Orioles Rumors: Mike Elias Wants More Pitching

The Baltimore Orioles are not content with Kyle Gibson as their lone pitching acquisition, according to EVP/GM Mike Elias.

I haven’t heard a Baltimore executive talk like that before. I need a minute to cool off. And a cigar.

Okay, I’m good! In all seriousness, it’s encouraging to hear that the O’s front office is being proactive in pursuing free agents after fans have been lulled to sleep by vapid executive-speak throughout the better part of the last fifteen years.

Elias’s comments regarding their approach may still be interpreted as cliche, though I’d argue for the intent behind his words by saying this: there‘s no upside in delivering those comments. Hope-trafficking almost always raises expectations throughout the fanbase and subsequently sets the front office up for a deluge of scorn if those promises aren’t seen through. For Elias to volunteer that information, I think, means the Orioles legitimately are more than willing to dabble in the free agent market.

Could Carlos Rodón be an option? The O’s have been rumored to be interested, but I expect Rodón’s market to whip into a frenzy now that Justin Verlander and Jacob deGrom are off the board. The Orioles have never been known to outbideveryone in a free agent sweepstakes (aside from Chris Davis when they outbid themselves), but this front office operates antithetically to those that came before, so you never know.

In all likelihood, the Orioles will find another pitcher from the middle tier – names like Jameson Taillon, Jose Quintana, and Andrew Heaney come to mind – if Rodón’s market explodes (he allegedly wants a six year deal). With John Means and DL Hall representing the only two lefty starting pitchers the Orioles have on the roster and Camden Yards being incredibly favorable to lefties, adding another southpaw could prove beneficial.

Regardless of who the Orioles pursue and/or sign, fans can take solace in knowing that the Elias-led front office is not like those of Orioles past. The club is proactively curating the roster in a way that sets it up for a prolonged string of success and making each decision with a singular goal in mind. There aren’t multiple cooks in the kitchen muddying the waters. The threat of meddling ownership is gone. The Baltimore Orioles are…a well run franchise?!