Orioles may have already done enough for a 2026 turnaround (no, seriously!)

Eric Cole

New York Mets v Miami Marlins / Calvin Hernandez/GettyImages

As we approach the new year, Baltimore Orioles fans have been eagerly waiting to see what the front office has in store next. After what was a truly disappointing 2025 campaign, it seems like Mike Elias and Co. know that they cannot afford to play it safe this offseason. They went out and signed Ryan Helsley to be their high-leverage reliever, pulled off the Pete Alonso blockbuster deal, and then traded for Shane Baz and brought Zach Eflin back. At this rate, it feels like anything is possible at any point.

However, that may not even be needed. In ESPN's David Schoenfield's latest article that focused on one make-or-break stat for each MLB team, Schoenfield focused not on Baltimore's obvious pitching ineptitude last season. Instead, he isolated the offense's production as an area of concern, which, oddly enough, may have already been addressed this offseason.

Orioles may have already addressed their biggest barrier to a 2026 turnaround

Even without looking at the numbers, the most casual Orioles fan could tell you that the offense left a lot to be desired last season. Jackson Holliday was uneven at best, Gunnar Henderson was "only" pretty awesome, and Colton Cowser regressed. It is hard to win baseball games when that many key bats don't give you what you need, but that the Orioles finished 2025 a full 43 runs scored below league average is still hard to fathom.

After losing Anthony Santander to the Blue Jays, the Orioles just didn't have any proven power threats in their lineup outside of Henderson, especially with Adley Rutschman out. Now, they added arguably the best pure power hitter in baseball in Alonso, plus Taylor Ward, who hit 36 homers last season. Neither is a perfect hitter, but they play their roles well and create danger throughout Baltimore's lineup.

It may not be the news fans want to hear, but the Orioles could call it done right now and roll with what they have into spring training, and it would be defensible. On paper, they have already shored up the offense well beyond where it was last season, and after signing Eflin, they have now added two starters and several bullpen options of varying quality. That is pretty close to mission accomplished.

So could the Orioles still take a big swing at a frontline starter? Sure, they could, but don't be shocked if the rest of the offseason is quieter than fans hope.

Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.