4 extensions the Orioles must prioritize when new ownership takes over

Whenever any team has the amount of young talent that the Baltimore Orioles have, it is fair to wonder if there is any way for the team to lock at least some of these guys down long-term. Giving young players extensions long before they come close to running out of team control is all the rage these days, with the Braves, White Sox, Brewers, Mariners, and many other teams all getting notable early deals done in recent years.

Unfortunately, committing long-term money -- even on team friendly deals for absolute studs -- just wasn't going to happen when the Orioles were owned by the Angelos family. However, with Baltimore slowly moving towards a change in ownership that should be more open to spending a bit (in theory), it is time to start thinking about who Baltimore needs to try and commit to in the near future.

Here are 4 extensions the Orioles need to make once their ownership situation is locked in

In fairness, all of these guys are players that the Orioles should be trying to extend, regardless of their ownership situation. All represent the future of Baltimore as a baseball team, and all are supremely talented. Extending all of them is probably a stretch, especially given the agents involved (more on that in a bit), but here are the extensions the Orioles need to try locking in right now.

Gunnar Henderson

A pretty easy place to start is with the reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Gunnar Henderson. Henderson was a revelation last year while accumulating 6.2 rWAR thanks to strong defense, posting an .814 OPS, and cranking 28 homers. Would it be nice if he hit for a bit of a higher average? Sure, but it is important not to overthink this one too much. Henderson is one of the best young players in baseball period, and the Orioles need to try and keep him for as long as possible.

However, there is a big wrinkle in this plan: Scott Boras. Yep, Henderson's agent is the agent that is the least likely to negotiate an early contract extension. To the Orioles' credit, Boras' presence doesn't seem to have stopped Baltimore from trying to get extension talks going already. As long as Boras is willing to listen to offers, the Orioles need to keep trying, even if the odds are low that this duo will pass up big time free agent dollars down the line.