Trying to answer a few more Orioles questions

The Thanksgiving leftovers are beginning to run out, due to my generosity in sending family home with plastic containers bursting at the lid and my stunning ability to fill a plate every hour as if opening the refrigerator door somehow adds a year to my life.

Cold stuffing isn't just for dinner anymore.

Meanwhile, I can't seem to reach the bottom of my mailbag. I also can't reach down and touch my toes, but these are unrelated issues.

Perhaps responding to a few more questions this morning can count as my cardio.

Right now, I'm working up a sweat licking the cream cheese out of the celery stalks.

So, any chance the (Wander) Franco deal inspires the Orioles with regards to a certain catcher?
Pedro Severino already signed with the Brewers.

Not that catcher.
I blame the vague nature of your question.

Adley Rutschman needs to play in a major league game before we start projecting how much he can make with an extension. Teams are getting aggressive in locking down their young stars, and this includes the small-market Rays with their penchant for trading away players before they become too expensive. The Padres gave Fernando Tatis Jr. a 14-year deal for $330 million. The Braves gave Ronald Acuña Jr. an eight-year deal for $100 million that becomes 10 years at $124 million if they exercise two options. Franco is guaranteed $182 million across 11 years, with a $25 million club option for a 12th season.

The Orioles don't want to think about it. Certainly not while they remain in a rebuild. The other three teams are contenders. The Braves won the World Series this year. The only focus with Rutschman is continuing his development and getting him behind the plate at Camden Yards in 2022.

Are we finally done with the awards shows, which run longer than "Roots?"
MLB Network could take the basting of a turkey and turn it into a two-hour special. But there's only so much hot stove coverage and re-airings of "The Babe" to go around. I believe that we're done after the winner of the Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award is revealed on Monday - in other words, Shohei Ohtani - unless the sport wants to create one to honor the last free agent to sign before the lockout.

Not funny.
Too soon? Sorry.

Why are the Orioles shopping John Means?
No one said they're shopping him. I saw the word "dangling" in a tweet, which is wide open to interpretation. (It's also frowned upon in certain venues.) It suggests that Mike Elias is the aggressor, that he's the one dialing the phone.

Here's what I've gleaned: The Orioles aren't pushing hard to trade Means. They aren't pushing hard to trade Cedric Mullins. But Means and Mullins are available in the right offer, and Elias wouldn't be doing his job if he failed to make that clear to other teams. I'm sure it happened at the general managers meetings. And these are two big trade chips on a rebuilding team, though Mullins' salary and years of controllability make him much more tempting to hold onto.

I'm still expecting Means to pitch for the Orioles on opening day. I'm also expecting plenty of teams to speak with Elias about him.

How many spots are open on the 40-man roster?
None after the Orioles claimed left-hander Cionel Pérez off waivers from the Reds earlier this week. Makes you wonder whether Elias did so anticipating that the Winter Meetings would be canceled and there's no motivation to free up space for the Rule 5 draft. Otherwise, he'd probably want two openings. Or Pérez, signed as an international free agent while Elias served as the Astros' assistant general manager, was just too good to pass up.