SAN DIEGO - Orioles manager Brandon Hyde can't make roster projections for 2020 without knowing it's exact composition. However, he said this afternoon that center fielder Austin Hays is "definitely" in the mix to bat leadoff. A healthy Hays is going to be on the opening day roster. There's no gray area in center field. Hyde also told the media during his 20-minute session that he'd like to have eight candidates for the starting rotation in camp. The Orioles are pretty much down to three...

SAN DIEGO - Evev though Major League Baseball has interviewed 60 witnesses, and read 76,000 emails and troves of instant messages investigating the Astros' alleged electronic sign stealing, commissioner Rob Manfred isn't sure when the investigation will finish and what the appropriate discipline will be. "The review has caused us to conclude that we have to some followup interviewing," Manfred said at a Winter Meetings press conference Wednesday at the Manchester Grand Hyatt. "It is my...

SAN DIEGO - The Nationals are shuffling three of their coaches to new positions for the 2020 season, with Tim Bogar taking over as bench coach, Chip Hale moving to third base coach and Bob Henley switching to first base coach. Every member of Davey Martinez's World Series winning staff returns next season, with one exception: Pat Roessler has been hired as assistant hitting coach, replacing Joe Dillon, who accepted the lead hitting coach's job with the Phillies last month. That means three...

SAN DIEGO - The Orioles can't share their concrete plans for the 26-man roster until they're done finding players for it. One move might impact how they handle a separate position. The work won't be done this month or in January, given the organization's track record for late signings, trades and waiver claims. Reaching an agreement last week with infielder Dilson Herrera on a minor league contract enables the Orioles to lay out three possible scenarios for him. They could reassign him to...

SAN DIEGO - Stephen Strasburg's record $245 million contract with the Nationals didn't last long. That's because the New York Yankees are back. They've shed their conservative financial image. The Yankees signed free-agent starter Gerrit Cole to richest contract ever given to a pitcher - nine years and $324 million - late Tuesday night at the Winter Meetings. Cole's average salary is $36 million, also a record, beating Zack Greinke's $34.4 million. Cole's yearly average is higher than...

SAN DIEGO - Whether or not Anthony Rendon re-signs with them, the Nationals are going to need to address other needs across their infield this winter. It's a complicated puzzle with several moving parts. But all paths ultimately lead to the same place: Multiple transactions necessary to fill out their entire infield before spring training. If they had to fill out a lineup card today, the Nationals would know they had Trea Turner at shortstop. They could pencil the recently re-signed Howie...

If you get the feeling it would take a lot for the Orioles to trade Trey Mancini, you are not alone. And team management and comments from the front office can help lead one to that conclusion. Numerous times during and after the 2019 season, we've heard Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias talk about Mancini in very generous and glowing terms. You get the sense it's quite genuine and not just a GM being respectful of or talking up a star player. In 154 games last...

SAN DIEGO - Would the Orioles be willing to take on a significant salary if the trade also included a prospect that they held in high regard? Would the budget support such a move? The Giants did it yesterday in their deal with the Angels, acquiring infielder Zack Cozart and 21-year-old shortstop Will Wilson in exchange for cash considerations. They're on the hook for Cozart's entire $12.167 million salary next season. This is basically a way for the Giants to buy a prospect, while the Angels...

SAN DIEGO - The Philadelphia Phillies have signed free agent shortstop Didi Gregorius and that's both good and bad news for the Nationals. One, it makes the Phillies lineup stronger, especially if Gregorius can shake off his struggles with the Yankees from a year ago. But it also helps the Nationals in that it likely takes away one less team speculated to be in the competition for signing free agent third baseman Anthony Rendon. The Phillies believe they have taken care of their two biggest...

SAN DIEGO - The Orioles are trying again with Chris Davis. Trying to find a way to get him swinging more freely and making more consistent contact. Which again has led them to agent Scott Boras and the latest plan to nudge Davis closer to the form that prompted the club to hand over a $161 million contract prior to the 2016 season. A hard shove is more like it. Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias confirmed this afternoon that he spoke last week with Boras and "a member of his...