Dave Trembley?s smile says it all: He couldn’t be happier to be the Orioles manager, even if it comes with an interim tag.
“I’m having fun. I was in Ottawa [managing the Orioles’ then-Triple-A affiliate] last year at this time, and there weren’t this many people in the ballpark,” Trembley said. “… I wish you all could be here sitting where I’m sitting, and understand the magnitude of what this means to me.”
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But Trembley maintains it’s not about him. It’s time to turn the Orioles around-or management will find someone else to take his place.
“Dave Trembley is on the back of my shirt; Orioles is on the front,” Trembley said. “I want to make sure the Orioles are a little bit better. ? I want this to be a foundation and framework for the Orioles. Once and for all, lets cut the chase about ‘we’re going to get better.’ Lets start getting better.”
Trembley was hired as the interim manager June 18 after Sam Perlozzo was fired.
Trembley?s goals for the team during the second half of the season are simple: “Play better. Play up to our capabilities. Do the little things better. Take advantage of the opportunity that we have. Make the most of it. That’s everybody.”
Presumably, “everybody” includes Trembley himself, who couldn’t stop thinking about work during the three-day All-Star break.
“I drove my wife nuts for three days,” Trembley said, “because I was thinking about the team.”
The team went 9-9 under Trembley before the All-Star break before losing to the Chicago White Sox Thursday, but he felt the club’s effort overshadowed its record.
“For the most part, I believe the guys did give a much better effort the last couple of weeks,” Trembley said. “I told certain guys that you play for the name on the front of your shirt, not the name on the back. I can’t make it any clearer than that.”
But Trembley also likes to keep a relaxed locker room. In the minors, Trembley would find his players a Diet Pepsi-one of his favorite drinks-for showing up late or bending a team rule.
“I brought him in a case [Diet Pepsi], just to make things easy,” left-handed reliever John Parrish, who played for Trembley in the minors, said with a laugh. “It was just a joke, having a good time with the manager. ? But I’ll be bringing a case in here pretty soon.”
Though the players are committed to Trembley, it is unclear whether management believes he is the man to rejuvenate a down-trodden franchise.
Miguel Tejada, who has been on the 15-day disabled list with a broken left wrist for most of Trembley?s reign, has given his endorsement.
“He’s been doing a great job from my point [of view],” Tejada said. “? The players feel comfortable.”
ORIOLES SECOND HALF
» Including the unfinished game with the Yankees, the Orioles will play 47 games against the American League East. The division-leading Red Sox would win 99 games if they continued to play at their current pace.
» The Cleveland Indians (52-36) are on pace to win 96 games. The Orioles are eighth in the wild card standings, trailing Cleveland by 13.5.
» The Orioles would have to win 76 percent of their games, and go 57-18, in order to reach 95 wins.
