The Orioles are back in the familiar part of their offseason cycle: Mike Elias laying out where the roster stands, which injured players might be ready for spring training, and which ones are still uncertain bets.
This week’s comments at the league’s general manager meetings brought that routine back into focus. Jordan Westburg was among the players Elias described as “normal citizens” by spring training, while Félix Bautista and Ryan Helsley were mentioned in the group the team can’t yet be sure about. That kind of update usually comes with movement soon after, and this time the timing matters even more.
With a likely work stoppage only a few weeks away, the Orioles need to move early. Not for show, and not because of the noise that would come from weeks of questions about the rotation or the outfield. The bigger issue is whether they can get their offseason business done before baseball shuts down.
That means being decisive, not cautious. The Orioles need to show they have a real plan to get the 2027 version of this team back to the playoffs, and they need to attack that plan now.
They’ve done this before. Last winter, they got things rolling early by signing switch-hitting outfielder Leody Taveras to a one-year deal.
He faded late, but he helped keep the team afloat at the start of the season. The year before that, they added Ramón Laureano late in the winter for inexpensive outfield depth and got value out of a move that didn’t cost nearly as much as the bigger deals around the league.
There were bigger swings too. Before the 2024 winter meetings, the Orioles signed Tyler O’Neill and Gary Sánchez.
Those deals don’t look great now, and O’Neill’s third and final year on the contract has become a roster complication for a club looking for steadiness. Still, at the time, those moves made the team’s intentions clear.
They knew they were too left-handed, knew they needed a right fielder with Anthony Santander in free agency, and knew they needed an offensive catcher to pair with Adley Rutschman. Rather than wait around, they jumped the market.
Last winter brought another early move, this time to handle the uncertainty around Bautista. The Orioles agreed to a two-year deal with Helsley before December even began.
But the biggest statement may have been the trade of Grayson Rodriguez, which brought back Taylor Ward. With Ward heading toward free agency and Rodriguez carrying four years of club control, it was the clearest sign yet that the Orioles were reacting to their disastrous 2025 season with urgency.
That matched what was being heard around the organization last fall, and it lined up with the rest of the winter: the November moves, the massive Pete Alonso signing and the Shane Baz trade all pointed in the same direction.
This time, the feeling is different. The Orioles are still a team with trade pieces, payroll room and a front office that has shown it can work aggressively. They also have Jared Banner now working with Elias, and they enter the winter with perhaps more pressure than any club to improve before the lockout arrives.
They’ll also have to make some hard calls on players they trust and like, while deciding where the real upgrades can come from.
The expectation is simple: the Orioles should be open for business, and when they start, they shouldn’t ease into it. If they want to shape the market, they’ll have to do it quickly.
That also means being ready to change course if needed. They showed that last year, when they were turned down by Kyle Schwarber and pivoted to Alonso less than a day later.
They know how to prepare for an offseason and get it done. With a likely work stoppage looming, they need to do it again.
In Other News...
Orioles Trade Talk With Pirates Comes Down To One Infield Decision
With MLB executives gathered in Las Vegas for the General Manager Meetings, the Orioles are again navigating an offseason full of uncertainty and the possibility of a lockout looming over the sport. Baltimore has made clear its core players are not expected to move, but there is still room for creativity if the club wants to address its pitching rotation, and that has kept the trade market around its infield depth worth watching.
The Pirates fit naturally into that conversation. Pittsburgh has built around a promising young starting staff, but it is still looking for help on the infield, which creates the kind of match that could make sense for both sides. For the Orioles, the question is less about whether a deal is possible than which infielder they would be willing to part with, and that decision may end up shaping how aggressive they can be on the mound. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Have An Outfield Fix That Makes Too Much Sense
The Orioles spent much of the 2026 season searching for more certainty in the outfield, and the results showed up in the standings and the numbers. Baltimore finished 22nd in MLB with a combined 3.9 fWAR from the position, a reminder that the group never quite gave the lineup the steady production or defensive reliability the club needed. Team president Mike Elias has talked about internal fixes, but he has also left the door open to outside help if the right fit presents itself.
That search naturally points to the trade market, where the Orioles could look for a player who raises the floor on both sides of the ball without forcing a bigger roster shuffle than necessary. Cleveland outfielder Steven Kwan stands out as the kind of target that makes immediate sense for Baltimore, thanks to the way he has contributed offensively and defensively in 2026. The challenge, as always, is whether a player with that profile is actually available and what kind of price the Orioles would have to pay to get him. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Still Have One Big Bullpen Decision Hanging Over 2027
The Orioles may have spent the winter building out their bullpen, but one of the biggest late-inning questions still sits out in front of them: who gets the ninth inning in 2027? Flix Bautista and Ryan Helsley both have the kind of track records that make them obvious candidates when healthy, and both are expected to be in the mix once they get through their recoveries.
Mike Elias has made it clear the club is not locking anything in yet, and that the answer will depend on how the roster takes shape and how each pitcher comes back. For Baltimore, it is a reminder that bullpen depth is only part of the equation. The real issue is whether either arm is ready to reclaim the high-leverage role the Orioles had in mind when they put this group together. [Read more 🡒]