Orioles manager Dave Trembley was feeling frisky at his pre-game press conference this afternoon, and I’m not just saying that because he’s going with a quirky new lineup for tonight’s game against the Rays (weather permitting).
First things first, here’s tonight’s lineup: 1. LF Pie, 2. 3B Tejada, 3. RF Markakis, 4. C Jesus (whoops, I mean Wieters), 5. CF Jones, 6. DH Reimold, 7. 1B Atkins, 8. 2B Wiggy, 9. SS Izturis
When asked about the drastic changes to the batting order, Trembley said, “Let’s do what we can to get the offense started and score some runs. Changing it up, I think, it’s a good idea.”
Agreed.
Trembley then he gave some funny, long-winded responses to questions from reporters. He said if the shakeup works, he’ll “look like a genius,” but if it doesn’t, “you can say I look like Elmer Fudd or something.” He joked that he put Wieters in the cleanup spot because “it’s T-shirt Tuesday.” (Well, at least I think he was joking.) Later, he openly longed to be 29 again with a full head of hair – and Rickey Henderson as his leadoff hitter.
I couldn’t spy a bottle of Jack Daniels up on the podium, so I’m starting to wonder if he’s losing it. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Trembley’s pre-game carefree attitude was pretty surprising considering the Orioles are 1-6, but he’s clearing reaching Lester Burnham mode from “American Beauty.” Nothing is working for his team right now, so Trembley is just saying “screw it” and going for broke tonight. “We’ll see if it works,” he said of the switcheroo.
Wieters said he welcomes the change (I think he would be cool with any change really).
“We haven’t been doing that lately so hopefully the new lineup will get some things going,” Wieters said before turning water into grape Gatorade at his locker.
Wieters has been the team’s best hitter through seven games. “At this point in the year, this early, I feel pretty good,” he said. He has a .400 average with one homer and two RBIs. Forget T-shirt Tuesday. That’s the real reason why Wieters is the team’s cleanup hitter for now. Trembley raved about Wieters before the game, saying good players like Wieters “like being the guy.”
We’ll see if Wieters and the Orioles can rise to the occasion tonight. If not, we may see more changes – and more Trembley friskiness – again tomorrow afternoon.