18 Wins for Daniel Cabrera?

I've said it before in this space, but it bears repeating: I'm an Orioles fan. A long-suffering Orioles fan.

So take the following with a grain of salt:

Daniel Cabrera has turned the corner.

Yes, I realize it's still early in spring training. But Cabrera looked very strong this afternoon against the New York Mets. And so far this spring, he's pitched five innings, struck out six, allowed two base hits and -- most importantly -- he hasn't walked a single batter.

Cabrera has all the talent in the world, and his inability to throw strikes last season so frustrated the Orioles that they sent him to the minors. But after Cabrera returned, he seemed to look like a more mature pitcher. And he very nearly no-hit the New York Yankees in the final week of the season.

The difference this spring with Cabrera -- and I've seen both of his appearances on television -- is that his delivery seems more consistent. In short, he looks like a veteran out there. And that newfound poise -- combined with his immense talent -- is why I'm predicting a minimum of 18 wins for Cabrera this season.

Now...on to more observations from today's game...

* Orlando Hernandez started for the Mets, making his first appearance of the spring. So how did he get things started? With a 63-mph curveball that leadoff hitter Ruddy Yan could only stare at. That's just not fair.

* El Duque pitched a scoreless first inning, but then was roughed up in the second. Hernandez allowed five runs -- and faced ten men in the inning -- allowing six hits and a walk.

* Cabrera, as I mentioned earlier, got the start for Baltimore and looked great. He's changing speeds more often it seems, and that makes his fastball simply overpowering. He ended all three of his innings with strikeouts, including called third strikes to close out the first and second frames. In all, Cabrera struck out four and allowed just one hit in three innings of work.

* Orioles outfielder -- and former Met -- Jay Payton doubled to right field in the first and fifth innings. Every time I've seen Payton hit this spring, he's gone the other way with the ball.

* One thing that always fascinates me about spring training is the fact that in many parks, the managers and coaches sit on lawn furniture. Am I the only one who thinks this would be a great idea for the regular season as well? Imagine it -- the players stay in the dugout, while the coaching staff sits on oversized, white plastic lawn chairs near the on-deck circle. This might even present a great sponsorship opportunity, as companies would have to bid for the rights to be the official managerial lawn furniture of Major League Baseball.

* Baltimore catcher -- and Rule V selection -- Adam Donachie hit a three-run bomb to left field off Hernandez in the second inning. I still think he's a longshot to make the team, but a couple more drives like that and he could stick as Ramon Hernandez's backup...and it looks like he has some power.

* Mets right-hander Mike Pelfrey -- the team's top prospect, according to Baseball America -- took over for Hernandez to begin the third and was very impressive. Pelfrey allowed two runs (both unearned) in three innings pitched. But here's the impressive part: 12 of the 13 batters Pelfrey faced hit the ball on the ground. (Of course, the Mets misplayed a couple of those, leading to the runs.) But Pelfrey seems like a very strong groundball pitcher who has a bright future -- I could easily see him in the Mets' rotation at some point this season.

* Shawn Green finally ended his slump -- which had climbed to 0-for-15 -- with a single to right field off of lefty Kurt Birkins in the sixth inning.

* I also had a chance to catch some of the game in Viera, Florida between the Astros and Nationals. The Nats wore their "camo" hats for this game and I have to say those could be the ugliest baseball caps I've ever seen. Seriously. I'm color blind, yet I still know that the mix of colors in those hats was awful.

* Former Rockie Jason Jennings got the start for Houston and he struggled early. Jennings allowed three runs in the first on a walk, a double and two singles. In the second, Jennings surrendered an RBI double to deep center off the bat of Christian Guzman...but he did settle down to pitch a scoreless third inning before calling it a day.

* I'll be back tomorrow with more...