Don't be fooled by Baltimore's semi-hot start. They have played a lot of ****** teams. Do you really think they are going to get by with Aubrey Huff, Jay Payton, Kevin Millar and a slew of other over-the-hill veterans? Cabrera will regress to his old ways. Guthrie is no Ace, instead he's a #3-4 at best. Burres is trash, he'll fall back down to earth. Trachsel is one of the worst starters in the Majors. Their bullpen although with new names is still just as bad as past years'. Don't worry spidernat, I'm confident that we will finish with a better record than those losers. 
I wouldn't be fooled by blind hatred for the O's either. While I think they will eventually come back to earth, this is not a bad team. The only "crap" teams they really have played are the Rays (which are looking like not such a bad team either) and the Rangers. Unless, of course, you believe the White Sox, Yankees, Mariners, and Blue Jays are all "crap" teams. And its not your list of over the hill veterans that are carrying the team offensively, but the young players -- Markakis, Scott, Jones, and Quiroz. Add to that Melvin Mora and Roberts, and the full line up isn't half bad.
Its the pitching that will bring the O's back to earth, but so far, its been able to keep them in games. While the stats are not impressive, having watched them now in 6 games vs. the White Sox, guys like Cabrerra, Guthrie, and Burres have good stuff, and seem to be able to get the big out when they need it. The frustrating thing for me in the 2 losses and the suspended game the White Sox had vs the Orioles, is we had so many opportunities to break those games open, and then we couldn't seal the deal. It was usually the craftiness of whoever was on the mound, or a pitching change that did the Sox in. The bullpen isn't half bad -- better than most.
I'm not sure the O's are the real deal, but they have taken the sow's ear and started to fashion a silk purse. They have made the most of the Bedard/Tejada trades, and are positioning themselves to be a truly contending team again. I don't think anyone can argue with that.
