Baltimore Orioles: Players to Worry About Right Now

Mar 8, 2016; Sarasota, FL, USA; Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis (19) looks on as he strikes out during the third inning against the Boston Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

With roughly two weeks to go in spring training for the Baltimore Orioles, who are the players to worry about in terms of being ready for the season?

The good news is that more than a few who are certain to be on the active roster are hitting and pitching well and looking fully prepared for a good year. And that does not include Christian Walker, whom we wrote about yesterday.

Ryan Flaherty has been in rare form, hitting .400. Jonathan Schoop and Manny Machado each have a pair of homers, while hitting .395 and .344. Adam Jones is looking just fine with three home runs and a .346 average. Shortstop J.J. Hardy is not hitting home runs, but a .375 average looks good, just as he himself does without any besetting aches or pains. A .341 average for Joey Rickard should get him on the team, while Mark Trumbo looks just fine at .297.

Those are a lot of good numbers! This team is going to score some runs; that is certain.

But there are some presumed regulars who are not putting up such stellar numbers. Caleb Joseph did get a couple of hits last night to boost the average to .185, and he is going to be fine. Miguel Gonzalez spoke well of the way Caleb called the game — a greater value Joseph brings than perhaps anything else.

Hyun Soo Kim now is 6-for-14 after opening with his 0-for-23. He seems to be relaxing and getting a bit better each day as he continues to adjust.

Nolan Reimold is a concern. He is hitting but .176, and it will be critical for him to pick it up over the remaining games. And Pedro Alvarez is playing catchup due to his late arrival. Right now he is batting only 2-for-17. This may take some time to get up to game speed.

Matt Wieters remains a health concern. One has to seriously wonder if he will be able to be a part of the opening of the season. If not, presumably it would appear to be just a while longer for him to be ready to return.

So that covers everyone, right? Actually, there is one more. A first baseman named Chris Davis. He is looking rather lost on his timing. Right now the average is .111 on 3-for-27, with only a single homer — in his first at-bat of the spring. And there are 11 strikeouts as well.

Is the Davis start so far an issue to worry about? Maybe. He is a career .299 hitter in spring training, hitting 27 home runs in 163 games — a full season’s worth. Last year he hit .250 in Florida with three homers, but performed better in the regular season. And then again, in the spring before his lousy 2014 season, Davis hit .405 in Grapefruit League play.