The Cardinals signing of Kyle Gibson to a one-year, $12 million deal with an option didn’t shed much light on the Orioles’ plans for their rotation.

Those intentions already are illuminated.

Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias wants an upper-level starter for the rotation. Gibson is a great guy who put up some good numbers in 2023, but Elias is aiming higher.

He won’t find a higher-quality individual, but this is about upgrading the rotation.

Elias gave interviews at the general managers meetings and to MASNsports.com and 105.7 The Fan over the last few weeks, and it’s the same summary. He wants pitching. Near or at the top of the rotation and in the back end of the bullpen.

The Orioles were expected to find a new Opening Day starter in 2024, whether from outside the organization or by choosing one of their returnees.

Now, they’re assured of doing it.

Kyle Gibson reached agreement today on a one-year deal with the St. Louis Cardinals that includes an option for 2025, per a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, with multiple outlets confirming.

ESPN’s Jesse Rogers first reported that Gibson will receive $12 million next season.

It’s an ideal landing spot for Gibson, who lives in the St. Louis area and attended the University of Missouri. He follows the Cardinals’ agreement yesterday with veteran Lance Lynn to a one-year deal plus an option for a guaranteed $11 million.

Orioles starter Dean Kremer fell short of achieving Super 2 status and becoming eligible for arbitration. The cutoff was set at two years and 118 days of service time, down from two years and 128 days in 2022.

Kremer missed it this year at two years and 112 days.

The season was mostly a success for Kremer, who finished 13-5 with a 4.12 ERA in a career high 32 starts and 172 2/3 innings. Eleven of his victories occurred in night games, tied with teammate Kyle Gibson for second-most in the American League.

I can’t leave it at that. More digging must be done here, and I’m the man with the shovel.

According to STATS research, Steve Stone owns the club record with 24 victories in night games in 1980. Stone won the Cy Young Award in the American League with a 25-7 record.

Time to revisit more notes from the 2023 season. And not just the facts.

Here’s another attempt to expand on them. Stretching the truth.

Fact: Jorge Mateo became the first player in Orioles history and the eighth in the majors since at least 1901 with multiple stolen bases in a team’s first two games of the season. He also became the first player in club history and the 14th player since 1901 with at least four stolen bases in his first two games to begin a season. Mateo became the ninth Oriole to steal at least 20 bases in the team’s first 68 games and the first since Nate McLouth had 23 in 2013.

Follow: If only Mateo could reach base more often, but that’s been his issue at every stop.

Top 100 prospects don’t usually move around this much. He’s been traded twice and claimed on waivers, and he’s only 28.

Leftovers aren’t just for the days after Thanksgiving.

I had some extra questions in last week’s mailbag. I’d prefer green bean casserole, but maybe later.

The portion is modest, unlike your server. Just a couple handfuls of inquiries that didn’t make the first one.

Also, my mailbag serves homemade stuffing and your mailbag uses a box that expired three years ago.

Who will be the top two Orioles in stolen bases in 2024 and who will get the most innings at third base?
Two questions packed into one. Sort of like a casserole. I can’t make bold predictions without knowing the Opening Day roster. Jorge Mateo and Cedric Mullins were 1-2 this season, but Mateo appeared in 116 games. I wouldn’t expect the same in 2024. The second part is easier because I can just choose between Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg. I’ll get back to you.

With family and friends gathering soon for the Thanksgiving holiday, the baseball business could slow but won’t necessarily halt. The screeching sound isn’t brakes. More likely talk radio.

Mike Elias could turn off his phone or charge it in another room while the turkey’s carved. He might be traveling and temporarily unavailable. But he’s aware of a fast-developing market after his time at the general managers meetings in Arizona. How pitching could fly off the board – unlike turkeys, who can’t fly – with so many teams searching for it.

The expanded playoffs increase the aggressiveness of executives, especially after the second-place, 84-win Diamondbacks reached the World Series. Snoozing brings the risk of losing.

Elias is known to prefer club control beyond one year if listening to trade offers, but the quest for a starter who slots high in the rotation might now allow it. Some of the biggest names assumed to be available are approaching free agency, most notably Milwaukee’s Corbin Burnes, Cleveland’s Shane Bieber and Tampa Bay’s Tyler Glasnow. The White Sox’s Dylan Cease has two years left on his contract.

The rentals can command less in return, but higher demand and desperation also can plant the sellers more firmly in the driver’s seat. Bidding wars aren’t confined to free agency.

The next important date on baseball’s calendar arrives today with teams required to tender or non-tender players eligible for arbitration.

You probably memorized the list of 17 Orioles, an unusually high total, but here it is again, with MLBTradeRumors using its model to project salaries:

Anthony Santander: $7.4 million to $12.7 million
Danny Coulombe: $1 million to $2.2 million
John Means: $2.975 million to $5.93 million
Ryan O’Hearn: $1.4 million to $3 million
Cedric Mullins: $4.1 million to $6.4 million
Austin Hays: $3.2 million to $6.1 million
Dillon Tate: $1.5 million to $1.5 million
Jorge Mateo: $2 million to $2.9 million
Ryan Mountcastle: $738,400 to $4.2 million
Cionel Pérez: $732,300 to $1.3 million
Cole Irvin: $737,600 to $1.8 million
Keegan Akin: $731,100 to $800,000
Jacob Webb: $720,000 to $1.2 million
Ramón Urías: $734,700 to $2 million
Tyler Wells: $732,400 to $2.3 million
Ryan McKenna: $725,800 to $740,000
Sam Hilliard: $750,000 to $1.1 million

Santander is going to draw trade interest again and therefore find himself immersed in rumors. He’s a slam-dunk tender, of course. That’s the easy part.

Harder is finding a way to squeeze Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser onto a 26-man roster without removing an outfielder. But so would be replacing Santander’s power and run production.

My mailbag is getting thick around the waist again. So am I, which prevents me from judging it too harshly.

Rather than let it balloon and risk a rupture, I’ve decided to empty it this morning in the latest sequel to the beloved original in August 2008.

Harder to keep the weight off as we age.

I didn’t burn many calories editing your questions. I might have attached a first name. I might have removed a comma or parentheses. Please don’t contact your lawyer.  

Also, my mailbag plays sweet music and yours has Creed on a loop.

Two moves made by the Orioles in the offseason put players on the 40-man roster who are out of minor league options.

Left-hander Tucker Davidson, who signed a one-year contract last week, cleared outright waivers yesterday and was assigned to Triple-A Norfolk. Outfielder Sam Hilliard will try to avoid the waiver wire as the Orioles create more space for future transactions. He also can’t be sent down without going through the process.

The Orioles depend on flexibility that allows for a roster churn, the shuffling done especially to freshen the bullpen. But there are numerous relievers who have run out of options.

The list includes left-handers Danny Coulombe, Cionel Pérez and Cole Irvin, and right-handers Jacob Webb and Mike Baumann.

Irvin made 12 starts and 12 relief appearances, and the Orioles haven’t said whether he’s viewed in one role next summer. Baumann was told late in camp that he’d be used strictly in relief and in fewer innings, and there’s no reason to deviate from that plan moving forward.

Guiding a team to 101 wins and the best record in the American League couldn’t be ignored by voters in the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

Brandon Hyde was named AL Manager of the Year, with the news coming tonight on MLB Network. He was the only manager to appear on every ballot.

Hyde, a runner-up last year to the Indians’ Terry Francona, received 27 first-place votes and three second. The Rangers’ Bruce Bochy garnered the other three first-place votes and finished with 61 points.

The Rays’ Kevin Cash had 52, followed by the Twins’ Rocco Baldelli (eight), the Astros’ Dusty Baker (four) and the Blue Jays’ John Schneider (one).

Joe Maddon, a three-time recipient and close friend of Hyde’s, made the announcement. Hyde was on Maddon’s coaching staff when the Cubs won the World Series in 2016.

The Orioles didn’t protect any eligible players in next month’s Rule 5 draft by today’s 6 p.m. deadline. The announcement was made a few minutes ago.

Their 40-man roster holds at 36 players after infielder Terrin Vavra and left-hander Tucker Davidson cleared outright waivers this afternoon and were assigned to Triple-A Norfolk.

The deadline is Friday to tender contracts to players who are eligible for arbitration. The Orioles have 17 pending, which could create more openings.

Among the minor leaguers left unprotected today are outfielder Hudson Haskin, catcher Maverick Handley and pitchers Ryan Watson, Jean Pinto, Garrett Stallings, Kyle Brnovich, Zach Peek and Trey McGough. Watson was the organization’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2022 and McGough made this year’s Arizona Fall League Fall Stars team.

MLB Pipeline ranks Haskin as the No. 17 prospect in the system, the only player in the top 30 eligible to be drafted. He seemed the  most likely to be added to the 40-man.

Brandon Hyde is respected by his peers, who twice have voted him The Sporting News’ Manager of the Year in the American League. For shocking the industry with an 83-win season in 2022 and by leading the Orioles to 101, a division title and the best record in the league in 2023.

That’s two ways to do it. Be the manager of a team that wasn’t expected to do anything or surprises again by taking the AL East and the top seed in the playoffs.

The BBWAA gave the award to Cleveland’s Terry Francona last year, and supporters pointed to the Guardians’ having the youngest roster and winning their division, while the Orioles missed the playoffs. I didn’t agree with it. The Orioles went from 110 losses to 79 and competed in a much tougher division. They contended until the final week.

Hyde is viewed as the favorite tonight. Analysts on MLB Network revealed the finalists last week and noted the lack of drama surrounding the winners, as if the first-place finishers were obvious.

Is that the case with AL manager?

Gunnar Henderson needs to build a wing onto his trophy case. The kind that also can't be clipped.

Henderson will be named American League Rookie of the Year tonight in voting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. The first Oriole since closer Gregg Olson in 1989 and the seventh overall.

I believe in miracles, but there isn’t one that can deny Henderson of the honor.

Henderson already won The Sporting News and Major League Baseball Players Association Players Choice Award as the league's top rookie. His competition tonight is the Red Sox’s Tristan Casas and the Guardians’ Tanner Bibee.

I can’t reveal my ballot until tonight’s announcement, but yeah, those three sound right to me.

Some facts are informative, some are random. Some are just fun, which is why they have their own name.

Here are a few facts that fit in any category, with some extra notes and thoughts attached.

Fact: Heston Kjerstad became the sixth rookie in Orioles history to hit two or more home runs in his first five career games. Kjerstad joined Chance Sisco (two in 2017), Trey Mancini (three in 2016), Manny Machado (three in 2012), Andrés Mora (two in 1976) and Curt Belfary (three in 1965).

Follow: Sisco and Mora are proof that early power doesn’t always lead to staying power.

Sisco was the organization’s No. 1 prospect in 2017, but he hit .199 with a .658 OPS in parts of five seasons with the Orioles covering only 191 games and played independent ball this summer. Mora was hyped in the ‘70s and elected in 2003 to the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame, but he hit .223/.256/.383 in 235 major league games.

I’m returning later today from a quick trip to New York, which included tickets to the taping of Conan O’Brien’s podcast in Brooklyn and to “Wicked” on Broadway.

You want more fantasy? Read any article that suggests a possible link between the Orioles and free agent Shohei Ohtani.

Stop it. Please.

They don’t need a full-time designated hitter and they won’t hand out the most lucrative contract in baseball history, with some published salary predictions around $500 million.

It’s worse than the Winter Meetings rumors of interest in free-agent starter Carlos Rodón, that the Orioles were “in on” him.

The Orioles handled some contract business this afternoon, reaching agreement with left-hander Tucker Davidson on a deal for the 2024 season.

Davidson already was in the organization after they claimed him on waivers from the Royals back on Oct. 25. He’s part of 40-man roster that holds 38 players.

Today’s signing sets Davidson’s salary as a pre-arbitration eligible player. These transactions usually happen in January but can be done earlier.

Davidson, who turns 28 in March, used to be a notable prospect in the Braves system after his selection in the 19^th round of the 2016 draft out of Midland College in Texas. He was traded to the Angels on Aug. 2, 2022 and had his contract purchased by the Royals a year later.

Davidson has appeared in 55 major league games over parts of four seasons, making 17 starts, and gone 3-10 with a 5.98 ERA and 1.616 WHIP over 125 innings. He’s registered a 3.06 ERA and 1.287 WHIP in 110 games in the minors and averaged 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

Orioles executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias returned from the general manager’s meetings in Arizona yesterday afternoon, the schedule disrupted by a virus that reportedly felled about 10 percent of baseball executives.

Elias came home without making any roster moves. He wasn’t expected to introduce a new player to the organization.

That's going to happen later in the offseason.

We know that the Orioles want pitching for their rotation and bullpen. We knew it before Elias told media there. They could attempt to improve depth in other areas. Infuse a veteran influence again, as they do each winter.

Here’s what the Orioles won’t do:

Winning more games attracts more attention, and the Orioles are finding out during awards season.

The recognition is spreading like cold germs.

The team will learn tonight whether Silver Sluggers are coming to catcher Adley Rutschman, outfielder Anthony Santander and infielder Gunnar Henderson, who’s nominated in the utility category. The winners will be revealed at 6 p.m. on MLB Network.

Rutschman and Santander were finalists last year but didn’t get the hardware. The Blue Jays’ Alejandro Kirk was the recipient among AL catchers, and the Yankees’ Aaron Judge, the Mariners’ Julio Rodríguez and the Angels’ Mike Trout were chosen as outfielders.

The other catchers tonight are the Royals' Salvador Pérez and the Mariners' Cal Raleigh. The outfielders with Santander are Judge, Rodríguez, the Rays' Randy Arozarena, the Rangers' Adolis García, the White Sox's Luis Robert Jr. and the Astros' Kyle Tucker.

I recently spent about an hour taping a “Wall to Wall Baseball” show with Baltimore broadcasting legend Tom Davis that’s going to air throughout the month of November on MASN.

This is more than just a shameless plug. It’s a chance to go over a few questions that he asked, though I don’t recall whether they were on the air or during breaks. We like to chat.

The falling leaves and 40-degree temperature signaled the end of the baseball season. So did Game 5 of the World Series. But we aren’t done reviewing everything that the Orioles accomplished, and wondering what’s next.  

Does Gunnar Henderson become an everyday player at one position?

I don’t think so.

A team that won 101 games and posted the best record in the American League isn’t primed for a roster overhaul. Heavy tinkering, if such a thing exists, also seems unlikely based on results, returnees and talent funneling through the pipeline.

What are these Orioles going to do between now and Opening Day?

I’ve heard some people in the industry and some friends of mine insist that changes should be minimal or non-existent because, as the saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But the Orioles aren’t perfect. They didn’t get a third champagne and beer celebration.

The holes aren’t crater-size, but any chance to upgrade must be done.

Kyle Gibson, Adam Frazier and James McCann didn't qualify as blockbuster transactions, but they were improvements over Jordan Lyles, Rougned Odor and Robinson Chirinos. That's the point.