At some point, either the Orioles or the Nationals — or both — will be a playoff contender. It might even happen this year.
OK, that’s a lie.
We’re confident, however, that it will happen someday. But only if they can develop their young pitchers correctly. Both the Orioles and Nationals are itching to bring up top prospects (Chris Tillman and Stephen Strasburg), partially because of their pedigree and partially because both franchises enter the season with major pitching problems. The Nationals finished 28th in team ERA last season. The O’s were 30th.
Right now, the Orioles are probably a tick ahead of the Nats regarding young talent. Adam Jones and Matt Wieters simply have produced more than Ian Desmond and Nyjer Morgan (who, at 29, isn’t really a prospect anymore). Ditto for pitching, where Brad Bergesen and Brian Matusz are — developmentally — further along than the injured Jordan Zimmermann. It’s not a stretch to say the Orioles are a year ahead of the Nats in building their future stars, which is scary given that Baltimore finished 64-98 last season.
Take the openers, for instance. The Nats took a quick 1-0 lead against the Phillies before John Lannan and the bullpen imploded en route to an 11-1 drubbing. The Orioles, meanwhile, led the whole way Tuesday night against the Rays before newly minted closer Mike Gonzalez blew a save in the ninth, turning a 3-2 lead into a 4-3 loss.
Different paths. Same culprit. Same result.
