The latest buzz on Chris Davis (and more)

NASHVILLE - The Orioles arrived at the Winter Meetings yesterday still trying to gauge the market for first baseman Chris Davis.

Does it exist? If so, let's hear about the teams and the potential dollars. Don't hold back.

I'm not talking about the inevitable mystery team, which won't surface until much later if Davis remains unsigned.

Are the Cardinals still one of the favorites to sign him? ESPN.com suggested that their reported interest was overblown. Are the Astros willing to spend big on him? There's speculation in Nashville that the Tigers could make a play for him.

The Orioles, meanwhile, wonder about their competition for Davis. They have an offer on the table. They haven't reached the point where they must move on from it, but the clock is ticking.

Scouts from two different teams stated yesterday that there's no real market for Davis, echoing what I heard last week from a team source. The scouts, speaking separately, believe that the Orioles are in a good position due in large part to the process of elimination.

The Astros really don't have the money to spend on Davis, the scouts reasoned. The Dodgers are focused on pitching. The Cardinals are more interested in re-signing outfielder Jason Heyward. The Yankees aren't spending money. The Red Sox probably don't have the funds after giving left-hander a seven-year deal worth $217 million.

Besides being wildly popular in Baltimore and the producer of monstrous home runs, Davis also provides a much-needed left-handed bat in the lineup. Mark Trumbo didn't address that need. Justin Upton wouldn't address that need, though he continues to intrigue the Orioles.

Duquette continues to heap praise upon Trumbo, who could replace Davis at first base.

"He's been an everyday player wherever he's played, so there's DH, there's first base, there's left field," Duquette said. "He's really good against left-handed pitching. He's really good against left-handed pitching. He's got as much power as anybody in the league. Take a look at those charts in terms of how far he hits the ball. He hits the ball as far as anybody. Good kid, too. Studies, good worker. He's got a lot of good traits.

"He should help lengthen our lineup and be a real force against left-handed hitting. And (Matt) Wieters is coming back, I mean that's a positive. There's two capable major league hitters that can hit somewhere in the middle of your lineup."

L.J. Hoes will try to make the club as an extra outfielder. He's going to get every opportunity in spring training.

"It looks to me that Hoes has continued to develop as a hitter and he always got on base pretty well," Duquette said. "This year, the big increase was in his basestealing capability. You look at what he did at Triple-A, he stole a number of bases. But he can hit, he got on base. He stole bases this year at Triple-A, and if you take a look at his production, it shows that he can be a very capable, maybe everyday player at the next level. So we're going to take a look at him.

"He's a good teammate, he's a good athlete. He's still young and he likes the Orioles, so it will be interesting to see how he does."

Nothing new to pass along on reliever Darren O'Day since I received confirmation yesterday on a four-year deal with the Orioles pending a physical, and the reliever later tweeting that reports of an agreement were premature.

The Orioles seem confident that O'Day is staying with them, but nothing is final until he takes and passes his physical and signs his contract. The sides haven't reached that point.

I've seen the comparisons to reliever Grant Balfour, who failed his physical with the Orioles. O'Day isn't considered any sort of a health risk, which is why they were willing to offer him a fourth year. But it's still a lesson learned.

It ain't over till ... you know.

I'm assuming that O'Day would remain the Orioles' player representative, another sign of his leadership within the clubhouse and the bullpen. But now we're getting ahead of ourselves. He's still a free agent and he's still flattered by your interest.