The Orioles appear poised to once again do quite a bit of their offseason shopping after the New Year, tweets ESPN’s Buster Olney. According to Olney, the Orioles remain engaged on a number of free agents, which isn’t a surprise given the holes permeating the roster. While the O’s have addressed catcher (perhaps unexpectedly in the form of Matt Wieters accepting the qualifying offer), one corner outfield spot (Hyun-soo Kim) and first base/DH (Mark Trumbo), the team still has needs in the rotation and in right field, to say nothing of a potential reunion with Chris Davis (which would move Trumbo to DH or right field).
Here are a few notes on the market’s remaining free agents…
- One of those free agents appears to be Yovani Gallardo, as SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets that the the Orioles, Astros and Royals remain the primary suitors for the right-hander. All three of those teams, of course, have been prominently linked to Gallardo in the past, so this isn’t necessarily a new development in his market. However, it’s been awhile since we’ve heard much on the Gallardo front, and the news that all three remain interested is still noteworthy. Any of the three clubs would have to part with a draft pick to sign Gallardo, which might make Kansas City the best fit, as their current pick, No. 24, is the worst of the three teams said to have interest. Additionally, the Royals will gain a draft pick if Alex Gordon signs elsewhere, as many expect, thus softening the blow of parting with the 24th overall selection. The O’s could conceivably land two picks in the event that Davis and Wei-Yin Chen sign with new clubs, but parting with the No. 14 pick would still sting, even if they could recoup much of that slot value via the potential comp picks.
- If and when the Marlins finalize their near-agreement with right-hander Edwin Jackson, the team will continue its search for starting pitching, writes MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. Among the names that could interest the Marlins are Cliff Lee, Doug Fister, Ian Kennedy and Cuban right-hander Yaisel Sierra, writes Frisaro. However, he notes that the draft pick compensation attached to Kennedy could prevent the Marlins from a strong pursuit of Kennedy. That would seem an odd hold-up for Miami — an organization that has been perfectly willing to trade its Competitive Balance draft selections for seemingly underwhelming returns in past seasons (although their addition of right-hander Bryan Morris in such a trade does now appear to have been a shrewd one). It should also be noted that Kennedy is represented by Scott Boras, with whom Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria and Marlins president David Samson have clashed on numerous occasions over the past year (most notably regarding Boras-represented Marlins players Marcell Ozuna and Jose Fernandez).
- Infielder/outfielder Steve Pearce is seeking a two-year deal, Rich Dubroff of CSN Mid-Atlantic tweets. He still looks like an interesting bat, and his market remains an interesting one to watch, but Pearce could be forced to wait for more action at the higher end before things clear up for his own outlook. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes predicted that Pearce would ultimately get a two-year deal with $14MM in guaranteed money.
Just talk talk talk… sure wish the Orioles could lock up somebody good so i can stop trolling all the websites for rubbish
I feel your pain brother
Agree
Agree
Agree
………………………since we’re all reading the same stuff 3-4 times anyway……..lol
Orioles want discounts on everyone they talk to. Not a bad thing per say, but wonder how serious they are about contending. They’re in a tough division as is and has an aging core. Don’t understand why they won’t start a rebuild while Machado is still young. Retool now and try to contend 3 – 4 years down the road when he’s in his prime.
This current core started in earnest in 2012, only 3 years ago. They have some very young pieces right now. Machado, Gausman, Bundy, Schoop. They’re not that old yet. Adam, JJ, and friends will enter their declining phases a few years from now, but bailing out now is way too early.
Are they your core though? Davis / Jones / Machado are the cores in my mind.
Gausman / Bundy haven’t done much in the majors to be the “core”. Also to build a team that one guy can’t be alone. Can’t say what others may think but I’m pretty sure that most guys will agree that the O’s don’t have the core like some other teams to contend now. The White Sox wanted to compete now when Sale and Abreu are in their prime. The O’s don’t have anything close to Sale and may lose Davis to Free Agency. Jones and Machado aren’t enough to keep on trying to compete in the tough AL East.
If you’re going to try to compete in 3-4 years might as well trade Machado since he’s only under control for 3 more years. To expect to try to get him to sign an extension might have passed as far as getting one without paying near FA top tier prices.
So you’re saying since he’s 3-4 years into service clock, out of a total 6, you might as well bail out on him early? Those extrenely cheap AS years before free agency are worth the crap shoot prospects are? The odds are that you’ll get good prospects in exchange for him, but zero as talented as Machado is. He’s a once a generation talent.
No, I’m saying if the decision is to try to contend in 3-4 years you might as well as least look into seeing what Machado would get you since he won’t be there at that time most likely.
I think your right on dude.
If the Orioles sign Gallardo, they better have signed Gordon first
Otherwise, I will be SMH
I think the orioles should just let Davis walk. They can spend the $150 million and try to obtain Gordon for around $90-100 million, go after someone like Gallardo or Kennedy, or even settle for something like Fister/Lee/Linecum then sign Alvarez to something incentive laden. I just don’t see how Chris Davis could be worth he $150 million
I started this offseason thinking the Os need to resign him. But now I’m reversing direction.
Its not as if he’s a 40+ HR bat with a .400 OBP, or a tolerable K rate. He has some blemishes. The strikeouts tend to lead you to believe that, whenever he does start to decline, it will be dramatic and sudden. High strikeout bats tend to disappear very quickly once they start their slide. So the level of contract he’s looking for is very risky. If he had a tick more contact or OBP, I’d be ok with it.
That said, the money not used on Davis, but to fill out 2-3 needs with solid guys might be the smarter longterm move. If I do have confidence in Duquette in anything, it’s in picking up lots of cheap guys hoping one or two of them become that year’s upside guy making good.
Love Alvarez in orange
You obviously haven’t seen him try and plan defense. He’s just unwatchable, and unplayable.
DH
Hard to see a part time platoon guy like Pearce, who’ll be 33 this year, commanding 2 years and $14 million coming off a year when he hit just .196 vs. LHP and yes I realize he was great in that role in 2014 but that year appears to be an outlier.. I’d figure more like one year at $5-6 million with an option and even then he can’t be too selective. It might make sense for him to sign with a rebuilding club like Brewers that will give him some steady AB’s to see if he can build some trade value and where he can platoon at 1B and 2B.