Nothing new to report with the Orioles.

Cade Povich’s elbow cleanup was the most recent offseason surgery. Pitcher Connor Cooke was the most recent minor league signing. David Rubenstein repeated in his latest book promoting appearance that owning a baseball team is not as easy as he thought. He also said something again about the Orioles going from first to last place under his watch.

You think that’s hard? Try finding interesting storylines when the club that you cover doesn’t make the playoffs.

Well, there’s always the mailbag. You can start your day by going from the first to the last question.

Does it frustrate the team that Bryan Baker is flourishing with a divisional rival?
Not at all. Teams don’t usually hope that the player traded suffers hardships. You want the deal to work for both sides and increase the chances that future trades can be consummated. Baker certainly had his moments with the Orioles, but nothing like what he’s doing for Tampa Bay. MLBTradeRumors.com projects his arbitration figure at $4.1 million. A good guy who’s earning a really good salary. Meanwhile, the Orioles acquired the 37th-overall pick in the 2025 draft, used it on Slater de Brun and packaged him to the Rays for Shane Baz. Yeah, these teams have a solid working relationship.

Have you ever, in the course of being present at a press conference or press scrum with a player, been told by that player that you specifically don’t have the right to be there because Maryland has two-party consent rules on recording and then had the player ask the police to specifically escort you out? Just curious …
What an oddly specific question. But seriously, no. I’d expect a player, manager or team executive to be smarter than that. This isn’t the same thing, but reliever Randy Myers refused to talk if Ken Rosenthal was in the scrum. Albert Belle didn’t want any of us around, but especially Steve Melewski, who stood his ground. Ray Miller wouldn’t answer or even look at Rosenthal during the media sessions in his office. Too many columns calling for Miller’s firing. But nothing like the two-party consent rule debacle.

Why should I remain a fan of the Baltimore Orioles?
I can’t tell you whether to keep rooting for them. That’s on you. I don’t relate to how easily some people flip a switch and abandon a team. I won’t root for the Colts, but that’s because they left Baltimore and broke my heart. Maryland football is an embarrassment, but I still want them to shock me and actually be good again. I check on them weekly. My fandom with the Orioles faded when I joined the beat. It’s the sacrifice made when becoming a reporter. But I also recognize the advantages of covering a winning team. In your case, I understand the frustration that comes with another losing season and the championship drought. We aren’t getting any younger here. But it isn’t as simple for many people as just hopping aboard a different bandwagon. Not when you’ve got love in your heart for a particular team.

Is Jazz Chisholm a potential fit for our team?
Who are you rooting for? Maybe if the Orioles are in the market for a second baseman or another left-handed hitting outfielder. I don’t see it. He’s a polarizing defender with plus metrics in Outs Above Average, Fielding Run Value and range, but negative Defensive Runs saved. There’s also his maddening inconsistency on routine plays and with his concentration. I saw some mistakes this season that were head-scratchers. He batted .231/.312/.399 in 137 games after being an All-Star and Silver Slugger winner in 2025, and he slashed .218/.269/.381 against left-handers. The 41 stolen bases were nice. The 30.9 whiff percentage and 157 strikeouts were not. And how much money would the Orioles want to invest in him when they have more pressing needs? I’d stay with Jackson Holliday for another season, which seems fair for a player drafted first overall in 2022 who ranked as the No. 1 prospect in baseball and turns 23 in December. I know a few people here disagree. Jordan Westburg provides a right-handed alternative if healthy. Blaze Alexander does, too.  

What did you miss about not travelling to away games? What didn’t you miss?
I miss the days when “traveling” was spelled with one L. But we’ll also accept British English. I love a hotel bar, especially racing to make last call, but that shouldn’t be my first response. Gathering information and quotes on the road make the job easier. Being on site for big moments like Pete Alonso’s 300th home run. I told manager Craig Albernaz that he didn’t necessarily get the best version of me, but I think he respected that I worked hard wherever I set up my laptop. OK, now for the flip side. I absolutely despise airports and the limited options for flying in and out of cities. Air travel is getting worse by the day. I’ll lose my Southwest A-List status, and that stings, but I was happy to get the extra time home and more life balance in, get this, my 30th full year on the beat. And it’s 41 years in the business if you count The Park News, a free weekly sent to residents in Severna Park and Arnold, and my time covering preps, small colleges and general assignment stuff for The Baltimore Sun. You’d never guess that I started when I was a preschooler.

What happens to Ryan Mountcastle come mid-October? Should he be updating his resume?
The Orioles hold a $7.5 million option on Mountcastle’s contract and are likely to decline. This isn’t official. This isn’t according to a source familiar with the club’s thinking. It’s simply an expectation. Lots of people in the industry think Mountcastle could use a change of scenery. Get more of a chance to play. Get away from Camden Yards’ left field dimensions. Get far away from that black cloud that hangs over him. I wish him the very best. One of the all-time good guys in baseball, and in life.

Heard anything on whether any coaches will not be brought back? Seems like several other teams have already let some coaches go, but I haven’t seen anything about the Orioles.
Nothing so far. However, the Orioles have made changes in November in past offseasons, like hiring co-hitting coaches Ryan Fuller and Matt Borgschulte in 2021, pitching coach Drew French in 2023 and bench coach Robinson Chirinos in 2024. There were a batch of hires after the 2025 season, but that’s normal with a new manager. We’re just waiting for confirmation either way.

Have the Orioles made an extension offer to Trevor Rogers?
If they did, no one outside the inner circle knows about it. The club is expected to make a qualifying offer and he’s expected to decline and enter free agency. The Orioles could negotiate a new contract. It makes sense for a team that needs starting pitching and with Rogers expressing his desire to stay, but outside interest in him should be heavy. That’s the risk in waiting this long.

Has anyone in the Orioles front office told you that Samuel Basallo is expected to be a starting catcher and catch 110-120 games every season, or is this an assumption by people outside of the organization?
It’s a bold assumption from the outsiders. Don’t be fooled by Basallo’s size. The Orioles don’t see him as a catching workhorse. Mike Elias said the following back in August: “The plan with him all along was never to have him be the guy who is your primary catcher most nights behind the plate. He’s a big guy with a big bat and it’s a bat that can play out of the first base spot and out of the designated hitter spot. So, our plan with him was always to kind of rotate him through and have him catch more like half or fewer than half of the games. We’re always going to need more catchers on the roster.” This explains the temptation to carry a third catcher, which still seems like a bad idea to me unless that player can move around to other positions. And it still seems cumbersome with the infield packed and the Orioles probably needing to put a big bat in the outfield barring a trade.

Is there really not going to be an Oriole Bird next year?
There’s going to be an Oriole Bird. It might be my side gig. And this seems like a good place to stop.