Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Orioles Rumors

Cooper Hummel Elects Free Agency

By | at

The Orioles yet again announced that outfielder/first baseman Cooper Hummel elected free agency after going unclaimed on outright waivers. He was designated for assignment on Monday when Colton Cowser returned from the injured list.

Hummel had two stints in Baltimore that lasted a combined four days. He signed an MLB deal with the O’s after opting out of a non-roster contract with the Yankees. They designated him for assignment a day later when they needed a third catcher. He cleared waivers and re-signed on a fresh major league deal. Hummel spent three more days on the active roster. He struck out in his only at-bat and played two innings in right field.

It has presumably been a frustrating sequence, but Hummel picked up a little over a week of big league pay between his stint on the active roster and in DFA limbo. He’ll now return to the market and should at least find another minor league deal if no team is willing to plug him directly onto the MLB roster.

The switch-hitting Hummel appeared in 66 MLB contests for the Diamondbacks during his 2022 rookie season. He’s only made 17 big league appearances in the two-plus years since then. A career .159/.254/.274 hitter, he’s shown more offensive ability in the minors. Hummel has a .284/.419/.475 slash line over parts of five Triple-A seasons. He reached base at a .415 clip in 10 games with the Yankees’ affiliate before opting out.

MLBTR Podcast: Jarren Duran Rumors, Caglianone And Young Promoted, And Pitching Injuries

By | at

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • If the Diamondbacks can’t climb in the standings, what does their deadline look like? (48:45)
  • As a thought experiment, if the Orioles were willing to listen on Gunnar Henderson, what teams would even have the pieces to pull off a trade? (54:10)

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images

Orioles Re-Sign Chadwick Tromp To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Orioles announced to reporters, including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, that catcher Chadwick Tromp has been re-signed to a minor league deal. He is with the club in Seattle and on the taxi squad.

Tromp, 30, was on the O’s roster for a few days recently. Adley Rutschman got a concussion scare, so the O’s added Tromp in order to have another backstop on the roster alongside Maverick Handley. Rutschman felt better a few days later, which led to the out-of-options Tromp being designated for assignment. He went hitless in four plate appearances during that brief stint as an Oriole. He elected free agency just a few hours ago but he and the club have worked out a new pact.

There hasn’t been anything to suggest that there’s anything currently wrong with Rutschman or Handley, so it’s possible Tromp is just around on the taxi squad for logistical reasons. The Orioles are in Seattle for three games and then play three against the Athletics in West Sacramento. The Triple-A Norfolk Tides are in Louisville, Kentucky this week, so it would take some time to get a fresh body to the West Coast if an injury did pop up. Tromp’s presence gives them someone on hand who can be added to the roster on short notice.

The O’s go back home next week after facing the A’s, at which point Tromp could perhaps join the Tides. He hasn’t hit much in his big league career, with a .219/.229/.375 line in part-time play over six seasons, but he has a solid defensive reputation and better offense in the minors. He has a combined .256/.337/.427 line and 102 wRC+ in 872 Triple-A plate appearances dating back to the start of the 2022 season.

Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images.

Chadwick Tromp Elects Free Agency

By | at

The Orioles announced that catcher Chadwick Tromp has elected free agency in lieu of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment a few days ago.

Tromp, 30, had a very brief stint on Baltimore’s roster. Catcher Adley Rutschman had a concussion scare last week, leaving Maverick Handley as the only healthy backstop on the roster. That prompted the club to add Tromp. However, Rutschman quickly recovered, which led to Tromp getting bumped right back off. Since he is out of options, Baltimore had little choice but to designate him for assignment. He appeared in two games for the O’s, going hitless in four plate appearances.

A player with a previous career outright assignment has the right to elect free agency. This is the second time this year that Tromp has exercised that right. He started the year with Atlanta but had a tenuous hold on a roster spot since he burned his final option season in 2024. Sean Murphy started the season on the injured list, which got prospect Drake Baldwin to the majors. Murphy got healthy in the first week of April, sending Tromp into DFA limbo. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and signed a minor league deal with the O’s.

He’s now likely to get another minor league deal somewhere in the coming days, perhaps even returning to the Orioles. The fact that he cleared waivers suggests that no club is currently willing to give him a big league spot.

Tromp has 63 games of big league experience now, spread across six different seasons. He has a tepid .219/.229/.375 batting line over those campaigns. His glovework has generally received solid grades and he has shown more offensive potential in the minors. Dating back to the start of the 2022 season, he has a .256/.337/.427 line and 102 wRC+ in 872 Triple-A plate appearances.

Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images

Orioles Reinstate Colton Cowser From 60-Day IL, Designate Cooper Hummel For Assignment

By | at

The Orioles announced that outfielder Colton Cowser has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. In a corresponding move, infielder/outfielder Cooper Hummel has been designated for assignment.

The O’s have been without Cowser for almost the entire year. In just the fourth game of the season, he slid into first base and suffered a fractured left thumb. The Orioles announced that he would probably miss six to eight weeks. He has gone just beyond that, as today is nine weeks since he suffered that injury.

While he’s been gone, the club has been struggling badly. Even though they just swept the White Sox over the weekend, they sport a record of 22-36, with the Sox the only club below them in the American League standings.

That is perhaps at least somewhat due to Cowser’s absence. Last year, he hit 24 home runs for the O’s and swiped nine bases. His 30.7% strikeout rate was quite high but he also drew walks at a solid 9.3% clip. He got strong marks for his outfield glovework, playing all three spots. FanGraphs credited him with four wins above replacement and he finished second to Luis Gil in American League Rookie of the Year voting.

Getting that player back in the lineup is nice but the O’s have a steep hill to climb. They’re also not at full strength in the outfield as Cedric Mullins, Tyler O’Neill and Ramón Laureano are all still on the shelf. Those absences make Cowser’s return a very welcome sight for Baltimore fans. He’ll join an outfield mix that currently consists of Heston Kjerstad, Dylan Carlson, Ryan O’Hearn, Jordyn Adams and Jorge Mateo.

As for Hummel, this is the latest transaction in what has surely been a frustrating week-plus for him. The O’s signed him on May 25th, after he had opted out of a minor league deal with the Yankees. He was designated for assignment the next day, without appearing in a game. Catcher Adley Rutschman had a concussion scare and the O’s needed to give that roster spot to Chadwick Tromp. A few days later, with Rutschman feeling better, Hummel was re-signed on May 30th.

But he’s now heading into DFA limbo yet again. Around all the transactions, he has just one plate appearance as an Oriole. He pinch hit for Ryan Mountcastle on Friday and struck out. It’s a bit of a microcosm for Hummel’s entire career, as he has always performed well in the minors but hasn’t been given many big league chances. Dating back to the start of 2021, he has a .284/.419/.475 line and 132 wRC+ at the Triple-A level. Despite that strong output, he hasn’t received more than 26 big league plate appearances in a season since 2022.

He’ll head back into DFA limbo for a week at most. He just cleared waivers last week and seems likely to do so again. If that comes to pass, he will have the right to elect free agency as a player with a previous career outright.

Photo courtesy of John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images

Cionel Perez Accepts Outright Assignment

By | at

The Orioles announced this evening that left-hander Cionel Perez has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk. He’ll report to the minors and be utilized as a non-roster depth option going forward.

Perez, 29, came up to the big leagues with the Astros back in 2018. He ultimately didn’t get much run with the club, serving as an up-and-down piece for Houston across three seasons with the club where he posted a 5.74 ERA in 26 2/3 innings of work. An equally disappointing and short-lived stint with the Reds followed in 2021, but ahead of the 2022 season Perez was plucked off waivers by the Orioles and placed into their bullpen mix for the coming year.

Once given regular reps on a club that entered the year still in the midst of a rebuild, Perez began to blossom. The lefty enjoyed the best season of his career in 2022 as he pitched to a sterling 1.40 ERA (278 ERA+) with a 2.80 FIP in 57 2/3 frames. A 23.5% strikeout rate and a 9.0% walk rate were both solid figures, but what made Perez truly stand out was his ability to keep the ball in the park. A 51.3% ground ball rate proved to be a big part of that, but Perez’s 4.3% home run to fly ball ratio appeared unsustainable from the jump. That made it far from surprising when his results regressed the following year, though he still remained an effective reliever with a 3.54 ERA and 3.84 FIP in 65 appearances.

Things started to take a turn for the worse last year, however. Despite peripheral numbers that were generally about the same or better as compared to 2023, Perez’s 2024 season saw his ERA balloon all the way up to 4.53. Perez’s strikeout and walk rates had slipped incrementally over the past two years and now sat at a lackluster 19.3% and 11.8%, respectively. While his 55.8% grounder rate and continued ability to avoid allowing home runs was enough to inspire some optimism about the possibility of a return to form in 2025, those hopes were quickly snuffed out by his early-season performance. Perez pitched to an 8.31 ERA with a 5.71 FIP across 21 2/3 innings of work this year before the Orioles decided to pull the plug last week.

Between those brutal results and a $2.2MM salary for 2025, it’s hardly a shock that no club opted to claim the lefty off waivers and try to help him improve his results going forward. Perhaps a club will view him as a low-cost reclamation project in the offseason when he won’t come with such an expensive price tag, assuming he hasn’t already turned things around by then. For now, Perez figures to attempt to get right at the Triple-A level in hopes of being utilized in the big league bullpen once again later this year. The floundering Orioles are appearing increasingly certain to sell at least some pieces at the trade deadline, so if the club fails to turn things around it’s not hard to imagine Perez getting another opportunity after the trade deadline if Baltimore parts ways with some of the pitchers currently in their bullpen mix.

Orioles Place Ryan Mountcastle On 10-Day IL, Recall Coby Mayo

By | at

The Orioles announced four roster moves Saturday, including the news that first baseman Ryan Mountcastle has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain.  Top infield prospect Coby Mayo has been called up from Triple-A Norfolk, and outfielder Jordyn Adams is also heading up from Triple-A after his contract was selected to Baltimore’s active roster.  To create space on the 40-man roster, catcher Chadwick Tromp was designated for assignment.

Mountcastle stole home for what ended up as the winning run in the Orioles’ 2-1 win over the White Sox yesterday, but the first baseman left the game a couple of innings later due to what was described just as discomfort in his hamstring.  The severity of the strain isn’t yet known, as interim manager Tony Mansolino told reporters (including Matt Weyrich of the Baltimore Sun) that Mountcastle would be undergoing an MRI today.

Like much of the Orioles roster, Mountcastle has gotten off to a rough start in 2025, with just a .246/.280/.348 slash line to show for 200 plate appearances.  It is a huge dropoff from the generally solid (112 wRC+) production Mountcastle posted over his first five seasons as a regular in the O’s lineup.  Mountcastle has traditionally hit with enough power to overcome subpar walk and strikeout totals, but while his barrel and barrel rates are at his career norms, his Isolated Power is only .102 (far below his .185 career number prior to 2025).

This IL stint could be viewed as a potential reset for Mountcastle’s season in this context, and his absence gives Mayo another shot at establishing himself at the MLB level.  Mayo has been called up for a few limited stints in the majors over the last two seasons, and has hit only .094/.186/.094 over 59 PA against big league pitching.  Even these extreme struggles can be written off as a small sample size, though Mayo’s domination of Triple-A pitching has also fallen off this year, as he has a modest .226/.318/.452 slash over 195 PA in Norfolk.

It is obviously far too soon to write off a player who has gone from being a fourth-round pick in the 2020 draft to a fixture on top-100 prospect lists.  Mayo hasn’t gotten much playing time with Baltimore due to the team’s crowded infield, yet perhaps in monkey’s paw fashion, some opportunity has now arisen due to the Orioles’ disastrous start and the swath of injuries that have taken out most of the everyday lineup.

Mountcastle joins Jordan Westburg, Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins, Tyler O’Neill, Gary Sanchez, and Ramon Laureano on the long list of Orioles position players on the IL.  Between this group and several pitchers also sidelined, the Orioles haven’t been able to make up the depth in stumbling to a 20-36 record.

Westburg and Cowser are both on Triple-A rehab assignments and could be back in relatively short order.  With Mullins hitting the IL yesterday, however, the Orioles will shore up their outfield by adding Adams, who inked a minor league contract with the team over the offseason.

Adams has hit only .212/.316/.345 in 136 PA at Triple-A this season, and his big league track record consists of a .176/.205/.216 slash line in 78 PA with the Angels over the 2023-24 seasons.  A former first-rounder who received some top-100 attention during his time in the Halos’ farm system, Adams can play all three outfield positions, and is a decent bench option to have on hand until Cowser returns.

Tromp was also a minor league signing in April, and he was selected to the MLB roster earlier this week due to concerns that Adley Rutschman might have required a stint on the seven-day concussion-related IL.  Since Rutschman ended up needing just a couple of days off and Maverick Handley is on hand as the backup catcher, Tromp will now head to DFA limbo after making two in-game appearances during his brief time on Baltimore’s roster.

Tromp has seen at least a little action in each of the last six MLB seasons, appearing in 63 total games with the Giants, Braves, and Orioles from 2020-25.  Tromp is out of minor league options, and thus the O’s had to designate him and expose him to the waiver wire before trying to send him down to Triple-A.  If Tromp clears waivers, he can reject an outright assignment to Triple-A because he has previously been outrighted in his career.  It remains to be seen if Tromp may choose to move on from the Orioles given the crowded depth chart of Rutschman, Handley, and Sanchez, as Tromp may prefer to join a team that has more of a clear path to big league playing time.

Orioles Place Cedric Mullins On Injured List

By | at

12:35pm: Interim skipper Tony Mansolino tells the Orioles beat that an MRI revealed a “mild” strain in Mullins’ hamstring (via Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). He’s not expected to miss much time and could even be back on the first day he’s eligible to return. Cowser, meanwhile, will likely be activated during a road trip that kicks off next Tuesday. It seems he won’t be an option for the O’s beleaguered outfield while they host the White Sox this weekend.

12:10pm: The Orioles announced Friday that center fielder Cedric Mullins has been placed on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to May 29) due to a right hamstring strain. He’ll be the corresponding active roster move for the previously reported signing of Cooper Hummel, whose new deal with Baltimore is now official. The O’s transferred right-hander Cody Poteet to the 60-day injured list to clear a 40-man spot for Hummel.

Mullins’ injury is the latest setback for an Orioles club that stands as arguably the most disappointing team in Major League Baseball this year. Baltimore is just 19-36, and the loss of Mullins, his .232/.324/.448 batting line and his glove in center field won’t do them any favors.

It should be noted, however, that Mullins has had a wildly uneven season. He looked like an MVP candidate through the end of April, mashing at a .278/.412/.515 clip (171 wRC+), but he’s tanked in May. This month, Mullins has punched out in an extremely uncharacteristic 30.7% of his place appearances while posting a dreadful .179/.205/.369 batting line (57 wRC+).

On the one hand, the injury could offer him a mental reset at a time when he’s clearly been pressing in the box. Mullins chased just 22.3% of balls off the plate and swung at 42.6% of the overall pitches he saw when he was dialed in last month. Dating back to mid-May, he’s chased one-third of balls off the plate and offered at 52% of his total pitches seen.

On the other hand, any injury is unwelcome in the midst of a platform season. Mullins is a free agent at season’s end, and while a mild hamstring strain with a quick return wouldn’t materially harm his stock, it’s a worrying ding on his record at a time when he’s also floundering in the batter’s box.

The Orioles haven’t indicated how long Mullins will be sidelined. He’s joining Colton Cowser, Tyler O’Neill and Ramon Laureano on the injured list, meaning Baltimore now has an entire big league outfield unit — potentially a very good one — on the shelf. With that quartet ailing, outfield reps will fall to Heston Kjerstad, Dylan Carlson and the newly re-signed Hummel. Fortunately for the O’s, Cowser has played four minor league rehab games and is on the cusp of returning. He’s on the 60-day injured list, but today marks his 60th day on the IL. He’ll be eligible to return Saturday.

Orioles Add John Mabry To Coaching Staff

By | at

The Orioles announced today that John Mabry has been added to the major league coaching staff as a senior advisor. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported yesterday that the two sides were in discussions about the position.

Mabry, 54, played in the big leagues from 1994 to 2007 but has pivoted to a coaching career since then. The Cardinals hired him as an assistant hitting coach prior to the 2012 season, working under hitting coach Mark McGwire. One year later, McGwire departed for the Dodgers and Mabry was promoted to hitting coach. Mabry held that job until manager Mark Matheny was fired in the middle of the 2018 season, with Mabry dismissed alongside the skipper.

He was then hired by the Royals as a major league coach for the 2020-22 seasons. He then returned to an assistant hitting coach role with the Marlins for the 2023 seasons and got promoted to hitting coach for 2024. At the end of last season, the Marlins underwent a massive internal staff turnover. They didn’t retain any of their coaching staff and also got rid of many clubhouse attendants, performance staff and others.

For the Orioles, they have recently started doing some staff turnover of their own. Amid a deeply disappointing season, they fired manager Brandon Hyde about two weeks ago. Third base coach Tony Mansolino became the interim manager. Major League field coordinator and catching instructor Tim Cossins was also let go. Major league coach Buck Britton took over for Mansolino as third base coach.

Mansolino doesn’t have a ton of big league coaching experience. He has managed in the minors but only joined a big league staff for the first time in 2020. He served as Cleveland’s third base coach and then pivoted to the Orioles in that same job for the 2021 season. As mentioned by Rosenthal, the club also has a first-year hitting coach in Cody Asche and a first-time bench coach in Robinson Chirinos. Pitching coach Drew French is only in his second season.

With the O’s having cut two members of the staff, Mabry will come in and give them a fresh set of eyes, presumably lending the wisdom of his experience to a new manager and a staff that’s fairly green on the whole.

Photo courtesy of Jim Rassol, Imagn Images

Orioles, Cooper Hummel Agree To Major League Deal

By | at

For the second time in the past week, the Orioles have agreed to a big league deal with outfielder/first baseman Cooper Hummel, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC-2. Baltimore originally signed the Gaeta Sports Management client five days ago, but the O’s designated him for assignment the next day before he even appeared in a game. Hummel cleared waivers, rejected an outright assignment in favor of free agency, and is now headed right back on the Orioles’ major league roster.

Hummel’s first DFA was spurred by a day-to-day injury to Adley Rutschman. Baltimore’s starting catcher was knocked out of Sunday’s game after taking a foul tip off the mask. He missed the next few days before drawing back into the lineup as a designated hitter on Wednesday. Rutschman and Maverick Handley were the only healthy catchers on the 40-man roster. The O’s needed another catcher to back up Handley while Rutschman was unavailable. They selected the contract of Chadwick Tromp, squeezing Hummel off the roster.

After Rutschman returned to the lineup, he might be ready to resume catching duties as soon as tonight. That’d allow the O’s to designate Tromp for assignment and go back to their previous catching tandem. Hummel would draw back in as their final bench bat. Handley is the only player on Tony Mansolino’s bench who has minor league options.

That’ll include Hummel, who exhausted his final option year as a member of the Astros last season. The switch-hitter spent the bulk of the year on optional assignment with Houston’s Triple-A team. He turned in a strong .277/.419/.454 showing with 10 home runs and 15 stolen bases. An extremely patient hitter throughout his career, Hummel took walks at a near-18% clip in the minors last year. He only got into six big league games, and the Astros elected to designate him for assignment this spring rather than carry him on the Opening Day roster.

Hummel signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in April. He spent most of his tenure on the injured list, only appearing in 10 games for their top farm team before triggering an opt-out clause. He hit .258 with only one extra-base hit, but he drew nine walks to post a .415 on-base percentage. The O’s liked the offensive profile enough to add him to the MLB roster twice in as many weeks.

The 30-year-old Hummel has plenty of minor league catching experience, but he hasn’t logged any time behind the dish since 2023. Baltimore wasn’t comfortable using him as even an emergency option while Rutschman was banged up. He’s essentially limited to the corner outfield and first base at this point.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top