With four weeks left in the season, the Orioles are still chasing the Guardians for the third wild-card spot in the American League, sitting one game back. That race is the headline in September, but it is not the only thing hanging in the balance.
These final games are also shaping up as a tryout of sorts for 2027.
The biggest personnel questions run through the infield, where Mike Elias is trying to sort out who belongs where beyond this season. Blaze Alexander, Coby Mayo and Christian Encarnacion-Strand all have a chance to influence those decisions in the weeks ahead.
Alexander’s return on Friday after six weeks out with a fractured left hand added another layer. He played shortstop with Gunnar Henderson sitting, and the Orioles value his versatility already.
He can handle second base, third base and, at least on occasion, shortstop. The bigger bonus would be if September shows he can also function as an outfielder.
That matters because the Orioles are thin on right-handed hitting outfielders. Tyler O’Neill is on the 10-day injured list with a shoulder injury, leaving Dylan Beavers and Colton Cowser as left-handed bats and Leody Taveras as a switch hitter. Taveras entered Saturday’s game hitting .234 with a .717 OPS from the left side and .200 with a .506 OPS from the right side.
Christian Franklin is the club’s only true right-handed hitting outfielder. If Alexander can prove himself as a workable outfield option, that could help now and give the Orioles another answer for 2027. There also are no right-handed hitting outfield prospects in the high minors, with Enrique Bradfield Jr. and Heston Kjerstad both left-handed.
Alexander had spent plenty of time at third base before his injury, and the Orioles have been happy with the way Christian Encarnacion-Strand has fit since they acquired him in April. Encarnacion-Strand has delivered key hits and steady work at third.
While Alexander was on the injured list, Mayo started 10 games there, and Encarnacion-Strand started the rest. Since August 16, Encarnacion-Strand has also played seven games at first base, with Pete Alonso serving as the designated hitter in those games while managing a sore right calf.
Mayo’s second-half production has been another important development. Entering Saturday’s game, he was hitting .267 with an .859 OPS, along with six home runs and 18 RBIs, and the Orioles have been encouraged by the way he’s hitting like a major league bat.
Jordan Westburg is part of the long view too. The Orioles are hoping for a full recovery from Tommy John surgery after he did not play at all this season. He had been expected to handle third base, and he has said he expects to be ready for the start of spring training, whether that comes on schedule in mid-February or later.
If Alexander, Encarnacion-Strand, Mayo and Westburg are all in the mix next year, Elias will have some real sorting to do.
Catching is another September question with real consequences.
The Orioles acquired Carlos Narváez from Boston in the trade that sent Adley Rutschman to the Red Sox, but the offense has not followed him to Baltimore. Entering Saturday night’s game, Narváez was 4-for-47, a .085 clip, since joining the Orioles.
That is a sharp drop from last season, when he hit .241 with 15 home runs, 50 RBIs and a .726 OPS for the Red Sox and finished sixth in Rookie of the Year voting. He got my fourth-place vote. His defensive WAR with the Orioles is .1, but Baltimore needs more from him with the bat if he is going to remain Samuel Basallo’s backup.
The Orioles are currently carrying three catchers - Basallo, Narváez and Yohel Pozo. Pozo has not started since Basallo returned on August 19, and the team could always trim that group in the final weeks. Basallo, who just turned 22, needs a dependable backup, and Narváez has to show he can be that player.
The bullpen could also look different before the month is out.
Félix Bautista is expected back soon, whether that comes Tuesday when rosters expand to 28 or a few days later. Bautista underwent rotator cuff and labrum surgery in August 2025, and the real question is how the Orioles will handle him once he returns. When he came back from Tommy John surgery in 2025, the team did not use him on consecutive days until May 20-21.
A similar buildup seems likely this time, even with more meaningful games on the line.
Ryan Helsley could be another late-September addition. He has been out for two months with right elbow inflammation but has resumed bullpen sessions.
If he gets back, he could give the Orioles another important arm down the stretch. Helsley also has a $14 million option for next year, and because he has been limited to 17 games, it seems likely he will exercise it and stay in Baltimore.
For the bullpen beyond this season, Bautista, Helsley and Yennier Cano would give Elias a strong right-handed base to work from, leaving the front office to find left-handed help for 2027.
In Other News...
Orioles Fans May Hate Where The Grayson Rodriguez Debate Is Heading
Grayson Rodriguezs first run with the Angels looked a lot like the kind of rough transition that can make a trade look better in hindsight for Baltimore. Through his first 10 starts in Los Angeles, he was hit hard, carrying a 7.98 ERA and a 5.81 FIP as the former Orioles right-hander fought through early struggles and injuries after last Novembers deal that sent him to Anaheim for Taylor Ward.
Since an August 4 start against his old club, though, Rodriguez has started to look more like the pitcher the Angels thought they were getting, with his ERA trending down and his strikeout total climbing. That is the part Orioles fans probably wont enjoy hearing, because the trade was always going to be judged not just by Wards production in Baltimore, but by whether Rodriguez eventually settles in as the long-term asset the Angels believe theyve secured through 2030. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Face A September Call-Up Decision That Could Shape The Playoff Push
With the Orioles pushing to stay in the playoff picture, the front office has a familiar late-season question to sort through: whether there is a minor league bat or arm worth bringing up for the stretch run. It has not been a banner year for the farm system to this point, with the Norfolk Tides struggling and not offering much in the way of obvious help, which has left Baltimore leaning more heavily on the roster it already has built in the big leagues.
Even so, there are a few names worth watching as September approaches, including Heston Kjerstad and Kyle Bradish, along with the deeper pitching options sitting at Double-A and Triple-A. The Orioles have enough organizational arms to consider different roster paths over the final month, but the bigger issue is whether any of those call-up choices can meaningfully change the shape of a postseason push rather than simply fill innings and bench spots. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Wild Card Push May Hinge On One Deadline Gamble
After wrapping up a series in Sacramento, the Orioles are moving into a crucial stretch that will help shape their Wild Card fate, with games coming in Denver and then back home against the Red Sox and Guardians. Baltimore has stayed in the mix with a blend of sharp defense and timely comeback wins, and the margin is still tight as it tries to track down Cleveland for the final playoff spot.
The front office has already shown a willingness to be aggressive, adding pitchers from Seattle in a deal that sent outfielder Taylor Ward the other way, and those kinds of moves are now part of the backdrop to every game. There are also signs of help from within, with Colton Cowsers recent offensive uptick giving the lineup another needed spark, but the bigger question is whether one deadline swing will be enough to carry the Orioles through the stretch run. [Read more 🡒]