The Orioles are heading into an offseason where the roster could change in a big way, and a handful of familiar names look especially vulnerable once 2026 is over. Baltimore has pending free agents, arbitration cases, and enough uncertainty that not everyone currently on the club is going to stick around.
Chris Bassitt looks like the clearest case. The Orioles brought him in on a one-year deal to steady the rotation, but a back injury and bone spurs kept him out for much of June and July, and the season never really recovered.
He’s almost 38, he finished with a 4.59 ERA in 20 appearances, and Baltimore needs more upside than that. On top of that, Bassitt may want a better-paying shot with a playoff team.
At this point, he looks like a lock to depart in free agency.
Andrew Kittredge is in a similar spot, even if the fit is a little less obvious. He gave Baltimore useful bullpen work, but the numbers were only so-so: a 3.54 ERA and 3.74 FIP while making north of $8 million.
If he were willing to come back at a discount, a reunion could make sense. The problem is that neither side seems likely to land on a number that works for both.
Leody Taveras also feels like a short-term answer who won’t survive the next roster squeeze. Baltimore signed him for $2 million because the outfield had health and defensive questions, and in theory that made sense.
But with 477 plate appearances, he hit just .216/.286/.339. His speed and arm still give him value for a club short on outfield depth, but the Orioles should be able to aim higher.
Zach Eflin is another one-year addition who seems headed out the door. He was supposed to help patch up the rotation, but he made exactly one start before an elbow injury ended his season and led to Tommy John surgery.
The mutual option for 2027 is $25 million, and while Eflin is a mortal lock to opt in on his side, Baltimore is very likely to decline. Before anyone pays him meaningful money again, he’ll probably need to show he can still throw.
Ryan Mountcastle’s future has been getting harder to picture for a while, and the Pete Alonso signing only sharpened that reality. Mountcastle has long been a middling bat with little defensive value, and his consistency never quite matched the raw power.
Over the previous four seasons, he averaged a .728 OPS, and then 2026 became a lost year when a broken foot and an oblique injury limited him to just 15 plate appearances. Even if he were willing to take something near the $6.79 million AAV he made this season, Baltimore has enough comparable or better bats in the organization to move on.
Luis Robert Jr. rounds out the list, and the Orioles’ waiver claim clearly didn’t turn into the bounce-back bet they hoped for. The move was low-risk because the Mets had already paid most of the money owed, but the availability issues followed him to Baltimore.
After injuries piled up in Chicago, Robert Jr. dealt with a back issue in New York and is now on the injured list in Baltimore with a hamstring injury. Talent has never been the question.
Staying on the field has, and that makes him hard to bring back at almost any price.
In Other News...
Orioles May Have Their Future Shortstop If One Question Holds Up
Wehiwa Aloy has moved quickly enough to make the Orioles think seriously about what comes next at shortstop. After being taken 31st overall in the 2025 draft, he put together a strong 2026 across High-A and Double-A, posting a .288/.358/.506 line with 25 home runs and earning the Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year award in the organization. For a club that always seems to be balancing the present with the pipeline, that kind of production is the sort that gets attention.
The question now is less about whether Aloy can drive the ball than whether the rest of his game holds up well enough to keep him on a shortstop path. Strikeouts remain part of the evaluation, even as scouting reports point to a player who projects as at least an average defender at the position. If that defensive baseline proves real, the Orioles may have something more than a power-hitting prospect - they may have a long-term answer at one of the games most important spots. [Read more 🡒]
Pete Alonso Just Gave Orioles Fans A Reason To Twist The Knife
Pete Alonso is settling in with Baltimore in a way that would have been hard to imagine not long ago, and hes not shy about saying it. After the Mets decided not to bring him back, the franchises all-time home run leader signed a five-year deal with the Orioles and has been productive for his new club, even as the season has gone sideways for both teams.
Alonso recently said he believes he was always meant to be an Oriole, and he made a point of thanking Baltimore fans for sticking with him through a difficult year. For Orioles supporters, its the kind of comment that feels both flattering and just a little sharp, especially with the sting of missing the postseason still fresh and the sight of Alonso doing well in orange and black now impossible to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Kade Anderson Is Forcing Mariners Fans To Dream Bigger Already
Kade Andersons first full pro season has already given Mariners fans plenty to daydream about. The third overall pick stormed through Double-A with a 10-1 record and a 1.06 ERA before earning a major league promotion, a rapid rise that has made him one of the most talked-about arms in the system and a finalist for the 2026 MiLB Pitching Prospect of the Year award.
For Orioles followers, the story carries a little extra weight because two of the other finalists, Anthony Eyanson and Joseph Dzierwa, are now part of Baltimores pipeline after strong minor league showings of their own. Both have paired low ERAs with impressive strikeout numbers, a reminder that the Orioles talent base continues to grow even as Andersons breakout has Seattle thinking bigger about what comes next. [Read more 🡒]