Leftovers for breakfast

It feels like a homework assignment. Challenging the Orioles to pinpoint the exact moment when they realized the team would contend deep into the season. That it wasn’t a fluke.

Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias shares the opinion expressed by one of the club’s outfielders.

“I read some quotes from Austin Hays and that was the way I think it felt for me. It just crept up on us that this team was playing really well and the wins were stacking up,” Elias said on Oct. 5.

“I think it was very organic, which was cool to see, and that was our approach. I think (Brandon Hyde) and I came into a very tough spot again in 2018, and we just kept trying to do the right thing for the organization with every move, every little decision, and kind of kept our eye on the ball. And we had to navigate the pandemic. It seemed to congeal this year organically.”

Getting the same results, or better, isn’t promised. Stand still and you might go backward.

“It doesn’t mean that we’re going to take it for granted, that it’s going to happen again next year,” Elias said. “Not going to take it for granted that we’re going to have a better record next year. We’ve got these other four teams that make great moves every winter, that have huge resources, that also have good farm systems. It’s scary. So, we’re just going to continue to keep making good decisions and trying to do the right thing for the organization, and hopefully organically we have another step forward next year. And I hope that means playing next week next year.”

For Hays, there’s a lot to the season that needs to be duplicated. The same breaks must be caught like popups. Can’t count on it, but certainly can hope for it.

“I think a big part of it was guys just gaining confidence as the season went on, and seeing our starters grow as much as they did and our bullpen be so consistent the entire season,” Hays said. “Last year, we had a lot of injuries on this team, especially on the offensive side of the ball, so this year I think we were the healthiest team in baseball. We had the least amount of IL stints. So, that in itself was a big part of why the team was so good, because it was all the same guys playing night in and night out, and I think that was a huge step for this organization. And for the guys in this locker room, just learning how to play every day in the big leagues and stay on the field.

“I think moving into next year, being able to repeat that and just stay healthy and keep all the same guys out there together, I think that will be a big part of just continuing to do what we did this year.”

Hays also knows where the Orioles must improve. The team speed is much better than previous years, with bulk credit going to shortstop Jorge Mateo, but they were constantly slow out of the gate.  

“I’d say offensively we have to do a better job the first five innings of the game,” Hays said. “This year we did a really good job late in the game, in late innings. We had a lot of come-from-behind wins, we scored a lot of runs off the bullpen, but I think we can do a better job of getting to starters earlier in the game, scoring more runs early.

“Keeping that mentality of what we were doing late in games is great and that’s something that you’re always going to need to do is score runs later in the game, but we can do a better job of getting to starters.”

* John Means threw for the first time yesterday.

Says so on his Twitter and Instagram accounts. A couple of reliable sources.

Means was shown doing some light tossing on flat ground, with the caption "Throwing Day 1." His movements were slow, deliberate, almost like shadow tosses, except he released the ball.

This is an important step for Means, who underwent Tommy John surgery on April 27 after making only two starts.

Means' wife, Caroline, tweeted: "This day was circled on the calendar for six months! Proud."

Means will report to the spring training complex in Sarasota after Jan. 1 and ramp up his program.

* Outfielder Heston Kjerstad, the second-overall selection in the 2020 draft, has hit four home runs in 10 games with the Scottsdale Scorpions in the Arizona Fall League.

No. 4 was an inside-the-park home run hit yesterday against Peoria. And he was just getting warmed up.

The day began with Kjerstad batting .357 with four doubles, 11 RBIs and a 1.053 OPS in 44 plate appearances. He followed the home run with three singles and is now batting .404 with a 1.174 OPS.

A smart decision to send him to the AFL after his first professional season.

* The Orioles have at least one decision pending with Austin Voth. Whether to tender him a contract in his second year of arbitration eligibility.

If they do, is Voth heading into spring training as a starter or reliever?

The club probably won’t know until later.

There might not be room for him in the rotation with the Orioles expected to add at least one starter. They could exercise Jordan Lyles’ $11 million option. But Voth can be tossed into the competition and pivot to long relief if necessary.

A full circle from the day that the Orioles claimed him off waivers from the Nationals.

“When we got him, he was going to be kind of a swing guy, we thought, or maybe a potential starter if we needed it. We did need it and tried to build him up slowly from there,” said manager Brandon Hyde.

“He’s put himself on the map for us, for sure. A guy that can do multiple things.”

All of it better as an Oriole.

Voth had a 10.13 ERA and 2.143 WHIP in 19 relief appearances with the Nationals. He compiled a 3.04 ERA and 1.229 WHIP in 22 games, including 17 starts, after changing teams.

Would make for an interesting arbitration hearing.

MLBTradeRumors.com projects that Voth will earn $2 million in 2023.

* The Orioles had seven players eligible for arbitration, but the total rose to eight after they claimed outfielder Jake Cave off waivers from the Twins. And then nine after they claimed catcher Aramis Garcia from the Reds.

Cave avoided arbitration in November 2021, his first year of eligibility, by signing for $800,000 and was outrighted shortly after the deal.

The Twins didn’t select Cave’s contract until Aug. 2, while placing outfielder Alex Kirilloff on the 10-day injured list with right wrist inflammation. Cave was batting .273/.370/.509 in 85 games with Triple-A St. Paul, with 20 doubles, seven triples, 14 home runs, 57 RBIs, and 10 stolen bases in 10 attempts.

The majors tripped up Cave again. He hit .213/.260/.384 in 54 games.

MLBTradeRumors.com projects Cave’s next salary at $1.2 million. He doesn’t project as a regular with the Orioles while they still have Cedric Mullins, Austin Hays, Anthony Santander and Kyle Stowers.

The outfield didn’t seem to be a priority in the offseason, but the Orioles saw Cave on the waiver wire and reacted.

Cave is a career .296/.321/.370 hitter in seven games against the Orioles, going 8-for-27 with two doubles overall and 2-for-13 at Camden Yards. He was 3-for-3 with both doubles as a rookie on July 5, 2018 in Minnesota.

Garcia is arbitration-eligible for the first time, and MLBTradeRumors.com projected a raise from $700,000 to $800,000.