Last offseason, the Orioles were fortunate to have only a handful of players reach arbitration eligibility. This offseason, 17 players were set to be eligible.
Looking at the list, there were a few players many expected not to be tendered, but with GM Mike Elias, he will always play his cards close to the vest.
Elias has built a team from the bottom up through shrewd trades, waiver claims and the draft. He is calculative in his moves and decisions and uses information from scouts, coaches and the analytics department to decide how they will approach building and shaping the team.
This season, the Orioles won 101 games while taking the AL East division and the top seed in the American League. Despite a few free agent departures, Elias has tendered 13 players for the 2024 season and reached contractual terms for the 2024 season with three other players.
The players who were tendered contracts are as follows:
- LHP Danny Coulombe
- LHP Cole Irvin
- LHP John Means
- LHP Cionel Pérez
- RHP Dillon Tate
- RHP Jacob Webb
- RHP Tyler Wells
- OF Austin Hays
- OF Cedric Mullins
- OF Anthony Santander
- INF/OF Ryan O’Hearn
- INF Ryan Mountcastle
- INF Ramón Urías
The Orioles also agreed to terms with left-hander Keegan Akin, outfielder Sam Hilliard, and infielders Jorge Mateo and Ryan McKenna on one-year contracts for the 2024 season, avoiding arbitration.
Ramón Urías and Ryan McKenna are the more interesting tenders on this list. Both players played utility roles during the 2023 season, but with prospects like infielders Jackson Holliday, Joey Ortiz and Colby Mayo, along with outfielders Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser pushing for their time in the bigs, it was a little surprising to see them tendered.
Urías is, of course, a former Gold Glove defender who can play four infield positions. His value seemed to peak heading into last season, but his offense took a step back in the power department as he became a more rounded hitter towards the second half of the season.
McKenna, on the other hand, became the odd man out once Aaron Hicks was signed and the call-ups of Colton Cowser and Heston Kjerstad came. Eventually, McKenna returned to Triple-A Norfolk as a depth piece but finished strongly for the Tides.
Keegan Akin and Jorge Mateo appeared to be on the way out after last season. Mateo lost his starting job to Silver Slugger and Rookie of the Year Gunnar Henderson, while Akin continued a downward trend starting from the previous season, which resulted in a back injury.
Mateo does offer speed that is near the tops in the league and does play strong defense. The elimination of the shift seemed to take some of the range away, but the arm is strong, and Mateo did steal 32 bases this past season. He will make $2.7 million in 2024.
Akin struggled to gain his footing this year, posting a 6.85 ERA and 1.77 WHIP across 24 games. He would allow multiple runs in six of his outings, allowing 35 hits and 22 runs (18 ER) across 23.2 innings of work. The left-hander, who will make $825K plus incentives in 2024, allowed a .337 opponent batting average.
Now, with Elias, this does not mean that any of these players will remain with the team. Through trades and final roster cuts, some of these players may find themselves with a different team by the time next season arrives.
While Elias is going with the “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” approach, he does have a plan and a blueprint for the way he is shaping the team.
We look forward to seeing if any players reject the tenders and head to arbitration hearings. Let’s hope they can all come to agreements and avoid the process.
The offseason is under way, and the hot stove is starting to heat up.
Which players were you surprised to see get tendered a contract for next season? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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