Orioles, Ravens, Terps: A Rough 2015 for Maryland Sports

Nov 22, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald (99) sacks Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco (5) during the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Looking back on the past 12 months, it was a disappointing year for Maryland sports teams, including the Baltimore Orioles, Baltimore Ravens and the University of Maryland Terrapins.

Expectations were especially higher for the Ravens and for Terps football as compared to what has eventuated. And the Orioles were a rather substantial disappointment as well. Maryland basketball is the exception however, taking to the Big Ten with better than originally anticipated results.

Before we get into a new year and start looking ahead at our primary topics of coverage here on The Baltimore Wire, let’s think back over the road recently travelled.

The Orioles … 81-81

Hopes were so very high for the 2015 Baltimore Orioles. Coming off a 2014 season where they went 96-66, it was surely a year to make a deep run at the championship itself.

The starting rotation had distinguished themselves in 2014 and looked poised to be as good or better, hoping particularly for a comeback year from Ubaldo Jimenez. There were six starters for five positions, and much of the offseason talk was about how the Orioles were going to deal with this surplus. Jimenez did bounce back, and Wei-Yin Chen was even a bit better than before. But Bud Norris was sick and injured … and soon gone. Chris Tillman and Miguel Gonzalez both regressed significantly, while Kevin Gausman did not step definitively forward. Add it together, and the team was fortunate to get to .500 for the season.

O’s fans were proven correct in feeling unsettled about the non-signing of corner outfielders Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis. But the belief was that Chris Davis would bounce back from a lousy 2014, and he did. A full year of a healthy Manny Machado would be a big boost; it surely was. Matt Wieters was hoped to add punch as well … didn’t really happen. And worst of all, none of the varied additions to cover the corner outfield positions seized upon their opportunity. And while Jonathan Schoop stepped up offensively, J.J. Hardy disappeared.

All of this broke down the endurance of fans and the physical endurance of Adam Jones. Even with another excellent year from the bullpen, when everything was shaken up and rolled out, the result was a perfectly mediocre 81-81. Not what was hoped for after the 2012-2014 successes.

The Baltimore Ravens – 5-11 or 6-10 (pending the final game)

Just when you think it can’t get any worse, it does. Just when you believe that nothing else can possibly go wrong, it does.

The injured reserve list is now at a team record of 20 players. This includes eight starters from the first week, six from the offense. And this list does not include Dennis Pitta, who was deemed out for the season.

The list of course does include the incredibly resilient Joe Flacco. With the way the season was going, you had to figure that his consecutive games streak was in great jeopardy. And it was. But the number of games he started without injury is still impressive.

The 2016 season has to be better, right? The Ravens will get Flacco back, and the news has just come out that Steve Smith is going to give it one more trip around the sun. Even so, the injury situation in football is taking a lot of the glamor away from the game, in my estimation at least.

Terrapins Football … 3-9

After successful seasons under Randy Edsall in 2013 (7-6) and 2014 (7-5), hopes were high for continued improvement, even in the Big Ten. But after a dismal start in 2015, Edsall was removed during the season, and D.J. Durkin will now look to improve in 2016 on the eventual 3-9 record.

Some of the losses were simply huge, and Maryland was overpowered by a relentless list of top-notch opponents.

Recruitment encouragement is not rare, and the Terps’ football program will grow and improve. But this new conference home is truly the big-time of college football.

More from The Baltimore Wire

Terrapins Basketball … 28-7, (12-1 currently this season)

The Terrapins men’s basketball team has become a great bright spot. After their 2013-14 record of 17-15, the move last year to the Big Ten was feared to portend a painful experience. The Terps were more than up to the challenge, finishing in second place to Wisconsin while taking second in the Big Ten Tournament in a loss to Michigan State. The final record was 28-7.

Some nice additions to the team in the offseason have positioned Maryland in the first handful of elite programs in the country. Diamond Stone had a breakout performance just last night against Penn State, setting a freshman record by scoring 39 points.

This is a rising great story and team to follow, and we at The Baltimore Wire are going to be writing much more about it this winter.

The Final Word of 2015 (unless Duquette signs Chris Davis, Justin Upton and Yoenis Cespedes together before midnight)

We thank you for being our readers in 2015. If you have some opinions and ability to express those thoughts in written form, we would welcome you to submit an application to join our writing team. We would especially welcome some more who had strong opinions and content ideas about the Ravens and Terps.

Be safe, and have a blessed New Year.

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