Zach Eflin is back on the open market.
The right-hander was included among the latest batch of free agents in a press release from the MLB Players Association, which points to the 2027 mutual option in his deal being declined by either Eflin or the Orioles. That outcome was hardly a shock. Mutual options almost never get exercised by both sides anymore, and in this case the structure was designed more for accounting than anything else.
Baltimore brought Eflin back last winter on a one-year contract worth $10MM guaranteed. The breakdown was a $3MM signing bonus, a $5MM salary and a $2MM buyout on a $25MM mutual option.
That option number was so far above the guarantee that it was never really meant to be picked up. It mainly gave the Orioles a way to push the final $2MM payment into this week rather than pay it during the season.
The deal also included incentives tied to starts. Eflin would have added $1MM if he reached 15 starts, another $1.5MM at 20 and an additional $2.5MM at 25.
Those bonuses never came into play for long. In his first start of the season, he left in the fourth inning because of elbow discomfort, then underwent Tommy John surgery in early April.
He spent the rest of the year on the 60-day injured list.
Given the contract setup and the surgery, this trip to free agency had been looming for a while. Earlier this month, Eflin said he is open to returning to the Orioles. Baltimore can use rotation help, but Eflin’s rehab likely runs into the middle of the 2027 season, which makes him a less immediate fit than other options they’ll explore in the weeks and months ahead.
A reunion still isn’t off the table. If the Orioles have room in the payroll, Eflin could make sense as a midseason reinforcement once his rehab is far enough along. If he ends up elsewhere, he should still draw some interest, though not at a huge price.
His 2025 season was limited to 14 starts and a 5.93 earned run average after back surgery cut it short. He went into 2026 healthy enough to land the $10MM Orioles contract, and his longer résumé helped there. Still, he’s now coming off two heavily disrupted seasons, and the 2027 timeline means he’ll miss part of another one as well.
Eflin turns 33 in April, but clubs will still look at the full body of work. From 2018 to 2024, he logged 874 2/3 innings with a 3.92 ERA.
Even in that stretch, durability was an issue. With that history and the latest surgery, he may have to settle for a contract with a modest guarantee and plenty of incentives.
In Other News...
Orioles Still Have One Obvious Outfield Problem After Latest Roster Moves
The Orioles kept trimming and sorting their roster this week, a familiar offseason task for a club trying to balance flexibility with a clear need in the outfield. Jos Barrero and Albert Surez cleared waivers and chose free agency, Colin Selby was reinstated from the injured list and sent to Triple-A Norfolk, and Codi Heuer accepted an outright assignment to Norfolk, leaving Baltimore with 33 players on the 40-man roster.
Luis Robert Jr. remains the most notable name in the middle of it all, because the Orioles moved on from his contract option and sent him into free agency. Even after the latest roster moves, the outfield still looks like a spot Baltimore will have to keep addressing, and the front office now has room to keep working on it without forcing a decision just yet. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Just Turned Luis Robert Jr Into An Offseason Debate
Luis Robert Jr.'s Baltimore stint never really got the chance to get going, and now it has already become an offseason decision point. The Orioles have declined his 2027 team option, another sign of how aggressively they are sorting through their roster after a season in which they also moved on from several other players' options for next year.
Robert was claimed off waivers from the Mets in 2026, but injuries kept him from making much of an impact in Baltimore. He appeared in only three games for the club before ending up on the injured list, and the stop-start season left the Orioles with little choice but to treat his future as part of a broader reset rather than a simple return plan. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Hold A Luis Robert Decision That Could Help Boston
Bostons offseason planning already has a familiar name in the mix, and it comes with a Baltimore wrinkle. Luis Robert Jr., now with the Orioles, is one of the offensive options the Red Sox are weighing as they look ahead to building a club that can contend in 2027, especially if they wind up moving Jarren Duran and need another dynamic outfield bat to consider.
Robert still carries the appeal that made him an All-Star in the first place, with power and speed that can change a lineup in a hurry. The concern, as always, is whether the health questions that have followed him in recent years will keep him from becoming the kind of dependable target Boston would want before committing to a major pursuit. [Read more 🡒]