-1745819772711.png){kind=logo}
The Orioles are protecting right-hander Cameron Foster and outfielder Reed Trimble in the Rule 5 Draft.
Foster and Trimble had their contracts selected and were placed on the 40-man roster earlier today. Outfielder Pedro León and infielder Luis Vázquez were designated for assignment to create room.
Foster, 26, and right-hander Wellington Aracena were acquired from the Mets at the trade deadline for left-handed reliever Gregory Soto. Foster made 13 relief appearances with Triple-A Norfolk and posted a 3.38 ERA and 1.375 WHIP in 16 innings, with eight walks and 23 strikeouts. He has a 3.75 ERA in 79 minor league games and 215 strikeouts over 199 1/3 innings.
Trimble, 25, was a second-round pick in the 2021 draft out of the University of Southern Mississippi. He’s a career .251/.344/.420 hitter in five minor league seasons and has stolen 61 bases without being caught.
Trimble batted .259/.319/.435 this year in 30 games with Norfolk and .257/.352/.503 in 53 games with Double-A Chesapeake. He plays all three outfield positions.
Reliever Anthony Nunez went on the 40-man roster earlier this month to also prevent a team from claiming him.
None of the Orioles' top 30 prospects were eligible for the Rule 5 Draft.
Vázquez was 8-for-50 in 32 games. The Orioles claimed León on waivers from the Astros earlier this month.
Meanwhile, four of the 13 eligible players accepted the qualifying offer today, an unprecedented total in Major League Baseball. Only 14 of 144 took it in past years.
Yankees outfielder Trent Grisham, Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga, Tigers infielder Gleyber Torres and Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff will be paid $22.025 next year rather than test the free agent market. The possibility of a lockout after the season didn’t scare them away.
Reds pitcher Nick Martinez was the only player among 13 eligibles to accept the $21.05 qualifying offer last November.
None of the Orioles’ free agents – pitchers Zach Eflin and Tomoyuki Sugano and catcher Gary Sánchez – were offered the QO.
Bo Bichette, Dylan Cease, Edwin Díaz, Zac Gallen, Michael King, Kyle Schwarber, Ranger Suárez, Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez declined the QO and will cost a draft pick if they sign with another team.
Asked after the general manager meetings whether the Orioles would be willing to surrender a pick, president of baseball operations/general manager Mike Elias said, “I think that it’s something that we’re gonna have to be at peace with relinquishing if we’re going for qualified free agents, and we want to be in on those markets, and we are. We’re having those conversations. So it’s something that you just factor in and your valuation. It’s just something that we make note of, but it doesn’t preclude us from those categories.”
