Hello, friends.
There are now 126 days remaining until Orioles Opening Day 2026. It will probably take several more of those days to digest the Grayson Rodriguez-Taylor Ward trade. That’s going to be a thing
that’s prominently on my mind until the Orioles do a bigger move. It’s pretty much all that anyone else is thinking about too, as you’ll see below in the roundup of yesterday’s Orioles-related news stories. I posted my own analysis of the trade yesterday.
The next thing coming along is the deadline where teams decide if they will tender contracts to their arbitration-eligible players for next season. That deadline is tomorrow. The biggest Orioles case for a non-tender, which makes a player a free agent immediately, has to be Ryan Mountcastle, though I think you could also look at reliever Yennier Cano in this category.
Mountcastle is projected for an arbitration salary of $7-8 million for next year, but without even getting into the money aspect, he wasn’t good last year and the Orioles are probably going to be playing a bunch of Coby Mayo and Samuel Basallo at first base. There just might not be roster space around any more for a guy who, at his best, will be a decent first baseman. Other teams may not value that skillset to this degree either, which is why the Orioles are likely limited to the non-tender option rather than trading Mountcastle for even some kind of paltry return.
Another demonstration of what this looks like in practice just played out with former Oriole Ramón Urías. He would have been a non-tender candidate this offseason, so the Orioles traded him in July. The return was paltry, a pitcher who got wrecked in nearly every outing with his new organization. But even the Astros valued Urías so little that they designated him for assignment to clear roster space ahead of Tuesday’s deadline to add players to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 draft.
Or maybe Mike Elias will surprise us with another move this week. He certainly shocked me with a Tuesday night trade announcement of a player I would not have imagined the Orioles giving up on at this juncture. As ever, Elias keeps a tight lid on what goes on in the Orioles front office, so moves both large and small happen with little if any prior indication that something might happen. No news does not mean he is doing nothing.
Orioles stuff you might have missed
Taylor Ward trade impacts Colton Cowser and reinforces Orioles need to spend (The Baltimore Banner)
Andy Kostka’s analysis includes a note that Cowser is likely solidified as the Plan A center fielder after the trade for Ward. Barring an even bigger Mike Elias surprise, I tend to agree.
Trade of Rodriguez for Ward could trigger start of an active Orioles winter (Baltimore Baseball)
It sure could! I think they need two more big moves (starter, closer) and two more smaller-but-notable moves (back-end starter, setup-worthy reliever). If those aren’t made, the last parts march to Opening Day could feel grim.
Ward-Rodriguez trade: Orioles raise rotation questions, Angels take a health risk (CBS Sports)
CBS writer R.J. Anderson gives this move a B for both teams as an initial reaction. My prediction is that it will not still feel like a B-grade move for both teams in six months time.
Shocking Orioles-Angels trade might make sense for both teams (The Athletic)
Keith Law also sees a path where this thing could work out for both sides.
Orioles add Taylor Ward, send Grayson Rodriguez west (FanGraphs)
FG’s Ben Clemens looks at the deal and comes away with the conclusion that the Orioles may have done a slight overpay, but they’re in a position where that’s what makes sense for them to do.
Nontender decision: Can Ryan Mountcastle, Coby Mayo coexist at 1B for Orioles? (The Baltimore Sun)
Tomorrow is the tender deadline, where teams will decide whether they want to dump arbitration-eligible players who don’t really have a role or trade value any more. Mountcastle seems like a candidate to get the non-tender.
Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries
There are a few former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2017 three-game outfielder David Washington, 2011 pitcher Jo-Jo Reyes, 1963-65 pitcher Herm Starrette, and 1955 infielder Don Leppert.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: Hamilton father-in-law Philip Schuyler (1733), author Don DeLillo (1936), 46th president Joe Biden (1942), musician Duane Allman (1946), actress Ming-Na Wen (1963), Beastie Boys rapper Mike D (1965), rapper Future (1983), and Maryland-born gold medal wrestler Kyle Snyder (1995).
On this day in history…
In 1815, European powers settled the last of the Napoleonic Wars with the Second Treaty of Paris, which returned France to its 1790 borders along with allowing occupation of France by four different countries for several years afterwards.
In 1910, the decade-long Mexican Revolution launched with the promulgation of a plan by future revolutionary president Francisco Madero, who called directly for the overthrow of the existing government under Porfirio Díaz.
In 1943, US Marines landed on the island of Tarawa, beginning a four-day battle that saw over 1,500 American military personnel killed in capturing the island.
In 1969, Cleveland’s Plain Dealer published graphic photographs showing the public for the first time what had occurred in the My Lai Massacre in Vietnam.
In 1985, Microsoft Windows 1.0 released to the public. The current version of the pioneering product, the first graphics-based PC operating system, is Windows 11.
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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on November 20. Have a safe Thursday.
