Orioles confident they're a rising team

SARASOTA, FLA. -- The Orioles had a frenzied rundown drill hours before their preseason game, with the trapped runner scrambling so hard to reach base that he hit the ground and got his uniform filthy. And that was just a drill involving the coaches.

Brady Anderson, a former Oriole player and now a special instructor, went full tilt in trying to demonstrate how to handle situations on the basepaths.

"Sometimes, 'visual' helps," manager Buck Showalter said.

There is a lot to catch the eye this year with the Orioles, starting with the immensely spruced-up Ed Smith Stadium, a vintage old spring training site that has been made to look better than new by architect Janet Marie Smith, who helped design Camden Yards and renovated Fenway Park.

Then there is the bevy of talented players the team imported for this season, including designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero, first baseman Derrek Lee, closer Kevin Gregg, third baseman Mark Reynolds and shortstop J.J. Hardy.

Most visually striking is the 34-23 record (a .596 winning percentage) the Orioles had in 2010 after Showalter took over a 32-73 team. The club that long has been one of the saddest sacks in the big leagues learned not to be demoralized by playing in the same division as the Yankees, Red Sox and Rays and instead went full tilt in every single game.

No one says the Orioles are ready to contend in the American League East, but they aren't waving a white flag, either.

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"I think it all started last year when they finished the way they did," said Lee, who signed as a free agent. "Buck came in, guys bought in to what he was teaching and began to play better. Then you make the additions in the offseason, so it creates that buzz, that excitement. The fans are excited. So now it's on us. The front office did its job, it got the players. Now it's on us to produce on the field."

So can the Orioles, with 13 consecutive losing seasons (and only one finish as high as third in that span), really produce? "Yeah, I think so," Lee said. "Guys now realize they have the ability to win, in a tough division. Confidence is everything."

Health is something, too. Lee, second baseman Brian Roberts and starting pitcher Justin Duchscherer all are out with injuries, with the latter two questionable for Opening Day.

Still, the Orioles believe they will be better, even if they aren't as good as their big-time division rivals. "To know how you stack up, look at your 7-8-9 hitters compared to their 7-8-9 hitters, the same way with your fourth and fifth starters compared to theirs. That's the quality they're able to provide for whatever reason -- we won't get into payrolls and everything," Showalter said. "We have a chance to make some strides there. We know they have made strides. Sometimes, what we constitute as strides is comparing us to where we were last year, which looks a little different."

He likes the look of genuine competition for jobs in the starting rotation, and the sight of 25-year-old centerfielder Adam Jones. Showalter has designated 24-year-old catcher Matt Wieters as the clubhouse leader. The clubhouse has responded with hope.

"It's just like the Padres did in '09," said Reynolds, who averaged 35 home runs, 95 RBIs and more than 200 strikeouts for the Diamondbacks the past three years. "They ended the season really well and they should have won the division last year. Hopefully we can do the same."

Really, in the American League East? "People asked me the same thing when I was in Tampa," said former Yankee Randy Winn, competing for a backup outfield job. "Everybody wants to predict the outcome of 162 games. Our concern is one game. If you don't think you can win that, you might as well not show up."