Orioles announce spring training invites and camp reserves

Orioles announce spring training invites and camp reserves
The Orioles are opening spring training next week with 10 non-roster invites and 22 players designated as "camp reserves." The restructuring is done in order to more easily execute the proper social distancing during the pandemic. Players will be filtered into the Ed Smith Stadium complex in the same manner as the summer training camp in Bowie. The non-roster invites consist of six pitchers, three catchers and one super-utility player. Pitchers LHP Fernando Abad RHP Marcos Diplán RHP...
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Information on fan access to Orioles exhibition games

Information on fan access to Orioles exhibition games
The Orioles are allowing fans into Ed Smith Stadium for their 2021 exhibition games. On a limited basis and with various protocols designed to keep everyone safe. The team announced today that it's implementing pod seating throughout the ballpark to ensure proper social distancing of at least six feet between groups of ticket holders. The Orioles are making a total of 1,833 tickets available for each game, operating at approximately 25 percent capacity. Policies for regular season games at...
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This, that and the other

This, that and the other
Will the Orioles have at least two rookies in their starting rotation on opening day? Manager Brandon Hyde isn't handing out jobs a day before pitchers and catchers report to spring training. Keegan Akin and Dean Kremer are expected to earn them, but that's exactly what they'll have to do. For now, Hyde is saying only that they've earned the opportunity. That is all. The rest is up to them. "I like to keep guys competitive," Hyde said during our recent video Q&A that's going to be...
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Normal put on hold in 2021

Normal put on hold in 2021
In case you thought baseball would get back to normal in 2021, and I have no idea why you'd assume so, please consider the following: Each team is appointing at least one facemask enforcement officer and automatic fines will be issued for non-compliance during games, with fines collected donated to charity. I remember when a bench coach was a new idea. Face coverings must be worn except for players on the field for games or warmups. Then it's optional. I'm amused whenever a see a report that...
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Still wondering about Orioles as first workout looms

Still wondering about Orioles as first workout looms
The first spring training workout is four days away. Some baseballs will be dropped, but not many clues about how the roster is going to be constructed and the pitching staff assembled. The full squad doesn't take the field until Feb. 22, but again, there's only so much you can read into early drills. Maybe where some players are taking grounders, though the media isn't permitted on the back fields. Maybe where some players are grouped - whether a fringe guy is placed with the regulars or...
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Lineup stability eluded Orioles in 2020

Lineup stability eluded Orioles in 2020
We've had some fun trying to construct lineups based on players currently in the organization, knowing that future moves could bring changes. It's easier to fill the positions than decide on an exact order. And to stick with it. We can take the 32 starts Anthony Santander made in the second slot and assume he won't budge, or knock him down a peg after José Iglesias was traded to the Angels. We can put Austin Hays in the leadoff spot, reserve it for Cedric Mullins or cheat a little and go...
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MLB announces rules and protocols for 2021

MLB announces rules and protocols for 2021
The Orioles begin spring training next week with a much better idea of the rules and health and safety protocols awaiting them in 2021. The wait is finally over. Major League Baseball offered confirmation on some details that recently began to leak, including how rosters will hold 26 players and increase to 28 in September. There's no limit on the number of pitchers. Any clubs that experience a COVID-19 outbreak among its players are allowed to add to the major league active list temporarily,...
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Orioles and MSA agree to lease extension for Camden Yards

Orioles and MSA agree to lease extension for Camden Yards
The Orioles and the Maryland Stadium Authority agreed earlier today to a two-year extension on the lease for Camden Yards. The MSA approved an amendment to the agreement at an ad hoc meeting of its board of directors. The extension will run through Dec. 31, 2023. The Orioles have the option of exercising a five-year extension, with a decision needed by Feb. 1, 2023. The amendment is contingent upon and subject to the approval of the Maryland Board of Public Works (BPW). Once signed by both the...
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40-man roster could require restructuring

40-man roster could require restructuring
Pitchers and catchers are required to report to the Ed Smith Stadium complex in less than a week. The offseason is about to move into the spring training workout phase, followed by exhibition games - adjusted from the original schedule to eliminate longer-distance travel - played while everyone holds their breath. Not a bad idea during a pandemic. Reduce the risk of a positive test for COVID-19. The Orioles aren't a finished product and roster moves are coming while they're in camp. More...
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Putting Hernández signing in proper perspective (with note)

Putting Hernández signing in proper perspective (with note)
The return of Wade LeBlanc to the Orioles organization came as a surprise with no access to behind-the-scenes negotiations. LeBlanc walked off the mound on Aug. 23, went on the 60-day injured list, hit the free agent market again and figured to be a fading memory in Orioles history. I don't recall anyone predicting that he'd sign another minor league deal, but he's going back to the Ed Smith Stadium complex later this month. The attention given to his return disappeared as quickly as LeBlanc...
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Should Goudeau get more attention as pitching alternative?

Should Goudeau get more attention as pitching alternative?
The signing of a veteran starting pitcher was a certainty as the Orioles attempted to set their camp roster. Could have been a major league deal, could have been a minor league deal. Could have been one major league and one minor league deal. Could have been two minor league deals. But an experienced starter was going to be slotted into the rotation. Deal with it. Wade LeBlanc reached agreement last week on a minor league contract, followed by former Cy Young Award winner Félix Hernández...
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LeBlanc: "I want to make sure that I give them everything I have"

LeBlanc: "I want to make sure that I give them everything I have"
When did veteran starter Wade LeBlanc know that he was coming back to the Orioles? Shortly after he left them. LeBlanc didn't pitch after the first inning of an Aug. 23 game against the Red Sox at Camden Yards, his sixth start with his new team, due to a stress fracture in his left elbow. The Orioles put him on the 60-day injured list while recalling rookie Keegan Akin, but shortened the distance between them despite LeBlanc's return to Louisiana. The Orioles kept checking on LeBlanc's...
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The process of crafting a camp roster

The process of crafting a camp roster
Efforts made by the Orioles to find more starting options for the rotation and depth in the infield and upper levels of the farm system are synced with the task of filling out the camp roster for spring training. The amount of players allowed at complexes is expected to be capped at 75. The Orioles are going to treat the process in the same fashion as their 60-man pool and the summer training camp at Camden Yards. They didn't rush to reach their limit. They left room for players to filter in...
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Orioles sign "King Félix" to minor league deal (updated)

Orioles sign "King Félix" to minor league deal (updated)
The Orioles' quest for more starting pitching has carried them to a former Cy Young Award winner. The second minor league deal offered in two days. According to an industry source, the Orioles have agreed to terms with veteran Félix Hernández on a contract that pays $1 million if he's on the club. The news on Hernández comes less than 24 hours after confirmation that the Orioles re-signed left-hander Wade LeBlanc to a deal that offers $700,000 if he's on the active...
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Alex Cobb on trade: "I was pretty surprised by it"

Alex Cobb on trade: "I was pretty surprised by it"
The warning came early Monday morning, with pitcher Alex Cobb told by his representatives in a phone call of the pending trade from the Orioles to the Angels. The bags packed for spring training weren't going to make it to Sarasota, Fla. "I had had some discussions with my agents about some possibilities, that things might be happening, so it was on my radar, but also, didn't put my stock into it," Cobb said this afternoon. "I believed I was showing up to spring training. Had my place set,...
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Learning more about Jahmai Jones through his high school coach

Learning more about Jahmai Jones through his high school coach
Brian Krehmeyer first began to notice the eighth-grader on days that the kid would sit in the stands at Wesleyan School in Norcross, Ga., watching baseball practice and greeting the coaches. Always eager to strike up a conversation, always smiling. Krehmeyer had been an assistant for six years and became head coach in 2012. One of his freshman players that first season in charge was Jahmai Jones. The talkative kid who later would be drafted by the Angels in the second round and traded to the...
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Orioles re-signing LeBlanc to minor league deal (trade update)

Orioles re-signing LeBlanc to minor league deal (trade update)
Left-hander Wade LeBlanc is headed back to the Orioles. LeBlanc has agreed to terms on a minor league deal with a spring training invite, according to a source. LeBlanc can earn a base salary of $700,000 if he's on the club. Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias has sought at least one veteran starting pitcher. The trade of Alex Cobb to the Angels, which is still awaiting approval from the commissioner's office, could lead to another signing. The Orioles have major league offers...
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Learning more about start of spring training and season

Learning more about start of spring training and season
The structure of the 2021 season is beginning to take shape. And just in time. The union rejected, as expected, a proposal from Major League Baseball that would have pushed back opening day about a month and reduced the schedule to 154 games with full pay. The plan included expanded playoffs and a universal designated hitter. Seemed reasonable to me - especially the part about full pay - but players are concerned that there's a higher risk of injury if the season starts on April 28. Pitchers...
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Do the Orioles have other trade chips stacked on their table?

Do the Orioles have other trade chips stacked on their table?
The question was delivered with Anthony Santander and Trey Mancini in mind. During a recent Zoom conference call with the local media, Orioles executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias was asked about the possibility of acquiring players via trades rather than free agency. "Trades where we're adding to the major league team or trades where we're trading veterans for prospects?" Elias asked. Either way, but I was more interested in talks involving Santander and Mancini. "I think...
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More thoughts on Alex Cobb

More thoughts on Alex Cobb
Immediate reaction to yesterday morning's news that the Orioles were working on a trade to send veteran starter Alex Cobb to the Angels included the following: Why now? How many young pitchers are coming to the Orioles? What happens to the rotation? What is it about the Angels? How about that payroll? Not necessarily in that order, but you get the idea. Cobb might carry more value in early February than at the trade deadline, when he's a rental with free agency approaching. And there are no...
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