The 2003 Orioles had a very interesting season, one which began with many question marks, and considerable ennui, as the fans had grown weary of all the losing seasons and the start-and-stop attempts at rebuilding and retooling. The new braintrust of Jim Beattie and Mike Flanagan were newly in place when their first challenges arose, to attract some help for 2003, while rebuilding the organization for the future. They were much more successful at the latter than the former.

While hiring Doc Rogers away from the Reds to run the farm, and bringing better managers on board in the minors, the O's pretty much struck out on the free agent market. They signed Deivi Cruz as a stopgap shortstop, and Omar Daal to help shore up the rotation and give the O's a left-handed starter. Their attempt at a meaningful signing of Pudge Rodriguez was thwarted at the last minute by a one-year offer from the Marlins, which Pudge and his agent, the ever-popular Scott Boras, took with the hope of re-entering the market a season later to field more hospitable offers.

Still, things were optimistic entering the spring, when the unthinkable happened. Pitcher Steve Bechler, who was in the mix for a bullpen or starting slot, had reported to camp out of shape and collapsed during drills. Later it was discovered he had a large concentration of ephedria in his bloodstream, a weight-reducing drug that had been linked with the deaths of several other athletes.

The team recovered and moved forward, posting a so-so record in the spring. Opening Day arrived sunny and cold, but suddenly turned chaotic in the middle innings when a sudden snowstorm blew in. The Indians took advantage, scoring a run when the Orioles' Jay Gibbons couldn't find a batted ball amidst the large snowflakes, but the Orioles came back and won the game late. That was, however, basically the team's only good news early on.

Omar Daal was a disaster early on, and although Jason Johnson, Sidney Ponson, and Rodrigo Lopez were pitching all right at the beginning of the season, the team wasn't scoring a lot, so they were scuffling. The bullpen, a strong suit in 2002, faltered a bit as Rick Bauer, Willis Roberts, and B. J. Ryan  had sub-par starts. Jorge Julio was not pitching as well as he did a season ago, either, so things were not looking that good. Meanwhile, the Orioles did manage to sign last year's first round draft pick, stud pitcher Adam Loewen, to a deadline deal, thus boosting the farm yet again, though any help he might offer lay in the future, not the present.

On the offensive front, though, some interesting things were happening. Melvin Mora started the season on fire, while Gary Matthews failed to build on his solid performance of a season ago. When Matthews was released after looking totally lost at the plate and resisting attempts to coach him, Luis Matos was called up, and promptly started to hit. Jay Gibbons and Jeff Conine were having decent years at the plate, and Jerry Hairston was doing all right until he got hurt. Brian Roberts stepped in and played well offensively for awhile, so the Orioles actually had a little bit of an offense. Geronimo Gil lost the starting catching job, as neither his footwork not his bat had improved from the previous season. Brook Fordyce was certainly better than he had been the year before, but he was still an offensive negative, as were Tony "All or Nothing" Batista at third and Deivi "Swing Away" Cruz at short. B. J. Surhoff hit a little bit when he could stay healthy, but there was no more help on the bench. Jose Morban, a Rule Five pickup shortstop, was taking up a roster spot. Jack Cust, a one time super prospect picked up in a deal for Chris Richard, was basically allowed to rot whenever he was called up to fill out the roster.

Mora continued to hit so well that he made the All-Star Team, but his season's effectiveness was cut short by a Greg Maddux fastball he took on the wrist in June, from which he never totally recovered.

So the offense was a little better than last year, and the pitching was worse. This meant, of course, that overall, the team wasn't winning, but, unlike in seasons past, this time the Orioles made real deals at the trading deadline. The Giants picked up Sidney Ponson, and the Marlins picked up Jeff Conine. The departure of Ponson left room for pitcher Eric DuBose to move from the bullpen into the starting rotation, and Conine's leaving, plus the injury to Melvin Mora, left room in the lineup for red-hot AAA hitter Larry Bigbie. Both newcomers performed admirably.

By now, though, Jason Johnson was not pitching well, and Buddy Groom had totally fallen apart. B.J. Ryan had straightened himself out, and Rick Bauer returned from a stint in the minors to pitch better, but the insertion of Damian Moss into the rotation had been a disaster, and without Mora and David Segui, who had been hurt yet again, and with Conine traded and Gibbons and Matos slumping, the team ground to a halt.

At the end, there were lots of changes from where things had started up. Steve Bechler's wife had delivered their newborn into the Oriole family. The fans got their first brief look at Kurt Ainsworth, the centerpiece of the Giants deal who is expected to be in the rotation in 2004. Matt Riley finally made it back to Baltimore after five years; he hopes to be here for good in 2004. Eric DuBose solidified a place in the rotation. Jason Johnson pitched poorly enough down the stretch to mark the end of his tenure, as the club determined not to offer him arbitration. Larry Bigbie and Luis Matos gave the O's fans new hopes. Brian Roberts showed he can at least be representative. Jay Gibbons was actually a little disappointing, as he seemed to hit a wall in August. Batista and Cruz were ushered out the door. The Ottawa Lynx actually made the playoffs; the Rochester Red Wings did not.

And Mike Hargrove lost his job.

One of the real class acts, Grover was let go by Beattie and Flanagan, who wanted to bring in their own hire, and presumably instill a little more fire and discipline in the clubhouse. The Hargroves will be missed, however. They will always be part of the Oriole family.

A disappointing season? Sure, in a lot of ways. The predicted attendance meltdown didn't happen, though, as the Baltimore fans, fans of baseball, and Camden Yards fans still clicked the turnstiles over 30,000 times per game, but it was disconcerting to see so many empty seats at times. The guys who get hurt a lot all got hurt again. The pitching staff, with the exception of Ponson, DuBose, Hentgen, and B.J. Ryan, all had off years, or a season of treading water. But the quality of the mid-season trades, restocking both the farm and the ML roster, the vast improvement on the farm, the signing and play of recent number one draft picks, the quality performance of the new front office, and the reduction in "meddling Peter Angelos" stories, all painted a picture of a rosier future for Baltimore Baseball.

So, before we turn our attention strictly to this coming year, it's time for this look back. Click on the player's name to read a recap of his season, his stat lines, and comments on next year.

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