Despite the frustrating exit in the playoffs this year, the Baltimore Orioles are in a great spot regarding their future.
Yes, there is a chance they take a step back in the immediate if they aren’t able to keep Corbin Burnes and Anthony Santander as part of this team, but because they have drafted, developed and acquired young talent so well under general manager Mike Elias, the Orioles are set up for long-term success.
What becomes imperative for the organization going forward is making sure their franchise cornerstones are locked into deals that will keep them in Baltimore for virtually the rest of their careers.
At the forefront of that is catcher Adley Rutschman and shortstop Gunnar Henderson.
Despite the struggles at the plate Rutschman had this past season, he is clearly still part of their plans going forward since the Orioles’ turnaround really started the day he was promoted to The Show back in 2022 when he finished runner-up in AL Rookie of the Year voting.
At just 26 years old, he’s already proven to be one of the best players at his position across Major League Baseball, and with him entering arbitration for the first time this offseason, fans have been imploring the team to go ahead and lock him into a long-term deal.
Same goes for Henderson.
After winning AL Rookie of the Year last season, he was in the MVP conversation for the majority of the campaign and looks like he’ll be one of the game’s brightest stars throughout his career.
He is still in pre-arbitration, so his salary won’t take a major leap next year like Rutschman, but ensuring he stays in Baltimore is on the minds of everyone inside and outside the organization.
So where do the Orioles stand on getting something worked out?
Well, it sounds like something could be coming according to comments made by Elias.
“… you look at our group of young players right now, we do have an impressive young group that’s been drafted here, home grown, with good heads on their shoulders, and there are many of them where you look at them and go, ‘Man, I wish we had these guys longer than they’re currently contracted for.’ And that’s a big part of the equation. We know that. It’s something we work on quietly in the background and I don’t talk about what we’re doing or not doing, but it would certainly be front and center for a front office to be working on those things,” he said per Roch Kubatko of MASN.
That is a great sign.
Like the general manager alluded to, he’s not going to come out and flatly say they’re close to getting something done, but his comments did indicate it’s something they are working on.
