Coming into the season, there was a lot of hope surrounding the 2010 Orioles. This hope was brought about by the off-season additions of veterans such as Kevin Millwood, who were brought to Baltimore to provide leadership and to help the team's younger players continue to develop. That was the goal for the 2010 season, but that is not how it started. The Orioles began the season by losing 11 of their first 12 games. To make things worse, second basemen Brian Roberts was placed on the disabled list and would not return until midway through the 2nd half of the season.
The Orioles continued their bad play through June 4th, with a 15-40 record. The Orioles were off to their second worst start in franchise history, which led to Manager Dave Trembley being fired. Juan Samuel took over as manager and things did not get much better. The Orioles were 29-59 heading into the all-star break.
Looking for any way to help turn the season around, Buck Showalter was hired as the Orioles Manager on August 3rd. After Showalter was hired, the team went on a hot streak that would last throughout the remainder of the season. The team won 8 of the first 10 games under Showalter and won 33 games total in the two months that Showalter was the coach. The Orioles finished the 2010 season with a 66-96 record and were 30 games out of first place in the American League North, although it could have been a lot worse. This was the team's 13th straight losing season.
It is important to focus on the highlights of the season though. Nick Markakis continued to be the team's best hitter, hitting .297. Luke Scott led the team in homeruns with 27, and Jeremy Guthrie had 11 wins. In order for the Orioles to keep building on their hot play under Showalter, the team will need to add a few more players this off-season. They need to add a power hitter to the middle of the lineup as well as another starting pitcher to improve the rotation. If they are able to do this, then who knows how good the Orioles can be in 2011.
-Charlie Rachel
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