Melvin Mora

The Orioles are relieved to be rid of Mora's large contract, especially considering he turned a surprising 2008 into a very disappointing 2009. Mora shared at-bats in the latter third of the season and he will have a difficult time finding a full-time role anywhere considering his age.

While many had forecast Mora to continue his decline, he turned in a fairly healthy season and hit .285 with 23 home runs and 104 RBI. Health is always going to be a risk with Mora, but he offers some sleeper potential at third base for those who miss out on the top-tier options. The power could still be there, but don't expect him to come close to 100 RBI again. The stolen-base potential is all but gone, as Mora swiped just three bases in 10 tries.

While the Orioles did well to acquire Mora when they did, they really erred by giving him a three-year, $24 million extension during the 2006 season, signing him through 2009. A continuing characteristic of losing teams is an inability to evaluate their own talent. When Mora signed the extension, he was already 34 years old, so the O's had to have some idea that a decline was likely in the years covered by the extension. Before acquiring Scott Moore, they didn't have really anyone of note that he was blocking, so the opportunity cost at least was fairly low. They owe it to themselves now to at least evaluate where Mora stands in comparison to Moore.

After receiving a three-year contract extension early in the season, the 34-year-old Mora continued to slip and finished with his lowest figures in doubles (25), home runs (16), RBI (83), batting average (.274), on-base percentage (.342) and slugging percentage (.391) in three years despite playing in the most games (155) of his career. Optimists have attempted to attribute Mora’s decline to his constant flip-flopping between the No. 2 and No. 3 spots in the batting order, and predict a rebound given that Nick Markakis will allow Mora to focus on hitting second. While that’s a possibility, we expect Mora’s 2007 numbers to be similar to those in 2006.

Mora managed to stay healthy for the second consecutive season, and though he hit 27 homers for the second year in a row he saw his average drop from .340 to .283, his RBI drop from 104 to 88, and his runs drop from 111 to 86. While we didn't expect Mora to continue to hit .340, his drop in performance can partially be attributed to the team constantly juggling him between the second and third spots in the lineup as they struggled to squeeze run production from the disappointing power hitters behind him in the lineup. This season is a contract year for Mora, so we might see a spike in production, but expect numbers closer to his 2005 than his 2004 totals.

Mora proved his offensive explosion in 2003 was no fluke, finishing the season as one of the majors’ best hitters and earning the AL Silver Slugger Award at third base. What’s scary is that 2005 could be even better for him as the Orioles look to add another big bat behind him in the lineup. Durability is a concern, since he missed a stint for the third straight season, but pencil him in for another 140 games in 2005.

Mora suffered a hand injury that halted a career year. He has yet to sustain offensive production over the course of 600 at-bats, so that remains a concern. He may wind up at third base for Baltimore, or continue as the club's super utility guy. His trade value remains high and the O's may use that to fill some other needs. From a fantasy standpoint, at the beginning of the year he may only qualify as an outfielder in your league, having played just 11 games at shortstop and six games at second base in 2003.

Mora was supposed to be a part-timer when the season started, but injuries and a torrid start kept him in the lineup all season (557 AB, 19 HR, 64 RBI, 16 steals) at shortstop, a little second and every position in the outfield. His power numbers were a career best, but it affected his average (.233) and his production dropped off after the All-Star break, hitting only .195 and stealing just three bases. If the Orioles don't get a shortstop in this winter, Mora will have a shot at starting the season in the infield. He most likely won't be leading off as he did last season because of his .338 OBP.