RealGM

Melvin Mora expressed his frustration with his playing time on Sunday, and his time with the Orioles could be over.

Baltimore holds an $8 million option on Mora's contract for next season and it's almost certain that they will not pick it up.

In Mora's tirade on Sunday, he welcomed the idea of being cut loose.

"I'm a competitor," Mora said. "I don't like to be here and [I'm] just thinking about in October [how] I'm going to go on vacation. ... I know here they're rebuilding and they bring a lot of young guys here, good players, and I know it's time for me to move on."

Orioles manager Dave Trembley has been trying to get Ty Wigginton and Felix Pie more at-bats, and releasing Mora would do just that.

anyone interested as a pickup for 3B next year?

good defense, good bat, why not?

I don't mind him as a third option behind Beltre and Figgins, but if he's the biggest addition for next year, I don't see us contending.

Mora is terrible and is 37 years old. Bautista is a better option at 3B.

Assuming he does get cut this season, I think could latch on and make a good utility guy for a contending team, but I don't see why he would want to sign here.

Well if he wants to win then I really don't see why he would want to play here. I think he's getting a little too old to be a major contribtor on a good team. Like YoungLion said I could see him being a very good Utility guy on a contender.

youngLion wrote:Assuming he does get cut this season, I think could latch on and make a good utility guy for a contending team, but I don't see why he would want to sign here.

because we're better than the O's (at least for now....)

zilby wrote:

youngLion wrote:Assuming he does get cut this season, I think could latch on and make a good utility guy for a contending team, but I don't see why he would want to sign here.

because we're better than the O's (at least for now....)

Sure but don't you think he'd prefer to go to an even better team? Going from a 5th place team to a 4th place team isn't much of an upgrade. I'm sure he'd have better opportunities out there.

Has anybody in this thread even looked at Mora's numbers? Why would we want another Kevin Millar?

Mustard_Tiger wrote:Has anybody in this thread even looked at Mora's numbers? Why would we want another Kevin Millar?

you're basing this on one season. he has had very successful years in baltimore.

Mora Stats Career Batting:

Year Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB K SAC Avg OBP SLG
2004 BAL 140 550 111 187 41 0 27 104 11 6 66 95 6 .340 .409 .562
2005 BAL 149 593 86 168 30 1 27 88 7 4 50 112 8 .283 .348 .474
2006 BAL 155 624 96 171 25 0 16 83 11 1 54 99 6 .274 .342 .391
2007 BAL 126 467 67 128 23 1 14 58 9 3 47 83 5 .274 .341 .418
2008 BAL 135 513 77 146 29 2 23 104 3 7 37 70 3 .285 .342 .483
2009 BAL 79 285 26 73 12 0 3 27 3 3 23 33 1 .256 .321 .330

numbers are way off, quote this post to see them.

Moras Stats Career:

http://realgm.sportsdirectinc.com/baseb ... 41547.html

zilby wrote:

Mustard_Tiger wrote:Has anybody in this thread even looked at Mora's numbers? Why would we want another Kevin Millar?

you're basing this on one season. he has had very successful years in baltimore.

He was successful when he wasn't 37 years old. The problem is that he's 37 years old; last year was the outlier, not this year.

I'm surprised this thread has gotten so much burn.

Here's where I come out on Mora: I don't think he's lost it all in one offseason. To call his 2008 year an outlier is a bit inaccurate I think, as he basically had the exact same season for the two previous years, except for a few extra homers. I wouldn't expect him to bat .340 anymore, and I certainly can't contest Shad's point that he is 37 years old, but I do think he can still be a contributor. Maybe he isn't even a plus starter anymore, but I have trouble believing that he's lost it all. I'd guess that he still has a little gas in that bat, he certainly still has a decent eye, and the fact that he can play any position on the field (excepting catcher and pitcher, naturally) could make him a very valuable super utility guy for a contender.

zilby wrote:Year Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB K SAC Avg OBP SLG
2004 BAL 140 550 111 187 41 0 27 104 11 6 66 95 6 .340 .409 .562
2005 BAL 149 593 86 168 30 1 27 88 7 4 50 112 8 .283 .348 .474
2006 BAL 155 624 96 171 25 0 16 83 11 1 54 99 6 .274 .342 .391
2007 BAL 126 467 67 128 23 1 14 58 9 3 47 83 5 .274 .341 .418
2008 BAL 135 513 77 146 29 2 23 104 3 7 37 70 3 .285 .342 .483
2009 BAL 79 285 26 73 12 0 3 27 3 3 23 33 1 .256 .321 .330

numbers are way off, quote this post to see them.

Is this supposed to mean something to me? All I see is a constant trend downward due to age, just like Kevin Millar.

youngLion wrote:I'm surprised this thread has gotten so much burn.

Here's where I come out on Mora: I don't think he's lost it all in one offseason. To call his 2008 year an outlier is a bit inaccurate I think, as he basically had the exact same season for the two previous years, except for a few extra homers.

By next season he will be 38 years old, 3 of his last 4 seasons will have been below average, and he will be coming off a season where his OPS was below .700. I don't see any reason this team should consider a player like this.

Mustard_Tiger wrote:

zilby wrote:Year Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB K SAC Avg OBP SLG
2004 BAL 140 550 111 187 41 0 27 104 11 6 66 95 6 .340 .409 .562
2005 BAL 149 593 86 168 30 1 27 88 7 4 50 112 8 .283 .348 .474
2006 BAL 155 624 96 171 25 0 16 83 11 1 54 99 6 .274 .342 .391
2007 BAL 126 467 67 128 23 1 14 58 9 3 47 83 5 .274 .341 .418
2008 BAL 135 513 77 146 29 2 23 104 3 7 37 70 3 .285 .342 .483
2009 BAL 79 285 26 73 12 0 3 27 3 3 23 33 1 .256 .321 .330

numbers are way off, quote this post to see them.

Is this supposed to mean something to me? All I see is a constant trend downward due to age, just like Kevin Millar.

it shows he puts up good numbers except for this season.

This is so frustrating.

Mustard_Tiger wrote:

youngLion wrote:I'm surprised this thread has gotten so much burn.

Here's where I come out on Mora: I don't think he's lost it all in one offseason. To call his 2008 year an outlier is a bit inaccurate I think, as he basically had the exact same season for the two previous years, except for a few extra homers.

By next season he will be 38 years old, 3 of his last 4 seasons will have been below average, and he will be coming off a season where his OPS was below .700. I don't see any reason this team should consider a player like this.

I never said anything about the Jays, or even next season. I agree that they're better off with Bautista/Encarnation. All I was saying is that if he gets cut he could help a contender as a utilityman.

zilby wrote:it shows he puts up good numbers except for this season.

Mora's OPS+ over the last four seasons: 91, 98, 114, 70. Weighted by plate appearances, that gives you a four-year OPS+ of 96, which is below major-league average and further below average for a guy playing a power position. Mora will be 38 at the start of next season.

Edwin Encarnacion over the last four seasons: 108, 101, 106, 79. Weighted by plate appearances, a four-year OPS+ of 102, which is above major-league average but below average at 3B. Encarnacion will be 27 at the start of next season.


Offensively, Encarnacion (who I've never liked) has been quite a bit better than Mora over the last four years, and as he's over a decade younger, he's more likely to improve or simply retain his skills. And while Encarnacion is a butcher in the field, there's a reason Mora has had the on-again, off-again nickname of Melvin Moron for many a year.