Hello, friends.
There are now 139 days remaining until the next scheduled Orioles game. Everyone has their own different level of pessimism for how likely it is that MLB’s owner-imposed lockout of the players will end by then in order to allow the season to begin.
How you feel about the Orioles rotation minus Trevor Rogers probably has a lot to do with how much urgency you think the team should have this offseason. The team had a “could have been worse” rotation in 2026 even with Rogers being as good
as he was from about June on to the end of the season, finishing 17th in MLB with a 4.24 ERA. Probably half a run separated the Orioles from an actually good rotation. Some of that could have been helped with better defense. Some of it could have been helped by better pitching.
As things look right now, the rotation is lined up with Kyle Bradish, Shane Baz, Brandon Young, Cade Povich, and Trey Gibson. That’s what is on FanGraphs projected depth chart and I think it seems like a good enough guess. That’s a bad rotation picture unless Povich or Gibson pulls off a Young-like turnaround into 2027, and it’s not even really guaranteed that Young stays turned around.
The needs are pretty much the same as they were going into last offseason. They need to reinforce the front end and they need to reinforce the back end too. Last year, the front end reinforcement was trading for Baz; with a 4.11 ERA, he was no help at the front end. The back end reinforcements were Chris Bassitt and Zach Eflin. The Orioles lost Eflin for the season in the middle of his first start, which isn’t Mike Elias’s fault but that bad luck still hurt the team. Bassitt’s 4.59 ERA didn’t help the back end too much in the aggregate, though he was better after returning from back surgery.
They’re going to have to do better about it this year. Does Elias have it in him? If he has it in him, will he be able to show it before the lockout hits in December? These are the questions that will be lingering all month until they are either addressed in some affirmative way or the lockout hits and shows the answer is no. Given his track record, I don’t blame anybody for feeling anxious about it.
Today’s round of links from the last couple of days is very, very interested in what the Orioles are going to do about the rotation. There are no answers yet! Only possibilities, some of which you might think sound great and others you might dread instead.
Orioles stuff you might have missed
We are in the time of year where daily news or rumors are not guaranteed and if you diligently read the Bird Droppings daily, you may see repeats. Friends, it’s not going to get better in December.
Five big-swing trade ideas for the Orioles to consider (The Baltimore Banner)
Among the targets here for The Banner’s Andy Kostka are Steven Kwan and Reid Detmers.
Five biggest questions facing the Orioles as free agency begins (The Baltimore Sun)
The five things industrial complex cannot be resisted.
Improving Orioles rotation is ‘absolutely on the menu’ (Orioles.com)
We’ve heard this story before. Sometimes the effort in acquiring long-term pieces did not seem to be there. Other times, the results have not quite been there when the effort was put in.
Orioles could face tough task in replacing Trevor Rogers (Baltimore Baseball)
The only internal backup plans are “hope Kyle Bradish and/or Shane Baz pitch better than they did in 2026.”
More positives under the hood for Vance Honeycutt? (Orioles On The Verge)
For all of you out there who, like me, just can’t fully quit Vance Honeycutt.
Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries
Today in 1976, Jim Palmer was named the AL Cy Young for the second year in a row and third time in his career. This followed a season where he posted a 2.51 ERA across 315 innings. I know, 315! It proved to be the final win of a Cy for his career, though he had two runner-ups and a third place still to come.
In 1997, Davey Johnson was named the AL Manager of the Year, and also resigned as manager of the Orioles. In retrospect, this marked the start of a long, bad era of Orioles baseball.
There are a pair of former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2019 pitcher Josh Lucas, and 2004-06 catcher Javy López.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: union leader Eugene V. Debs (1855), King of the Cowboys Roy Rogers (1911), musician Art Garfunkel (1941), Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino (1941), and DJ Flume (1991).
On this day in history…
In 1605, the infamous Gunpowder Plot was discovered and thwarted as Guy Fawkes was arrested underneath the Houses of Parliament. He had been intending to blow up the king, James I.
In 1757, Prussia’s Frederick the Great won one of his great victories of the Seven Years War, defeating a combined French-Austrian force while outnumbered close to 2-1 in the Battle of Rossbach.
In 1872, women’s suffrage activist Susan B. Anthony cast a ballot. This was against the law and she was fined $100. In today’s money, that’s a fine of over $2,700. Women’s suffrage had to wait decades longer.
In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was re-elected to a third term in office, making him the first and still only president to ever be elected to more than two terms. The 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951, prevents this from happening again.
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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on November 5. Have a safe Thursday.
