Steve Davis: Ubaldo, Ubaldo, Ubaldo
His spring training debut was not what the Orioles had hoped for, 1 1/3 innings, 5 earned runs, 2 walks, 2 hit batters, a wild pitch, and a throwing error.
He said afterwards that if you saw the stats, you'd think it was bad, but it wasn't, because he had control of the fastball. Huh? There's no good way to dress up that stat line, but he tried. I spoke to three people who were there for the game, and they all concurred.
The stat line didn't lie. He was terrible.
Look, I'm pulling for Ubaldo. He is a really good guy and a stand-up guy. He always faces the music.
Now, for most pitchers, you can spin this and write it off and say it's early in spring training, he's working on his stuff, etc. However, with Ubaldo, every outing counts. Maybe this is nothing, but based on his history, it probably is something. My guess is, this will be a sign of things to come. Now, he might come back with good outings, but I find it hard to believe that he will dramatically turn it around.
I hope I am wrong, but the Orioles owe him around $40 million. This could be a really challenging situation, and I don't think the Orioles will eat that money.
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