Orioles pitchers and catchers officially reported for spring training in Sarasota on Wednesday.
With preparations for 2025 underway and expectations higher than ever after back-to-back winless postseason appearances, below are five questions for the start of spring:
1. Will Mike Elias make another notable move?
Despite the disappointing feel to the offseason on the heels of another early exit in the playoffs, the Orioles did spend money with the projected 2025 payroll up to 15th in the majors after a league-high 56% increase from last year, according to FanGraphs.
But did the assortment of one-year deals as well as a post-2025 opt-out attached to Tyler O’Neill’s three-year, $49.5 million contract move the needle in response to the departures of ace Corbin Burnes and slugger Anthony Santander? A projected $161 million payroll does look like a step in the right direction, but Baltimore ranking dead last in 2026 payroll commitments still leaves a foggy long-term picture of where this club is really going.
Last year’s trade for Burnes came out of nowhere just two weeks before the start of spring training, so is a move for a No. 1 starter — or at least someone for the top half of the rotation — still in the cards? That question will linger into the summer when your only starter signings were a 41-year-old (Charlie Morton) and a 35-year-old Japanese pitcher (Tomoyuki Sugano) who’s never played in the majors.
2. Is Grayson Rodriguez ready to headline a starting rotation in need of upside?
We’re not really talking about the Opening Day starter in Toronto next month; this is about taking the ball for Game 1 in October.
Unfortunately, Rodriguez missed the final two months of 2024 with a right lat strain, the second time in three years he’s missed significant time with that type of injury. Anything less than Rodriguez being 100% without any restrictions this spring will be cause for concern when you’re counting on him to take the next step for a rotation lacking the ceiling it enjoyed with Burnes leading the way last year.
We quickly forget this was baseball’s best pitching prospect a couple years ago and someone who pitched to a 2.58 ERA in the second half of his rookie season, earning him a Game 2 start in the 2023 Division Series. The 25-year-old also logged more than 160 innings between the majors and minors in 2023, the minimal durability he needs to display moving forward.
Rodriguez has all the tools to be a top-of-the-rotation starter, but a contending club needs him to put it all together in 2025.
3. What happened to Adley Rutschman last year, and is he past it?
Of all that went wrong for the Orioles over the second half of 2024, a fringe MVP candidate for the better part of two seasons playing below replacement level was very high on the list.
Rutschman, Elias, and manager Brandon Hyde all denied there being an injury to the two-time All-Star catcher, but a slash line of .194/.278/.286 over the final three months was much worse than your typical slump and coincided with him being hit on the hand by a foul tip in late June. If Rutschman truly wasn’t dealing with any injury concern of consequence, his struggles are even more concerning when considering how important he is to Baltimore’s fortunes.
Even if there is no new explanation provided this spring, you certainly want to see signs of turning the page. And while you should never put much stock into Grapefruit League numbers, this is the rare exception where you want to see the 27-year-old Rutschman look like himself again rather than whatever that was over last year’s second half.
4. How close to pre-injury form is Felix Bautista?
Elias acknowledged a couple weeks ago that the 2023 All-Star closer will ramp up this spring in his return from Tommy John surgery, which isn’t surprising at first glance. But he’s also 16 months removed from ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, meaning time should be on his side to be as close to 100% as possible for the bulk of 2025.
Between Bautista’s return, the Andrew Kittredge signing, and the 2025 option being exercised for Seranthony Dominguez, this bullpen has much more upside than a year ago when we were trying to talk ourselves into aging closer Craig Kimbrel being good enough for a World Series contender. When you add in intrigue for the likes of lefty Gregory Soto and 2024 starter Albert Suarez, this bullpen has the potential and depth to be a real strength.
But that still begins with Bautista being at least close to his pre-injury self sooner than later.
5. Which young players are poised to make a jump?
Colton Cowser went from a failed first major league stint in 2023 to finishing second in AL Rookie of the Year voting last season. Jordan Westburg went from being league average as a rookie to playing in the All-Star Game last summer.
Might Jackson Holliday make a similar leap after enduring more than his share of struggles as a talented 20-year-old rookie?
Is Heston Kjerstad finally ready to force his way into the outfield mix with the projected starting trio of Cowser, O’Neill, and Cedric Mullins?
Overshadowed by all the angst surrounding the rotation is an impressive young core of position talent led by MVP candidate Gunnar Henderson that’s a year older and wiser. There is still so much to like about this group, and one or two others popping this year would go a long way in helping the Orioles make a third consecutive trip to the postseason for the first time since winning three straight American League pennants from 1969-71.
