One of the potential benefits of attending the Winter Meetings, held next week at the Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego, is the chance to gain more clarity on the Orioles’ preferences for the construction of their roster. Any specifics regarding the pitching staff or lineup. How they might pivot if the original plan begins to crumble.  

Daily media sessions with executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias can be enlightening, without any expectations of him providing play-by-play on his meetings with executives and agents. Information can be dispensed in broad terms and still satisfy the masses.

The desire to sign or trade for at least one veteran starting pitcher has been confirmed. Nothing new on that front. And the targeted areas in free agency are below the top tier, which you’d hope would douse any reports linking the Orioles to the priciest arms and suggesting that they’d engage in a massive bidding war.

Here's the question that hasn’t been answered: What is the exact level of importance in bringing in a left-hander?

John Means will head back to the 60-day injured list after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Bruce Zimmermann broke camp last spring as the No. 4 starter but made a few trips to the minors and isn’t a lock for the rotation after registering a 5.99 ERA and 1.480 WHIP.

The version of Seth Johnson that didn’t undergo ligament-reconstructive surgery in his right elbow was projected by some outlets to reach the majors next summer. He might have finished this season at Double-A, shortening his climb onto the Orioles’ active roster.

Johnson made seven starts at High-A Bowling Green before the injury, and prior to the deadline trade that sent him from the Rays to the Orioles. He didn’t pitch after May 20 and had his procedure on Aug. 3, which threatens to keep him away from an affiliate until 2024.

A throwing program is set to begin in the middle of January and the Orioles will get a clearer read on his progress. Johnson is hoping at a minimum to pitch in the Florida Complex League before the minors shut down.

The road to Sarasota already has been traveled. Johnson is cleared for weight training, which he’s done at the spring training complex except for a short period when it closed for some renovations.

Johnson has mostly kept his offseason on a normal trajectory other than the whole pitching thing.

The timing of the trade was so good that Seth Johnson didn’t dwell as much on the oddity of his circumstances.

Johnson had just arrived in Dallas on Aug. 1 for the surgical repair of his right elbow that would be done two days later. Waiting for his father to join him at the rental car counter, Johnson received a phone call from the Rays informing him of the three-team trade involving the Orioles.

“With the Rays, you get traded pretty quick and stuff happens kind of fast with them,” he said yesterday, “but it was still kind of a shock just because everything you’ve known goes out the window because you’ve got a new organization to learn.”

A coincidence weaved its way into the introduction.

“It actually worked out nice because later that night I was planning on going to the Orioles and Rangers game anyway, so I got traded like four hours before that game and got to go see the new organization play that night,” he said. “So, that was pretty neat.”

Armchair general managers stayed busy in the early days of the offseason. Imagine how hectic it’s become with the free agent and trade markets wide open and the Winter Meetings approaching.

Your mistakes can’t cost you a job that you don’t actually have, which makes it a sweet gig.

I already posed five questions: whether you’d re-sign first baseman Jesús Aguilar, whether you’d pick up Jordan Lyles’ $11 million option (the Orioles didn’t), whether you’d trade an outfielder, whether you’d stay in-house for a backup catcher, and whether you’d attempt to re-sign Rougned Odor.

Here are two more:

Would you stay in-house for a shortstop?
Four of the top five free agents are shortstops, according to the MLBTradeRumors.com rankings – Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts and Dansby Swanson. The cheapest contract projection is Swanson’s seven-year, $154 million deal.

Baseball’s regular season ended on Oct. 5. The World Series finished exactly a month later. The Arizona Fall League wrapped up two weeks ago.

There’s still the annual game of seeing how far the Thanksgiving leftovers can be stretched. And its spinoffs.

Does this smell right? Didn’t that used to be gravy? If that's a mushroom, why is it moving?

The sport has its own leftovers. Delicious nuggets from the Orioles’ public relations staff.

I’ll heat up another batch this morning.

An area of improvement that can’t be predicted or counted upon in 2023 is the Orioles’ success in close games.

A better bullpen deserves much of the credit.

Eighty-three were decided by two runs or fewer, the fifth-most in the American League and ninth-most in the majors. Manager Brandon Hyde would playfully remind everyone that there were no rules prohibiting big early leads and coasting to victories.

His club went 43-40, which tied for the fifth-most wins in the AL and sixth in the majors.  

Flip back to 2021 and you’ll find that the Orioles played 63 games decided by two runs or fewer, tied for the least amount in the majors. Their 24 wins were the second lowest.

An immediate takeaway from Friday night’s announcement that the Orioles tendered contracts to their six arbitration-eligible players:

No one in the group was non-tendered, and there were some questions surrounding pitcher Austin Voth based on projected salary and uncertain role.

MLBTradeRumors.com has Voth’s contract rising from $875,000 to $2 million. He’s got to make the club out of spring training and he’s out of minor league options.

Will the Orioles run out of room in their rotation?

Voth could make a simple transition to bulk relief/swingman if he isn’t starting every fifth day. He’s worked out of the bullpen, including 19 times with the Nationals before the Orioles claimed him off waivers. And he’s a poster child for the benefits of the team’s pitching instruction.

The Orioles had four prospects they intended to place on the 40-man roster by Tuesday’s deadline, and an undrafted pitcher trending upward who couldn’t be denied.

Wasn’t worth the risk of losing him.

Noah Denoyer probably felt like the fifth of five players protected in the Rule 5 draft behind pitchers Grayson Rodriguez, Drew Rom and Seth Johnson, and shortstop Joey Ortiz. A foursome that is found within the top 20 prospects in the system, per MLBPipeline.com’s rankings.

Denoyer didn’t spend much time breaking it down or reflecting on its meaning, whether he should appreciate the honor more given his circumstances.

“My goal is always to just make the big leagues and do as well as I can for as long as I can, and help a team to win a World Series,” he said during Thursday’s video call with local media.

The business conducted by the Orioles can be brought out into the open, whether from the outset or at its conclusion, or held behind closed warehouse doors. The public finds out about decisions made on the 40-man roster and in arbitration talks without knowing all of the mechanisms.

Negotiations with free agents and executives usually are kept private, as least by the club. Too much leaked information can wash away the progress made, with other teams perhaps using it to their advantage.

The Orioles were occupied yesterday with tendering contracts to arbitration-eligible players Anthony Santander, Cedric Mullins, Austin Hays, Jorge Mateo, Dillon Tate and Austin Voth, and the non-eligible group on the 40-man roster. They can negotiate contracts until Jan. 13, and if unsuccessful, head to hearings.

But there’s always something else going on beyond what we see.

Catcher Mark Kolozsvary passed through waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday, a process hidden until the Orioles announced the outcome. It was significant because only one catcher remained on the 40-man roster, and the overall number of players dropped to 38.

The Orioles have reached another deadline tonight, this one a few weeks earlier than the norm. They must tender contracts to their six arbitration-eligible players or risk going to hearings.

This is a day-long exercise for some media. Reporting the agreements, maybe the terms. Update after update, or just one lump summary.

The perceived importance needs to be balanced against the reality that these players are under team control. The Orioles are just setting the salaries.

Whether a player signs for $1.1 million or $1.2 million means little if you're not the one cutting the check. But I digress …

Outfielders Anthony Santander, Cedric Mullins and Austin Hays, shortstop Jorge Mateo and pitchers Dillon Tate and Austin Voth are getting raises under a system that pretty much assures them. The only way to avoid it is to non-tender.

Joey Ortiz never wanted the defense-first label pinned to him. The pride that he took in his glove work was offset by the notion that his bat might be a liability. That teams would have to settle for a light-hitting shortstop in order to benefit from the runs saved.

A more common tradeoff many years ago.

Not one that Ortiz was comfortable hauling into the present.

The Orioles knew that they were getting a plus-defender in the fourth round of the 2019 draft out of New Mexico State. Ortiz knew that he could prove scouts outside the organization wrong who viewed him more as being a one-dimensional player, and he did it this summer.

Ortiz batted a combined .284/.349/.477 with 35 doubles, six triples, 19 home runs and 85 RBIs in 600 plate appearances. He really took off after his promotion to Triple-A Norfolk on Aug. 29, slashing .346/.400/.567 with seven doubles, two triples, four home runs and 14 RBIs in 26 games.

Grayson Rodriguez celebrated his 23^rd birthday yesterday by hopping on a video call with some members of the local media.

One big wish had already come true for Rodriguez. The Orioles selected his contract on Tuesday, placing him on the 40-man roster at the deadline prior to next month’s Rule 5 draft.

Rodriguez referred to it as “an honor,” while others in the industry viewed it as a foregone conclusion.

Baseball’s top pitching prospect expressed his disappointment at failing to make his major league debut after recovering from a grade 2 lat strain, settling for rehab starts and a return to Triple-A Norfolk before the Orioles shut him down.

Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias has noted the expectation that Rodriguez will break camp next spring in the rotation. Rodriguez is ready for it.  

The Orioles’ rise from 110-loss team in 2021 to playoff contender this summer, their record settling above .500 to shock the industry, couldn’t launch manager Brandon Hyde toward another award.

Hyde was runner-up tonight to the Guardians’ Terry Francona for the American League’s Manager of the Year in voting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. He finished first last month in The Sporting News balloting.

In his fourth season with the Orioles, Hyde guided the Orioles to an 83-79 record for one of the greatest turnarounds in baseball history. He received nine first-place votes, nine second and seven third for 79 points.

Francona, who won the AL Central with the youngest roster in the league, received 17 first-place votes and nine second for 112 points. The Mariners’ Scott Servais was third with one first-place, eight second and 14 third.

Dusty Baker, whose Astros won the World Series, was fourth with three first-place, three second and seven third. The Yankees’ Aaron Boone was fifth with one second and one third. The Rays’ Kevin Cash, who won it the past two seasons, was sixth with one third-place vote.

The launching of true free agency last week, with executives allowed to begin negotiations with representatives of players outside the organization, also ignited the annual offseason predictions, speculation and rumors that spread like weeds.

The baseball media’s popular board game, matching player with team. A low-risk roll of the dice.

The Athletic tabbed the Orioles as a best fit for seven of the top 10 free agents – Jacob deGrom, Justin Verlander, Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Rodón and Kodai Senga. Forget the cost. The club is seeking a top-of-the-rotation starter and a big-time run producer, so that qualifies as a “fit.”

But we can’t ignore the cost.

Does deGrom work for the Orioles at a projected two-year deal worth $90 million and including an opt-out clause after the first season? Or Verlander at three years and $135 million, Correa at 10 years and $327 million, Turner at eight years and $264 million, Bogaerts at seven years and $196 million, Rodón at five years and $144 million, and Senga at three years and $72 million?

Outfielder Yusniel Diaz, formerly a top prospect in the Orioles’ farm system and the centerpiece of the Manny Machado trade with the Dodgers, has been removed from the 40-man roster.

The Orioles assigned Diaz to Triple-A Norfolk today after he cleared outright waivers.

The number of players on the 40-man remained at 34 after left-hander John Means was reinstated from the 60-day injured list, a procedural move due today. Means is continuing his rehab from Tommy John surgery and won’t be ready to pitch on opening day.

Diaz, 26, finally made his major league debut Aug. 2 in Texas after the Orioles traded Trey Mancini, and he struck out in his only at-bat. He was optioned the next day to make room for outfielder Brett Phillips and didn’t return to the active roster, though he served as the 27^th man in the Little League Classic.

An assortment of injuries, both in the minors and the Arizona Fall League, have wrecked Diaz’s career after he’s impressed in spring training. He appeared in 70 games at Triple-A Norfolk this summer and batted .251/.346/.360 with nine doubles, six home runs and 66 strikeouts in 286 plate appearances.

The Orioles have decided to decline pitcher Jordan Lyles’ $11 million option for the 2023 season, choosing to give him a $1 million buyout and allowing the veteran to test the free agent market.

An announcement was made this afternoon.

The door isn’t closed on Lyles’ return, however. They could double back to Lyles over the winter, with the possibility of reaching an agreement on a new contract.

The early juncture of the offseason and the current price point led the Orioles to decline the option. But conversations with his representative could be held later.

The Orioles had until Thursday to make the decision, which lowers their 40-man roster to 33 players. Left-hander John Means will be activated from the 60-day injured list this week and return the total to 34.

A byproduct of the Arizona Fall League is the chance for scouts to get their eyes on certain players, whether for the first time or to continue evaluating and filing reports.

There’s a popular theory in baseball that allowing prospects to play in the AFL who need to be protected in the Rule 5 draft is risky because other organizations could be swayed to select them.

The Orioles are safe with outfielder Heston Kjerstad. He doesn’t need to go on the 40-man roster.

He just needs to stay healthy and keep swinging the bat as he’s done in Arizona.

Kjerstad went 3-for-4 with his first triple on Friday to raise his average to .371 with a 1.063 OPS. His 33 hits and nine doubles before yesterday led the AFL, his five home runs tied for second and his 17 RBIs and .663 slugging percentage ranked third.

The Orioles shaved another catcher off their 40-man roster.

They’re down to two.

The club announced tonight that Cam Gallagher declined his outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk and elected free agency after clearing waivers. Gallagher was selected off waivers from the Padres Sept. 11 but didn’t play for the Orioles.

Gallagher was eligible for arbitration. That list is down to six players.

Anthony Bemboom accepted his outright assignment to Norfolk, as previously reported, and is expected to compete for a backup job in spring training.

The first post-World Series mailbag has been emptied. Much like my hopes for a Game 7.

There’s nothing better in sports. And it delays the actual offseason for one more day.

I’ve grown to love the period of calm. A few small-scale transactions and some announcements on awards, but that’s about it.

(I picked the Astros in six games, but I digress …)

Now we’re ripe for rumors. I’ve already seen one prediction that the Orioles will sign Carlos Correa.

The Orioles have two finalists for the Baseball Writers’ Association of America awards, with manager Brandon Hyde a candidate for American League Manager of the Year and catcher Adley Rutschman a candidate for American League Rookie of the Year.

Two names that have been anticipated for months. No surprise omissions or entries.

Hyde joins the Guardians’ Terry Francona and the Mariners’ Scott Servais as finalists. Rutschman, Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez and Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan are vying for the rookie award.

The Sporting News already selected Hyde. Rodriguez, the only player in major league history with 25-plus home runs and 25-plus stolen bases in his debut season, won the Players Choice Award.

Hyde can become the first Orioles manager honored since Buck Showalter in 2014. Rutschman can become the first Rookie of the Year since reliever Gregg Olson in 1989.