-chip going into Dallas. It is tough to say what we might be asking in return for Guthrie, but he is probably worth some high minors OF and P prospects. I don't think we get anyone that is a slam-dunk 2012 MLB roster guy, but the Orioles should be able to get some good pieces for the reliable Stanford grad. On the surface, that sounds like the Orioles are going into rebuilding mode - again - but not really. The way I see it, Guthrie is a prime "change-of-scenery" type player and surprisingly the Orioles' rotation is getting pretty full. Minus Gurthrie; the Orioles have Britton, Matusz, Hunter, Jim Johnson (Buck wants him in the rotation), Chris Tillman, Brad Bergesen, Jason Berken, Troy Patton and Alfredo Simon all vying for the starting rotation. Duquette has stated he wants to add starting pitching, so dealing Guthrie would be dealing from a position of strength.

The Orioles still have a lot of work ahead of them, as always. Hopefully we will have some more interesting moves to discuss by Christmas.

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As we are now into the off-season, the question on everyone’s mind is – how will the Orioles rebuild their organization from the ground up?

Now, Dan Duquette is at the helm of the Orioles and he’s got quite the monumental task of restoring them back to prominence.

In a few interviews that Duquette has given in the past week or so with the local media, it looks like he will focus on building the team up via draft picks, trades; in addition to trying to find players who could be serviceable, while not breaking the bank.

That means that there will not be a C.J. Wilson, Mark Buehrle, Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder in the orange and black for 2012 – unless a big surprise or miracle happens.

It looks like the Orioles will not be big players in free agency and going to build from the ground up – again.

It’s not a bad plan to follow; however, the formula for one reason or another, has not worked at all for the organization.

As a fan, I would like to see a player or two signed that I can go the ballpark and say, “damn, with this guy, he can be an impact player and change a ballgame”.

Not that the current crop of Orioles can’t do the job; however, there’s not an impact bat or arm on the squad heading into 2012 that can be a game-changer.

Right now, the Orioles needed another starting pitcher or two, possibly a corner infielder, a bullpen arm or two, maybe a second baseman and a backup catcher (not so important right now).

I know that many of us fans are really tired of seeing the team lose more often than win.

In order for Baltimore to even factor in the American League East – and that is a big if - the young pitching that was supposed bolster the big league squad needs to figure it out; meanwhile, the core of the offense for now need to take their game to another level.

As well, the pitching – both the starters and bullpen – need to be consistent night in and night out; in addition, maybe there’s a player or two or three out there on the market who could be a diamond in the rough.

The plan still has to be this: the Orioles have to keep on stockpiling picks, take some risks, work on scouting – international and domestic – and have faith in their youngsters.

Now, four years later, most are simply wondering -- can this organization turn the tide for a change? If the Rays can do far more with less, and a team like the Washington Nationals – who seemed to be a joke several years ago – are able to rise up in their division, the Orioles should be able to do it.

Ok, so that’s far easier said than done.

Then again, however, until Baltimore gets the foundation of their house in order (mainly, their farm teams and young impact talent in the fold), it won’t matter what in the world they do in the off-season.

Dan Duquette and the front office have a lot to fix in a short amount of time.

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(image from MASN Sports)

Yesterday morning, the Baltimore Orioles unveiled their talked about uniform changes to the public.

Overall, I like what they have done and all the jerseys include an additional patch celebrating the 20th birthday of Camden Yards. Plus, some the changes harks back to some nostalgia -- which is badly needed considering the state of the team right now.

The uniform changes were -- except for the caps -- were not too radical, and I don't think anyone should be really all that upset with was done.

I love the two new/old caps, as I have always worn the cartoon bird ones for the last decade. Like many fans, I've had an affinity for the caps -- especially the ones worn in the late 1960's - into the 70's.

Honestly, I never wore the recent caps as much, except the one with "O's" emblem that the team wears on Friday nights.

Of course, as much I appreciate the uniform changes -- I'd like to see a serious upgrade with the team as well.

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The Orioles are once again in a state of flux. After a trainwreck of a GM search they finally have their man in Dan Duquette. Duquette seems to be as fine a choice as any, given the circumstances. We shall see what Duke, or Deaux-k if you must, will do in the first of his three years with the team and he has a lot to do. The one thing this team needs more than anything else is just for something - anything to go right.

Call it planning, development or luck last year the Orioles saw key players inexplicably under-perform. Brian Matusz and Chris Tillman were just the two most visable examples. Brian Roberts lost virtually all season to a head injury. Nick Markakis seemingly forgot how to take a walk and his OBP plummeted. Matt Wieters turned it on late, but was mediocre for most of the summer. Adam Jones had a break out year, but he is still not considered to be the elite player we hoped he would be. The only true bright spots to last year's team was the remarkable season of JJ Hardy. It was something that just worked, and worked better than anyone could have expected.

Andy MacPhail's tenure was marked by the mantra: "Grow the arms, buy the bats." That was the plan, it has failed thus far. Was it a bad plan - no. Why hasn't it worked is a matter open to debate. Even notable curmudgen Keith Law admitted that he is rather baffled how everything could go as poorly as it has.

That is what the Orioles are in drastic shortage of, something just working for a change. The virtual entirety of Andy MacPhail's reign as GM is littered with the failed execution of a good idea and the only person that should be rooting for this more than the legions of Orioles fans in the greater Baltimore area is the owner himself, Peter Angelos.

Duquette is signed on for three years, this hire and the moves made over this offseason and the next two are it; they are Peter Angelos' endgame. At the end of Duquette's contract Angelos will be on the wrong side of 85. One has to assume that there is little chance of him operating the team in the same capacity as he is approaching 90 so this tells me that Angelos has to be looking at the next three years as his legacy. Right now his legacy is being the on the short list titled, "The worst owners in the history of sport."

Angelos has owned the team since 1994 and the last 17 years have been marred with meddling, petty decisions, meddling, disastrous PR debacles, attacking the press, clearly low-balling bigtime free agents, the evisceration of the farm system through bad drafts and moves and meddling. The funny thing is you rarely hear Angelos in the media, he is not as visible as say George Steinbrenner was. Somehow Mr. Angelos has mastered the ability to be hands-off while being a constant negative presence in the front office. He has created a culture of cronyism and those cronies have worked non-stop to undermine the organization at every turn.

Their goal was never to hurt the team. Far from it. The sad thing about Angelos' reign is that you know every single thing he has done he believes has helped the team, city and baseball in general.

He has three years. If the Orioles can become competitive in those three years he will have saved a bit of his legacy and maybe the history books will look at him without so much disdain. As of right now, that is not the case.

So what does that mean for this offseason? One would assume you would see the Orioles be more aggressive. Be it through trades, international scouting, free agency or wholesale changes throughout the organization the Orioles (and Angelos) can not afford to doddle. As I write this the Warehouse seems pretty quiet. Dan Duquette has not had the job for a week and he was already starting late, but the lack of any buzz is a bit disturbing. Meanwhile the Florida Marlins are courting Albert Pujols. I don't necessarily think the Orioles should be going after Pujols, but the point remains - the Orioles need to strike this offseason. They need to find a way to make this team relevant in 2012 and beyond. Maybe that means trading Adam Jones or even Nick Markakis, maybe that means giving stupid money to Prince Fielder and dealing with the end of the contract when it happens. Maybe it means making a splash in the Japanese market.

Whichever way the Orioles choose to make their mark this winter, they need to do it. But most importantly whatever they do let's hope for a change it actually works.

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As we all know, Dan Duquette was named as the new general manager of the Baltimore Orioles this week.

Frankly, it came as a surprise to me that his name was even brought up for the position; however, considering his experience with the Expos and Red Sox, plus his track record, the Orioles made out pretty well – in my opinion – with their general manager search.

Duquette has not held an executive level position in major league baseball since 2002, when he was fired from the Boston Red Sox.

The Orioles have not won since Bill Clinton was president. Camden Yards was packed every night and there was a buzz on game day. Now, that feeling is pretty much gone.

Maybe it is a good match, and perhaps both sides are now hungry for success, plus restoring some old glory.

The two sides have an enormous challenge in front of them.

On Tuesday, Duqeutte gave a press conference to lay the groundwork of rebuilding the Baltimore Orioles and also give us all a formal introduction to who he is.

Duquette said all we expected him to say – the rebuilding of the Orioles starts with the farm system, player development and getting the arms.

He seemed pumped, well-spoken with his expectations, and sincerely wants to restore the Baltimore Orioles as one of the elite teams in the sport.

Those are all pretty obvious goals.

Let’s hope as fans that the new guy can figure out what his previous predecessors could not. For one reason or another, many men who have served in the general manager position have tried and failed to restore the Orioles to prominence.

The Orioles have to contend with the big money Red Sox and Yankees, the rising Jays and the crafty Rays franchise; however, Duquette has been successful in the past, maybe he can do it again.

Fans are hoping for the best. We need a reason to believe in the Baltimore Orioles again.

I wish Duquette the best of luck.

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It’s been a pretty pathetic week in sports with the Joe Paterno/Penn State drama, the NBA lockout going on and Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos being kidnapped in Venezuela.

At times, spectator sports – amateur, collegiate and professional – sometimes needs to put into their proper context in society. For me, they serve as a diversion to life and entertainment – nothing more, nothing less.

However, this week, I’m learning in a very blunt fashion, that sports are a ruthless business and those who run it are in it more the power and prestige, rather than for altruistic reasons.

The aforementioned sentence is a pretty well-known statement; alas, it’s now been taken to a whole new, disgusting level over the past few days. I know better to believe big-time sports in a Pollyana-ish view, but I cannot believe what is going on in Happy Valley.

Big time sports can be an ugly business; however, when scandal erupts at a university – a place for higher learning – it’s beyond appalling. A university should be run with education and preparing students for the real word, not like a multi-national corporation.

I have a co-worker who loves the Nittany Lions, now he is pretty despondent and reacted to the news of Joe Paterno’s firing like it was a death in the family.

My little sister went there for a while and she’s absolutely disgusted that Paterno and the upper brass of the university have let the entire community down.

It’s just sad.

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Despite another poor season for the Orioles, they did get some well-deserved national recognition as both Nick Markakis and Matt Wieters were selected as Rawlings’ Gold Glove winners.

We all know the impressive job that Wieters did behind the plate, firmly establishing himself as of one best young catchers behind the plate.

He was a defensive marvel behind the dish, stopping would-be base stealers with his amazing arm and working with a young pitching staff. As well, he often put his body his body on the line, blocking home plate and preventing runners from scoring.

Although many can argue that Wieters has not lived up to billing he received when he came up from the minors, he has shown to be quite a wise investment for the future of Baltimore baseball.

As for Markakis, it seems that his first Gold Glove award has been a long time coming. We all know as Oriole fans that the right-fielder is one of the most steady, reliable players in the game; however, I’m sure because he plays for a last-place team for a mid-market team, he gets overlooked when it comes to recognition.

I contended for a long time if Markakis played in Boston or New York, he would have a much higher profile than he would didn’t play with Baltimore.

However, he finally got some respect from his peers and didn’t commit an error in 157 games, plus has 14 outfield assists.*

Good for both Markakis and Wieters. This is the first time that the Baltimore Orioles have had multiple Gold Glove winners on a squad since 1998.

Finally, I’m reading more and more about the general manager search with the Baltimore Orioles. I’m sure they will find one, but right now, you have to wonder what in the world is going on with this team.

I guess perception can be reality when it comes to looking at affairs from the outside in, as the Orioles look like a lackluster organization; however, one has to wonder, what in the world is taking so long?

Right now, the Orioles don’t look like they have their act together. This has to change.