Mike Elias rarely telegraphs his biggest swings, and this winter figures to be no different - only tighter on the clock.
The Orioles president of baseball operations has spent the past 14 months piling up surprises: extensions for catcher Samuel Basallo and pitchers Shane Baz, Kyle Bradish and Yennier Cano, a massive five-year deal for first baseman Pete Alonso, plus three trades no one saw coming. That kind of activity could be even more important this offseason, because it may be a short one. If the World Series goes seven games, it won’t end until Halloween, and then the calendar gets squeezed hard by an expected lockout once the Collective Bargaining Agreement expires on December 1st.
Elias has already lived through a setup like that. Back in 2021, the Orioles got Jordan Lyles under contract right before the transaction freeze, and the deal didn’t become official until March 12 th, two days after the lockout ended. Before the shutdown, they had also brought in Rougned Odor, Rico Garcia, Bryan Baker and Cionel Pérez, then added Robinson Chirinos and Chris Owings as shortened spring training got underway.
This time, the pressure points look sharper, and the roster needs are more obvious. The Orioles still need another starting pitcher or two, an impact left-handed reliever, more thump in the outfield and maybe a better backup catcher behind Basallo.
A lot of the winter’s uncertainty already has a recent track record. Last November’s decision to move on from Grayson Rodriguez and send him to the Los Angeles Angels for Taylor Ward looked bold at the time.
After one season, it hasn’t really helped either side. Rodriguez, who missed all of 2025 with a mix of injuries and had surgery to remove bone chips from his right elbow, went 5-8 with a 6.02 ERA.
Ward hit 36 home runs for the Angels in 2025, but managed only seven in 111 games for Baltimore, including just one at Camden Yards. He was then dealt to Seattle on August 3 rd and struggled there, batting .125 in 32 games.
That chain reaction eventually pushed the Orioles into another major pitching move, sending four prospects - including right-hander Michael Forret - to the Tampa Bay Rays for Shane Baz. Forret later returned to Baltimore in the Tyler Wells deal at the trade deadline.
Elias also landed utility player Blaze Alexander, a move that paid off, while some other early free-agent bets didn’t move the needle. Ryan Helsey and Leody Taveras arrived last winter, but neither changed the team’s direction. Helsey may be back, though, because his $14 million option is expected to be picked up after he pitched in only 17 games.
Then came the deadline and another jolt: the Orioles sent Rutschman to Boston for four highly rated prospects and catcher Carlos Narváez. Narváez didn’t provide much offense, hitting just .104 in 33 games.
The July 2025 sell-off left Baltimore with even more ammo. The Orioles made eight deals to bring in 16 minor leaguers, and the trades involving Rutschman, Ward, Wells and starter Dean Kremer added to that stockpile. Elias is going to have to turn some of those arms into the kind of help this roster still lacks if Baltimore is going to contend in 2027.
That path will also depend on internal bounce-backs and upgrades. The Orioles are counting on a rebound from Gunnar Henderson, plus real steps forward from Jackson Holliday, Colton Cowser and Dylan Beavers, along with a healthy season from Jordan Westburg after his Tommy John surgery in May.
If one or two of those things happen, that helps. It still wouldn’t be enough on its own.
That’s the reality of a 79-82 team that hung around the playoff picture until the final week only because the American League was thin around it. The free-agent market doesn’t offer a ton of obvious answers either, especially in the outfield and among starters. Elias has often leaned on veteran starters with one-year deals - Lyles and Kyle Gibson gave him decent returns, while Charlie Morton, Tomoyuki Sugano and Chris Bassitt didn’t do as much.
Predicting what comes next with Elias is usually a fool’s errand. The odds are he’ll try to do something unexpected again, because that’s been his pattern, and the Orioles need a jolt to become a real contender once more.
Attendance did rise slightly in 2026, but that followed a sharp drop in 2025, and fans are not going to be eager to buy tickets if a lockout is hanging over the sport. Last winter, Alonso gave them a reason to get excited.
This time, with two straight losing seasons and another work stoppage looming, they’ll need more than one headline move.
In Other News...
Shane Baz Gave The Orioles More Than His Record Suggests
Shane Bazs first season in Baltimore didnt show up kindly in the win-loss column, but the Orioles had plenty of reasons to view it differently. After acquiring him from the Rays before the 2026 season in a trade that cost multiple prospects and then locking him in with a five-year extension, the club asked for stability at the front of the rotation. Baz delivered volume, taking the ball 31 times and piling up 180 innings while continuing to build back toward his pre-surgery form.
The record, of course, was rough at 6-15, and the 4.11 ERA will never tell the whole story on its own. Baltimore gave him poor run support in too many of those starts, and the stronger FIP suggested the right-hander was better than the raw results implied. More important for the Orioles, Baz looked like a pitcher who had moved further along in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, leaving him positioned as a significant part of what they want the rotation to become next. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Rotation Questions Just Got Bigger With Cade Povich
Cade Povichs bid to factor into the Orioles 2027 rotation took another hit this week, though the club still expects the left-hander to be back in time for Spring Training. Povich underwent surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow after a 2026 season that already included a stint on the injured list for elbow inflammation, a reminder of how quickly a promising arm can run into trouble when a young pitcher is trying to carve out a bigger role.
For Baltimore, the timing matters because the rotation picture could look very different by next season, especially if some arms reach free agency. Povich had been on the radar as a candidate for a starting job, but his late-season struggles and this latest setback only add more uncertainty to a group that could use stability, health and a few clear answers heading into 2027. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Face A Big Question About A Bold Left Field Fix
The Orioles search for a cleaner answer in left field has already started to shape the conversation around their offseason, and Seiya Suzuki sits near the center of it. A right-handed hitter with a polished bat and enough defensive ability to handle the outfield, Suzuki checks a lot of the boxes Baltimore has been weighing as it looks for a more dependable fit in a part of the roster that has invited debate.
Still, any pursuit would have to account for more than just what Suzuki brings on the field. The Orioles have to consider how their ballpark can influence a players value, while the front office also has to weigh the broader market and what a move like this could mean beyond Baltimore. Suzukis appeal in Japan only adds another layer to a decision that is as much about strategy and fit as it is about adding another bat. [Read more 🡒]