I don't know much, but I've got a pretty firm grasp on what won't happen with the Orioles. Predictions can work that way, too. I'll avoid the painfully obvious stuff like, "The Orioles won't carry one catcher on their opening day roster." Or, "The Orioles won't replace the warehouse with LEGO blocks." Or, "The Orioles won't move to Nashville at the All-Star break." My insults won't be aimed at your intelligence. Since every sportswriter list apparently has to contain five items...

The hiring of Quincy Boyd last month as an area scout was prompted by Rich Morales' departure from the Orioles. Morales accepted a West Coast position with the Mets. Why did Morales, who signed outfielder Cedric Mullins and catcher Austin Wynns and won the Jim Russo Scout of the Year Award in 2018, make the move across the country? "It was not an easy decision to leave the Orioles, but an opportunity was presented to me to get me back home on the West Coast," he said. "My father is 77 now...

You already know this, but 2020 was a pretty awful year. Not that many folks didn't experience some legitimately positive moments, but in the big picture this was among the worst years in most everybody's lives. Now, you have to be awfully naïve to believe that the world is suddenly going to change for the better just because we're all opening up a new calendar today. Nothing is inherently different today compared to yesterday, other than an arbitrary number someone a long time ago chose...

Today we begin a new year, but we are still a ways away from beginning a new baseball season. The calendar flips today, but some of the old questions didn't go away at midnight. We still wait to find out if spring training will start on time and whether each team will play 162 games in 2021. My hope for the new year in baseball is that it at least ends with some and maybe complete normalcy. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Even if it starts with limitations, maybe they will be gone by the end of...

Before pitcher David Hess took his first dive into free agency and came up with a minor league deal from the Rays, he spent the majority of his summer at the Orioles' alternate camp site in Bowie. The Orioles put Hess on their opening day roster and gave him one relief appearance in July and two in August - all of them on the road and in blowouts. There were the occasional taxi squad assignments, including the duration of the final trip of 2020. Otherwise, Hess worked out at Prince George's...

Power hitters generally strike out at a pretty good rate. That is the trend in baseball over many years. But at a time when strikeout rates all around the sport are up, putting the ball in play more often is valued. Doing that with power is potentially something special. The Orioles have a player who in the shortened 2020 season showed the ability to strike out less while still hitting the ball with plenty of authority. On his way to winning the Most Valuable Oriole award, Anthony Santander...

Eric Thames went to Asia to resurrect his career once before. He'll attempt to do it again after signing with a Japanese club Wednesday following his disappointing season with the Nationals. Thames signed a one-year deal with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. He'll earn roughly $1.2 million, according to Sports Hochi. That's a bit of a fall from grace for Thames, who one year ago signed with the Nationals for a guaranteed $4 million in 2020, plus a $4 million mutual option...

A new year always conjures up old memories of poor judgement while waiting for the ball to drop in Times Square. A second countdown pertaining to how long a stomach is going to cooperate before beginning to reject everything inside it. The ball is lowered and your dinner comes up. Here's hoping that none of you are experiencing such misery. Like the time decades ago when I thought tequila was the perfect nightcap. And the morning of Jan. 1, 2012, when my friend stood at his front door as I...

It's just another New Year's Eve, another night like all the rest. It's just another New Year's Eve, let's make it the best. (If I can reference Garrett Cleavinger twice within a week, I can sing along with Barry Manilow to close out 2020. There are no rules.) I feel bad for the people who keep acting as though the world is returning to normal after tonight. The "I can't wait for 2020 to be over" crowd. I've got bad news for you. It won't feel any different in the morning or the next...

The Nationals need a corner outfielder. This is not news to anyone who has paid even scant attention this winter. This to-be-determined outfielder most likely will come from outside the organization, acquired either via free agency or trade. Unless the front office decides to gamble and stay in-house with Andrew Stevenson, who looked awfully impressive when given a chance to play in September but has very little track record. What, though, about the other in-house option, the other outfielder...