The Orioles won’t be playing in October, but plenty of familiar faces still are.
Baltimore’s former players are scattered across the divisional round, giving Birdland a handful of teams to latch onto while the club watches the 2026 playoffs from home. Some are stars, some are role players, and some have taken the scenic route to get there. All of them, in one way or another, spent time in orange and white.
The biggest name on the list is Manny Machado, now the Padres’ third baseman. Machado spent his first seven seasons in Baltimore before being traded away at the deadline.
In that stretch, he made four All-Star teams, won two Gold Gloves, and finished top five in MVP voting twice. His 32.0 bWAR with the Orioles puts him in the top 20 in franchise history.
San Diego also has Austin Hays, who came up through Baltimore and spent his first seven seasons there before being traded away at the 2024 trade deadline. Hays was released by the White Sox after the trade deadline this season, after playing just 12 games for them because of injury, and then landed with the Padres.
The Dodgers have a pair of former Orioles relievers. Tanner Scott is the more prominent of the two.
Baltimore never quite got the version of Scott it hoped for; his best season there came during the shortened 2020 campaign, and in every other year he posted an ERA of 4.78 or higher. He was traded to Miami at the start of the 2022 season and took off from there, eventually becoming one of the highest-paid relievers ever when the Dodgers signed him in 2025.
Evan Phillips is another Dodgers arm with Orioles roots. He spent three seasons in Baltimore from 2018 through 2020 after arriving in the trade that sent Kevin Gausman to Atlanta. The Orioles released him in August 2021, Tampa signed him two days later, and the Dodgers claimed him off waivers 14 days after that.
Tampa Bay has a cluster of ex-Orioles too. Cedric Mullins was a fan favorite, especially after his 2021 breakout, when he put together the Orioles’ 30 home run, 30 stolen base season in the 2000s.
That year brought his only All-Star selection and his Silver Slugger. His production dipped after that, and Baltimore dealt him to the Mets at the 2025 deadline before he signed with Tampa over the offseason.
Jorge Mateo also landed with the Rays after a winding path. He spent four and a half seasons with Baltimore as a utilityman after being claimed off waivers late in 2021.
He played 150 games in 2022, then saw his playing time shrink. Mateo hit free agency last offseason, signed with Atlanta, was released in August, and then signed with Tampa.
Bryan Baker is in Tampa as well, and he arrives after a strong run in Baltimore. Claimed off waivers in the 2021-22 offseason, he pitched in 173 games for the Orioles between 2022 and the trade that sent him to Tampa in 2025.
This season, Baker became one of the game’s best closers, leading MLB with 41 saves and posting a 1.44 ERA in 65 appearances. Tyler Wells is the other former Oriole in that bullpen mix.
Baltimore selected him in the Rule 5 draft in 2020 as a starter, and he moved into a full-time relief role this season. He was dealt in-division at the 2026 trade deadline during a career year.
Milwaukee’s playoff roster includes three players with Orioles ties. Joey Ortiz and DL Hall both came over in the Corbin Burnes deal, and both are now part of the Brewers’ postseason group.
Ortiz rebounded in 2026 after a rough 2025 and has split his time between third base and shortstop. Hall broke through this year out of the bullpen, putting up a 1.91 ERA in 47 games.
Gary Sanchez is also on Milwaukee’s roster after returning to the Brewers for 2026 following his one-year stop in Baltimore in 2025, when he appeared in just 29 games for the Orioles.
Cleveland’s lone former Oriole is Shawn Armstrong, a right-handed reliever who spent parts of three seasons with Baltimore. The Orioles claimed him off waivers in April 2019, he stayed through 2020, and then they designated him for assignment in June 2021. Armstrong appeared in 85 games for Baltimore and finished with a 5.34 ERA.
And on the White Sox, there’s Jake Rogers. The 31-year-old catcher spent three days with Baltimore in 2026.
He was traded from the Tigers on July 31, then dealt to the Red Sox as part of the Adley Rustchman deal on August 3. Boston designated him for assignment eight days later, and Chicago claimed him.
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