Earlier this week, I wondered whether Kyle Bradish could build on his breakout season, if Jordan Westburg would play more regularly, and whether Cole Irvin would keep bouncing between the rotation and bullpen.
We’re a long way from getting any answers.
Here are three more while we wait for the Orioles to make a big move.
Does John Means give the Orioles a full and productive season?
Let’s start with the full part.
The Orioles don’t need more reminders that their bullpen has a giant hole in the back. They’ve felt the impact of losing Félix Bautista. They’ve made late-inning relief a priority in the offseason.
But Bautista’s importance to the club, how much he dominated hitters this summer, was discussed again last night with his selection as the American League’s top reliever.
Bautista received the Mariano Rivera Award, with Milwaukee’s Devin Williams getting the National League’s version named for Trevor Hoffman.
A six-man panel of former relievers, including Rivera and Hoffman, handled the voting, and Bautista was the unanimous choice.
This is the latest honor for the Orioles, after Gunner Henderson was chosen as the AL’s Rookie of the Year, Brandon Hyde as Manager of the Year and Mike Elias as Executive of the Year. Henderson and Adley Rutschman won Silver Slugger Awards.
The Orioles are finalizing the structure of their 2024 coaching staff as they approach the Winter Meetings. Business that doesn’t influence their active roster.
According to an industry source, the Orioles are prepared to hire Drew French as their pitching coach.
French, 39, spent the past three seasons as the Braves’ bullpen coach. He’ll take over for Chris Holt, who maintains his duties as director of pitching.
Holt and executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias are familiar with French from his five seasons as pitching coach in the Astros’ organization from 2016-20. French was one of two pitching coaches at the alternate training site in 2020 before joining Houston toward the end of the regular season and playoffs to work with the club’s taxi squad.
French began his tenure in the Astros’ system as pitching coach at short-season Tri-City. He served in the same role with the 2017 Midwest League champion Quad Cities River Bandits and 2018 Carolina League champion Buies Creed Astros.
If the month of November seems slow or stalled for Orioles business, consider that the only player acquisition a year ago was outfielder Daz Cameron on a minor league contract. The rest of it centered on outrighting a few players and protecting others in the Rule 5 draft.
The Orioles were much more active in November 2021 with waiver claims of relievers Bryan Baker and Cionel Pérez and shortstop Lucius Fox and the signings of second baseman Rougned Odor and pitchers Spenser Watkins, Rico Garcia, Marcos Diplán and Denyi Reyes. The Nationals claimed Fox 11 days later.
Pitcher Tommy Milone was traded to the Braves in November 2020 for minor league infielders Greg Cullen and AJ Graffanino, and first baseman Chris Snow was claimed from the Giants. Outfielder Mason Williams and shortstop Malquin Canelo signed minor league deals in November 2019.
So, it’s usually a non-impactful month under executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias.
Meanwhile, free-agent starters began flying off the board, at a senior citizen discount.
The Orioles are expected to break camp again next spring with 13 pitchers and 13 position players. The same even split on their 26-man roster.
Six of them made their first Opening Day rosters – starter Kyle Bradish, catcher Adley Rutschman, infielders Gunnar Henderson and Terrin Vavra, outfielder Kyle Stowers and reliever Logan Gillaspie. Gillaspie is the only one who’s out of the organization, with the Red Sox claiming him off waivers Sept. 4 and the Padres selecting him Nov. 15.
Bradish finished fourth in Cy Young voting in the American League after starting Game 1 of the Division Series. He’s the staff ace.
Rutschman was an All-Star and Silver Slugger Award winner who placed ninth in Most Valuable Player balloting.
Henderson finished eighth, was voted Rookie of the Year and also won a Silver Slugger. And he’s only going to get better.
Baseball’s offseason moves into a new month later this week, inching closer to the Winter Meetings, also known as the worst assignment of the year. Stretch out those hamstrings to chase rumors, whether legit or loony, at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville.
Stretch them out to cover the hundreds of miles separating the media workroom from the lobby area and elevators.
You literally are handed a map at the front desk to navigate the premises, accompanied by wishes of “good luck.” And with my sense of direction, I’m liable to wander into Memphis while searching for a men’s room.
Take the free bottled water if offered. It may be the difference between survival and dying from dehydration.
Fans are dying to know what the Orioles will do with their roster.
The Winter Meetings are a week away, but I can’t fly into Nashville until I’ve trudged through a few more awards nights.
Roll up the pant legs and wear old shoes.
Major League Baseball’s Comeback Player of the Year will be announced Tuesday evening on MLB Network. White Sox closer Liam Hendriks was honored in the American League in the Players Choice voting, finishing ahead of Orioles first baseman Ryan O’Hearn and Rays pitcher Tyler Glasnow.
Hendriks returned to the White Sox’s active roster in May and appeared in five games after battling non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. I don’t see any reason to consider someone else.
Former Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini was the AL’s Comeback Player of the Year in 2021.
Two days past Thanksgiving is too early to begin worrying whether the leftovers are edible. To check for discoloring, change in texture, hints that a trip to the emergency room is in your future.
It isn’t too late to keep looking back on the 2023 Orioles season.
Among the surprises and oddities, I’ve already mentioned how Austin Voth wasn’t impactful, Dillon Tate wasn’t able to pitch, Mike Baumann wasn’t big only in size, Yennier Cano was an All-Star, Danny Coulombe was cool under pressure, Adam Frazier had a power surge and outage, Ryan O’Hearn hit in the middle of the order, Cedric Mullins posted curious splits, and Joey Krehbiel wasn’t around much.
Here are three more:
Logan Gillaspie made the Opening Day roster.
Winning the American League East and reaching the Division Series, where they were swept by the Rangers, earned the Orioles a playoff share of $43,942.
A decent haul but a pittance compared to the $506,263 earned by the Rangers for winning the World Series. The Diamondbacks won the National League pennant and were rewarded with $313,634.
The general managers and owners meetings are over and the major awards are passed out. The Winter Meetings don’t start until Dec. 3 in Nashville. The deadlines to protect players in the Rule 5 draft and tender contracts to the ones eligible for arbitration arrived last week.
The Orioles didn’t add any of their Rule 5 eligibles to the 40-man roster, which has four openings for future business. They also had zero non-tenders, a surprise considering the 17 players on their list. At least a few seemed reasonable, if not assured.
Four reached agreements on new deals: shortstop Jorge Mateo for $2.7 million, reliever Keegan Akin for $825,000 and outfielders Ryan McKenna and Sam Hilliard for $800,000. The remaining 13 have agents negotiating with the Orioles until the Jan. 12 deadline to submit salary figures for the upcoming season.
A kind world would make carving reminiscent of turkeys on the Thanksgiving table rather than Nathan Eovaldi facing the Orioles in the Division Series. But gentle isn’t always an option.
Let’s keep it brief today. Like saying grace. Expressing your gratitude without letting the gravy get cold and develop that skin on the surface.
Orioles fans should be thankful for a 2023 season that probably exceeded their wildest expectations.
A record above .500? Optimists were on it. Making the playoffs? Not beyond the realm of possibility after the club went 83-79 the previous summer.
Posting the best record in the American League to win the division and earn a first-round bye? Crazy talk until it happened.
The Cardinals signing of Kyle Gibson to a one-year, $12 million deal with an option didn’t shed much light on the Orioles’ plans for their rotation.
Those intentions already are illuminated.
Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias wants an upper-level starter for the rotation. Gibson is a great guy who put up some good numbers in 2023, but Elias is aiming higher.
He won’t find a higher-quality individual, but this is about upgrading the rotation.
Elias gave interviews at the general managers meetings and to MASNsports.com and 105.7 The Fan over the last few weeks, and it’s the same summary. He wants pitching. Near or at the top of the rotation and in the back end of the bullpen.
The Orioles were expected to find a new Opening Day starter in 2024, whether from outside the organization or by choosing one of their returnees.
Now, they’re assured of doing it.
Kyle Gibson reached agreement today on a one-year deal with the St. Louis Cardinals that includes an option for 2025, per a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, with multiple outlets confirming.
ESPN’s Jesse Rogers first reported that Gibson will receive $12 million next season.
It’s an ideal landing spot for Gibson, who lives in the St. Louis area and attended the University of Missouri. He follows the Cardinals’ agreement yesterday with veteran Lance Lynn to a one-year deal plus an option for a guaranteed $11 million.
Orioles starter Dean Kremer fell short of achieving Super 2 status and becoming eligible for arbitration. The cutoff was set at two years and 118 days of service time, down from two years and 128 days in 2022.
Kremer missed it this year at two years and 112 days.
The season was mostly a success for Kremer, who finished 13-5 with a 4.12 ERA in a career high 32 starts and 172 2/3 innings. Eleven of his victories occurred in night games, tied with teammate Kyle Gibson for second-most in the American League.
I can’t leave it at that. More digging must be done here, and I’m the man with the shovel.
According to STATS research, Steve Stone owns the club record with 24 victories in night games in 1980. Stone won the Cy Young Award in the American League with a 25-7 record.
Time to revisit more notes from the 2023 season. And not just the facts.
Here’s another attempt to expand on them. Stretching the truth.
Fact: Jorge Mateo became the first player in Orioles history and the eighth in the majors since at least 1901 with multiple stolen bases in a team’s first two games of the season. He also became the first player in club history and the 14th player since 1901 with at least four stolen bases in his first two games to begin a season. Mateo became the ninth Oriole to steal at least 20 bases in the team’s first 68 games and the first since Nate McLouth had 23 in 2013.
Follow: If only Mateo could reach base more often, but that’s been his issue at every stop.
Top 100 prospects don’t usually move around this much. He’s been traded twice and claimed on waivers, and he’s only 28.
Leftovers aren’t just for the days after Thanksgiving.
I had some extra questions in last week’s mailbag. I’d prefer green bean casserole, but maybe later.
The portion is modest, unlike your server. Just a couple handfuls of inquiries that didn’t make the first one.
Also, my mailbag serves homemade stuffing and your mailbag uses a box that expired three years ago.
Who will be the top two Orioles in stolen bases in 2024 and who will get the most innings at third base?
Two questions packed into one. Sort of like a casserole. I can’t make bold predictions without knowing the Opening Day roster. Jorge Mateo and Cedric Mullins were 1-2 this season, but Mateo appeared in 116 games. I wouldn’t expect the same in 2024. The second part is easier because I can just choose between Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg. I’ll get back to you.
With family and friends gathering soon for the Thanksgiving holiday, the baseball business could slow but won’t necessarily halt. The screeching sound isn’t brakes. More likely talk radio.
Mike Elias could turn off his phone or charge it in another room while the turkey’s carved. He might be traveling and temporarily unavailable. But he’s aware of a fast-developing market after his time at the general managers meetings in Arizona. How pitching could fly off the board – unlike turkeys, who can’t fly – with so many teams searching for it.
The expanded playoffs increase the aggressiveness of executives, especially after the second-place, 84-win Diamondbacks reached the World Series. Snoozing brings the risk of losing.
Elias is known to prefer club control beyond one year if listening to trade offers, but the quest for a starter who slots high in the rotation might now allow it. Some of the biggest names assumed to be available are approaching free agency, most notably Milwaukee’s Corbin Burnes, Cleveland’s Shane Bieber and Tampa Bay’s Tyler Glasnow. The White Sox’s Dylan Cease has two years left on his contract.
The rentals can command less in return, but higher demand and desperation also can plant the sellers more firmly in the driver’s seat. Bidding wars aren’t confined to free agency.
The next important date on baseball’s calendar arrives today with teams required to tender or non-tender players eligible for arbitration.
You probably memorized the list of 17 Orioles, an unusually high total, but here it is again, with MLBTradeRumors using its model to project salaries:
Anthony Santander: $7.4 million to $12.7 million
Danny Coulombe: $1 million to $2.2 million
John Means: $2.975 million to $5.93 million
Ryan O’Hearn: $1.4 million to $3 million
Cedric Mullins: $4.1 million to $6.4 million
Austin Hays: $3.2 million to $6.1 million
Dillon Tate: $1.5 million to $1.5 million
Jorge Mateo: $2 million to $2.9 million
Ryan Mountcastle: $738,400 to $4.2 million
Cionel Pérez: $732,300 to $1.3 million
Cole Irvin: $737,600 to $1.8 million
Keegan Akin: $731,100 to $800,000
Jacob Webb: $720,000 to $1.2 million
Ramón Urías: $734,700 to $2 million
Tyler Wells: $732,400 to $2.3 million
Ryan McKenna: $725,800 to $740,000
Sam Hilliard: $750,000 to $1.1 million
Santander is going to draw trade interest again and therefore find himself immersed in rumors. He’s a slam-dunk tender, of course. That’s the easy part.
Harder is finding a way to squeeze Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser onto a 26-man roster without removing an outfielder. But so would be replacing Santander’s power and run production.
My mailbag is getting thick around the waist again. So am I, which prevents me from judging it too harshly.
Rather than let it balloon and risk a rupture, I’ve decided to empty it this morning in the latest sequel to the beloved original in August 2008.
Harder to keep the weight off as we age.
I didn’t burn many calories editing your questions. I might have attached a first name. I might have removed a comma or parentheses. Please don’t contact your lawyer.
Also, my mailbag plays sweet music and yours has Creed on a loop.
Two moves made by the Orioles in the offseason put players on the 40-man roster who are out of minor league options.
Left-hander Tucker Davidson, who signed a one-year contract last week, cleared outright waivers yesterday and was assigned to Triple-A Norfolk. Outfielder Sam Hilliard will try to avoid the waiver wire as the Orioles create more space for future transactions. He also can’t be sent down without going through the process.
The Orioles depend on flexibility that allows for a roster churn, the shuffling done especially to freshen the bullpen. But there are numerous relievers who have run out of options.
The list includes left-handers Danny Coulombe, Cionel Pérez and Cole Irvin, and right-handers Jacob Webb and Mike Baumann.
Irvin made 12 starts and 12 relief appearances, and the Orioles haven’t said whether he’s viewed in one role next summer. Baumann was told late in camp that he’d be used strictly in relief and in fewer innings, and there’s no reason to deviate from that plan moving forward.
Guiding a team to 101 wins and the best record in the American League couldn’t be ignored by voters in the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
Brandon Hyde was named AL Manager of the Year, with the news coming tonight on MLB Network. He was the only manager to appear on every ballot.
Hyde, a runner-up last year to the Indians’ Terry Francona, received 27 first-place votes and three second. The Rangers’ Bruce Bochy garnered the other three first-place votes and finished with 61 points.
The Rays’ Kevin Cash had 52, followed by the Twins’ Rocco Baldelli (eight), the Astros’ Dusty Baker (four) and the Blue Jays’ John Schneider (one).
Joe Maddon, a three-time recipient and close friend of Hyde’s, made the announcement. Hyde was on Maddon’s coaching staff when the Cubs won the World Series in 2016.
