In one of the worst predictions of the year, I speculated that the Orioles offense would be terrible. Instead, they are 6th in the AL in runs per game, and one of four AL East teams scoring over five runs a game. What went right?

Jerry Hairston Jr. has turned into a good leadoff man. He's already drawn 21 walks this year after getting 34 all of last year (those are Fibinocci numbers, by the way.

Although Gary Matthews Jr. flopped, Melvin Mora has been a great #2 hitter. His .455 OBA is over 100 points higher than his career OBA.

While not supplying a lot of power, Jeff Conine is driving in runs from the 4th slot. He's hitting .310 with runners in scoring position, and the first three slots are getting on enough that he has people to drive in.

Jay Gibbons in the fifth slot is similar to Conine. His slugging percentage is okay, but he's hitting well with men on base.

Finally, the Orioles #9 hitters are among the best in the league. They have six HR which leads the AL, and are third in OBA at .322.

So the first two batters have finally learned to get on base, and the middle of the order is getting the timely hits to drive them in. It will be interesting to see if Mora and Hairston's OBA hold up over the entire season.

Update Rich Goldberg points out to me that Hairston is injured and Brian Roberts is playing well in his place.