Good morning Birdland,
We are just one day away from the beginning of the 2025 Winter Meetings. Baseball fans get pretty excited for this week. While the conference itself doesn’t always include major moves,
the building blocks for those deals are often laid during these few days at a hotel in a sunny climate. Rumors are already flying.
The Orioles are being portrayed as major players at this year’s meetings. They have already added outfielder Taylor Ward and closer Ryan Helsley, but they remain on the hunt for a “frontline” starter and have even been connected to several of the bigger bats on the market. If the hype is to be believed, Mike Elias and the O’s front office are prepared to make the biggest moves of their tenure.
Just about every top starter is considered a fit for the Orioles. The latest concrete reporting on that comes from ESPN’s Jeff Passan, who says that Ranger Suárez has long been a target for them. Other writers have simply been connecting dots to say that names like Michael King, Zac Gallen, and others make sense. If the Orioles are going to finally splash the cash on a starter, my guess is that they go for someone more dependable than King or Gallen. That would mean a preference for Suárez or Framber Valdez. Even still, given Elias’ track record, it feels like he is most likely to seek out a trade rather than a free agent deal here.
While it is almost a guarantee that the Orioles will add a starter (or two) of some kind, their approach to the hitter market is more of an unknown. On paper, they have enough players to fill every position in the lineup. They do not need to add anyone else. But there is absolutely room for improvement. And landing someone like Pete Alonso at first base or Kyle Tucker in the outfield, would then free up the team to use a younger player like Coby Mayo or Colton Cowser to acquire an ace-type pitcher in a trade.
All of these scenarios have to be bouncing around Elias’ head this week. And so does the fact that a work stoppage heading into 2027 is a very real possibility. Should he go for broke in 2026 knowing that the season after might not happen at all?
It will be a very interesting week ahead.
Links
Orioles Claim Will Robertson, Drew Romo | MLB Trade Rumors
A pair of moves to theoretically upgrade the Orioles’ Triple-A depth at these positions. However, the two players came from the Pirates and Rockies, respectively. If they weren’t good enough for their 40-man rosters, should the Orioles want them? The O’s 40-man roster is now at 41, so someone will get the axe today. Ryan Noda feels like a candidate, but we will see.
Leftovers for breakfast | Roch Kubatko
As the title suggests, just a few notes from throughout the week. It includes some quotes from Helsley that I missed. Apparently he talked to a bunch of players with Orioles/Cardinals ties, and they told him that the clubhouse is a fun one, the city of Baltimore is great, and the spring facility in Sarasota is top notch.
Orioles have 4th-best chance to win draft lottery | Baltimore Baseball
The Orioles are benefitted by rules that prevent a team from getting lottery picks in three consecutive years (Rockies) and from large market teams getting lottery picks in consecutive seasons (Nationals, Angels). So, despite having the seventh-worst record last year, they get the fourth-best odds to land the top pick. But it is a lottery, and there are 14 other teams eligible, so they could end up with the 15th overall pick instead.
MLB winter meetings: Free agency intel from Olney and Passan | ESPN
This is a big round-up of rumors from two of the game’s top insiders. In it, Passan says that the Orioles could be one of the surprise teams at this year’s meetings. I’m not sure how “surprising” it would be for a team that keeps saying they are going to make a big move to actually make a big move. But Elias doesn’t have a reputation for taking the biggest swings, so I suppose it qualifies.
Twins not planning to trade stars like Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan this winter: Sources | The Athletic
Anyone hoping to land Buxton or Ryan may have to wait, at least until the trade deadline. It sounds like the Twins are going to stand pat and look to compete in the AL Central this year. It’s always possible they fall apart and look to do another sell-off in July though.
Orioles birthdays
Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!
- Larry Sheets turns 66 today. From 1984 through ‘89, he played outfield and DH’ed for the Orioles while compiling a 112 OPS+. Since his playing days ended, Sheets has remained active in the Baltimore area. He maintained a sports facility in Westminster until a few years ago, and has been the head baseball coach at the Gilman School since 2010.
- Mike Parrott is 71 years old. He pitched in three games for the 1977 Orioles.
- Jeff Schneider celebrates his 73rd birthday. He appeared in 11 games out of the Orioles bullpen in 1981.
This day in O’s history
1954 – The Orioles and White Sox make a seven-player trade that includes catcher Clint Courtney going to Chicago. Courtney had struck out just seven times in 397 at-bats in the prior season.
1965 – The O’s trade outfielder Jackie Brandt and pitcher Darold Knowles to the Phillies for pitcher Jack Baldschun.
2010 – The Orioles add Mark Reynolds in a swap with the Diamondbacks. Pitchers David Hernández and Kam Mickolio go to Arizona as the makeweight.
2013 – Two free agent Orioles sign elsewhere. Nate McLouth joins the Nationals, while Scott Feldman heads to the Astros.
