No matter where the Orioles go from here, the narrative surrounding their offseason will be much different than it was heading into spring training last year.
Luring Pete Alonso to Baltimore on a five-year, $155 million contract represents the most impactful move president of baseball operations Mike Elias has made in his tenure, and it shifts the Orioles’ outlook much more than their signings of Tyler O’Neill, Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano from a winter ago. But while the lineup has its new centerpiece, the Orioles don’t appear to be done bolstering their roster for a playoff run in 2026.
Elias has been direct in addressing the Orioles’ desire to add starting pitching this winter, and he said Monday at MLB’s winter meetings in Orlando, Florida, that there was enough room on their payroll to make sizable moves for both a big bat and front-line starter. They checked off box No. 1 with Alonso and reportedly remain in on several of the top starting pitchers in free agency and the trade market.
“Yes, I think so,” Elias said of whether the Orioles could afford to make two big moves. “You look at our payroll as it stands right now, and it’s still well below where we were at last year. We’ll just consider opportunities as they come up and have those conversations with ownership. But we do have room for more moves, multiple more moves.”
After signing Alonso, the Orioles’ projected payroll sits at $152 million, according to Cot’s Contracts. That’s still $12 million below their 2025 payroll and the combined average annual values of their contracts has them $65 million under the first luxury tax threshold. There’s plenty of room to keep spending, especially if owner David Rubenstein is willing to increase payroll over last season.
Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez, Michael King, Zac Gallen and Tatsuya Imai are the best remaining free agent starters available with Dylan Cease snatched up by the Toronto Blue Jays. On the trade market, controllable starters such as MacKenzie Gore, Edward Cabrera and Pablo López have been floated in rumors in addition to rentals Tarik Skubal, Freddy Peralta, Kris Bubic and Brady Singer.
How the Orioles address the rotation will have ripple effects across the rest of the roster. If they add one starting pitcher, Tyler Wells projects to be the No. 5 starter and the Orioles could pursue another back-end reliever — most likely a left-hander — to solidify their bullpen. If they acquire two starters, then either Wells or Dean Kremer is bumped from the rotation mix and one of them becomes a long reliever.
That also applies to the lineup. Alonso’s addition either crowds or clears up the Orioles’ first base logjam, depending on how you look at it. He’s expected to make the majority of starts at first, which leaves little playing time for Ryan Mountcastle and Coby Mayo. The Orioles could solve that issue if they include either Mountcastle or Mayo in a trade for a starter, though Mayo can always be stashed back in Triple-A and Mountcastle’s salary won’t be fully guaranteed until opening day if he goes to arbitration.
Alonso and trade acquisition Taylor Ward appear to be the finishing pieces for the Orioles’ starting lineup. However, they could still seek out a third catcher or a utility man capable of backing up at second base, third base and shortstop. The Orioles designated Maverick Handley for assignment as the corresponding move for signing Alonso, leaving Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo as the only catchers left on their 40-man roster.
Elias did float the idea of Jeremiah Jackson taking on the utility man role at the winter meetings, but he has minor league options working against him and still has work to do defensively before he can be viewed as a viable candidate for multiple positions.
Alonso’s deal might have been the biggest splash the Orioles have made in a decade, but it’s also a move that sets the stage for more.
Have a news tip? Contact Matt Weyrich at mweyrich@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 x.com/ByMattWeyrich and instagram.com/bymattweyrich.
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