The 2025 Orioles’ season was a demonstration in the fragility of success. GM Mike Elias took his foot off the gas pedal, banking on the roster he had already assembled in lieu of making upgrades from outside the organization. The gamble didn’t pay off; the Orioles instantly floundered as their pitching imploded and their young offense couldn’t make up the deficit. For a team which had finally returned to prominence the previous two years following such a long period of futility, the failure of 2025 was a stark
reminder of how deadly complacency can become in one of the most competitive divisions in baseball.
This offseason, Baltimore bucked their recent trends, giving a large free agent contract to a veteran slugger in an effort to complement their young core. They’ve also hired a first-time MLB manager to oversee this talented group as they vie to return to the postseason. Now the question becomes, have the O’s done enough to stand out against a crowded AL East field?
Baltimore Orioles
2025 record: 75-87 (5th, AL East)
2026 FanGraphs projection: 84-78 (4th, AL East)
Obviously, the Orioles are still a team built around their cost-controlled young position players. Baltimore brings back every notable member of their homegrown assembly of hitters: Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman, Jordan Westburg, Jackson Holliday, Colton Cowser, and Coby Mayo. Holliday and Westburg will miss the start of the season, but as we’ll get into, this is just the beginning of the laundry list. Heck, even Ryan Mountcastle is still here. You’ll notice the vast majority of these players are infielders. And y’know who else plays the infield?
Why, that would be former Mets slugger Pete Alonso, the big splash signing the Orioles made this offseason. Hilarious, right? Mike Elias finally swallows his pride to give a big contract to somebody, and it’s a power-hitting first baseman who’s already over 30. Alonso is the exact kind of player a GM like Elias ordinarily wouldn’t be caught dead offering a contract, but these are strange times we inhabit. It’s a good thing they realized that making Camden Yards the worst park for right-handed power hitters in the league was a bad idea— otherwise Alonso wouldn’t have been caught dead signing in Baltimore, either. But here we are.
In addition to bringing Alonso, the Orioles traded away oft-injured pitcher Grayson Rodriguez to acquire Taylor Ward from the Angels. Ward is a big of a strange fit with the O’s, but it’s hard to scoff at adding a guy who hit nearly as many homers as Alonso last season. Tyler O’Neill, last year’s ‘major’ signing, is another guy who can hit a ton of homers, though he regressed badly in 2025.
I would be remiss to forget Samuel Basallo, another big-time prospect who will give Rutchman little margin for error lest he be usurped as the everyday catcher. And oh yeah, Dylan Beavers and Heston Kjerstad are in the mix for playing time too. For as often as the Yankees are accused of prospect-hugging, the Orioles appear committed to holding onto all of these guys. It doesn’t feel like it could possibly work long-term, though roster logjams like those tend to work themselves out.
Now let’s work our way over to the trouble spot for Baltimore: the pitching. After the Orioles declined to re-sign Corbin Burnes last offseason, their rotation fell off a cliff in the former Cy Young winner’s absence. De facto ace Kyle Bradish spent most of the year recovering from Tommy John surgery, and the O’s were forced to rely on a gaggle of unsteady veterans, including but not limited to Charlie Morton, Tomoyuki Sugano, and Zach Eflin.
The only major victory the O’s got out of their pitching last season was the career revival of Trevor Rogers, who posted startlingly good numbers upon returning to regular rotation duty in June. Ultimately, it was only a 109.2-inning sample, albeit a convincing one. The Orioles appear to be banking pretty heavily on what we saw from Rogers down the stretch sticking.
Rogers and Bradish are a solid top two — on paper — but the depth beyond them is questionable. Veteran Chris Bassitt has been dependable for many years, but just turned 37. Zach Eflin struggled badly but returns on a one-year deal. Rays castoff Shane Baz has looked good in camp, but has mostly existed in the realm of the hypothetical breakout for almost a decade. Additionally, their bullpen lacks a ton of high-upside guys beyond free agent signing Ryan Helsley — who struggled badly with the Mets after the trade deadline last year. Imposing closer Félix Bautista is still recovering from shoulder surgery after he tore his labrum last summer.
Lastly, the Orioles have a new manager entering this season. Craig Albernaz, who previously served as Steven Vogt’s associate manager in Cleveland, got the nod to hold this talented but young roster together. Like Aaron Boone, Albernaz is known for his ability to connect with his players, and that quality seems to be what got him the job in Baltimore. He’ll be tasked with keeping morale high over a long season in a gauntlet of a division; with the Yankees running it back, the Blue Jays reloading after their pennant win and the Red Sox still formidable in their own right, the margin for error will be slim.
Overall, the Orioles’ roster is more volatile than those aforementioned rivals. Pitching depth is rather slim, many of their best players have lengthy injury histories, and they may not be able to find enough playing time for all of their young players. But if they can get off to a good start, they’ll be one of the best-positioned teams to make midseason upgrades and raise their ceiling along the road to October.
