Good Morning Birdland,
The biggest domino of the Orioles offseason has already fallen. Earlier in the week, the team announced the hiring of Craig Albernaz as their new manager. At the moment, it is unclear
if any members of the Orioles 2025 coaching staff will remain in Albernaz’ dugout going into 2026. But we do know that two of the hitting coaches will not be back.
Sherman Johnson and Tommy Joseph are confirmed to be out the door. Johnson is joining the White Sox organization, while it is unclear if Joseph has a next step planned. Cody Asche, the third major league hitting coach, remains with the club for now, but that could change in the near future.
It’s no surprise to see a shakeup in these roles. The Orioles offense was a huge disappointment this past season, which came on the heels of a poor second half of the 2024 season. If this team is going to have any hope of reaching their lofty aspirations in 2026, they need to sort out the hitting issues. That will start with hiring some new voices that Albernaz will surely have input on.
It is possible that Albernaz will retain some portion of Brandon Hyde’s staff. Some level of consistency could be comforting to the players. Someone like Buck Britton could make sense to keep. He has been in the Orioles organization since 2017, prior to Hyde’s or Mike Elias’ arrival. At the same time, that could be seen as a problem for a new manager. Maybe comfort is the opposite of what he wants for the clubhouse.
Even if Albernaz brings everyone else back (which he won’t), there are empty roles to be filled. Remember, the bullpen coach Tim Cossins was fired along with Hyde back in May. Tony Mansolino isn’t going to drop from interim manager back to a staff member with the same team. That leaves the third base coach spot open. Britton was handling those duties following Mansolino’s “promotion.” And will the team continue to have three hitting coaches? That’s at least two more openings right there.
The dugout is going to have a different look. Based on how this club has played since July 2024, that is probably a good thing. How much of an impact will that have on their performance? Your guess is as good as any.
Links
Orioles begin reshuffling coaching staff, 2 hitting coaches will not return | The Baltimore Banner
Here is more on the ongoing changes within the hitting department. My suggestion would be to hire someone that will tell the players the correct things to do, and then score more runs. But I’m not being called for my opinion.
Taking another look at the Albernaz hire as Orioles manager | Roch Kubatko
Not much new to discuss. It seems like the baseball industry at large likes the Albernaz hiring. That’s good, I guess. A team’s managerial decision doesn’t have to make sense to everyone, but it would probably be a red flag if the universal response was more tepid.
Albernaz will try to bring Cleveland success to the Orioles | Baltimore Baseball
What I want from Cleveland is their pitching development and José Ramírez. Can he bring those things as well? Ah, well. I guess we will take the nebulous “success” formula the guy learned in two seasons with the team.
Baltimore Orioles 2025 MLB Draft Report Card | Baseball America
Prospects, baby! Let’s go! The Orioles draft class this past summer was so large that it has a chance to be a transformative one. Or at least that is what I will be telling myself until they all flame out.
Orioles birthdays
Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!
- Shaun Anderson turns 31 today. The Orioles are on of the three teams he played for in 2021. With the O’s he had a 9.00 ERA over seven appearances.
- Dana Eveland is 42 years old. The lefty was a swing option for the Orioles pitching staff during their historic 2012 campaign. Over 32.1 innings he had a 4.73 ERA.
- Karim Garcia celebrates his 50th birthday. The outfielder had two stints in Baltimore, first for eight games in 2000 and then for 23 more games in 2004. Neither time was he able to fine success with the O’s.
- Frank Baker is 79 today. He was an infielder for parts of two season with the Orioles from 1973 through ‘74.
- Pete Richert turns 86. From 1968 through ‘71, the southpaw was an important part of the O’s pitching staff. He tossed 343 total innings, mostly out of the bullpen, and had a 2.83 ERA. His best season was 1970, which included a 1.98 ERA, 13 saves, and a World Series championship.
This day in O’s history
2013 – The Orioles team, which set a record with only 54 fielding errors committed all season, takes home three Gold Glove awards. The winners are shortstop J.J. Hardy, third baseman Manny Machado, and center fielder Adam Jones.
2016 – Zach Britton is named the winner of the Mariano Rivera Award in the American League, honoring the junior circuit’s best reliever of the season.
