I sat in the nosebleed seats of Oriole Park at Camden Yards on October 2, praying that the Baltimore Orioles had some sort of answer to save their season in the nail-biting American League Wild Card round. As the Kansas City Royals recorded the final out to clinch the series and as they stormed onto the pitcher’s mound to take a team photo, I sat in my seat paralyzed in devastation. So did the Orioles, but they were in their dugout. I did not move, nor did I talk to anyone. It was a solid 10 minutes before I finally got out of my seat and headed for the exits for the final time in 2024.

I could not help but think to myself, What went wrong? Why did it end this way? Well eventually, it did not take me long to pluck reasons why 2024 was such a disappointing season for the O’s.

Yeah, 2024. It is kind of awkward to think about if you are an Orioles fan. You can think of this season for the O’s in several different ways, though most fans want to and have already considered it disappointing.

Yes, the team finished above .500 with a 91-71 record, and they also clinched a playoff spot as the Number 1 American League Wild Card seed. However, this being the year after they clinched the American League East Division with a 101-win season in 2023, the expectation was that they would explode as World Series contenders and keep building off of that success.

They were swept right out of the postseason, and they still have not won a playoff game since 2014.

So, to feel disappointed in this situation is natural. With new ownership and with the young talent that had finally arrived to the big leagues, in addition to finally finding that certified ace in Corbin Burnes, our expectations certainly exceeded Wild Card results. This is not the ending to the 2024 season that anybody in Birdland wanted. However, I constantly have to remind myself that the truth of the matter remains that the Orioles are way ahead of schedule. The rebuild is technically supposed to still be happening. Nobody, not even myself, expected the Orioles to get this good this quickly. They did, however, and they threw themselves into the fire when they had the chance.

I am not saying that the Orioles cannot compete with the best of Major League Baseball because they absolutely can. I am saying that the 2024 Orioles team was a talented, exciting, and promising team that was still inexperienced, young, and growing. I expect that they are growing stronger both physically and mentally, and I know that they must be tired of losing in the big moments. I expect that the Orioles are growing into prime time contenders good enough to take down the toughest teams in the postseason.

So while the players and coaches hit the lab and do their offseason homework in training, the front office gears up for some important business.

The front office has a crucial winter ahead of them, and Vice President of Baseball Operations Mike Elias knows that. What they decide to do, who they add and who they let go, could impact the Orioles’ growth that I just mentioned. A change in the team’s offensive approach, pitching help, and a reunion with a beloved veteran should be amongst some of the top priorities that the front office and the team have this winter. I need to see them happen if the team is to make the next jump towards the World Series.

Re-Sign Anthony Santander

I have spoken about this with fans alike for several months now. The Orioles’ top priority this winter needs to be retaining 30-year-old outfielder Anthony Santander. I firmly believe that the Orioles will be stronger contenders for a championship if “Tony Taters” stays around. Here’s why.

He can get away with the swings-and-misses and the home run approach because that is who he, specifically, is as a hitter. His switch-hitting bat is perfect for Camden Yards. In a stadium that is built for power offense, Santander will continue to produce the mass power numbers that the Orioles want out of a middle-of-the-order power bat. He set career highs last year for home runs (44) and RBI (102), and he also slugged .506 with a 134 OPS+. His power production has always faired well at Camden Yards, and the Orioles need that in their lineup. In addition, he is a clutch hitter who lives for the pressure moments. Has he not beaten the New York Yankees twice in the past three years with walk-off home runs? Did he also not come through with the game-winning grand slam this August against the Houston Astros? Santander is a clutch hitter, and he always comes through when the Orioles need him the most.

What stands out to me more than anything is his leadership. Santander has been an Oriole since 2017 when he was a Rule 5 pick. He has been around long enough to know how to compete and win ballgames, to face adversity, to know the city of Baltimore, and to know the Oriole Way. Santander is the leader of this team. Not to mention, there is a mutual love as the fans adore Santander and he has stated before that he loves playing in Baltimore. It is a mutual feeling.

When the Orioles won games in their last go-around in the postseason, it was veteran leaders like Adam Jones, Matt Wieters, and JJ Hardy who had been around long enough to know how to compete under pressure. Santander stands as one of the only few players that can be that leader. As previously mentioned, the Orioles’ struggles in the playoffs come from a youthful team lacking experience under pressure with the season on the line. Obviously as they get older and more experienced, the grit in postseason play will increase. For now, the Orioles need leadership and veterans who know not just the game, but the Orioles and the team moto. That is all Santander.

There is no doubt that he’ll be looking for anywhere in between four-to-five years and around $30 million a year, which equates to round $120-$180 million total. We know that the Orioles’ new ownership group under David Reubenstein has money. The cheapskate John Angelos is completely out of the picture. This team has money to spend, and now is the perfect time to do so, especially with “Tony Taters.”

The Orioles’ top priority this winter is re-signing Anthony Santander. If he walks onto another team, then that is a huge mistake made by the Orioles’ front office.

Hitting Coaches Homework

The Orioles went just 33-33 in the second half of the season, which is extremely underwhelming for a team of that calliber. I could not help but question the offensive strategy for not just the second half, but almost the entire season. It became obvious that the philosophy had completely changed from the year before. A lineup that once was able to hit home runs, get on base, and move runners up all at once, the 2024 lineup quickly became home run-or-bust. That translated to a solemn but quick end to their season.

The Orioles’ 235 home runs ranked second in Major League Baseball, but their team .315 on-base percentage (OBP) and .750 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) ranked in the lower half of Major League offenses. Six sacrafice bunts, 489 walks, and 98 stolen bases emphasize their reluctance to play small ball and hit fundamentally. In the two Wild Card games, they stranded 16 runners, struck out 22 times, and mustered just 11 hits. They also scored just one run.

Their lone run of the series? A homer. Unsurprising.

Perhaps some of it was young guns falling under pressure in the heat of the moment. Regardless, the hitting coaches need to do their homework this winter and come up with something different for the 2025 season. Even though Elias publicly stated that the philosophy will stay the same, something still has to change. I get that the new era of hitting is driven by technology and new statistics like launch angle and exit velocity. That does not change that swinging for the fences did not work did not truly win games for the Orioles in 2024, and they need to be able to do more than just hit dingers. How about working the count deeper and taking walks? Why not focus on solid contact to the gaps and whole field instead of soaring one to the moon?

Hitting home runs will only get a team so far.

Let’s face it. Gunnar Henderson‘s offensive potential is not limitted to just home runs. 37 in a year is cool, but so is 21 stolen bases, a 159 OPS+, and 78 walks, all of which he posted in 2024. I plea that they utilize the multiple tools he has on offense. The same goes with Jackson Holliday. The 20-year-old’s offensive game traditionally consists of a whole-field approach, hard contact, and speed that gains extra bases. He was definitely hurt by the Orioles’ home run-or-bust philosophy, and he will never benefit from that strategy. The Orioles need to utilize the many skills that he has offensively because a power-only strategy will completely destroy his development as a former first overall pick and an unanimous Number 1 prospect.

After the departures of previous hitting coaches Matt Borgschulte and Ryan Fuller, the Orioles will rely on Cody Asche, who was promoted from offensive strategest to lead hitting coach, and former big leaguers Sherman Johnson (promoted from the Minor Leagues) and Tommy Joseph (hired from the Mariners) to change the outlook of the offense and figure out how to send a more wholesome lineup into battle next season.

Putting the hitting coaches aside for a second, catcher Adley Rutschman will have to do his homework this season as well. The team’s offensive morale was undoubtedly taken down a bit by an uncharacteristic down year from Rutschman, who was rumored to have been marred by injuries late in the season. He hit just .202 in the second half with a .585 OPS, but what might be more concerning is that his walk total went down from 98 in 2023 t0 58 this year. 2024 was supposed to be a prime year for Rutschman, but a .250 batting average, a .318 OBP, and a .709 OPS are far from it. The Orioles will certainly need his bat to come alive again next season as it heavily anchors the offensive morale of the team. I believe that he will do so, as he is still very young in his career and has big league offensive capabilities higher than many other everyday big league backstops. There is no other guy I trust back there than Rutschman.

A New Ace

Corbin Burnes was acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in February, filling the Orioles’ longtime need for a bonified ace. He delivered as expected with 194.1 total innings, a 2.92 earned run average (ERA), and a 1.096 walks and hits per innings pitched (WHIP). The 2024 American League All-Star is now a free agent, and I would advise that you prepare for him not returning to the Orioles. No sources have yet confirmed his asking price, but it is easy to assume that he could be seeking a long-term contract breaching $300-$400 million. This could be well beyond what the Orioles are able to afford unless they desire to utilize the newfound money from the new ownership. Actually, I have no doubt that they will offer Burnes something. Will it be enough? That is to be determined.

It’s worth a shot. I understand the hesitance to give a pitcher a long-term deal in Baltimore given recent pitcher contract failures like Ubaldo Jimenez and Alex Cobb. Those were both questionable decisions given either where they were in their careers at the time and where the state of the team was (there was no reason to offer Cobb 4-years on the verge of a teardown). This is different with Burnes. The Orioles are competing for a World Series, and Burnes is in his prime as one of the game’s most elite starters. He will not be declining anytime soon. That being said, his asking price will be high and the Orioles have to decide if they are willing to go all in to keep their ace.

If Burnes leaves, then the Orioles are back to Square 1 in finding a new ace.

There are options out there, quality options who could be asking for a much cheaper deal than Burnes. Left-hander Max Fried might be the most affordable and most reliable option out there. The Orioles would certainly not mind having a left-hander with Fried’s background as their ace. The 30-year-old has enjoyed a nice and consistent career with the Braves up to this point as with over 850 innings under his belt, he is the owner of a career 3.07 ERA and a 1.164 WHIP. He has plenty of postseason experience, as he was also a member of the Braves’ 2021 World Series championship team. I have always been a fan of Fried, and I believe he really is one of the most consistent, most reliable left-handed starters in the game. This is the guy that we have been looking for, but we never truly realized it until now. I would love to see the O’s invest in Fried for a solid 2-4 years and around $30-$50 million per year.

My overall point is that we need to prepare for Burnes to leave Baltimore.

Looking Ahead

This is an important offseason for the Orioles, and there are important decisions to be made. Elias has his hands full this winter as he attempts to tackle multiple obstacles from Santander’s free agency to Burnes’ replacement to what the heck is going to get the offense going. I am not sure you all realize how important this winter is, and the Orioles need to carefully consider what they do. This is already a talented, playoff-caliber team that has the opportunity to get even better based on what decisions are made this winter, and those decisions could ultimately impact if the Orioles can take the bigger leap beyond early rounds of the playoffs.