As the General Managers Meetings roll on this week in Orlando, it’s officially time to warm up the hot stove and talk offseason baseball. There hasn’t been any high-profile free-agent signings this week and there won’t be any coming either. It never happens that way. This week’s meetings are essentially there to lay the groundwork for what will happen at the Winter Meetings in early December. This year’s Winter Meetings are also in Orlando and will run from December 9-12.
Last offseason seemed to have a little more intrigue than this year’s for Orioles fans. The team was just coming off its first playoff berth in 14 years and the entire buzz surrounded who the team might bring in to contribute for the 2013 campaign.
The short answer was no one. There were no big named free agents that came in last year and made an impact. Nate McLouth was signed to a one-year deal and contributed fairly well for the team in left field. Alexi Casilla was claimed off waivers from the Twins and served mostly in a backup role all season. He’s moved on to other opportunities already.
None of these transactions jump off the page and excite anyone.
Perhaps the biggest moves the O’s made last offseason were actually the players they didn’t sign. Baltimore declined to bring back third baseman-turned-first baseman Mark Reynolds, who became a fan favorite during the 2012 playoff run. Reynolds ended up in Cleveland, where he got off to a blistering start before he was released in mid-August after a months-long slump. He latched on with the Yankees, further breaking the hearts of O’s fans that wanted him back in the orange and black.
Looking back, the move was obviously the right one. It cleared the path for Chris Davis to take over as the full-time starter at first base.
We all know how that one turned out.
Going into this offseason, Orioles fans should really expect more of the same (which is essentially not much) in terms of signing players. Executive vice president Dan Duquette has already accomplished some moves over the past year to build for the 2014 season. Some of these moves were internal. Moving players up and down throughout the minor leagues and promoting some to the big league club to get a look has laid some groundwork for what the team has going forward.
Some of the trades Duquette pulled off during the season also had an eye on the future. Bud Norris is sure to be slotted into the rotation from the start of the season and should be relied on to contribute. Scott Feldman was also acquired mid-season, but it’s still unknown whether or not the team will bring him back.
One of the biggest questions facing the Orioles this offseason is also an internal decision.
The future of Brian Roberts is perhaps the biggest hot-button topic surrounding the club. There are options aside from Roberts, but none provide anyone with much assurance.
Jonathan Schoop has been playing in the Arizona Fall League, but there are still questions about his health going forward and he may be a player that needs some more seasoning in Norfolk before contributing.
Ryan Flaherty has shown flashes of positive things here and there, but must prove he can be more consistent if he wants to make any major contribution.
There’s no real right or wrong answer when it comes to Roberts. If the team brings him back at a reasonable price, it could be a low-risk move that pays off. If he does return and happens to get bitten by the injury bug again, the torches and pitchforks will be raised by a fan base that questions the move and wonders, why this again?
Duquette has spent the past few seasons drafting players, developing them and getting them to the majors to contribute. It’s a process, and it takes time. The Orioles wouldn’t dare go after a player that would’ve required a draft pick as compensation last offseason, and I wouldn’t expect them to do so this year either. The team is using the system and building things internally.
Fans will want the team to go out and sign Robinson Cano or make a deal with Shin-Soo Choo or Jacoby Ellsbury this offseason.
Don’t hold your breath. It’s not going to happen. That’s not how the Birds are doing business these days.
Who can argue with them really? The past two seasons have been two of the more successful years in recent memory under the leadership of Duquette and manager Buck Showalter.
There’s no reason to stray from that path now. The O’s will go out and sign players that cost less but can do more. They will use what they have in the farm system to contribute when needed to the big league club and do their best to compete in the ultra-tough AL East.
Doing things this way isn’t easy when you have to go up against the defending World Series champions, the team that spends the most money in the game, another that always seems to compete and is coming off another playoff appearance, and that squad north of the border that seems to have all the talent in the world and could be on the verge of putting it together.
It’s never easy for the Orioles, but isn’t that part of what makes it fun? I’m looking forward to early December just to see how things develop.
It will also bring us all closer to that magical day when pitchers and catchers report.
