The floor is yours, Mike Elias.
After the Baltimore Orioles went 75-87 and missed out on the postseason in 2025, they will look to improve their roster this winter in order to get back to October and beyond.
According to MLB.com insider Mark Feinsand, industry sources believe the Orioles will be aggressive in free agency this offseason to get back to their winning-ways from 2023 and 2024.
“They know they need to take advantage of this window,” one source told Feinsand. “Gunnar [Henderson] is in his first year of arbitration and [Jackson] Holliday, [Colton] Cowser and [Jordan] Westburg aren’t even arb-eligible yet. At some point, all of these guys are going to get expensive.”
It’s true that this is the Orioles’ window to compete given their young core of position players such as Henderson, Holliday, Cowser, Westburg, Adley Rutschman, Samuel Basallo, Dylan Beavers and more.
So what does being aggressive from the Orioles’ standpoint look like?
Injuries decimated the Orioles’ pitching staff last season and that’s what must be addressed in the offseason by Elias and the front office.
Finding a frontline starter through free agency or the trade market is key for Baltimore, who currently have Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish penciled in atop the rotation. The Orioles let ace Corbin Burnes walk in free agency last winter and not having a No. 1 starter came back to bite them during the regular season.
As it projects, the Orioles’ rotation features: Rogers, Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez (missed all of 2025 due to injuries), Tyler Wells and Dean Kremer.
The Orioles have options to add a top starter in free agency such as Ranger Suarez, Dylan Cease, Zac Gallen, Framber Valdez or Michael King. This would instantly enhance the top end of their rotation.
Baltimore could also trade for a frontline starting pitcher with names like Joe Ryan, Pablo Lopez, Edward Cabrera and Sandy Alcantara all making sense.
Besides the rotation, the Orioles will have to rebuild their bullpen as well. They already started to do so by trading for Andrew Kittredge back, who they dealt at the deadline to the Chicago Cubs.
The Orioles also need to find a closer to replace Felix Bautista who will miss a big chunk of the 2026 season after undergoing labrum and rotator cuff surgery.
If the Orioles want to upgrade their already talented offense that underachieved last year, they could go after Pete Alonso, Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger in free agency.
The bottom line is that Elias and the Orioles have to be aggressive and change up their strategy of rarely signing free agents to multi-year deals. They need a top starter, a closer and potentially another big bat if they don’t want to waste their window to compete in a powerhouse that is the AL East.
The Orioles hired rookie manager Craig Albernaz to head their ballclub. Now it’s time to add more pieces to the roster.
