Showalter: O's Need 'Redefinition Of Expectations' After Last Season
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The Orioles hold their first full squad workout in Sarasota Monday.
They hit the field with a stern reminder from their manager: There's a lot of ground to make up after last year's last place finish.
Buck Showalter has a winning record in his seven seasons as Orioles manager, resurrecting a franchise that knew nothing but losing for more than a decade.
He heads into the 2018 season after the failure of a last place finish.
So he's sitting the reset button.
"Who are we are how are we going to do it?" he said in a Sarasota press conference. "I think there's going to be some redefinition of expectations of how we do things. And never assume anything. Some of the players have got to regain that trust."
Showalter says the players need to know they have to win back some fans whose trust they may have lost. And his message might be a little tough for some to take. If so, too bad.
"Some people have some thin skin here and they're going to have a problem," Showalter went on to say. "Because this won't be a place for thin-skinned people."
Veteran players familiar with Showalter says his tough talk is welcome.
"This is professional baseball," says outfielder Adam Jones. "It's not a daycare. You're here for one reason. He's not my father, he's not my uncle. He's my manager. Simple as that. We're a team. We're here for one reason and one reason only. And if you're not here for that reason, 'Bye.'"
Jones is entering his 11th season as an Oriole and it could be his last, as he's in the final year of his contract.
Regarding his future, Jones his priority is not money, it's winning.
Can the O's become a winning team again? We'll address that as our coverage of O's Spring Training continues.
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