Team USA can finally scream “We Are the Champions” after high expectations to win the World Baseball Classic. It did not come easy though, as Team USA had to beat highly-skilled opponents in the Dominican Republic, Japan, and WBC runner-up Puerto Rico in consecutive games. Team USA was aided greatly by their starting pitching, going 3-1 with a 1.25 ERA in the tournament. Puerto Rico did not stand a chance against Marcus Stroman, who no-hit them through 6 innings. Some key hitters for Team USA were Brandon Crawford and Eric Hosmer, who both had an OPS over a thousand.

Overall the WBC set record highs with ratings and attendance. This year marks the first time in which total attendance for every game exceeded 1 million fans. This count was prior to the championship game, which was the second most attended game for a WBC final game with 51,565 fans.

Ratings were also at its peak in WBC history, as 2.3 million fans watched the championship game, roughly 1.4 million more viewers than the 2013 final. Speaking of 1.4 million, that is the amount of fans that tuned in to the semifinal game between USA and Japan. Yet, this was on the MLB Network, not a major network like ESPN. Imagine the amount of viewership if the games were broadcasted on ESPN or if it can ever get to a major point, FOX.

Personally, the WBC gets me foaming at the mouth. I crave the excitement, I crave the opportunity to see international players, and I crave the passion and intensity international fans bring to games. The Japanese fans brought a different ambiance that American baseball fans are accustomed. The Japanese used what seemed to be boom stick noisemakers everywhere they went and were doing an organized chant prior to every pitch. Many countries had fans with noisemakers like the ones they used in the World Cup.

Every country had multitudes of fans who brought their respective country’s flag and wore it like a cape.

In the WBC, we saw an impressive run by Israel, a team that was not only on the verge of not making the tournament, but also not expected to make it out of the first round. However, they were one game away from having the chance to play in the championship round. We saw figures like the American Eagle and the “Mensch on a Bench”.

We saw Italy make an astounding comeback against Mexico, scoring 5 runs in the 9^th to beat Mexico 10-9. We saw impressive pitching performances from players we may not recognize. We saw one of the game’s best relievers in Andrew Miller blow a lead to Nelson Cruz and the Dominican Republic. We saw Adam Jones make an impressive home run saving catch sparking the U.S. to advance to the championship round. All in all, we saw a lot of international baseball history.

Hopefully, the World Baseball Classic has helped increase the excitement and importance of international baseball, especially for major league players. With Team USA winning the championship, this could bring the top-tier players from the United States, such as Clayton Kershaw, Mike Trout, and Kris Bryant to play for Team USA in future WBCs. I hope to be able to see countries allow their major-league players to play for their countries, like Cuba, who does not allow defected players to play for their country. Countries like Japan, South Korea, and China only allow a select number of players due to the tournament’s expensive insurance policy. Increasing participation for the WBC would be instrumental, as it would be one step closer to have the best of the best square off against one another.

The post The World Baseball Classic Was Much More Than Excitement appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Notable Additions: Everth Cabrera SS, Wesley Wright RP, Travis Snider OF

Notable Losses: Nelson Cruz OF/DH, Nick Markakis RF, Nick Hundley C, Andrew Miller RP

Baltimore had strong pitching as a whole last season. Their pitchers ranked in the top ten finishing with a collective 3.43 ERA. They will miss the reliability of Andrew Miller. He finished with 1.35 ERA and a 15.3 SO9 rate. Miller was effective on both righties and lefties. The Orioles brought in Wesley Wright to fill the lefty role in the bullpen. Wright had a solid year with the Chicago Cubs in 2014. He finished with a 3.17 ERA through 48.1 innings of work. He is no Andrew Miller, but he might be able to offer some relief. The starting rotation is really nothing to get excited about.

Adam Jones has been one of the most consistent center fielders in the game the past three seasons. He was nothing short of impressive last year finishing with a .281 batting average and  29 home runs. He also drove in 96 runs. Jones has raw power and should hit 30+ long balls in 2015. The loss of Nick Markakis will hurt the Orioles more than expected. He was an above average defender and brought power to the lineup from the left side. He will be replaced by Travis Snider who had his best season in 2014. Snider only got 322 at bats but still managed to hit 13 long balls and drive in 38 runs. He finished with a .264 batting average and a .438 slugging percentage. He will enjoy getting a full season of work and should capitalize on the opportunity. Chris Davis will be looking to rebound in 2015. He struggled making contact which caused his power to dwindle. He just wasn’t “Crush” Davis but rather Chris. In 2013, Chris Davis hit 53 home runs while driving in 138 runs. He held a .286 batting average to go along with his .634 slugging percentage. He digressed tremendously in 2014 finishing with just 26 home runs and 72 RBI’s. His ability to make consistent contact dwindled as he finished with a .196 batting average and a .404 slugging percentage. The Orioles would be satisfied if Davis could find a middle ground between the 2013 and 2014 seasons. They have plenty of firepower, but they would be nearly unstoppable if Davis hits 40+ long balls.

Injury limited Manny Machado to just 82 games in 2014. He finished with a .278 batting average and 12 home runs. His defense is unquestionably the best of all third basemen. Machado led the league with 52 doubles in 2013 and will be looking to do so again. His slugging percentage has always been above .430 and it’s only going to rise. Machado is a true superstar in the makings. Expect big things from him in 2015.

Breakout Player: Kevin Gausman SP

Gausman is one of the most exciting pitchers to watch. He has an overbearing fastball that averages 95.3 MPH. He finished the 2014 season with a 3.57 ERA through 113.1 innings. He needs to improve on his control as he held a 3.0 BB9 rate last season. This will be the year that everyone learn Kevin Gausman’s name. He will flourish as a full time starter and he has plenty of offense to back him up. If healthy I expect:

182.1 IP, 3.09 ERA, 174 SO

Game Changer: Matt Wieters C

Wieters played in just 26 games in 2014. Despite his absence, the Orioles still made a deep postseason run. Before his injury, Wieters had finished with over 20 home runs in each of his last four seasons. He holds a career slugging percentage of .423 and a .257 batting average. If the Orioles get Wieters back they will have the ability to make the postseason with ease.

J.J. Hardy was a close to being the game changer. Hardy played in 141 games in 2014 but did so with an ailing back. He never seemed to be himself and finished with just 9 home runs. He hit over 20 home runs in each of the previous three seasons. Hardy provides offense from the shortstop position and should rebound in 2015.

The Orioles will be strong once again in 2015. They have a solid pitching rotation with offensive firepower to lead the way. Expect them to contend for more than just the AL East title in 2015.

Make sure to check back in on March 31st for my complete standing predictions along with a few other fun pieces of news. Until then, you will be able to find a new preview of an individual team from March 1st through the 30th here at KRUI.FM.

The post Baltimore Orioles 2015 Preview Edition #25 appeared first on KRUI Radio.