The Orioles claimed second baseman Alexi Casilla off of waivers from the Twins, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports (Twitter links). The Orioles have confirmed the move.
Casilla had been a non-tender candidate in Minnesota since he projects to earn $1.8MM following a disappointing season. The 28-year-old hit .241/.282/.321 in 326 plate appearances in 2012. Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette said the acquisition of Casilla means the Orioles won't pursue other second basemen, Connolly reports.
Nice pick up for Baltimore.
Thats actually a pretty solid pick up for the O’s. I’d start him over Andino, Flahrety and whoever else they have in the mix at 2B.
im sorry, i have to since it’s also my last name… *Flaherty
You should be sorry :p
As for Dan Duquette saying the acquisition of Casilla means the Orioles won’t pursue other second basemen. He doesn’t have to be sorry here, there aren’t many second baseman out there to pursue.
2nd base was always going to be a competition.
Really nice move by Duquette. Casilla will be in the mix for a starting job at second.
Definitely a nice pickup but this is really THE answer? I like the move but to say he solves the problems at 2B is kind of questionable. He may be better than Andino and Quintanilla but not by enough to consider them “holes” and him an answer…
Yes, there is a chance he could be the next Izturis. But he’s a pretty decent stopgap until Schoop is ready.
It’s not the magic move that is needed. It became available and Dan didn’t hesitate to act on it. Get it while and when you can
Enjoy Casilla’s annual one month of solid offense surrounded by five months of a .500 OPS, Baltimore.
1 month of solid offense is one more month than Robert Andino gave us.
I was wondering when the Andino “Boo Birds” were going to come out.
I wonder no more.
Andino was batting .311 at the end of April 2012.
End of May .254
Brian Roberts 1st game back was June 12th
It’s my opinion that Andino was looking over his shoulder
Plus they started moving Andino up and down the line-up
I don’t think that helped the cause.
Oh and BTW Roberts ended the season July 1st with a rock solid .182 average and a range factor of zero.
So I really don’t want to hear it.
Any comment suggesting Andino is even remotely serviceable as a starter should be taken with a grain of salt. He doesn’t hit, he’s an average at best fielder, he can’t field, he can’t run the bases. Is there anything he does remotely well?
IMHO, Andino wasn’t looking over his shoulder at Roberts, but at reality. He’s just not that good, and the more he plays the more he is exposed as a marginal player.
Better than what we’ve lived with lately.
He had an off year last year. Although it might be able to be tweaked.
To me, it looks like his strikezone judgment got pretty bad last year. The doubles also spiked, which may be connected. What is certain is that Alexi is a good glove up the middle and can legitimately steal bases. If the bat can be fixed, he might return to a .270ish AVG. I’d even take .250-.260 if it comes with a decent OBP. The contact rate is the underlying stat that makes this workable.
I wish he walked more, but his 21 steals would have led the Orioles and his glove is better than Andino at both 2B and SS.
The real story behind this move is settling one position, and being able to focus on other more critical ones before the Winter Meetings even hit.
I really like flaherty and I’m not sure if casilla is better than him. Flaherty’s glove wasn’t horrendous at second, and it can certainly get better. If flaherty learns the strike zone a little better, he can be a 20 hr guy batting around .260 and .330 OBS
Well that settles it: the Orioles have secured the AL East division title for 2013 with Casilla on board.
Yup, because every knowledgeable baseball person realizes that the Orioles had no other weaknesses, and that Casilla was absolutely the best possible option to fill that need.
Please, your sarcasm just doesn’t play well here. It’s not even as good as mine.
Yea just like last year, Oh wait!
Duke doing what he did all of last year: upgrading depth and seeing who steps up. I dig the strategy.
Really? I am so diametrically opposed to this strategy.
The Draft is supposed to be for depth. Free Agency is supposed to help the fan base get excited about the coming year. Now, grant it free agency period hasn’t really started yet, there’s still some i’s to be dotted and t’s crossed.
However,this is just another example of Duquette pulling up his car the night before rubbish/recycle day and opening up his truck and filling it with scrap from the heap. If this guy were truly any good, the Twins would not have let him go.
As for our rotation, we really need a pitcher who can not only get to the 7th inning, but complete it. You’re not going to find those types of pitchers on the side walk either. Someone is going to have to spend and the O’s just simply won’t do it.
There really isn’t a great option at 2nd base on the free agent market and its more complicated by the fact that Brian Roberts has another year on his contract and as much of an afterthought as he is to most fans, they aren’t going to cut him.
I’ll give you this though Lefty, I am with you in that I want to see the O’s make a splash this free agency. It’s just too early to tell how its going to shape up.
Out of curiosity who do you want to see us sign outside of Hamilton, Greinke, and Swisher which are not happening.
Casilla is a great utility player. He was solid defensively, but he should not be seen as an answer to any issue aside from bench. The upgrade in defense doesn’t exactly makeup for his hitting. He is essentially Nick Punto, but younger
Ding Ding Ding ! BRob v Andino v Flaherty v Casilla in Sarasota this spring
true, this might mean the end of robert andino
I am guessing he’d be the 2nd Baseman or Util. If it was an extended time I think Machado would get the call at SS
Agreed, very few appreciated Hardy. I was one of the very few. That being said, Casilla is nowhere near Hardy’s talent level. I’d be surprised if Casilla got better, but he can be solid at times. He goes through streaks and every time he is given a full time job he blows it. Seems to do best in part time duty/not being handed a job.
Was definitely one of the Twins best MI options, even though he wasn’t amazing and I wasn’t really a fan of him. Just shows how crappy the Twins MI is. If the Twins don’t acquire someone then this will likely have been a mistake. Not too big of a loss, but a mistake.