The Baltimore Orioles will host the team's Fall Instructional League Camp at the Ed Smith Stadium complex in Sarasota, Fla. beginning today, Monday, October 18, and running through Saturday, November 20. The Instructional League program focuses on specific individual development to help accelerate a player's progress through the minor league system. The roster of players participating in this year's camp is listed below. Among those participating include 17 members of the Orioles 2021 draft...

If the Orioles want to make big improvement next year, maybe they need right-hander Chris Ellis to make every start he possibly can. Acquired by the club on Aug. 20 on waivers from Tampa Bay, Ellis went 0-0, but posted a 2.49 ERA for the Orioles in six games. Over 25 1/3 innings, he yielded 18 hits, including three homers, with 13 walks and 16 strikeouts. He recorded a WHIP of 1.224, allowing 6.4 hits per nine, with 4.6 walks and 5.7 strikeouts. He made six starts for the club and the Orioles...

PLAYER REVIEW: JUAN SOTO Age on opening day 2022: 23 How acquired: Signed as international free agent, July 2015 MLB service time: 3 years, 134 days 2021 salary: $8.5 million Contract status: Arbitration-eligible, free agent in 2025 2021 stats: 151 G, 654 PA, 502 AB, 111 R, 157 H, 20 2B, 2 3B, 29 HR, 95 RBI, 9 SB, 7 CS, 145 BB, 93 SO, .313 AVG, .465 OBP, .534 SLG, .999 OPS, 175 OPS+, 3 DRS, 6.6 fWAR, 7.0 bWAR Quotable: "I said this maybe a couple years ago: I played with a guy that was pretty...

Many of the Orioles' 2021 statistics won't be shocking when plucked from the team's season summary, but finishing with the third-highest fielding percentage in the American League at .987 and the sixth-highest in the majors is an unexpected nugget. Upgrading the defense must remain a priority, as it's been in past winters. The Orioles claimed former Gold Glove winner Yolmer Sánchez off waivers Oct. 30 to play second base, but he didn't make it out of camp and they decided to experiment...

The playoffs are now well underway, but the hot stove season has not yet begun. The work to get a new collective bargaining agreement is a cloud over the sport right now with a lot of us hoping against any work stoppage. The rancor of the players and owners as they negotiated how to play the shortened 2020 season was terrible for the sport. But let's not spend time worrying about that today and instead invest some time for you to answer a few questions. My 10 questions format is changing to...

PLAYER REVIEW: JORDY MERCER Age on opening day 2022: 35 How acquired: Signed as minor league free agent, February 2021 MLB service time: 8 years, 156 days 2021 salary: $1 million Contract status: Free agent 2021 stats: 46 G, 127 PA 118 AB, 13 R, 30 H, 7 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 0 SB, 0 CS, 9 BB, 34 SO, .254 AVG, .307 OBP, .364 SLG, .671 OPS, 85 OPS+, minus-1 DRS (at 2B), minus-1 DRS (at 3B), 1 DRS (at SS), 0.0 fWAR, 0.2 bWAR Quotable: "He knows his role. He's a utility guy, but he'll play...

The early work on the Orioles' 40-man roster consisted of one move that probably didn't require hours of study, deliberation and angst. The team likes Travis Lakins Sr. Manager Brandon Hyde talked about the reliever's recovery from elbow surgery and the likelihood that he'd be ready for spring training. But it made no sense to move Lakins from the 60-day injured list to a 40-man roster that requires heavy cuts. A chain saw rather than a pocket knife. Teams figured to pass on Lakins after he...

Becoming the first Orioles player with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in the same season should be the most impressive achievement for Cedric Mullins in 2021, but discussions on his breakout year inevitably circle back to how he abandoned switch-hitting and experienced left-on-left success. It blows away everyone who talks about it. I've had scouts, in the middle of a chat, bring up what Mullins did against left-handed pitching and how unusual it was to make that decision. To choose one side...

Though a deal is not yet finalized, the Nationals are making progress toward hiring Darnell Coles as their new hitting coach, a source familiar with the discussions confirmed. Details still have to be worked out, according to the source, but once completed Coles would take the position held the last four seasons by Kevin Long, who departed earlier this week to become the Phillies hitting coach. The news was first reported by MLB.com. Coles, 59, spent the last seven seasons as a major league...

It can be easy to look at some of the Orioles' young pitchers and their stats in the 2021 season and feel the odds are long against them helping the club much in the future. This would represent a rush to judgment, however. And the team's front office has likely not made such judgments, and their opinions count the most. Pitchers like lefty Keegan Akin and right-hander Dean Kremer ended 2020 looking decent and maybe ready for the majors. This past season was a very different story. Let's...