The Orioles have placed 30-year old righty starter/reliever Alfredo Simon on waivers. He has already said that he is going to reject an outright assignment to AAA if he clears waivers, that way he can become a free agent. Simon pitched in 23 games (16 starts) for the Orioles last year and he was 4-9 with a 4.90 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. He pitched in 78 games (19 starts) in his four years with the Orioles and he is 8-12 with 17 saves, a 5.18 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. The Orioles think they are better off without Simon, but he shouldn’t be out of work too long.

UPDATE: (4/3/2012) - The Reds claimed Alfredo Simon off waivers.

The Orioles have signed 27-year old righty swinging outfielder Jamie Hoffman to a minor league deal. Hoffman played in 2 games for the Dodgers last year and he was 0 for 4 (.000 avg, .000 OPS). He also played in 133 games in AAA-ball last year and he was 141 of 475 (.297 avg, .853 OPS) with 91 runs scored, 22 homers, 84 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Hoffman has played in 16 games in his first two years in the show and he is 4 for 26 (.154 avg, .489 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 1 homer and 7 RBIs. Hoffman will likely start the 2012 season in AAA-ball for the Orioles, but he could help them out at some point this year.

The Orioles have placed 28-year old switch-hitting catcher Taylor Teagarden on the 15-day disabled list, due to a back injury. He played in 14 games for the Rangers last year and he was 8 for 34 (.235 avg, .572 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers and 2 RBIs. 30-year old righty swinging Ronny Paulino will backup Matt Wieters at the start of the 2012 season. Paulino played in 78 games for the Mets last year and he was 61 of 228 (.268 avg, .663 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 2 homers and 19 RBIs. Paulino will likely do a decent job until Teagarden is ready to return to action.

The over/under for Orioles wins in 2012 is 69.5. The Orioles were 69-93 last year. I really like Buck Showalter as a manager, but the Orioles are in a rebuilding mode and that means they are going to lose a lot of games in 2012. The Orioles didn’t do much to upgrade the pitching staff over the winter as they were looking for bargains in the trade market and free agency. I think the O’s are going to have another very long year in 2012 and I would bet on the under.

55-year old manager Buck Showalter is good as his job, but you wouldn’t know it by watching the Orioles last year. The Orioles were 69-93 (42.6%) last year as they were overmatched in the A.L. East. Showalter is now 103-116 (47%) in his first two years in the Orioles’ dugout. He has now managed in the majors for 13 years now and he has compiled a 985-949 (50.9%) record during the regular season. He is only 3-6 (33.3%) in the post-season in his career. I almost feel sorry for Showalter as he is often walking into a gun fight with a butter knife, due to the Orioles’ pitching staff.

The Orioles have claimed 25-year old righty swinging infielder Zelous Wheeler off waivers from the Brewers. Wheeler played in 82 games in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 76 of 279 (.272 avg, .837 OPS) with 41 runs scored, 9 homers, 38 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. He has now played in 538 games in his first five years in the minors and he is 505 of 1,862 (.271 avg, .779 OPS) with 283 runs scored, 43 homers, 277 RBIs and 43 stolen bases. This was a decent pickup for the Orioles as Wheeler can play all over the infield. He will likely start the 2012 season in AAA-ball.

24-year old lefty starting pitcher Zach Britton is going to start the 2012 season on the 15-day disabled list due to a left shoulder injury. Britton pitched in 28 games (all starts) for the Orioles this year and he was 11-11 with a 4.61 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. This is a blow to both Britton and the Orioles as they were depending on him to give them a solid starter in 2012. The Orioles are going to be careful with Britton as he has a bright future for them.

34-year old switch-hitting 2B Brian Roberts is going to start the 2012 season on the 15-day disabled list due to post concussion symptoms. Roberts has only played in 98 games in his last two years with the Orioles and he is 100 of 393 (.254 avg) with 46 runs scored, 7 homers, 34 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. He has been lost in the fog the last couple of years due to injury, so I don’t expect him to get back to the player he used to be at any point in 2012. Robert Andino will be the starting 2B for the Orioles when the 2012 season starts and they hope he will play at least as good as he did in 2011.

The Baltimore Orioles have lost 21-year old righty starting pitcher Matt Hobgood for the entire 2012 season due to surgery to size down his rotator cuff. Hobgood pitched in 13 games (12 starts) in Rookie+A-ball last year and he was 0-6 with a 8.76 ERA and a 2.08 WHIP. Hobgood has now pitched in 42 games (41 starts) in his first three years in the minors and he is 4-15 with a 5.48 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP. The Orioles hope that the surgery will help Hobgood pitch better down the road.

The Orioles have signed 29-year old righty swinging 2B Josh Barfield to a minor league deal. Barfield played in 123 games for the Phillies last year and he was 116 of 452 (.257 avg, .649 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 6 homers, 55 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. He last played in the majors back in 2009 with the Cleveland Indians. Barfield has played in 309 games in his first four years in the majors and he is 267 of 1,012 (.264 avg, .671 OPS) with 133 runs scored, 16 homers, 112 RBIs and 35 stolen bases. Maybe a change of scenery will do Barfield some good as he used to be a decent 2B in the majors not too long ago.