Some may mention Mike Napoli, who was the heart and soul of two straight American League Champions in Texas. But it never fails that the forgotten name in those conversations is Matt Wieters. There are those who follow the game very closely and know that Wieters can hit from both sides of the plate and provides pop in the middle of the Orioles lineup. Wieters hit 22 homers during the 2011 season and hit 23 in 2012. Most expect those numbers to take a jump in 2013, with some projecting Wieters as a 30 home run type of player.
While there are great catchers in the game of baseball today, such as Buster Posey, Yadier Molina and even Joe Mauer, Wieters seems to go unnoticed in Baltimore. And with the Orioles reaching the postseason in 2012, Wieters had a chance to make a splash on the national stage. The postseason did not go well for him however, as he finished with a .125 batting average, going 3-24 at the plate with four strikeouts.
Sunday, Wieters led the Orioles to a 12-3 win over the Phillies, with Wieters exploding for five RBI, including a three run home run and a two run double.
Look for Wieters to rebound from that playoff performance, and look for Baltimore to find themselves back in the hunt for the postseason.
Scores from Sunday:
Atlanta 6, Detroit 1
Pittsburgh 8, Houston 6
Tampa Bay 7, Minnesota 2
Miami 6, N.Y. Mets 4
Baltimore 12, Philadelphia (SS) 3
Washington 7, St. Louis 6
Philadelphia (SS) 13, Toronto 5
N.Y. Yankees 5, Boston 2
Notes from Sunday:
The Braves got a double and an RBI from Justin Upton, while his brother B.J. Upton contributed a two-run home run in their win over Detroit. Starting pitcher Mike Minor went three innings allowing just one hit and striking out three for Atlanta. Detroit's possible closer, and top prospect Bruce Rondon, pitched one inning in the game, allowing two runs and two hits while walking one and striking out one. Pittsburgh got two RBI from Jose Tabata and Tony Sanchez in their win over the Astros. Tabata had a two run double while Sanchez hit a two run triple. Neil Walker had a pair of hits for the Pirates as well. Houston got a two run double from Brett Wallace, who is competing for a spot in the Astros starting lineup. Tampa Bay got a phenomenal pitching performance from David Price on Sunday, as he went three innings allowing just one hit and recording five strikeouts. At the plate the Rays got a two run double from Kelly Johnson and a three run home run from Chris Gimenez. Trevor Plouffe went 2-3 with an RBI for the Twins in the loss to Tampa Bay. The Marlins knocked off the Mets on Sunday thanks to a 2-4, two RBI performance by Adeiny Hechavarria and a three-run home run by John Buck. Casey Kotchman went 3-4 for the Marlins as well in the win. Dillon Gee got the start for the Mets against Miami, going three innings allowing just three hits and no runs while striking out one and giving up one walk. Baltimore exploded offensively against a split squad Philadelphia team, getting five RBI from Matt Wieters. Conor Jackson went 2-3 for Baltimore as well, contributing four RBI including a solo home run. Jason Pridie added a two run homer as well for the Orioles. Michael Young collected his first home run as a member of the Phillies in the loss to Baltimore, a two run shot. Washington was able to knock off St. Louis 7-6 on Sunday, thanks in part to a Chad Tracy two-run home run. Ross Detwiler got the start for the Nationals, pitching two innings and allowing four hits and one run while recording four strikeouts. Detwiler is getting ready to pitch for the United States in the World Baseball Classic. C.J. McElroy went 2-2 with two RBI in the loss for the Cardinals. Yuniesky Betancourt and Ryan Howard each drove in three runs for a split squad Phillies team in their 13-5 win over Toronto. Betancourt went 2-5 with a double, while Ryan Howard only needed one swing to drive in three runs thanks to a three run homer. Jermaine Mitchell added a pair of runs knocked in as well for Philadelphia. Mark DeRosa and Jose Bautista each hit solo home runs for the Blue Jays in the loss. And finally, it was former Texas Ranger day for the Red Sox. Mike Napoli knocked his first homer for Boston, a solo shot, while Ryan Dempster and Koji Uehara combined for four scoreless innings on the hill. Dempster went three strong innings allowing one hit and two strikeouts, while Uehara went just one perfect inning.
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