L.J. Hoes must be feeling all kinds of weird right now. The outfielder, who was born in D.C. and is a lifelong Orioles fan, woke up yesterday an Oriole. He was even slated for the starting lineup in last night’s game against the Astros. But around 3:30 p.m. he learned (through Twitter, by the way) that he had been traded. To the Astros.
He still got to start at Camden Yards; it was just on the away team. And maybe it was the strangeness of it all that had him 0 for 5 at the plate.
Hoes talked to the Sun about the experience. “My mind’s just racing,” he said. And he used the words “surreal” and “bittersweet.” Still, he sees potential in the new clubhouse. You wouldn’t know it from their brutal 11-0 win against Baltimore last night, but Houston is struggling right now, where Hoes won’t have to compete for starts against multiple gold-glove outfielders.
