Craig Albernaz can reunite with ex-Orioles lefty masher to boost outfield depth

The Baltimore Orioles may have a surplus of viable outfielders right now, but a reunion should be pursued between right-handed slugger Austin Slater and new Orioles manager Craig Albernaz. For Slater, it would be a double reunion. He was an Oriole briefly in 2024 and he also knows Albernaz because they overlapped tenures in San Francisco. Albernaz was the bullpen and catching coach for the Giants from 2020 to 2023 under manager Gabe Kapler and those were the seasons when Slater was most productive.

Obviously, the two did not work super closely together with Albernaz primarily focused on relievers and catchers, but he saw first-hand how effective Slater can be especially against left-handed pitching so it may be worth taking a flier on him.

Orioles should pursue reunion between Austin Slater and Craig Albernaz

Slater has fallen off from his peak productivity which occurred in 2021 and 2022 with San Francisco. In those two seasons he collectively slashed .252/.344/.416 with 19 home runs and 66 runs batted in. He was primarily a platoon bat who started against lefties or pinch hit late in games to face left-handed relievers. In his career, Slater has slashed .267/.357/.430 with 30 homers and 112 driven in which is considerably better than the numbers he has put up against right-handed pitching.

The 33-year-old had a decent stint with Baltimore back in 2024. In 33 games he slashed .246/.342/.333 with one homer and six runs batted in. He was less productive last season with the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees but maybe being reunited with a familiar face would help unlock his past productivity.

The main problem is that the Orioles already have a good amount of options in the outfield. After the team traded for Taylor Ward, they will likely go with Colton Cowser in center field and have other options like Tyler O'Neill and Leody Taveras who can play multiple spots in the outfield. Jorge Mateo is another utility option who could be used in the outfield.

It would not hurt at all to give Slater a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training, though. Maybe he gets hot down in Florida and snags either a bench role or a platoon spot in one of the corner outfield spots. Outfield depth may not be the team's most pressing need, but it would be a low-risk, potentially high reward move to bring in Slater to see if he's got anything left in the tank.