Projecting the Orioles playoff roster with one big surprise

The Baltimore Orioles are October ready. They have clinched home field advantage for the Wild Card round and will face the Kansas City Royals in a 2014 playoff rematch. The Birds were 4-2 this season against KC, taking two out of three both in Baltimore and Kansas City. The Orioles offense crushed Royals pitching, scoring 29 runs in those six games, but things change in the playoffs.

The regular season is a marathon and the roster needs to be built to be able to compete at a high level for the entire season. Mike Elias did a masterful job compiling a roster that was able to withstand a massive amount of injuries and still have the third best record in the American League. The Orioles must now change their thinking heading into the playoffs and fill out a roster that can sprint through the playoffs.

Most of the players that will be on the roster are no brainers, but there are a few tough decisions that need to be made. Who will round out the starting rotation? Who will be moved to the bullpen? Is there a secret weapon that can be added?

Starters: Corbin Burnes, Zach Eflin, Dean Kremer, Cade Povich

Bullpen: Seranthony Dominguez, Yennier Cano, Danny Coulombe, Cionel Perez, Jacob Webb, Keegan Akin, Gregory Soto, Mike Bowman, Albert Suarez (Colin Selby in the Wild Card series in place of Suarez)

Corbin Burnes has already been announced as the game one starter in the Wild Card round, and that comes as no surprise. Game two will be Zach Eflin and game three should be Dean Kremer. The only controversy with the rotation comes when trying to figure out who would be the fourth starter when the Orioles advance to later rounds.

It would be a great story if Albert Suarez got a post season start after his breakout season, but Cade Povich should get the nod. Suarez has been one of the best stories in baseball and should be the comeback player of the year, but he's been inconsistent and has gone cold to end the season. He had another strong outing to finish the season but likely won't be available for the Wild Card round. He should return to the bullpen for the ALDS. Expect Colin Selby to stay with the team to face the Royals.

Povich, on the other hand, appears to have made the adjustment to major league hitters this month. In five September starts Povich has a 2.60 ERA, holding opposing hitters to a .162 BAA and has a 32 / 8 K/BB ratio. His improved command has given Povich the edge over Suarez to be the fourth O's playoff starter. Suarez also has a lot of experience coming out of the bullpen and will be more comfortable than Povich would be.

Catchers: Adley Rutschman, James McCann
First base: Ryan Mountcastle, Ryan O'Hearn
Second base: Jordan Westburg
Third base: Ramon Urias, Emmanuel Rivera
Shortstop: Gunnar Henderson
Outfield: Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins, Anthony Santander, Heston Kjerstad, Forrest Wall

The first thing you may notice is that Emmanuel Rivera makes the roster over Jackson Holliday. Holliday will be a great player for a long time but he has simply not performed well enough this season to be counted on in October. Rivera has been on fire this month, slashing .316/.349/.561, and has a legitimate argument to start in the playoffs over Urias. Urias has played well since returning from the IL but hasn't had the some production as Rivera.

The biggest surprise is the appearance of Forrest Wall on the roster. Wall was claimed off waivers from the Miami Marlins on August 28 and designated for assignment on September 1. He cleared waivers at the time and has been with the Norfolk Tides ever since. But how could a guy who never appeared for the Orioles this season be on their playoff roster?

As I said before, the playoffs are a sprint, and there's no better sprinter on the Orioles than Wall. The Orioles will likely play pretty much the same position players in every game with Ryan O'Hearn as the DH. They essentially have an extra roster spot due to only needing four starting pitchers instead of five and Wall can be their bonus player.

Having a player than can come in a steal a base can change the course of an entire series (a la Dave Roberts in 2004). Wall can also be a defensive replacement late in games for Santander. He is another left handed hitter and that does limit the options if Hyde wants a right handed pinch hitter, but the other option is Austin Slater who doesn't hit left handed pitching. Slater has a .188 batting average against lefties this year.

Over the course of a season Slater is clearly the better option, but for the limited purposes of the playoffs, Wall could be a bigger asset. He would be there just as a base stealing specialist but that can make all the difference.