Orioles GM Dan Duquette spoke with reporters today about the latest in Birdland. As reported by Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, Duquette said that the club is planning to tender contracts to each of the nine Orioles players that are eligible for arbitration.
Here is the slate of players who stand to receive a tender, along with the salaries projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz: catcher Matt Wieters ($7.9MM); first baseman Chris Davis ($10MM); outfielders Nolan Reimold ($1.2MM) and Steve Pearce ($1.1MM); relievers Troy Patton ($1.2MM), Brian Matusz ($2.1MM), Tommy Hunter ($3.1MM), and Jim Johnson ($10.8MM); and starter Bud Norris ($5MM). In total, Swartz projects a $42.4MM tab for the group.
As MLBTR's Tim Dierkes explored in reporting Swartz's projections, Reimold in particular had been a questionable tender recipient. As MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko notes on Twitter, the decision on Reimold was made after receiving positive updates on his health status as he rehabs from another neck surgery. "He's coming along pretty well," Duquette relayed. "He's ahead of where he was at the same time in 2012." As Connolly explained, the O's feel that he has been good when healthy and expect him to be ready for the spring. Per the analysis of Dierkes and Kubatko (via Twitter), Johnson, Patton, and Pearce all were also possible non-tender candidates.
The two least surprising members of the list of Orioles set to be tendered — Wieters and Davis — are also, of course, the two major Baltimore extension candidates. Duquette said that the club is focused on making additions to the club at present, and has yet to enage agent Scott Boras (who represents both players) in off-season contract talks.
