The month of October can be slow for teams that aren’t in the playoffs. That’s sort of the idea. The spotlight shines on the ones who remain in the championship chase. The others quietly take care of their business and wait until free agency begins and other important dates arrive. Big announcements are frowned upon.

The last Orioles transaction is left-hander Tucker Davidson choosing free agency on Oct. 7 after he was designated for assignment on Sept. 29. However, changes are being made in the front office.

According to a source, Bill Wilkes, Ben Sussman-Hyde and Sam Berk will not return to the advance scouting and strategy department in 2025.

Wilkes served as the Orioles' manager of major league strategy since October 2021 after spending three years as advance scouting operations manager. Sussman-Hyde was major league video/run creation strategist manager after three years as major league video/advance scouting coordinator. Berk finished his first year as an advance scouting analyst after his promotion from advance scouting fellow.

Director of baseball strategy Brendan Fournie remains in the department.

Money will be spent over the winter, the first under the new ownership group. The Orioles could have 16 players eligible for arbitration and raises are coming. They will check the free-agent market for upgrades. They could inherit contracts through trades that bump up the payroll, as they did with starters Corbin Burnes and Zach Eflin. Other contracts will drop from the books.

This is business as usual. But fans want to know about the possibility of the unusual.

Will the Orioles extend some of their young players to keep them under team control and away from free agency?

An absolute, crystal-clear answer isn’t forthcoming, but it remains a topic that periodically is tossed at executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias. Other teams do it. The Orioles have their obvious candidates from a farm system that previously was ranked first in baseball.

Elias appeared on a recent edition of the New York Post podcast “The Show” and indicated again that the club has talked about it. However, Elias isn’t going to share too much with the public for the same reasons that he’s stated in the past – it can only hurt the club and could impact an agent’s trust in him.

Who have you got in the World Series?

How much do you care after the Orioles lost in the Wild Card?

They’re busy reconstructing the coaching staff after moving on from co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller, bench coach Fredi González and major league coach José Hernández, and after co-hitting coach Matt Borgschulte returned to the Twins. But there’s lots more to keep them preoccupied this month and beyond.

Roster decisions are on the agenda, of course, and the following are included:

What to do with Emmanuel Rivera.

Colton Cowser has a chance to be special in two more ways in 2024.

Cowser is trying to become the first Orioles outfielder chosen as the American League’s Rookie of the Year since Al Bumbry in 1973. Bumbry is remembered as a center fielder but he made 58 starts in left and 24 in right. He didn’t have more than one start in center until 1976 – making 53 in center and left.

Infielder Gunnar Henderson was named Rookie of the Year in 2023, reliever Gregg Olson in 1989, infielder Cal Ripken Jr. in 1982 and designated hitter/ first baseman Eddie Murray in 1977.

The Orioles never had a left fielder win a Gold Glove, but Cowser is a finalist. Rawlings began distinguishing outfield positions in 2011, but eight-time winner Paul Blair was a center fielder.

(Props if you remember the one game that Blair played at third base in 1968. He didn’t start but he totaled eight innings and committed an error.)

Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is a repeat finalist for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award, another nod to his immense improvement at a position that he had to learn. His fourth and final position as a professional.

Rookie Colton Cowser, the fifth-overall pick in the 2021 draft, was chosen as a finalist in left field to give the club multiple representatives.

The Orioles’ last season with multiple winners was 2014 with shortstop J.J. Hardy, center fielder Adam Jones and right fielder Nick Markakis.

Catcher Adley Rutschman was a finalist last year but didn’t make it onto the 2024 list. Left fielder Austin Hays also represented the Orioles last fall, losing to the Guardians’ Steven Kwan, but he was traded to the Phillies at the deadline.

Shortstop Gunnar Henderson seemed like a lock earlier in the season to at least become a finalist, if not win the award, but he fell into a fielding slump, finished with 25 errors, and was excluded. The Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr., the Yankees’ Anthony Volpe and the Guardians’ Brayan Rocchio are the last shortstops standing.

The Orioles aren’t ignoring their minor league rosters and the building of depth. Their offseason business is spread widely.

Catcher David Bañuelos is staying in the organization on another minor league deal, according to an industry source. The agreement, completed last night, includes an invitation to spring training.

He could have become a minor league free agent five days after the World Series, but the Orioles started negotiations early.

The sides struck their original deal on Dec. 30, 2023. It didn’t take as long in 2024.

Bañuelos hopped on and off the 40-man roster a few times this season. His first and only major league at-bat came on April 16 against the Twins. He flied to right field in the ninth inning.

The changes coming to the Orioles coaching staff will be more extensive than anticipated earlier this week.

The co-hitting coach arrangement with Ryan Fuller and Matt Borgschulte is completely gone. The Orioles aren’t retaining Fuller, and a source confirmed today that Borgschulte is returning to the Twins organization.

Borgschulte was Triple-A St. Paul’s hitting coach in 2021 before the Orioles hired him. He’s accepted a position as a Twins hitting coach.

Minnesota is shaking up its staff by moving on from hitting coaches David Popkins and Rudy Hernandez and assistant Derek Shomon.

The Orioles are down to offensive strategy coach Cody Asche, who pretty much served as a third hitting coach. They haven’t confirmed the departures or how the staff will be structured in 2025.

The Orioles have removed three coaches from their staff. That’s one more than they did after winning 101 games and the division title in 2023, returning Chris Holt to an exclusive role as director of pitching, and dismissing assistant pitching coach Darren Holmes.

The trend continues of making changes under executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias and manager Brandon Hyde. They’ve been together for six seasons and the staff hasn’t stayed the same, though it came really close in 2023.

Hirings were made later than usually for the 2019 season after Hyde’s hiring a month earlier. You have a good memory if you can recite them. Only Tim Cossins remains as major league field coordinator/catching instructor, though he’s relocated from the dugout to the bullpen.

More emphasis was placed on experienced veterans like pitching coach Doug Brocail, hitting coach Don Long and first base coach/outfield instructor Arnie Beyeler. José Flores was named third base coach/infield instructor, replacing Bobby Dickerson after entire staff had been retained for 2018.

Howie Clark stayed as assistant hitting coach but was gone by 2020. John Wasdin was promoted to bullpen coach after spending the past two years as minor league pitching coordinator. José Hernández was major league coach, changed titles later, went back to this one and lasted until Friday.

The offseason halts play for the Orioles but can't stop the mailbag.

This is the latest sequel to the beloved 2008 original. Same rules apply. You ask and I try to answer. I don't believe in editing, but I believe in love.

Also, my mailbag sweeps other mailbags and yours sweeps the confetti that fell after my latest championship.

Any updates on Tyler Wells for 2025?
None. He was back with the team for the postseason but probably won’t pitch next summer until the second half. The question is how deeply into it. His return from June elbow surgery is supposed to be quicker because he underwent a revision ulnar collateral ligament procedure with UCL repair and internal brace augmentation. It requires less recovery time than the traditional Tommy John surgery. Maybe he gets back before Kyle Bradish, but a first-half return seems really optimistic.

What is the logic/benefit to having multiple hitting and/or pitching coaches? During the season whenever a pitching coach headed for the mound, it was only one of the two. It's not like they sent both out together.
That’s a funny image. The jobs are considered so big now that they require two coaches. Like having co-hitting coach Matt Borgschulte working with a player in the cage during a game. Having two pitching coaches to offer instruction to the large groups at spring training. Two who can wade through all of the analytic data and video. A second coach also can focus on advanced preparation for the next opponent. Two voices with one message. The Orioles aren't bringing back co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller. Here's what manager Brandon Hyde said about the co-hitting coach approach during his season-ending press conference: "Yeah, hitting coach is a tough job, because you're never going to have 13 or whatever guys going at the same time. You're going to have three guys going, you're going to have three guys struggling, and you're going to have six guys kind of in between, and it changes every three or four days. So it's a really, really tough job. Hitting is so hard to do. I think our guys do an amazing job of preparing our guys. I think they're unbelievably likable. Guys love to hit with them in the cage. They're incredibly prepared, they're unbelievably positive, and they're living and dying with every single one of our guys’ at-bats. That's all you can ask for."

The uncertainties over the Orioles’ roster for 2025 include how they intend to use Heston Kjerstad. Will he receive an opportunity to play every day, no matter the matchup, and how many starts will he get in the outfield?

Some stability would be a nice advancement for the second-overall draft pick in 2020.

Kjerstad was optioned multiple times and had multiple stints on the concussion injured list. He totaled 39 games and 114 plate appearances, batting .253/.351/.394, and made his second playoff roster.

It’s hard to label Kjerstad’s usage as a platoon because he didn’t play regularly, but he had only 16 at-bats against left-handers and collected six hits.

Manager Brandon Hyde was asked at his season-ending media session about platooning some of the younger hitters.

The Orioles are making multiple changes to their coaching staff following their elimination in the Wild Card series.

According to a source, the club isn’t bringing back co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller, bench coach Fredi González and major league coach José Hernández. The search begins for their replacements.

Fuller served as full-season hitting coordinator and Double-A Bowie’s hitting coach in 2021 before his promotion to the Orioles. The offense slumped in the second half this season, batting .246/.319/.412 after the break, .238/.307 /.395 over the last two months and struggling to produce with runners in scoring position. Injuries to Jordan Westburg and Ramón Urías were contributing factors.

The lull carried into the playoffs. The Orioles scored one run in the two losses to Kansas City that resulted in their second consecutive sweep.

Matt Borgschulte was hired as co-hitting coach in 2022, coming from the Twins organization, and he remains on the staff. Unknown is whether he'll operate solely or again be paired with another coach.

Players were in a daze or deep inside their emotions after Game 2 of the Wild Card. Media chased after veterans like Anthony Santander and Corbin Burnes, who could leave via free agency and made sense to speak about the jarring finish to the season. Young stars like Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman stood at their lockers with tears in their eyes and tried to express how much they hurt. Jordan Westburg sat with his head lowered, aware that he’d also draw a crowd. Colton Cowser, a leading candidate for Rookie of the Year in the American League, first had to address his fractured left hand before delving into the loss. 

Jackson Holliday, the first-overall draft pick in 2022 and former No. 1 prospect in baseball before graduating from eligibility, quietly got dressed at his locker near the entrance. He didn’t play in the postseason and was in the lineup only once after Sept. 21, starting at shortstop a week later in Minnesota so that manager Brandon Hyde could give Henderson a rare break.

Holliday went 3-for-4 with a double and two walks and was 1-for-1 with a walk the next day in a reserve role. A nice finish after going 2-for-34 in 10 April games and packing his bags for Triple-A Norfolk, hitting a grand slam onto Eutaw Street after returning on July 31 but going 21-for-96 with 33 strikeouts in August and 12-for-55 with 17 strikeouts in September.

Reporters and other credential-wearing folks finally made it to Holliday, some just drawn by the convenience of having the kid reachable as opposed to the huge scrums that made it much harder to hear players. He wasn’t as qualified at age 20 to impart wisdom or to offer a deep dive into the offensive shutdown while spending both games on the bench. But he’s Jackson Holliday and that’s a good enough reason.

Holliday came with his own storyline. His first major league season, being optioned and finishing with a .189 average and .565 OPS in 60 games. His first time confronting failure. What he learned from it. And the joy of being on a playoff team.

Hurricane Milton, a violent Category 3 storm that made landfall Wednesday night near Siesta Key, apparently didn't cause major destruction to the Orioles' spring training complex in Sarasota.

Sustained winds reaching 120 mph tore the fabric roof off Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, home of the Tampa Bay Rays. The Ed Smith Stadium complex appears to have been spared.

The storm weakened to a Category 1 as it moved through the state this morning.

“We are evaluating the Sarasota complex at this time, but initial assessments have not yet uncovered significant damage,” Orioles senior vice president of communications Jennifer Grondahl said in a statement. “FP&L (Florida Power & Light) is activating from our facility to help restore power to our community. We will share additional ways in which we intend to support the response efforts as plans are finalized.”

FP&L is using the facility as a staging center and local officials marked it as a sandbag distribution center. The Orioles evacuated personnel Monday at Ed Smith and the minor league complex at Twin Lakes Park.

The Orioles can’t say that their outfield is set for 2025 until they figure out what’s happening in right, with Anthony Santander heading toward free agency and the various directions they could go for a replacement. They know that Adley Rutschman is their No. 1 catcher but his backup, James McCann, also is ready to hit the market. The left side of the infield appears to be in the hands of shortstop Gunnar Henderson and third baseman Jordan Westburg, with Ramón Urías an option again for the corner if he’s tendered a contract. MLBTradeRumors.com projects a raise to $3.1 million.

The right side is settled if you believe that Jackson Holliday heads into camp as the everyday second baseman – the Orioles didn’t pick him first overall to work in a platoon – and Ryan Mountcastle stays at first with another big raise coming his way after making $4.137.5 million this year. The Orioles were willing to listen to trade offers for Mountcastle at the deadline, though nothing materialized, and his projected salary jumps to $6.6 million.

Many of us are working under the assumption that the Orioles give Mountcastle a contract and the left field wall continues to torture him. It’s reducing his impactful power. The infield on most nights could hold, going left to right, Westburg, Henderson, Holliday and Mountcastle. But there are other decisions to make at first base.

Ryan O’Hearn watched his career soar after the Orioles acquired him from the Royals for cash considerations on Jan. 3, 2023. More accurately, after he battled to get back on the 40-man roster. Let’s not forget that they designated him for assignment two days later, risking that he’d get claimed by another team. And for Lewin Díaz again.

Those were crazy times.

The offseason for the Orioles has inched into another day while other playoff teams are having all the fun.

The crowd will keep thinning until it’s time for the World Series and we’re down to two. I’m just going by how it’s worked in the past.

I never posted it or gave it much thought. but I blurted out "Guardians and Phillies" when asked for my picks. The Astros were my runner-up in the American League. I was fixated on closers, and Emmanuel Clase and Josh Hader put their teams ahead of the others.

What do I know?

Let’s check out three more decisions for the Orioles that are part of the offseason meeting agenda.

The Orioles began tackling their offseason workload much earlier than desired. The meetings are starting in the warehouse. Areas are pinpointed that must be addressed in free agency or the trade market. They have at least 15 players eligible for arbitration, the total dependent on whether they exercise reliever Cionel Pérez’s $2.2 million option for 2025, with a Jan. 9 date for the sides to submit figures. They have five players with options and five pending free agents.

When the dust finally settles, and it’s going to take a while, the payroll is expected to climb. How high is to be determined, whether it’s like a step ladder or nose-bleed elevation.

Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias said last week that he’s “pretty confident” that the Orioles will “keep investing in the major league payroll.”

With that in mind, here are a few of the many money-based decisions that are pending.

What to do with Pérez.

The sunny disposition that Colton Cowser carries into games, the clubhouse and pretty much every step in life was put to the test Wednesday night.

The Orioles lost Game 2 of the Wild Card to again get swept out of the playoffs. Cowser wasn’t on the 2023 Division Series roster, went 1-for-7 against the Royals and dealt with the additional pain of a fractured left hand. In its totality, no one hurt more than him.

That’s enough to break anyone, but Cowser still managed a smile and a few quips as he walked to his locker and took questions about the pitch that eventually forced him to the trainers room. It was an unfortunate finish to a season that could give the Orioles back-to-back Rookie of the Year selections following Gunnar Henderson in 2023.

Closer Gregg Olson was the last Oriole to earn the honor back in 1989 before Henderson came along. Yankees pitcher Luis Gil appears to be Cowser’s primary challenger and I’ve seen national media favor both of them. An article on FOX Sports referred to Cowser as a “shoo-in” but noted the reduction in odds.

You know which way Orioles manager Brandon Hyde would vote.

When the Orioles swapped out pitchers late in the regular season to cover innings and allow manager Brandon Hyde to set up his bullpen for the postseason, they selected left-hander Tucker Davidson’s contract from Triple-A Norfolk, designated him for assignment a day later and recalled Colin Selby. When they set their Wild Card roster, they kept Selby and Cade Povich over Matt Bowman and Albert Suárez.

Left-hander Trevor Rogers didn’t get another chance with the Orioles.

He gets a fresh start next spring training. He needs it.

Rogers was optioned on Aug. 22, less than a month after the Orioles acquired him from the Marlins at the deadline for infielder Connor Norby and outfielder Kyle Stowers. He went 0-2 with a 7.11 ERA and 1.842 WHIP in four games and didn’t last more than five innings in any start.

Five appearances with Triple-A Norfolk produced a 5.65 ERA and 1.221 WHIP in 28 2/3 innings, but he strung together three quality starts in a row after allowing 10 runs in 4 1/3 innings in his Tides debut. It’s hard to bring down your numbers after that disaster.

More baseball is being played while the Orioles regroup and think about 2025. They'll move past the crushing Wild Card loss to Kansas City but also use it to avoid feeling this way next fall.

Since we're looking back ...

* The Orioles worked backward over the last few seasons and it’s skewed perceptions that lead to some skewering of the organization. At least, that’s my theory and I’m floating it like a birthday balloon.

They unexpectedly won 83 games in 2022 after losing 110 the previous summer. Then, they jumped to 101 wins in 2023 to claim the division and earn the top seed.

This team raises bars like Jon Taffer.

The final game of a baseball season, and especially in the playoffs, can resemble a high school graduation. You sit next to someone in homeroom for four years and realize you probably won’t ever see each other again.

Paths are more likely to cross in sports, but the Orioles know that their spring training clubhouse won’t look the same. Players will be signed, promoted or acquired in trades. Others will be dealt, released or lost in free agency.

Anthony Santander is a free agent who’s been in the organization since December 2016 and coming off a season with a career-high 44 home runs and 102 RBIs. His. 814 OPS is the highest in a non-pandemic season. He made his first All-Star team. He’s played in 152, 153 and 155 games the past three seasons.

National media suddenly is beginning to notice.

Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani are the only players in the majors with more home runs. They know where they’ll be playing in 2025.