Baltimore is a city of proud sports fans and pride is on the line on two fronts:  the Orioles pursuit of local product Mark Teixiera, and the Ravens pursuit of a win over the rival Steelers (and a subsequent playoff bid).  Both topics have emotions on the rise in Charm City. 

My radio show has been inundated with phone calls on both fronts.  Let me start with my take on Tex.  The Orioles are in the bidding for the free agent slugger from Severna Park and are willing to make him the highest paid sports figure in Baltimore history.  But as much as the O’s are willing to ante, Boston, the Los Angeles Angels, and New York Yankees are likely to offer more (baseline rate: $20 million per season for 7-10 years).  The Washington Nationals are also in the mix, reportedly offering as much to Teixiera as the other teams.  Orioles fans are desperate for the team to land Tex, some even saying it would be a crushing blow to lose out, and the loss would be unacceptable.  Okay, I understand that sentiment, but let’s consider the process at play before we panic over a possible failure to sign Teixiera.  First of all, he has stated that it’s important for him to play for a winner. Boston, New York and L.A. can offer the promise of being contending team immediately, the Orioles cannot.  The O’s will be entering the second season of a 3-4 year re-building program engineered by Andy MacPhail.  If Tex doesn’t feel like waiting, then the O’s are out of luck.  And on that subject- can you blame the ballplayer if he yearns to be part of a playoff team?  6 years in the big leagues and it wasn’t until he was traded to the Angels this past August that he got his first postseason experience.  Regarding the notion that failure to sign Teixiera is unforgivable for the O’s:  if the team makes the best possible effort to make the deal and the man makes a choice of his free will to go elsewhere- why beat yourself up over something you can’t control?  And to suggest there should be no limits to the finances the Orioles offer- that’s just irresponsible thinking.  Have you been reading about the economy (baseball and in general)?  There ARE limits.  Like anyone else who is an interested observer of baseball and lives in this city, I’d like to see Teixiera sign here, but I suggest we all be realistic about the prospects.

Now- to the Ravens and Steelers:  I love the passion on both sides, and I must admit I’m impressed by the level of Steelers support that emerges here in Baltimore when the two teams meet.  The Steelers are as good as they were expected to be (maybe a little better) and the Ravens are MUCH better than was anticipated when the season started.  Since the season started (and since the loss at Pittsburgh in September) the Ravens have gained a momentum that sets up well for them in a home encounter with Pittsburgh.  The two teams are evenly matched and I see home field tipping the balance:  Ravens 20, Steelers 17.  It has the makings of a magical season for Baltimore, whether they get Teixiera or not.  Lord help us if this city loses out in both!

Posted on Friday, December 12th, 2008 at 2:35 pm.
Categories: Mark's Blog.
Track comments to this post: RSS 2.0.

POST A COMMENT  |  TRACKBACK