Overall, I agree, other than Bleis. Feels like it would be selling very on him.
The argument would be that the pieces aren't there to make it worth spending the money in 2024. The fan in me doesn't like this argument, but 2025 could conceivably have Mayer and Anthony on the roster.
Everyone mocked them for not doing anything last winter also and then they won 101 games, I think they'll be just fine.
I'm in favor of keeping Mayer and Anthony and every other legit prospect at this point. I'm not in favor of not spending $$ on short term assets that would help this year while not hurting flexibility in the future. If they aren't going to do that, just sell off Martin and Jansen and sign Pivetta to a deal that will give him more $ this year that allow for him to take a less than might might get in FA.
I keep stating John Means should be available all year he was their best hurler before he got hurt. I do think they should add someone else too but I am not an Orioles fan unless they are playing the Yankees.
aka some kind of combination of Duran, Rafaella and Abreu provides outfield enough outfield value (I do expect some change here)
I'm not saying they aren't going to contend this year, but it has to be disheartening to see the team do essentially nothing when they are so close. I'm sure the fans are used to it by now, but I'm guessing it sure would have felt good to add some pitching. Once again, offseason is not over yet so maybe they end up doing something. Adding someone like Hader would also be pretty great for them with Bautista out for the year. I think Grayson Rodriguez will make the leap this year, so a Bradish-Rodriguez top of the rotation is pretty nice, but I'm meh on the rest, including Means. In any event, as a Sox fan, I will not complain if they do nothing of note.
If the price really is dropping, the Mariners might come back into play
People overrate spending money every winter. Again, countless articles were written last winter about how BAL was too cheap and was wasting their window of young talent, blah blah blah. Then they won 101 games and are in decidedly better position now than they were a year ago.
I just don’t that the Rangers have the money and the rotation is pretty full if fully healthy.
That's the thing. The Sox can spend over $70 million this offseason and only incur a penalty of up to $12 million (and a potential hit of an extra $500,000 next year from the international signing budget if they sign a Free Agent who received a qualifying offer). It is just money and the team has a TON of it. If there is a move that makes the team better this year and beyond, do it! This team is close enough to being competitive that they need to do more than tread water. For what it is worth, I do think they will make another big move or two and I can only hope that the talk of needing to shed salary is just subterfuge.
Agreed, and that may be where the two year contract approach is coming in to play. Someone posted upthread a paraphrase of an Andrew Friedman quote basically saying that if you try to find value with every free agent, you're going to finish 3rd in the bidding most of the time.
Teams getting creative for affordable starting pitching.... the guy has started 8 games his entire career and pitched a total of about 235 innings.... man that's a stretch.
That's a lot of the reason why a lot of folks are upset they have done absolutely nothing yet in free agency, and it's a valid take, especially if you believe they aren't going to spend. 6/180 for Snell and how many people here hate that? I only use that as an example because it's been reported that's what it will take to get him.
As an Orioles fan, would you be happy with this offseason (ignoring that the fanbase has come to expect this)? To be completely inactive in both the trade market and free agency would disappoint me quite a bit. They won 101 games, but their rotation is suspect to me and while their bullpen was a strength last year, they lost one of the best relievers in all of baseball for 2024. I'm not saying they should have signed any huge free agent, but even someone like Stroman would have definitely added good depth to their staff.
The Orioles are positioned as well as any team in baseball right now, including the Dodgers. They're almost certainly going to add Cease at some point too, but either way, I'd be thrilled to be an Orioles fan right now, yes.
No argument from me about being happy to be an Orioles fan (I don't think anyone would argue that). And if they add someone like Cease, that would be huge for them (and, as an Orioles fan, I would think that would be a relatively good offseason). I just doubt that any Orioles fan was thinking "if we go through the offseason and don't improve out team, I will be happy about that." As of now, they haven't done anything of consequence. If they do not do anything of consequence for the rest of the offseason, I would be very disappointed as an Orioles fan (this is my sole argument). If they add someone like Cease (or even someone lesser), that would vastly change my opinion. I agree they are in a strong position now and the next 5 years or so, but pretty much every team can use improvement in the offseason and they have not done that yet.
People especially overrate throwing money at pitching. Mind you, I would love Monty as I've said all along, but I suspect they don't value him at 3x or 5x or 10x what they can get from someone else. You can win with huge contract guys, and I would feel more comfortable with them trying that route for at least one mainstay type, but it's far from guaranteed or required.
Honestly, I forgot about Kimbrel so good call on that. He's certainly a roller coaster as Sox fans know but he's a nice piece to have in the bullpen. I think my big wish as an Orioles fan would be for them to add a starter, and both you and JA are probably right that they will add one.
I'm digging the conversation for what it's worth. Learning about the competition is awesome.
It is. I wonder how much of it was
Fried of course might yet be extended by the Braves, or quickly re-signed the way Nola was by the Phillies.
Or they value guys in their 20s/early 30s, to the exclusion of commitments beyond that.
Or if nothing else, it makes sense to let Breslow settle in and not rush out on some big shopping spree, except for sure things -- of which there were maybe one or two, Yamamoto and Nola, and they had plans to live somewhere else. I had my preferred plan for them but nobody should act hastily based on what I think about MLB roster building. I'll wait.
Extend Pivetta, Houck, and Crawford. Anyone not willing to extend goes in the trade pile for someone young and cost-controlled for 2+ years.
Totally possible but I think it would have happened by now. Just about everybody else on that team has signed an extension. Some analysts saw their trade for Sale and quick extension as a hedge against Fried leaving next winter.
Houck and Crawford don’t need extensions and I think counting on Houck to be anything other than a reliever is poor roster construction.
There is a thread about this exact topic. The current CBA expires after the 2026 season. Having reset the penalties last year, the Sox are in a good position to exceed the first threshhold every year through 2026, with minimal penalties. As long as they don't go over $40 million above the first threshold (this year, that would be staying under $277 million), there won't be any draft penalties.* So I very much agree that the Sox should stay below that $277 million dollar limit but I see no reason to be concerned about exceeding the initial $237 line.
That sounds like a great plan, but the team has shown zero interest in Soto twice now. Different circumstances (trade vs. free agent) and different GM now, but he's already making $30 million in 2024 - is this team really going to outbid the Yankees for his services next year?
Fried had extension talks that went nowhere last winter. He's also their union rep and as such is less likely to give a team discount. Seems like he's invested in hitting FA.
Bello, Crawford, Houck, Whitlock, Winckowski. That's at least five guys under control in 2025 that can start, or who are reportedly training this winter as if they will be starters in 2024.
