Orioles news: Garrett Crochet rumors, final non-tender decisions, and the new Baysox

The Baltimore Orioles look to be among the final group of teams seriously pursuing White Sox lefty Garrett Crochet. Jon Heyman of the NY Post has listed the Orioles as one of the teams with the most interest in Crochet, alongside the Dodgers, Red Sox, and Phillies.

The Red Sox make sense as a potential candidate, as their rotation is weak heading into 2025. The Dodgers seemingly don't have room in the rotation but even after a World Series title in 2024, they're showing no signs of slowing down. The Phillies have been a mixed bag of comments this winter but a healthy Crochet would make them a force in the NL East.

The Orioles could certainly use a top of the line starting pitcher to replace Corbin Burnes' innings next year. At this point, Burnes seems poised to sign elsewhere in free agency and the Orioles will lack a top tier arm without him.

Crochet makes sense on some levels, but there are concerns about both his health and his attitude. He would make the Orioles better on paper but the White Sox will likely be asking for a significant piece in return. It was reported that they were looking at Red Sox star rookie Wilyer Abreu in a trade. If they want a piece like Colton Cowser or Heston Kjerstad going back, that's going to be a tough sell for the Orioles.

On Friday, the Orioles made their final decisions on non-tendering arbitration eligible players. The only eligible guy to be non-tendered was RHP Jacob Webb. While Webb had been surprisingly effective over the past year and a half with Baltimore, he suffered through elbow inflammation this summer. That's likely part of the reasoning why the O's decided to part ways with him.

When coupled with the decision to decline LHP Danny Coulombe's option earlier in the offseason, it's tough to see where Mike Elias is going with the bullpen this winter. Yes, Felix Bautista is due back and he should be a massive boost for an O's bullpen that struggled through 2024.

On the other hand, they're placing a lot of faith in guys like Gregory Soto and Cionel Perez, who have been serviceable but not particularly inspiring. There's a lot of time left in the off-season so we'll have to wait to see how Elias addresses the gaps.

The Orioles' Double-A affiliate, formerly known as the Bowie Baysox, have enacted a rebrand. They're now the Chesapeake Baysox, with some updated logos that are, for what it's worth, truly wonderful. The new crab logo is outstanding.

The Baysox are apparently trying to reach a more broad audience by rebranding as Chesapeake instead of Bowie. You can see arguments for and against it. As Hayes Gardner mentions in The Baltimore Banner, there's not a ton of evidence that name changes like this resonate and lead to increases in attendance, but that doesn't mean it won't drive short term revenue as fans scoop up fun new merchandise.

Whether the rebrand leads to more tickets sold or more revenue for the Baysox is ultimately their problem. It likely won't do much one way or the other. But regardless of what happens, that new logo is amazing.