Good Deal: O's Give Rebuilding a New Look

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WHEN THE BALTIMORE ORIOLES TRADED 2007 All-Star pitcher Erik Bedard to the Seattle Mariners last February in exchange for four minor leaguers and a relief pitcher, Orioles fans expected to witness another rebuilding year in Baltimore.

The players they got didn't see it that way.

"Rebuilding is basically saying an excuse to lose," said Adam Jones, the top centerfield prospect Baltimore received in the trade. "There's nobody in here who has an excuse to lose. We are in the major leagues for a reason, so we just have to go out there and play."

Instead of rebuilding, the Orioles (44-44) are off to their best start since 2005, in large part because of Jones and reliever George Sherrill.

Jones, 22, is hitting .281 with 37 RBI and 36 runs scored. Sherrill, 31, was selected to the AL All-Star team this week and ranks second in the American League with 27 saves.

With Chris Ray, who posted 33 saves in 2006 for the Orioles, likely sidelined until September because of a ligament injury, Sherrill has surpassed expectations while filling the void at closer.

The two of them have been playing so well, in fact, that they've overshadowed Bedard, who has posted a 6-4 record and a 3.67 ERA for the American League-worst Mariners.

"[Jones] has made the trade look very good," manager Dave Trembley said. "I think that's obvious."

"What George Sherrill has done is phenomenal," he added.

When they first learned they were traded to the Orioles, Jones and Sherrill both knew that winning in the AL East was going to be difficult.

"I knew about the 10 straight losing years," Jones said.

But it didn't take long for either player to realize that this team could finish above .500, something that no other Orioles club has accomplished in a decade. And with a potential future All-Star in Jones and the three minor league pitchers the Orioles acquired from Seattle, including Christopher Tillman, who is 7-2 with a 3.08 ERA in 16 starts this year for Bowie AA, Baltimore could be competitive for a long time.

"Watching us play the first couple of weeks," Sherrill said, "I thought, 'This team is pretty good.'"

Written by Express contributor Joe Bubar
Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images