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2025 Baltimore Orioles

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Tank

Hall of Famer
Getting an early start here to monitor off season developments. Let’s see how Mr. Rubenstein and Co. back up their commitment to invest in success.
 
Sounds like Felix has been progressing well in his rehab. Wonder if he’ll be able to come back and be the beast he was in 2023.
 
JO_75 said:
Thank you Elias.... that wall was too damn high.

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Here's a short article explaining the changes.

After moving it back, the Orioles plan to bring left-field wall in​


Andy Kostka
11/15/2024 3:35 p.m. EST
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Baltimore Orioles left fielder Austin Hays reacts after Texas Rangers catcher Mitch Garver’s grand slam flies over the left wall during Game 2 of the American League Divisional Series against the Texas Rangers at Camden Yards on Sunday, October 8, 2023. (Ulysses Muñoz/The Baltimore Banner)

Three seasons after the Orioles moved the left-field wall at Camden Yards back to make the stadium more pitcher-friendly, general manager Mike Elias said Friday that Baltimore “overcorrected” initially and will be adjusting the wall once more.
In some places, the wall will move as much as 20 feet closer to home plate. In others, it’s as little as 9 feet. But the move comes after two seasons in which the baseball operations department realized the wall had become something of a “distraction” for hitters, Elias said, particularly right-handed batters.
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A rendering of the new left-field wall at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. (Baltimore Orioles)
The new dimensions will be ready before 2025 opening day.
Elias said the adjustments won’t impact the seating bowl. The Orioles won’t be adding seats to fill the gap. There will be a new stand for Mr. Splash to spray fans.
The initial adjustment, made ahead of the 2022 season, was made in part to help attract pitching to Baltimore. But it came at a cost, leading to an attempt to make the impact more “neutral,” Elias said.

Andy Kostka
 

Orioles add possible rotation piece with signing of veteran Japanese righty Tomoyuki Sugano​


Andy Kostka
12/16/2024 7:58 p.m. EST, Updated 12/16/2024 10:26 p.m. EST

TOKYO, JAPAN - MARCH 08: Starting Pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano #11 of Japan reacts in the bottom of the second inning during the World Baseball Classic Pool B Game Three between Japan and Australia at Tokyo Dome on March 8, 2017 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images)
In 24 starts last season, Tomoyuki Sugano struck out 111 batters and issued just 16 walks. And only six of the 132 hits against him were home runs. (Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images)

As the Orioles look for additional pitching, they turned to one of the most accomplished hurlers in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan.
Baltimore signed right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano on Monday to a one-year major league deal, the club announced. The contract is worth $13 million, a source with direct knowledge confirmed, as ESPN reported first.
The 35-year-old Sugano has spent his entire 12-year career with the Yomiuri Giants of the NPB’s Central League, and he’s the league’s reigning MVP after posting a 1.67 ERA in 156 2/3 innings. In his 24 starts, Sugano struck out 111 batters and issued just 16 walks. And only six of the 132 hits against him were home runs.
Sugano holds a career 2.43 ERA and is a three-time Central League MVP (2014, 2020 and 2024). He has a six-pitch arsenal, according to a scouting report from Yahoo Sports, and he wasn’t required to go through the traditional posting process many Japanese stars must before joining Major League Baseball because he has completed the requisite nine years in NPB.

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Sugano doesn’t blow batters away. At one time, his fastball hummed at 98 mph, but in 2024 his four-seamer averaged 92 mph, according to ESPN. He also uses a two-seamer, slider, cutter, splitter and curveball. In 2017, pitching for Japan in the World Baseball Classic, Sugano faced Team USA in the semifinal. He allowed one unearned run in six innings during Japan’s loss to the U.S.
Kodai Kawamura, a Japanese baseball writer for Full Count, said in an interview with The Baltimore Banner that Sugano’s splitter allowed an opposing batting average of .173 against it, and said the offering could be a strong change-of-pace pitch in Sugano’s transition to the majors.

“His command is excellent,” Kawamura said. “Takashi Saito, for example, went to the U.S. at [a similar] age as Sugano and was also successful. ... He throws all of his breaking pitches with high accuracy and has good control.”
Sugano will be an intriguing candidate for the starting rotation, but it’s possible he fits into a long reliever role if he doesn’t break camp as a starter. Baltimore has searched for additional starting pitching this offseason and could remain engaged in a deal to bring back right-hander Corbin Burnes — or swing a trade for one of several available starters — but Sugano is an interesting addition because of his command and pitch-to-contact tendencies.
He’ll join a starting rotation competition that includes Grayson Rodriguez, Zach Eflin, Dean Kremer, Cade Povich, Chayce McDermott, Albert Suárez and Trevor Rogers. The Orioles also expect midseason returns from Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells.

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Sugano isn’t the biggest-name Japanese pitcher to make the jump to MLB this winter. That’s Rōki Sasaki, a 23-year-old right-hander who impressed in the Pacific League in 2024 by recording a 2.35 ERA. Sasaki, a fireballer, has been at the forefront of many teams’ offseason wish lists.
Koby Perez, Baltimore’s vice president of international scouting, said at the winter meetings that the Orioles would do their “due diligence” with the Japanese pitcher. It remains to be seen whether acquiring a compatriot could help their case.
Should Sugano debut for the Orioles, he would be the third player born in Japan to play for the club, joining right-handers Koji Uehara and Shintaro Fujinami.
 
drjohnnyfever said:
It's sad that we lost out on Burnes. We need at least one SP. Gimme a 2/3 yr deal on Flaherty and Quintana and I'll be good.
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To be fair, he said he took less to go with them because his family is out there. No way we would have offered more than the Yankees or Dodgers but unless we would have moved his family to Baltimore from Arizona, we weren't getting him regardless of how much we offered him.
 
JO_75 said:
To be fair, he said he took less to go with them because his family is out there. No way we would have offered more than the Yankees or Dodgers but unless we would have moved his family to Baltimore from Arizona, we weren't getting him regardless of how much we offered him.
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...we were the party that forced Arizona to pay what they did... I've got no problem with him signing there. It was pretty clear he wanted to be out west someplace.
 
Gonna miss Tony, he's a good dude. Hate that he's staying in the division.

Anthony Santander reportedly agrees to five-year deal with Blue Jays​


Danielle Allentuck
1/20/2025 12:52 p.m. EST, Updated 1/20/2025 1:06 p.m. EST

Anthony Santander hits the Orioles’ first home run of the season and celebrates with Austin Hays.
Anthony Santander played 746 games with the Orioles and hit .246 with 155 home runs and 435 RBI. (Ulysses Muñoz/The Baltimore Banner)

The writing was on the wall when the Orioles signed Tyler O’Neill to a three-year, $49.5 million deal last month.
Now it’s official: Anthony Santander’s tenure with the Orioles is over. The 30-year-old switch-hitter coming off a career year where he hit 44 home runs and made the All Star game is reportedly staying in the American League East after agreeing to a deal with the Toronto Blue Jays.
The contract is for five years and more than $90 million, according to multiple reports.
Santander, who came to the Orioles as a Rule 5 draftee in 2016, made his debut in 2017 and was a fixture in the outfield by 2019. He was one of only a handful of players to survive through the entirety of the rebuild, suffering through three 100-loss seasons before playing a key part in the Orioles breaking their playoff drought in 2023.

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Last season, his final year before free agency, was his best one yet. He not only hit the third-most home runs in MLB, but he also won a Silver Slugger, his first major award, and finished 14th in MVP voting. Santander also played a career-high 155 games, developing a routine that kept him on the field after injuries piled up on him earlier in his career.
With Santander out of the picture, the Orioles will rely on O’Neill and left-handed hitters Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins and Heston Kjerstad to man their outfield. Mullins will likely start in center, Cowser in left, O’Neill in right and Kjerstad platooning.
Ryan O’Hearn and Jorge Mateo — who is expected to start the season on time after getting Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery in August — can also play in the outfield.

Danielle Allentuck
 
Yeah, Taters was one of my faves. I think I'm going to miss his postgame interviews with his interpreter too. Great comedy show most nights.
 
Gunnar Henderson is one of 3 players on MLB The Show 25. The other two are Elly De La Cruz(Reds) and Paul Skenes(Pirates). On a side note, I find it funny that players from Baltimore, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh made the cover. AFC North spreading into other sports now.

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I'm not gonna lie, I know they have some kind of algorithm for selecting in the draft and FA, but the moves they've made so far are a little worrisome to me. They seem to put a lot of weight on "potential." I think this was illustrated last year with Kimbrel. He was pretty expensive - not too - but, I think, according to them his "potential" to be closer to his norm was greater than not performing to his norm. They missed on that one, imo. There are a couple signings, in addition to those trades last year for Eflin and Rogers, that - for me - really need to bear fruit. The money paid for Tyler O'Neill is suspect, especially on a potential one year and out deal. I would have suspected that with the money they were apparently willing to pay for Burnes before he signed with Arizona, that they would have spread that money around on a couple more SP's that would be penciled in for couple/ three years and traded if our guys develop like we hope.

Idk, I'm hopeful as always as Spring Training approaches, but call me non-plussed by some of the things they've done since the trade deadline last year.

Re that pic @JO_75 - what's interesting to me too is our relationship with those teams historically too! World Series between us and both of them. Resurgence of past rivalries. ;)
 
drjohnnyfever said:
I'm not gonna lie, I know they have some kind of algorithm for selecting in the draft and FA, but the moves they've made so far are a little worrisome to me. They seem to put a lot of weight on "potential." I think this was illustrated last year with Kimbrel. He was pretty expensive - not too - but, I think, according to them his "potential" to be closer to his norm was greater than not performing to his norm. They missed on that one, imo. There are a couple signings, in addition to those trades last year for Eflin and Rogers, that - for me - really need to bear fruit. The money paid for Tyler O'Neill is suspect, especially on a potential one year and out deal. I would have suspected that with the money they were apparently willing to pay for Burnes before he signed with Arizona, that they would have spread that money around on a couple more SP's that would be penciled in for couple/ three years and traded if our guys develop like we hope.

Idk, I'm hopeful as always as Spring Training approaches, but call me non-plussed by some of the things they've done since the trade deadline last year.

Re that pic @JO_75 - what's interesting to me too is our relationship with those teams historically too! World Series between us and both of them. Resurgence of past rivalries. ;)
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In Elias I trust. lol
 
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