A few leftovers from the Winter Meetings

A few leftovers from the Winter Meetings
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - While the Orioles fielded trade offers for their star third baseman and top relievers at this week's Winter Meetings, they also checked on the level of interest in designated hitter Mark Trumbo. The Orioles are open to moving Trumbo and freeing up the designated hitter spot while he has two years and $26 million remaining on his contract. One source said teams counterpunched with the request that the Orioles absorb a portion of the remaining money. Trumbo led the...
Continue reading

Duquette not expecting immediate resolution to Machado talks

Duquette not expecting immediate resolution to Machado talks
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The trade talks involving Orioles third baseman Manny Machado will carry into the weekend, according to executive vice president Dan Duquette, eliminating the opportunity for immediate closure and the outpouring of sentimentality, outrage or whatever emotion sweeps over the fan base. It figures to be intense in nature. The latest edition of the Winter Meetings have come to a conclusion and the Orioles leave the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort without making a...
Continue reading

Orioles select three players in Rule 5 and sign Michael Kelly

Orioles select three players in Rule 5 and sign Michael Kelly
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - While the Manny Machado rumors gain steam and the likelihood that he's traded, perhaps later this week, continues to grow, the Orioles extended their streak of selections in the Rule 5 draft. They obliterated the field today by making three picks before finally passing in the fourth round. They also signed right-hander Michael Kelly to a major league deal and will assign him to Triple-A Norfolk, leaving their 40-man roster at 38. Seeking a left-hander for their staff,...
Continue reading

Waiting on the Rule 5 draft to wrap up the Winter Meetings

Waiting on the Rule 5 draft to wrap up the Winter Meetings
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The stampede for the front desk and the airport begins momentarily. Keep your head on a swivel if you're in the lobby area or you could be wearing foot prints as a shirt logo. Cutting through the speculation that the Orioles could abstain from the Rule 5 draft this morning due to carrying outfielder Anthony Santander for 44 more days, they most definitely will make a selection in the major league phase and probably go with multiple picks in the minor league...
Continue reading

Duquette with latest Machado update and more

Duquette with latest Machado update and more
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The interest in Orioles third baseman Manny Machado continues to build as more teams meet with executive vice president Dan Duquette. Determining the market is an ongoing process, Duquette said this afternoon during his daily media briefing, but there's no real sense whether a trade gets done before Thursday's departures at the Winter Meetings, later in the offseason or never. "We're making good progress on that," Duquette said. "We met with a couple of teams...
Continue reading

Quick hits from Duquette's daily media session

Quick hits from Duquette's daily media session
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette said "more than a handful" of clubs are interested in third baseman Manny Machado and he met with a couple more today as the Winter Meetings near their conclusion. Duquette said he was able to get a clearer read on the market for Machado and the process is "moving along" while the Orioles determine whether there's a match. Though it still seems unlikely to happen, Duquette didn't refute the notion that the club could...
Continue reading

Brach's status on trade market tied to Britton

Brach's status on trade market tied to Britton
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Orioles are receiving the anticipated level of interest in reliever Brad Brach, which is significant as he approaches his free agent season. Teams view Brach as a cheaper alternative to left-hander Zach Britton in terms of the asking price in any trade. He has closing experience in the majors and especially the minors, where he notched 119 saves, and can work in a setup role. Executive vice president Dan Duquette is willing to remove one of his bullpen pieces...
Continue reading

Boras on Britton, Álvarez and Machado

Boras on Britton, Álvarez and Machado
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.- The Scott Boras media scrum has lasted more than an hour outside the media room at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort with little Orioles subject matter, given that the priciest free agents in his stable aren't coming to Baltimore. Boras confirmed his meeting with executive vice president Dan Duquette, which took place Monday afternoon. Closer Zach Britton is a trade target at the Winter Meetings, but Boras said he doesn't think the left-hander is on the block. "I...
Continue reading

More thoughts on Machado as Winter Meetings continue

More thoughts on Machado as Winter Meetings continue
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Part of the debate over the wisdom of trading third baseman Manny Machado, and it's been a dominant topic as the Winter Meetings move into their third day, is whether he'd net a more bountiful return at the non-waiver deadline. While surface logic says that a greater number of prospects are made available with Machado under team control for a full season, contenders tend to get desperate around July 31 and more easily sell their souls - or part with young impact...
Continue reading

Notes on Machado, Tillman, Wilkerson and Showalter's status

Notes on Machado, Tillman, Wilkerson and Showalter's status
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The sun came up this morning and the Orioles hadn't traded third baseman Manny Machado or moved him to shortstop. Let's see what the rest of the day brings. If Machado remains in the organization, and I can't place odds on it, I'd expect him to be the starting shortstop on opening day. Call it a hunch, call it my ability to read between the lines. It just seems as though manager Buck Showalter has made a decision and isn't ready to go public with it. The biggest...
Continue reading

Duquette on Machado trade talks (Wilkerson suspended)

Duquette on Machado trade talks (Wilkerson suspended)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette met with multiple teams today regarding possible trades involving third baseman Manny Machado. Whether a deal is consummated remains an uncertainty, with Duquette clearly open to the idea but also trumpeting Machado's value to the organization. Buckle up. "There's a lot of interest in Manny and a couple of clubs requested a meeting, so we met with a couple of clubs on that issue," Duquette said inside his suite at the...
Continue reading

Showalter on Machado, trade talks, Jones and more

Showalter on Machado, trade talks, Jones and more
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Orioles manager Buck Showalter isn't ready to anoint Manny Machado as his shortstop in 2018 or concede that the former first-round pick will be traded. Machado's status on the field and within the organization were the hottest topics today during Showalter's 23-minute session with the media inside the workroom at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort. The Orioles are checking for matches in potential trades of Machado and closer Zach Britton, one of the major...
Continue reading

Orioles talking to teams about Machado

Orioles talking to teams about Machado
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Orioles have become much more open to trading third baseman Manny Machado since arriving this week at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort, with a source confirming that talks have "heated up" regarding the three-time All-Star. I wrote yesterday of the Phillies' interest and how the Orioles were compiling a list of prospects that could be included in a package. Other teams checked on Machado's availability, and while executive vice president Dan Duquette has...
Continue reading

Teams keep inquiring about Mychal Givens

Teams keep inquiring about Mychal Givens
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - One of the more interesting decisions facing the Orioles in the offseason is whether to remove a bullpen piece in order to acquire a starting pitcher or left-handed bat. Whether it's worth the risk of weakening an area that must remain sturdy as the team leans so heavily on it. There's no reason to drag Mychal Givens into the discussion because the Orioles are extremely reluctant to part with him for a variety of reasons. He's regarded as the closer in waiting with...
Continue reading

Catching and left-handed relief also on Orioles' shopping list

Catching and left-handed relief also on Orioles' shopping list
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Orioles have been defined at the Winter Meetings as the team that needs multiple starting pitchers but won't spend big on them, as well as a left-handed bat, and must decide whether to trade third baseman Manny Machado and closer Zach Britton in a rebuild-versus-reload tug of war. One of the lesser subplots in this Disney drama revolves around the catchers. The Orioles believe they could use another one as insurance in case Chance Sisco needs to repeat...
Continue reading

Duquette on being "more proactive" with pitching, and lots more

Duquette on being "more proactive" with pitching, and lots more
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The deliberate pace usually set by the Orioles while constructing their opening day roster may have to be accelerated. The market can't play out and leave them out in the cold. "There's so many teams looking for pitching, we might have to be a little bit more proactive than that," said executive vice president Dan Duquette. "The market's dynamic and it's starting to take shape and you see a lot of these teams looking at who they want to sign and who wants to sign...
Continue reading

Orioles expected to go trade route for hitter (plus other notes)

Orioles expected to go trade route for hitter (plus other notes)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette met with several agents and rival executives today in his suite at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort and came away more convinced that the club likely will have to find a left-handed bat via trade rather than free agency. This was one of the points made by Duquette as he met this afternoon with the media. Duquette said he hasn't found the "right fit" on the free agent market as he attempts to balance a lineup that...
Continue reading

Latest buzz on Machado

Latest buzz on Machado
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Orioles aren't creating much of a lobby buzz on the first full day of the Winter Meetings. Their needs are clearly defined and a few matches have been speculated by the media. Maybe this guy, perhaps that guy, but nothing real solid. Teams continue to check on the availability of third baseman Manny Machado and closer Zach Britton. I was told this afternoon, and it's part of the buzz inside the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort, that the Phillies are one of the...
Continue reading

Orioles remain challenged to find pitching

Orioles remain challenged to find pitching
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Winter Meetings kick into high gear today with the Orioles still in pursuit of multiple starting pitchers and another left-handed bat. The trip south didn't change their priorities. They didn't lose their luggage or their shopping list. The mega-trade orchestrated by the Yankees isn't expected to alter their approach. Giancarlo Stanton's arrival in the Bronx isn't going to throw the Orioles into a collective panic. They didn't react to the Red Sox's...
Continue reading

Chess match and painting lessons among O's auction items

Chess match and painting lessons among O's auction items
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Orioles are again offering tantalizing prizes and opportunities for the annual Winter Meetings Charity Auction, which this year benefits the Katharine Feeney Memorial Scholarship Fund in memory of the late baseball executive whose career spanned 40 years. Feeney, 68, passed away in April following her retirement four months earlier. She was visiting relatives in Maine. Fans can bid on a variety of prizes, including an opportunity to play chess at Camden Yards with...
Continue reading