Leadoff Spot

Nolan Reimold didn't have to wait long to find out if Orioles manager Buck Showalter was thinking seriously about him hitting in the leadoff spot if veteran leadoff man Brian Roberts is not ready to start the season . Reimold was at the top of the lineup when the Orioles opened their home exhibition schedule against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night at Ed Smith Stadium. Showalter said Sunday that he was weighing all the possibilities, but Reimold seemed like the most obvious, based on his career numbers and his overall skill set. He might not look like a typical leadoff man. He's a big, rangy guy with good power, which are qualities that lend themselves more to a place in the middle of the order, but Showalter liked the way Reimold extended at-bats last year and sees him as someone who can be a solid on-base threat.

As third baseman Manny Machado continues to hit doubles at a record pace, right fielder Nick Markakis has had one of the best views for the 20-year-old's performances: the on-deck circle. Machado has hit second in all 70 of the Orioles' games, and Markakis has been in the No. 3 spot for 51 of them. And while he was in front of Machado on Sunday, in the leadoff spot for the 17th time this year, Markakis still got to see Machado do what he does best when he pulled the ball down the left-field line for his 32nd double of the year against left-hander Jon Lester in the first inning.

— In his latest attempt to get Adam Jones out of his offensive tailspin, Orioles manager Dave Trembley removed him from the leadoff spot, batting him second in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader and seventh in the nightcap. Jones, who has made 15 starts in the leadoff spot in place of the injured Brian Roberts, is just 12-for-64 (.188) with three walks and a .224 on-base percentage in those games. Overall, he is hitting .227 with three homers and seven RBIs after going 3-for-8 in the Orioles' doubleheader against the Minnesota Twins.

Nick Markakis doesn't want your sympathy, though he definitely deserves some. The guy suffered through so many of those terrible years when the Orioles organization was wandering through the desert, and then he had to sit in the dugout last October and watch his teammates enjoy the team's first playoff run since 1997. That's just not fair. Markakis has been the good soldier since he broke in with the Orioles in 2006. He has led by example. He has provided production and stability in an otherwise dysfunctional environment for most of his career.

The Orioles' experiment batting right fielder Nick Markakis out of the leadoff spot is paying off. Markakis began hitting leadoff in the Orioles first game after the All-Star break. In seven games since moving there, Markakis is hitting .429  (12-for-28) following his third-inning single Thursday.  “It's something I always had in the back of my head,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. “I think Nicky's capable of hitting just about anywhere in the order. But really got his attention when I told him he could get another 50 at-bats, he was all for that.

It's not that Orioles right fielder Nick Markakis was opposed to batting leadoff. It's just that the concept never crossed his mind. Or, really, anyone else's in the organization. At least not until desperation set in this July, when oft-injured table-setter Brian Roberts was placed on the disabled list again. "I didn't think I'd ever be leadoff. But somebody's got to do it with BRob being out," said Markakis, who has batted first in every game since the All-Star break after never doing it before in his career.

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- He is known as an impatient hitter, one who will chase the pitcher's pitch and suddenly find himself walking back to the bench, bat drooping.But Mike Devereaux is adjusting well to the lessons he's learning this spring and is hitting line drives everywhere.After going 2-for-3, including a double, in the Baltimore Orioles' 11-9 Grapefruit League victory yesterday over the Toronto Blue Jays, Devereaux is batting .412 this spring, second on the club to Cal Ripken's .448 among the regulars.

As third baseman Manny Machado continues to hit doubles at a record pace, right fielder Nick Markakis has had one of the best views for the 20-year-old's performances: the on-deck circle. Machado has hit second in all 70 of the Orioles' games, and Markakis has been in the No. 3 spot for 51 of them. And while he was in front of Machado on Sunday, in the leadoff spot for the 17th time this year, Markakis still got to see Machado do what he does best when he pulled the ball down the left-field line for his 32nd double of the year against left-hander Jon Lester in the first inning.

Cubs: Brian McRae, the usual leadoff hitter, batted second for the first time this season. Doug Glanville took over the leadoff spot for McRae, who is hitting .194 (20-for-103) in his past 28 games.Pub Date: 6/23/97

The Orioles will likely officially announce they've resigned outfielder Nate McLouth to a one-year deal today, assuming everything goes well with his physical. And now that McLouth is back in the fold, one major question is whether he would return to the leadoff spot where he flourished for the last month of the season after Nick Markakis went down with a broken left thumb. Needless to say, McLouth's production out of the leadoff spot played a pivotal role in getting the Orioles to the postseason, and once the O's made the playoffs, McLouth was arguably the team's best hitter.

It isn't even March 1 yet, so the Orioles are a long way away from choosing which 25 players will start out on the Opening Day roster, let alone which hitter will bat first in the order when the season opens in Tampa Bay. But, for me, one of the interesting subplots of spring training will be discovering which player will lead off. The Orioles can no longer pencil in Brian Roberts as a sure thing atop the order. Roberts was the best one of the best leadoff hitters in baseball before his body began to break down and he began having concussion issues.

The Orioles will likely officially announce they've resigned outfielder Nate McLouth to a one-year deal today, assuming everything goes well with his physical. And now that McLouth is back in the fold, one major question is whether he would return to the leadoff spot where he flourished for the last month of the season after Nick Markakis went down with a broken left thumb. Needless to say, McLouth's production out of the leadoff spot played a pivotal role in getting the Orioles to the postseason, and once the O's made the playoffs, McLouth was arguably the team's best hitter.

Orioles right fielder Nick Markakis resumed normal offseason workouts a few weeks ago after recovering from surgery to repair a broken left thumb that cost him the last month of the regular season and the team's first postseason in 15 years. "As good as I'm going to get right now.” Markakis said Tuesday. “I've already started all my stuff and I'm ready to roll. And actually, [I'm] anxious to get down there [to spring training]. I don't have any setbacks.” Markakis, who attended Tuesday's Oriole REACH holiday party at Dave & Busters in the Arundel Mills Mall , said he's antsy to help build on the Orioles' success last season - which he knows comes with higher expectations.

Buck Showalter spoke optimistically following Saturday night's 5-4 win over the Yankees about right fielder Nick Markakis potentially returning from a broken left thumb if the Orioles went deep into the postseason. Before Sunday's series finale against New York, Showalter admitted it was wishful thinking. A series of tests over the next two days will give the Orioles a definitive answer whether Markakis will need surgery that would most certainly end his 2012 season regardless of the Orioles' future.

It's not that Orioles right fielder Nick Markakis was opposed to batting leadoff. It's just that the concept never crossed his mind. Or, really, anyone else's in the organization. At least not until desperation set in this July, when oft-injured table-setter Brian Roberts was placed on the disabled list again. "I didn't think I'd ever be leadoff. But somebody's got to do it with BRob being out," said Markakis, who has batted first in every game since the All-Star break after never doing it before in his career.

The Orioles' experiment batting right fielder Nick Markakis out of the leadoff spot is paying off. Markakis began hitting leadoff in the Orioles first game after the All-Star break. In seven games since moving there, Markakis is hitting .429  (12-for-28) following his third-inning single Thursday.  “It's something I always had in the back of my head,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. “I think Nicky's capable of hitting just about anywhere in the order. But really got his attention when I told him he could get another 50 at-bats, he was all for that.

For the first time since his return from the disabled list one week ago, Brady Anderson was back in the leadoff spot.Anderson replaced Harold Reynolds, who recently ended a team-best, 15-game hitting streak at the top of the batting order. Reynolds, who led off 19 straight games for the Orioles, went back to the ninth spot in the order."It's not that big of a deal," said Anderson, who had hit eighth after returning to the lineup following a bout with chickenpox. "Sure, the leadoff spot is more important because you score more runs and the best hitters on the club are hitting behind you. But I just want to go out and play wherever they put me."

The Orioles are looking outside the organization for an on-base threat to increase production at the top of the lineup, but manager Buck Showalter obviously couldn't wait any longer for help in the leadoff spot. That's why right fielder Nick Markakis has gone right from the disabled list into a slot in the batting order that he had never occupied in 996 previous major league games. Obviously, drastic situations call for drastic measures. The club is batting a dismal .264 in the leadoff spot and ranks 26th in the majors with a .302 on-base percentage.

Nolan Reimold didn't have to wait long to find out if Orioles manager Buck Showalter was thinking seriously about him hitting in the leadoff spot if veteran leadoff man Brian Roberts is not ready to start the season . Reimold was at the top of the lineup when the Orioles opened their home exhibition schedule against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night at Ed Smith Stadium. Showalter said Sunday that he was weighing all the possibilities, but Reimold seemed like the most obvious, based on his career numbers and his overall skill set. He might not look like a typical leadoff man. He's a big, rangy guy with good power, which are qualities that lend themselves more to a place in the middle of the order, but Showalter liked the way Reimold extended at-bats last year and sees him as someone who can be a solid on-base threat.