The Baltimore Orioles knew they would have some tough decisions to make this winter, and after they chose to bring back slugger Ryan O’Hearn and relievers Seranthony Dominguez and Cionel Perez by picking up their club options, they also decided to let Danny Coulombe walk in free agency by not picking up his.
For a team on the financial margins with specific areas to improve, the Orioles knew they would have to shave some roster spots somewhere along the line.
That largely comes because of the impending departures of Corbin Burnes and Anthony Santander.
With both stars expected to land megadeals in free agency, Baltimore isn’t expected to compete with the top-of-the-market figures it would take to retain them, but that didn’t stop the front office from extending Qualifying Offers.
This is more of a formality by the Orioles than anything substantive.
With the Qualifying Offer set at $21.05 million for the players who were eligible and offered, there is a slim chance Burnes and Santander sign, however, if the duo does depart in free agency like expected, Baltimore will now receive draft pick compensation.
This is a win-win for general manager Mike Elias and the organization.
If by some chance Burnes or Santander decide to sign the Qualify Offer, the Orioles will have them on the roster, but if they depart to a different team, at least they won’t lose them for nothing as they will get draft capital that has become a major asset for this franchise in recent years.
The players will have until 4 p.m. ET on Nov. 19 to accept or not.
Baltimore will likely be looking for another quality starter this offseason to replace Burnes and pair with Grayson Rodriguez at the top of their rotation, but if that becomes a bit too expensive, they could rely on trade deadline acquisition Zach Eflin to be the one-two punch alongside Rodriguez and pursue a backend option.
As for right field, Heston Kjerstad seems to be the early internal substitute, but replacing the production that Santander had this past year won’t be easy for a young player to do, so they will likely also be in the market for a platoon outfielder this winter.
