Wieters To Make Big League Debut Friday vs. Tigers

Perhaps the headline should read "ZAUN to Lose Job to Unproven Prospect Friday vs. Tigers", but that would be rude to the savior of Orioles baseball. And I don't mean ZAUN.

Wieters' call-up has been one of the more anticipated in recent memory. The most common phrase used to describe him is "Joe Mauer with power". Joe Mauer has 11 HRs in 24 games this year. So, yeah.

Normally, the expectations would be unfair and nearly impossible to live up to. But there's a silver lining to playing for a team with a small fan-base and zero playoff aspirations. This season is Wieters' chance to acclimate himself to big league pitching - both his own and that of his opponents. While it would encouraging to see him tear it up this year - and lord knows he has the talent to do so - it is not the end of the world if he doesn't. The Orioles are still a ways away from making noise, but the Balticore is in place.

During tonight's broadcast against the Jays, Gary Thorne had this to say:

"The way the Orioles are playing right now offensively, a couple more pieces in the puzzle, especially on the mound, and all of a sudden its a different ball club that's been seen here in more than a decade, and you've really got a chance to be very competitive."

That's it. Hope.