When the Orioles acquired Chris Richard from the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for Mike Timlin, the trade was not viewed with much optimism in Baltimore. Richard was considered a lesser 1st base/outfield prospect going nowhere in the Cardinal system at age 26. His minor league numbers the last two years weren't bad, but the Cards weren't exactly hurting for first basemen or outfielders at the big league level.

For the Orioles, first base had been a void ever since Rafael Palmeiro left for Texas after the 1998 season. His replacement, Will Clark, had spent more time on the DL than on the base paths while future star-in-waiting Calvin Pickering had self-destructed at the AAA level. Jeff Conine had been a barely adequate fill-in, but at 34 years old, he obviously wasn't the answer to the team's long term needs at first base. The Oriole outfield was also shorthanded for the first time in memory due to Albert Belle's continuing hip problems. Chris Richard was coming into a situation where there were jobs to be had for a good rookie who could impress his new team.

The Orioles stuck Richard at first base right away and left him there for 52 of his 56 games. He appears to have the speed and skills to be an outfielder, but last season the need of the team dictated that most of his time was spent at first.  He made 5 errors as a 1st baseman, but given some experience and coaching he should be able to improve. As an outfielder he had 10 POs in 35 innings without making an error.

Richard started out slow with the bat -- hitting only .203 in his first 12 games w/13 Ks. The O’s showed patience, however, and they were rewarded as Richard came around in mid August. In a hot three week span Richard hit .300 with 13 extra base hits in 21 games, culminating in the Sept 3 game in Cleveland where he went 4-6 with a double, a triple, 2 HRs, 6 RBIs, and tied an Oriole record with 13 TBs in one game. For the last month of the season Chris hit .280 and slugged over .600, with 25 RBIs in his last 26 games.

Chris Richard hit much better on the road than at home last season. His OB% (.347 vs. .304), SLG% (.639 vs. .449), and BA (.278 vs. .252) were all much better in away games, but it's hard to conclude much from something as small as a two month sample. Perhaps he was fixated on that short porch in right field or just trying to impress the hometown fans. As an Oriole Richard demonstrated consistent power to the opposite field -- 8 of his 14 doubles, and 4 of his 13 HRs were hit to left center. If he can he maintain that trend his future should be bright.

Chris Richard's only real downside these days is the fact that (by baseball standards) he's awfully old to be finally making it to the majors. It isn't often that a 26 year old rookie comes up and makes any kind of impact -- by that age he's usually reached a plateau and won't get a lot better than he is. On the other hand, Richard was seeing ML pitching for the first time this year and as time went on he only got better. Richard's numbers so far are not very different from what Palmeiro, Thome, Galarraga, and Mo Vaughn produced at similar ages. Of course they've been doing it for years, while Chris Richard's career spans a couple of months, but there is reason for optimism. Sometimes players will get stuck in the minors for years at a time through no fault of their own (Wade Boggs, for instance) and when they finally break into the big leagues they are, for all intents and purposes, ML caliber players, despite their rookie status.

Come 2001, it is likely that opposing pitchers will take Chris Richard a little more seriously than they did last year. The scouting will be better and teams will be looking for any holes in his swing that they can exploit. He will need to work hard with O's hitting coach Terry Crowley to make necessary adjustments. But the most important aspect of Richard's 2001 season may well be how the fans and the Oriole organization react to any slumps he may experience. The Baltimore brass showed some admirable patience with the rookie when he first came over and it is critical that they continue to do so in the future. Richard is coachable, has a sweet swing, and works hard.

 TO CONTRIBUTE SIGNIFICANTLY NEXT YEAR, HE MUST:

Make bat/ball contact a little more often. Chris struck out 38 times in 199 ABs, that's 100+ Ks projected over a whole season. Fewer strikeouts could bring his average up to the .290 -.300 range.

Hit better at home. We all know that Camden Yards isn't the bandbox most fans think it is, but Richard’s home/away splits were more extreme than they should have been.

Get big league experience. This is more the responsibility of the Oriole organization than his, but it may be the single biggest factor in how Richard performs in the future.

NOTES: Chris Richard hit only .176 with men in scoring position, .311 in all other situations…had an unbelievable .986 OPS away from Camden Yards -- but only .753 at home…Stole 7 bases but was caught 5 times…looks small at the plate, but is actually bigger than Rafael Palmeiro…had an Offensive Winning Percentage of .537, which is way below average for a first baseman…would have ranked 16^th if he’d qualified.