Thumbnails | Next player Losing Their Way: The Orioles adopt a new organizational philosophy which could read: throw good money after bad. Where once the farm system was the Orioles' lifeblood, now the team includes only four homegrown products: Ripken and pitchers Mike Mussina, Arthur Rhodes and Sidney Ponson. Also, 21 of the 25 players on the roster are 30 or older. This mad downward spiral, fueled by owner Peter Angelos's Rotisserie-style management, left the American League's second-most overhauled team (11 new players) also its worst at week's end, with a 3-9 record. After spending a major-league-high $74 million on player salaries last year to win 79 games, the Orioles might be hard-pressed to get a win-per-million return on their $84 million investment this year. -- Tom Verducci Issue date: April 26, 1999 Photograph by John Iacono Sports Illustrated on Baseball | Team-by-Team Reports Rookie of the Year Watch | SI's Inside Baseball Archive

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