The Orioles’ pitching staff is incomplete, with additions sought for the rotation and bullpen. Mike Elias traded for an outfielder but might want another option in center. He also has indicated that he could target a big bat.

Nothing much is said about the infield besides the decision to tender Ryan Mountcastle a contract.

Ramón Urías was used in a utility role until the deadline trade to Houston, which designated him for assignment last week. The Orioles designated Luis Vázquez for assignment on Tuesday but he stays in the organization after clearing waivers yesterday and accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk.

Vázquez will come to spring training after appearing in 32 games and going 8-for-50. He’s a plus defender at shortstop and maybe the best emergency reliever in history with four scoreless appearances with three hits allowed over 4 1/3 innings.

Got to be in the top 10 at least, right? Maybe he should close.

If the Orioles carry a third catcher, they could go with five outfielders and five infielders to reach 13 position players. The ideal arrangement would be to carry an infielder who they’d also trust to back up in the outfield, like they did with Jorge Mateo, though he had his adventures in center.

They like Jeremiah Jackson’s bat but only started him in right field and at third base, feeling that his best position was the former. Jackson has minor league options and will have to elbow through a crowd to make the roster.

If the season started anytime soon, the Orioles could break camp with Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg, Coby Mayo and Ryan Mountcastle as infielders. Jackson and Ryan Noda also are on the 40-man roster.

Taylor Ward, Colton Cowser, Tyler O’Neill, Dylan Beavers and Leody Taveras probably would be the outfielders. Heston Kjerstad and Reed Trimble also are on the 40-man.

Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo are locked in as catchers. That’s 12. Maverick Handley also is on the 40-man after making his major league debut this year after going 3-for-41 at the plate and 0-for-13 on runners attempting to steal.  

Jackson might be the 13^th man in this scenario, but the Orioles have plenty of time to decide whether they carry three catchers and who fills the role. It won’t be Alex Jackson, who was traded to the Twins.

“I don’t think it (trade) rules out us adding a third catcher, and I agree that there’s logical discussions around whether we should carry one, given that our main two are kind of offensive-oriented guys that might be DHing or playing first base at different times,” Elias said. “So we’ll just continue to look at that.”

What I’m seeing, again, is the lack of a true utility player unless Payton Eeles makes the club and his debut. Jackson’s resume reads like one, since most of his starts in the minors have come at shortstop and second base and he’s played all three outfield positions, but a new manager and group of new coaches would have to view him differently and confidently move him around.

Elias already demonstrated that he’s willing to trade from the major league roster by sending starter Grayson Rodriguez to the Angels for outfielder Taylor Ward and Alex Jackson to the Twins for minor leaguer Eeles. He might need to do it again to fill other needs and to create some space on the roster.

Here are a few mailbag leftovers:

Do they really need to carry three catchers? Is that the best use of that bench spot? Seems to me that you can just rotate Basallo in there once or twice a week when Rutschman needs a break.
Well, how timely. The idea behind it is so manager Craig Albernaz is put Rutschman and Basallo in the lineup at the same time without the risk of losing the designated hitter. Either with Basallo at first base or serving as designated hitter, or Rutschman at DH. But the numbers, as I hinted at earlier, could make it harder to do.

Give me one unprotected player from the Orioles that a team might select in the Rule 5 draft. Wait, that isn’t a question. Can you …
I could just make a random guess. Yeah, let’s do that. Catcher/first baseman Creed Willems. He’s a former Top 30 prospect in the system and at least one American League scout I know is doing his homework on the former eighth round draft pick. The Padres selected pitcher Juan Nuñez last December out of Class A ball and returned him. Jud Fabian is a plus defender in center field but he hasn’t hit. If that tool doesn’t matter …

What is the internal worry level in the clubhouse about Adley Rutschman being a productive core player?
No one in the clubhouse seems to be chewing nails over it. Talk to people in the organization and you’ll hear about the expectation for a “bounce back” season from Rutschman. He’ll have a new set of hitting coaches to work with and he’s got skills. Why they haven’t shown since pretty much the 2024 All-Star break is a mystery, but there seems to be a lot of confidence in it happening again.

If we already know that Enrique Bradfield can’t hit, what do we see him as? A fourth outfielder?
Have we already made that determination? The jury is no longer out? He registered a .348 on-base percentage at four levels this year, including .393 in 50 games with Double-A Chesapeake. He’s batted .264/.369/.359 in three minor league seasons after slashing .311/.425/.447 in three years at Vanderbilt. He posted a .341 OBP in 20 games in the Arizona Fall League. He won’t hit for power and that’s fine. He’s got 80-grade speed and is learning how to take better advantage of it, knowing that the new Collective Bargaining Agreement still won’t allow players to steal first base. The Orioles hope that he becomes their everyday center fielder at some point, with the expectation that he’s going to make his major league debut in 2026. But at the least, yeah, he could be an impact player coming off the bench.

I see lots of speculation about how the Orioles need to "sign an ace." To me it seems like, of the pitchers on the market, very few if any would slot above a healthy Kyle Bradish and Trevor Rogers performing like they have. Do you think there is realistically any starting pitcher considered to be available who would be the No. 1 on the Orioles' staff, assuming everybody we have stays healthy, or is one of Bradish/Rogers seemingly locked in as our Opening Day starter?
They aren’t locked in as No. 1s. I don’t know if you’re talking only about free agents. Framber Valdez, Dylan Cease and Tatsuya Imai are viewed as top-of-the-rotation starters. Some scouts feel the same about Ranger Suárez. But Bradish certainly does look like an ace when healthy and Rogers filled the role this year. The Orioles would be fine having them one and two and investing in a No. 3, but let’s not discourage a big move if they’re willing to do it. This is a really important offseason for them.

Are Billy Joe and Bobbie Sue still on the run?
If so, they must be exhausted, and really old. They’re probably using the money for health care and motorized wheelchairs. And this is a good place to stop.