Your 2018 Baltimore Orioles Report Card - Infielders

Do you remember back just a few years when the Orioles had one of the best infields in the game? I member. Oh how times have changed. Just a few seasons back you had Manny Machado at the hot corner, J.J. Hardy holding down short, Jonathan Schoop manning second base, and Chris Davis playing some insane defense at first. That defense got me all hot and bothered. Fast forward to the end of the 2018 season and you've got guys I don't recognize getting decent playing time for the Orioles. When you lose 115 games, that shit happens. Gone are the days of the gold glovers, and now we have guys like Renato Nunez and Breyvic Valera holding it down. Christ, man.

I'll still grade the guys they traded, but those will come at the end, let's take a look at the new guys they have playing the infield and how they graded out this season.

Chris Davis: F

I'm just going to pull the bandaid off and get this out of the way. This "F" grade is already too high. If he was in my school he'd be expelled, put in the Chokey, sent to boarding school, anything to get him away from the rest of the school kids. I've talked about it at length this season, as has everyone else who has watched baseball this season. He put up arguably the worst offensive season in modern baseball history, and has been absolutely garbage since signing his deal after 2015. He batted .168 with 16 home runs, 49 driven in, an OBP of .243, struck out 192 times. Keep in mind he didn't play the last few games to stop him from reaching 200 Ks, a nightmare of a season, a nightmare of a signing. F for Davis, he should be expelled from the team, get this bum out of my face. He stinks on ice.

Tim Beckham: D

Timmy Beckham had his first full season with the Orioles in 2018, but it wasn't great. He missed a portion of the season with an injury, and when he came back, and even before it, he wasn't good. I don't see how he can be the shortstop of the future for the Orioles, I wouldn't be surprised if he isn't tendered a contract in a few weeks. He only played in 96 games, hit .230, had 35 RBI, and an OBP of .287. In the field he stinks too, doesn't have a great arm, and was very uncomfortable at third when Machado basically forced his way to short. Once Machado was traded we saw Beckham at short again, but he's just not good. He doesn't do anything great, and it just kind of "meh". Not a needle mover at all. Beckham really earned that "D" this season with his poor play. I wouldn't lose any sleep if Beckham has played his last game as an Oriole.

Renato Nunez: C+

I'll be honest, 5 months ago I had no clue who Renato Nunez was. Now I'm a fan. He was claimed off waivers from the Rangers, did his time in Triple-A, and when he came up to Baltimore he showed us he could play. He's not Manny at third, but no one is, he's not a completely terrible fielder, and he's better than Tim Beckham. With the bat he isn't bad at all. He saw action in 60 games for the Orioles this season and ended up hitting .275 with seven homers, 13 doubles, drove in 20, and had a .336 OBP. Not too shabby at all. He was basically an everyday player for the Birds after Macahdo was traded. I'm expecting to see Nunez at the hot corner for the Orioles on Opening Day in 2019 and I don't hate it. He showed he can play and it impressed me for sure.

Jace Peterson: D

Jace started the season in pinstripes with the Yankees, he ended the season as a utility guy with the Birds, not exactly the path you want to follow. He is the true definition of a utility guy. He played all over for the Birds, 49 games at second base, 64 games at third base, four at shortstop, 52 games in left field, and 34 games in right field, plus a pitching appearance. Bottom line is he isn't that good. His offensive numbers are not impressive at all, and you can tell why he's bounced around to a few teams. With the Birds he hit .195, had three bombs, 13 doubles, 28 driven in, and 13 stolen bases. His speed was for sure a factor, he just couldn't hit. His OBP was .308 so he was getting on via the walk, which is something that the Orioles always lack, a guy who draws a ton of walks. He didn't have a ton of walks, but it seemed to be the only way he could get on. I'd have preferred the Orioles bring back Ryan Flaherty over a guy like Peterson, but that didn't happen, so Peterson was the guy that moved all around the field. D for you, Jace.

Breyvic Valera: Incomplete

Breyvic came over from the Dodgers in the Manny Machado deal as kind of a throw in, but made his Orioles debut in September. He saw most of his action at second, but also saw some games at short and third. Stop me if you've heard this, he doesn't move the needle. He played in 12 games with the Orioles before breaking his finger late in the season in New York. He did hit .286 for the Orioles, and had 10 hits in 12 games before the injury. He didn't jump off the page at you, but he may be a solid middle infield reserve guy, but nothing more. Maybe next year we see more of him and see if he can blossom into something, but as of right now, his potential doesn't seem to be great. Since he only played in 12 games, I don't think thats enough to fully grade him, let's revisit this next season.

Jonathan Villar: A

Villar came over from the Brewers in the Jonathan Schoop trade, and man was he good. He did it all during his short tenure with the Orioles. He hit eight bombs, hit .258, drew 24 walks, drove in 24, stole 21 bases in 24 chances, he also had an OBP of .336. He played 36 games at second, and 18 games at short, and I could see him starting at either position next season for Opening Day. I like him at second a little more though, that's just me. He is that guy who can work a walk, and steal a base. Something the Orioles haven't been able to do since we saw Brian Roberts on the field. Villar was wonderful for the Orioles, and another guy who thrived in his new scene, meanwhile, Schoop was garbage with the Brewers. I'm excited for a full season of Villar next season. An "A" for you sir!

Caleb Joseph:D

Sigh, just handing out another "D" to a veteran member of the Orioles. Joseph is a good veteran leader, he's not bad behind the plate, but man is he underwhelming at the plate. Piss poor numbers again for Joseph with the stick, a .219 average with three homers, 19 driven in, a .254 average and only drew 10 walks on the season. Again, just an underwhelming performance for him at the dish. I think this is just who is he? He'll never hit 10 homers, he won't hit .250, he'll throw out a decent amount of runners, but nothing more than that. I get that you won't have a catcher who hits 25 bombs, bats .300, and plays unreal defense, but come on Caleb. Give me something here.

Austin Wynns: B

I LOVE what I saw from Wynns when he came up this season. He is in that group of minor leaguers who played together in Boeiw and Norfolk and had success there, this group meshed well down there and they should mesh well up here. It was Wynns, Mancini, Yacabonis, Joey Rickard, Chance Sisco, and a few others. Wynns looked very comfortable in the big leagues, and he performed like it. He hit .255 in 42 games with four homers, 11 RBI, a .287 OBP, and scored 28 runs. I think he handled himself very well at the plate. He only had one error in his 41 games, and that speaks volumes to me. I love his poise, he doesn't seem stuck in the moment up here, it's like he just wants to play baseball and hit dingers. It'll be interesting to see what the Orioles do moving forward with other catchers, Caleb Joseph and Chance Sisco. Good job, Wynny.

Chance Sisco: F

What a bad season for Chance. He had a few injuries that he struggled with, including a concussion at the end of the season. He started the season on the Opening Day roster, but never got into a rhythm. He struggled all season at the dish and never really got comfortable. He made 63 appearances and only hit .181 with two homers, 16 homers, and a .288 OBP. 66 Ks in 63 games isn't ideal, and the offensive production we thought he could provide never came. It also appears he's fallen. behind Austin Wynns on the catching depth chart, and who knows if he'll be able to climb back above him. There has been talks of him switching positions, but I'm not really sure where he goes. The "F" was all about his offensive stats and just not being able to stay healthy, even though they are unfortunate and unlucky injuries.

Manny Machado: A +

Stud. Thats all there is to say about Machado's time on the 2018 Orioles. He knew was going to be traded by mid-season, so he straight up balled out. How good was he? He only played 96 games for the Orioles and still tied them for the lead in home runs with 24, third on the team in hits with 115, third in doubles with 21, lead the team in RBI with 65, had the third most total bases with 210, lead the team with 45 walks, had the highest average on the team with a .315 average, and had by far the highest OBP with .387. He was unreal. I've already talked tons of times about the trade and what it means to the team, how bad they fucked it up, so I won't go into depth, but Manny was the best thing about the Orioles this season, even with his subpar play at shortstop, most talented baseball player that the Orioles have ever had. A+ for Manny as he gets his tan on in LA.

Jonathan Schoop: B+

Although he isn't doing squat in Milwaukee, Schoop was having a great season in Baltimore before he was traded. Before being moved at the deadline, Schoop hit .244, had an OBP of .273, hit 17 bombs, drove in 40, and had 18 doubles. His defense was fantastic again, he loved showing off his arm on the double plays. He was really coming rounding into form before the trade, and he hasn't been comfortable in Milwaukee, couple that with his cut in playing time up there and it makes sense that he is struggling. Hard to give Schoop anything below a B+ for his 2018 season with the Birds.

Danny Valencia: C+

There was a few weeks of the season where I thought Danny Valencia was going to be a nice little trade chip for the Orioles leading up to the deadline. That trade never happened, but I loved what I saw from Danny. He played a decent amount of third base this season, and wasn't great there, but the Orioles didn't get him to be a fielder. They picked him up for his bat. That is why I ultimately thought he'd be traded to a contending team who needed a power right-handed bat. July and August he really cooled off and that ultimately led to his DFA, but for a time he was a solid contributor to the club. He ended up hitting .263 with nine bombs and 28 RBIs, with a .316 OBP. His time with the Os came to an end, but not before he did some damage for the team. C+ kind of sums it up for Valencia's career in Baltimore.

Pedro Alvarez: F

This grade kind of sums up his Orioles career, he would hit a few bombs, strike out a ton, and do nothing else. That is Pedro Alvarez in a nutshell. He had a big home run to beat the Yankees early in the seasons and that was really all he did. He was DFA'd by the Orioles after playing in 45 games. His final numbers stink, .180 hitter with eight homers, and 18 RBI, not to mention his .283 average. Kind of funny he had only eight less homers than Chris Davis, but that's another topic. This is just who Pedro is, he is a very inconsistent lefty power bat who will give you a ton of strikeouts. It was a fun experiment that lasted about a season too long. So long, Pedro, hold that "F".

Well folks that is all we have for the infielders report card, and I don't know if its any better than the starters or relievers. The only players who got good grades were traded here, or got shipped out. That is just the year the Orioles had. Tomorrow I'll have the report card grades for the outfielders, buckle up for that one, I wish I could say their grades will be much better....but I'm not sure.