Uncertainties Nagging at Orioles This Season

As the Baltimore Orioles begin the second half of spring training, they are still a team of questions, of promise and of problems. Even in the bubbly world of their new general manager, Roland Hemond, there are questions that leave him fumbling for answers.

Such as:

--Is the pitching staff as bad as it has looked during a 4-7 start? Despite strong performances by John Habyan and Dave Schmidt last Tuesday night in a 6-2 victory over Texas, the Orioles’ staff earned-run average is 5.49, worse than last season’s 5.01. Of the pitchers counted on in 1988, only Mike Morgan and Scott McGregor have looked consistently good.

--Who will play third base? The surprise is not that neither Craig Worthington (.176) nor Rene Gonzales (.269, two RBI) has hit much this early, but that neither has played well defensively. Both have had one-on-one clinics with Manager Cal Ripken Sr. recently.

--Has the offense really been changed enough to help a team that hit 211 home runs, but was last or next-to-last in runs, doubles, triples and stolen bases?

But there have been many high spots as well.

Rookie Pete Stanicek apparently will be the leadoff hitter the Orioles haven’t had in recent years, perhaps their best since Don Buford (1968-72).

Further, ex-Pittsburgh outfielder Joe Orsulak appears to be a nice addition. Like Stanicek, he adds speed to a team that has been devoid of it. But he also has hit for a .435 exhibition average.

There will be games this season when Stanicek, Orsulak and Ken Gerhart are all in the lineup at once, and they should transform the Orioles from a plodding, one-base-at-a-time team.

But with less than three weeks remaining before opening day, the Orioles have far more questions than answers, especially concerning the pitching staff.

“Anytime you have 22 pitchers in camp on March 15, you really have to struggle to get them the work they need,” Hemond said.

“I’m encouraged, especially about Scotty. . . . Morgan has pitched well, and Mike Boddicker is going to be there. After that, it’s up to the others to win a job. Some of them have had very limited chances, but when they get closer to 25 or 30 innings, we’ll know a lot more.”

A year after rookies got 63 starts, the Orioles apparently are returning to a veteran staff. Ripken has said he’s counting on 200 innings apiece from Boddicker, Morgan and Jay Tibbs. With McGregor having been one of the surprises of spring training, that leaves six candidates for the fifth spot.

Habyan began camp as the favorite for that job, and with five shutout innings Tuesday night cemented that status. Meanwhile, Jeff Ballard and Jose Mesa haven’t pitched at all in an “A” game, and Eric Bell has pitched once.

“There’s competition for the jobs, no question about that,” Ripken said. “That was one of the things we knew would be the case when we came here. After the way we pitched last year, we needed some competition.”

The bullpen situation is equally competitive. Injured reliever Don Aase may pitch in an “A” game, but he’s still likely to begin the season on the disabled list.

“He’s a big key,” Ripken said. “But I’m trying to be realistic about him. Right now, it’s too early. He’s on a throwing program that has him pitching in a game, taking a day off, throwing on the side, taking a day off and throwing in a game. That’s not the kind of program a reliever needs to be on to open the season.”

But even if he’s not ready, the Orioles are in better shape. Tom Niedenfuer is capable of being a closer and should be even better now that Ripken understands he’s only a one-inning pitcher.

Although none of them have pitched particularly well, Doug Sisk, Mark Williamson and Dave Schmidt will start the season as middle men, the guys who bridge the innings between the starters and Niedenfuer. Regardless of what they’ve done here, they give the Orioles more security than a year ago when Ripken had to wave in career minor leaguers named Tony Arnold, Mike Kinnunen and Luis DeLeon.

Meanwhile, the third-base job remains unclear, although it would appear Gonzales has a slight edge. His getting the job would allow the Orioles to send Worthington back to Rochester for another half season or so (he has played less than one full season above Class A).

“In Worthington’s case,” Ripken said, “I was concerned because he may have felt added pressure after Ray Knight was traded. I don’t know what it is, but he’s not going out and doing the same things he did last spring. I’ve watched him and we’ve had tapes made of him. He’s not moving at the pitch the way he did last year, and it hurts his defense. Gonzales has had that problem, too. But we’ve still got some time, and we’re going to work with them.”

Schmidt followed Habyan with three scoreless innings Tuesday night against the Rangers in Miami Stadium, facilitating the Orioles’ second win in a row.

Habyan had been hit hard in his first spring appearance, allowing five runs in three innings, but was in control from the start.

“For me, it was important,” he said. “I wasn’t pushing any panic buttons, but I want to make the team. I didn’t want to have too many mediocre outings. I got the early lead (4-0 in the first inning) and just worked fast, threw strikes and challenged people.”

Bill Ripken continued his hot spring with two singles in three at-bats and raised his average to .343.