The Orioles made four offensive acquisitions this offseason. It was widely believed designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero would be the offensive force in the middle of the lineup. For the most part, Guerrero has done his job.
However, the key to the entire offense may be shortstop J.J. Hardy. Hardy was out for 27 games and the Orioles went 10-17. He has been in the lineup for 12 games and the Orioles are 9-3. One of those losses was against the Texas Rangers when he had one at-bat and it was decided he needed to go on the disabled list.
At the time of his placement on the DL, Hardy wasn’t hitting well and he didn’t have a single home run. Since his return, though, the O’s are 5-1 and he has two home runs, including a grand slam in Sunday afternoon’s game against division rival Tampa Bay.
Yes, Hardy was acquired as an offensive upgrade for Cesar Izturis. It turns out, not only is he an offensive upgrade, his defensive has been more than serviceable.
So six games over .500 with Hardy in the lineup and seven games under without him. Does he really mean that much to the Orioles?
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