410 Sports Report

I am starting a short series detailing the new additions to Maryland basketball this upcoming season. The Terps return only two frontcourt players from last season, Julian Reese and Caelum Swanton-Roger. They lose key bench player Patrick Emilien along with reserves Arnaud Revaz and Pavlo Dzuba. They bring in freshman Braden Pierce from IMG Academy and transfer Mady Traore from New Mexico New Mexico State. Mady Traore Originally an NC State commit, Traore ended up at New Mexico State due to transcript issues because he is an international player. He only appeared in seven games for the Aggies because their season was cut short by police investigations within the program.      He is a unique prospect and is seen as a bit of a project. However, he has good ball handling and decent shooting for a big man. I think he probably starts the season in the same role as Swanton-Roger did last season, with an opportunity to become the full-time backup if he plays well.  B...

Maryland lost the most in wing/non-ballhandling guard production this off-season. They lose two starters in Hakim Hart and Don Carey. While I understand Carey could be considered a guard, he was mainly a catch-and-shoot guy who was pesky on defense; very rarely a ball-handler. Anyways, they brought in two players to help replace them, four-star freshman Jamie Kaiser and Indiana transfer Jordan Geronimo.  Jamie Kaiser Kaiser originally committed to Maryland as a quarterback, but he began to blow up on the basketball recruiting trail last spring and he decided to switch his focus to the court, not the gridiron. He committed to Maryland last summer and he shot up the rankings to finish 65 in the 247 Sports composite rankings.  Kaiser brings two things to College Park; elite athleticism and shooting. He was a good shooter in high school and is said to have a pure shooting stroke. Hopefully, he can provide an outside threat for Maryland, which is something they have been lacking...

Yesterday the latest results of the All-Star voting were released. Austin Hays, the current batting average leader in the American League, came in as the fifteenth-ranked outfielder. Which is simply not good enough. Updated All-Star Game voting leaders pic.twitter.com/uOUItpa4MF — Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 20, 2023  I understand that it will always be difficult for American League outfielders to become All-Stars. You have Mike Trout and Aaron Judge who are basically locked into the game, even when they are hurt or playing bad. But, Austin Hays deserves more votes. His stats speak for themselves. He has a .327 average, a WAR of 2.2, a .893 OPS, and a 147 OPS+. He is simply on fire this year. He ranks in the top ten in many stats and he is always a strong defender.  Orioles fans, we must show out in numbers and get Hays to Seattle this July!

You would not guess it from their incredible record, but the Orioles starting pitching has been a bit lackluster in the 2023 season. This is mainly due to the lack of a reliable fifth starter and the turbulent nature of Dean Kremer and Kyle Bradish. However, there is one pitcher who has quietly become the ace of the staff, Tyler Wells. If you aren't an Orioles fan, you may not know about Wells, but you should. He leads the MLB in WHIP at .857 and is top ten in ERA, walks per nine innings, and hits per nine innings. He also has six wins, which is not too shabby. On top of this, he just has a few nasty pitches.  Tyler Wells, Filthy Changeups. 👌 pic.twitter.com/EN8ud70rcj — Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 10, 2023   Tyler Wells, 2Ks in the 1st. pic.twitter.com/IEgWcgTQzg — Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 15, 2023 The one fault of Wells is home runs; he gives up a ton of them.  This season he has given up 16 homers, which ties him for fifth most in the league. Nearl...

The MLB just released the updated voting standings for this summer's All-Star Game. Unsurprisingly, Adley Rutschman leads AL catchers in voting, by a significant margin. Most of the other Orioles' position players are not even close.  The All-Star Game voting totals at each position so far pic.twitter.com/N4AFMfP94F — Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 12, 2023 Taking into account the standings and current form, I am going to predict the Orioles All-Stars. It should be noted that pitchers are not voted on, rather they are selected.  No-Doubters Adley Rutschman As previously mentioned, Adley Rutschman is currently in the lead for catchers in the American League. He is up by over 150,000 votes and I do not see him being overtaken. Felix Bautista   The mountain is probably the most dominant reliever in the game at this very moment. He is averaging over two strikeouts an inning and his pitching is just masterful. He will certainly be playing in Seattle next month....

The Orioles are finally in a position where they should be buying at the deadline instead of selling for the future. Their lineup is fine in my opinion, especially if they decide to call up Jordan Westburg and Colton Cowser. The team should primarily target a starting pitcher and one or two relievers if they want to make a deep run in the playoffs. Here are five possible trade deadline targets that I believe would make sense for the Orioles. 1. Kyle Freeland This lefty starter for the Rockies has had a pretty solid start to the season. His ERA is 4.06, which is not amazing, but it is impacted by pitching at Coors Field. This wouldn't be a trade that would blow me away, but it could be a solid arm that would not cost the team too much. 2. Scott Barlow Scott Barlow is a reliever that the Royals recently said is on the trading block. He has had a pretty good season so far and has noticeably had a very good K/9 (12.9). The fact that the Royals have said they are actively shopping him m...