More from Chris Davis

While you've been distracted by daily reminders that the Orioles need another starting pitcher, outfielder L.J. Hoes is waiting to find out whether he needs to report to another organization.

It appears that the Orioles want to get Hoes through waivers and hold onto him. He should know soon if it's going to happen.

We're also waiting for the Orioles to announce their spring training roster, complete with all the invites. It can't be much longer, considering that pitchers and catchers report on Feb. 18.

First baseman Chris Davis expressed some concern last week over the departure of left-hander Wei-Yin Chen and how it impacts the rotation.

"I think any time you lose a guy like Chen, it makes it a little bit tougher," Davis said. "He was for me a guy who we knew was going to take the ball every fifth day and go out there and give you a solid work outing. But I look at our group right now and I see some young guys that really have a high ceiling and guys that I'm really excited about, like Mike Wright and Kevin Gausman.

"I think these guys have the potential to be everyday starters. There's no doubt about it. It's just, are we going to be able to put them in a position where they can succeed? And I say that meaning, are we going to be able to go out there the other four days and really compete and let these guys kind of take a deep breath and settle in?"

Davis figures to do his part after leading the majors in home runs two of the last three seasons. The Orioles were 26-13 in games when he homered last year.

"I think that goes with anybody in our lineup. If guys are able to capitalize on the opportunities that are given to them, it's going to make us a much better team," Davis said.

"I think one thing that maybe goes unnoticed a little bit is the year that Manny (Machado) had. Not just the home runs, but the fact that he was on base so much, and for a power hitter, that's huge. You want guys on base, you want guys in position to score so you can do your job, so to speak, in the lineup.

"That's something that Scott (Coolbaugh) and I talked about this offseason. Are guys going to be able to really buy into what their role is for the team? And I think if they can that we're going to be really successful."

Davis understands the importance of remaining patient at the plate and using the entire field. He's going to strike out. It's in his DNA. But he's much more dangerous when he's going with the pitch and letting his natural power do its work.

"I think the key word is 'patience,' " he said. "I think after 2013 I had a tendency to go out there and almost rely on left field too much and ended up chasing pitches that were off the plate away, and I think over the years I've learned you're going to have to hit the ball where they pitch you. Going up there and looking for one spot or another spot isn't necessarily beneficial, but as a hitter you just try to compete and try to make adjustments throughout the year, and I think using the whole field is obviously huge for me."

Manager Buck Showalter has talked to Davis and reliever Darren O'Day about being themselves and not feeling additional pressure to live up to their new contracts. Don't go changing to try to please everyone.

Davis is heeding the advice he received from first baseman Albert Pujols, who signed a 10-year, $254 million contract with the Angels in December 2011.

"That's a great point and that's something that I've asked some veteran players over the years about signing a long-term deal, kind of what that entails, what comes with that," Davis said.

"Albert Pujols told me something pretty profound a few years ago when we were in Anaheim. He said, 'When you sign that contract, you're signing for the performance that you put up the last few years.' He's like, 'For you to go out and change would be kind of silly,' because they're not signing me to steal 40 bags or do anything like that, so I'm just going to continue to prepare myself and go out and do everything that I can to be the player that I have been the last few years."

The Orioles have more work to do with their roster, but they were able to keep Davis, catcher Matt Wieters and O'Day. Not many people thought they'd retain half of their pending free agents and fewer believed they could hold onto that trio.

"I don't know if I ever really sat down and thought about it," Davis said. "Obviously, you knew that we had a lot of guys that were going to have the opportunity to play elsewhere, but also have the opportunity to come back, so I was hopeful that we would be able to retain the group of guys that we've had over the years.

"I think it's going to be huge for us moving forward to have that chemistry and to continue what we started back in 2012 as a team and hopefully build off that success that we've had."