There hasn’t been much to provide offseason hope for a last place baseball team but Luke Jones and Nestor agree that the emergence of Trevor Rogers and encouraging return of Kyle Bradish to the top of the Orioles rotation helps ease some pressure on a Birdland offseason of unrest for Mike Elias and a franchise in search of better pitching and awakened, youthful bats next spring.
Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discussed Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish as the Orioles’ best offseason news for 2026. Rogers has an impressive 1.35 ERA over 100 innings, with a potential Cy Young vote. Bradish has shown significant improvement in his last five starts. Despite the Orioles’ overall disappointing season, these pitchers offer hope for the future. However, they emphasized the need for additional top-tier starting pitchers and improvements in the offense, particularly from the young core like Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman, who have underperformed. The conversation also touched on the importance of coaching changes and bullpen depth.
- [ ] Evaluate the long-term potential of Coby Mayo and determine if he should be an everyday player or part of a platoon.
- [ ] Assess the Orioles’ young core of position players and determine what changes or additions are needed to the offense this offseason.
- [ ] Hire a new manager and coaching staff to provide fresh eyes and approaches for developing the Orioles’ talented young players.
- [ ] Acquire at least one, if not two, top-end starting pitchers to bolster the rotation alongside Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish.
- [ ] Address the Orioles’ bullpen issues and build a more reliable relief corps for the 2026 season.
Trevor Rogers’ Impressive Performance
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discuss Trevor Rogers’ impressive performance, noting his 100-inning run with a 1.35 ERA.
- Luke Jones highlights Rogers’ potential to have been a top starter if he had started earlier in the season.
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones reflect on Rogers’ debut at Fenway Park and his subsequent demotion and recall.
- Luke Jones mentions Rogers’ peripherals, suggesting he has been elite despite some good fortune.
Comparisons to Past Performers and Future Prospects
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones compare Rogers’ performance to past pitchers like Jeff Ballard and Chris Waters.
- Luke Jones notes Rogers’ success in Florida and the belief system that led to his acquisition.
- Discussion on Kyle Stowers’ struggles and the trade that brought Rogers to the Orioles.
- Luke Jones argues that Rogers deserves down-ballot Cy Young votes due to his impressive performance.
Kyle Bradish’s Emergence
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discuss Kyle Bradish’s recent performances, noting his five-start streak.
- Luke Jones emphasizes the importance of Bradish’s contributions, especially in competitive games.
- Nestor Aparicio acknowledges the challenges of evaluating performances in “garbage time” games.
- Luke Jones highlights the need for a legitimate playoff-caliber starting pitcher despite Bradish and Rogers’ progress.
Orioles’ Rotation and Bullpen Needs
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discuss the Orioles’ rotation, including Tyler Wells and Grayson Rodriguez.
- Luke Jones expresses skepticism about Rodriguez’s readiness to be a top starter due to his injury history.
- Discussion on the need for depth in the rotation and the potential for Rodriguez to be a reliever.
- Luke Jones emphasizes the importance of a top-tier bullpen and the potential contributions of Keegan Akin and Cage Stroud.
Offensive Performance and Future Needs
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discuss the Orioles’ offensive struggles since the trade deadline.
- Luke Jones highlights the team’s poor performance in runs scored and strikeout rate.
- Discussion on the need for a new manager and coaching staff to improve offensive performance.
- Luke Jones emphasizes the importance of addressing the young core’s underperformance and the need for additional bats.
Impact of Injuries and Offseason Plans
- Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discuss the impact of injuries on the Orioles’ season.
- Luke Jones argues that the young core has been a colossal disappointment despite some encouraging performances.
- Discussion on the need for a new manager and coaching staff to improve overall performance.
- Luke Jones emphasizes the importance of addressing the bullpen and rotation needs in the offseason.
Luke Jones and Nestor discuss …s best offseason news for 2026
Mon, Sep 22, 2025 10:25AM • 31:39
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Trevor Rogers, Kyle Bradish, Orioles offseason, Cy Young, pitching rotation, bullpen depth, young core, offensive performance, injuries, manager hiring, coaching staff, American League, baseball statistics, 2026 season, Mike Elias.
SPEAKERS
Nestor Aparicio, Luke Jones
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home. We are W, N, S T. Am 1570 task of Baltimore. We are Baltimore, positive, positively. Getting Ready for Some Football, for some Monday Night Football, but there was baseball over the weekend i i went to see yacht rock review. My big thanks to the sound stage. Never more Hall. New people in the old Rams Head. And my wife and I got to go downtown and fight for parking. We found a great parking spot, so we felt great about it. And I got down there, and they had a pickle festival, first things first. So there’s people everywhere. A lot of Aaron judge jerseys, not as many Mandel and Babe Ruth jerseys as as you may think, but baseball was on my brain a little bit over the weekend. It was a football weekend. I did a lot of rock and roll last week. If you follow me on social media, you know that ran around the west coast with my wife playing the fool. This is what I do when they I get thrown out by Chad stealing Greg Bader, Luke. I have to make my own fun and go chase the WHO around the Hollywood Bowl and go to the Celebrity Theater and see the ghost of meatloaf and stuff like that. But there was a baseball thing here, and there were Yankees jerseys everywhere, and I watched football all day. Sunday I flew a red eye home out of Phoenix on I got home at 530 in the morning on Sunday morning, took the power nap, got up at 11 o’clock, pot of coffee, and it was just wall to wall, Joe Flacco and the Packers. By the way, those Browns jerseys, they look good like. That’s the first thing I’ve seen the Browns ever wear that I’m like, that looks okay. That’s like a modern thing. But it was a throwback day for the yucca nears right in the and throwback for Patriot Pat right? And I don’t I mean, the Titans need to throw up. They’re so horrible. I hope they never put the oiler jersey on again, although I’ll be wearing my Derrick Henry oiler Jersey tonight. Football’s great, and when it mixes with baseball this time of year, it’s a whole lot more fun when we’re playing well. But I know this Rogers thing, dude. It’s been all over my timeline. It’s a biblical run for 100 innings of a pitcher in a nondescript year where nothing matters for the Orioles. It’s all grapefruit at this point. But my God, we I mean football and the Yankees in town and the Grand Slam we we don’t talk about that, then it becomes spring training. But it was a good weekend on the couch, right?
Luke Jones 02:30
Yeah, it was, and you mentioned Trevor Rogers. I mean, I wrote about it. I guess it was Saturday morning at Baltimore positive.com it’s something that I and I would even include you and me in this when I make this statement, we haven’t appreciated what Trevor Rogers has done enough. I mean, he’s over 100 innings now, and I
Nestor Aparicio 02:49
get it. This is for me at Fernando. This is crazy. These stats, right? He has a 1.35 era,
Luke Jones 02:58
I mean, for over half a season now, like if he had been there, number two, number three, their number five starter coming out of opening, out of out of opening day. You know, if he had pitched the home opener rather than Cade Povich back in what, early April, at that point in time, he would have been, he might have started the all star game. I mean, that’s how impressive this has been. And it’s just been something that, because the team has been so disappointing, because of everything that’s gone wrong, because of the fact that, let’s face it, he made his season debut, if you recall, it was the night cap of that twin bill at Fenway Park Memorial Day weekend, day in the pre in the first game of that, that double header, they had fallen to a season worse, 18 games under 500 the season was over. I mean, it was over. Brandon Hyde had been fired the weekend before, but for Trevor Rogers to arrive at that point. And it’s funny, because even with that start, he got sent back down, if you recall, and wasn’t back up for another three weeks,
Nestor Aparicio 04:02
there was nothing to give anybody any confidence for this, right? For, I mean, sort of this Koufax run he’s on.
Luke Jones 04:09
I mean, it’s, it’s, it’s one of those things where you look at it and say, Look, is he going to have a one five era next year? No, of course, I hope so. But everything about the peripherals, though, suggest he’s still gonna he right. I mean, it’s, it’s fluky in the sense that it’s a 135, but like you look at, you look at the batting average on balls and play, yes, he’s had some good fortune. You look at FIP, which is a number that’s to eliminate, you know, the the effect of batted balls and defense and all that. It’s still an era in the in the mid twos, right? Or not an era, but a fifth in the mid twos, where you’d say, all right, even if you take away the fact that, or you acknowledge, not take away, because it’s part of the game, but even if you acknowledge there’s been some good fortune mixed in there, he’s still. Been elite. He’s still been excellent. This is a guy that at this point in time, and I, you know, me, I’m not, I’m not Mr. Hot take. You know, a month ago, I was skeptical about making a statement like this.
Nestor Aparicio 05:11
Well, I’m old enough to have seen Jeff Ballard, you know, I’ve seen guys put this in a can for six months, right?
Luke Jones 05:17
Yeah, but, but even then, I mean, like, you know, I think back to Chris waters, right? I mean, that was like 20 years ago. He had a couple amazing starts to kind of, and then he turned back into, well,
Nestor Aparicio 05:27
this guy had done it before, in in Florida, right? I mean, yeah. I mean, that’s that. That was part of what the belief system that Elias and my del and all of them had to make that deal last year, was, we think we can get that back, right?
Luke Jones 05:43
Yeah. I mean, that was the thought. I mean, even if you couldn’t get that back. And when we say that, we mean what, he was in 2021 which was second in Rookie of the Year. He was an all star, albeit for a bad Marlins team. But you’re looking at it and saying, all right, you know? And that was always the thought. The thought was Kyle Stowers. We don’t really have a place for him right now. It hasn’t worked out right now. And look, they that’s still not going to be something that I ignore in terms of, why couldn’t Kyle Stowers find success more quickly in Baltimore? But the thought was, you’re going to get someone who’s going to help your rotation. It was a disaster last year. We all know that back in May and June, that trade looked like, you know, you might view it through a lens similar to the Glenn Davis trade, you know, and in terms of how that turned out for the Orioles. But when you look at the landscape of the American League right now, of course, Google’s winning the Cy Young Award, as he should. And of course, Garrett crochet has had a fantastic year, and Hunter brown for the Astros has had an outstanding year. Those would still be my top three for Cy Young. But beyond those top three, I think you absolutely can make an argument for Trevor Rogers to show up on ballots, fourth or fifth. I mean, I think he’s going to get down ballot votes. In fact, I can almost say with certainty that he’s going to, if you kind of catch my drift, you know, interacting with people in Major League Baseball who vote on such things, you know, he’s going to get down ballot votes, and he deserves it, because you’re talking about, yes, we understand a smaller sample. That’s why I’m not saying he’s the Cy Young Award winner, because he hasn’t done it for 200 innings or 32 starts, but he’s pitched enough, and he’s pitched enough at an incredibly high elite level where you say, Man, this has been really, really impressive. I mean, and you know, this is a stat. It’s not the end all be all for pitchers, but wins above replacement war. You know, we tend to talk about it more in terms of position players, but baseball reference, Trevor Rogers is third in the American League in war for pictures, the only ones who are considered more valuable with that metric have been terrix, Google and Hunter Brown of the Astros. I mean, that speaks to what kind of company he’s in right now. So for all the disappointment, for for as miserable as 2025 has been for as many questions as they still have in terms of what Mike Elias is going to do in terms of hiring a manager, you know, bringing in a general manager, right? Because Mike Elias is, quote, president of baseball operations, for all the work they have to do with their bullpen, all of that, you know, the offense, which you know, I’ll get to in a minute, because want to share a stat for you. But with what Trevor Rogers has done and what Kyle Bradish did once again on Sunday, I just pulled Bradish his last five starts off, he’s been fantastic. No, this isn’t like, oh, he looks, you know, oh, he’s been healthy and oh he’s, he’s, he’s gotten some innings under his belt.
Nestor Aparicio 08:49
I would have taken this in September 2023, straight away I look at his stats and say this is where he was before.
Luke Jones 08:56
Yeah, absolutely. And honestly, Nestor, when you start to drill down with some of the peripherals and how he’s pitching, you could actually make the argument that he’s actually been better. I mean, again, it’s five starts, not, Let’s not get crazy, but the point is, you’re talking about a very legitimate, and I don’t want to say one two, because, to me, that lets Mike Elias and the organization off the hook in terms of, like, what they still need to go out and get, which is still very much a legitimate playoff caliber starting pitcher. You know me, I’m not big into the oh, he’s Is he a one or a two? Is he a two or a three? Point? Is someone that fits into that range somewhere? But I prefer it not to be a three. I’d prefer it to be a one or a two. But the point is, you’re starting to see this crystallize with the caveat that health is a question for any pitcher at any given point. Right? We know that Corbin Burns was a great example of that. Garrett Cole going into this year was a great example that guys that had been durable, and suddenly they’re getting Tommy John surgery. So you never truly know. That’s why you do need to. Depth, of course, but in terms of just on paper, as you’re trying to project out what your rotation can look like next year, I feel very good about Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish being two of the three guys that you would look at for a potential postseason rotation now
Nestor Aparicio 10:20
that other can’t be Grayson Rodriguez. No, no, I’m not going
Luke Jones 10:24
to say that. And look, Grayson Rodriguez is up. Is when you’re planning everything. He’s off to the side here. No, you’re not getting rid of him. No, that doesn’t mean that if he is healthy, he’s not in the rotation, because he would be, of course, and that would be a good problem to have, but you can’t plan on that so you have Grayson Rodriguez off to the side, and look, it could turn out, and this is going to be interesting, and probably more of an interesting conversation for spring training, considering Grayson Rodriguez hasn’t pitched in over a year, even if he is healthy, what is his innings limit going to be? Or do you have a conversation at some point to say, maybe he needs to be a reliever. Maybe that’s something that could keep him healthy. I don’t know. Again, spitballing point is, you can’t plan on him to be your number one, your number two or your number three. So but because of how Rogers has looked, because of how Bradish is looking, assuming, you know, they’re each going to make what one more start here to conclude, 2025 we assume. And by
Nestor Aparicio 11:26
the way, I just want to say this on bradishes starts because I’m looking at this, because some people aren’t paying attention. They say, well, it’s garbage time. Yeah, it’s garbage time in Pittsburgh and Chicago and the South Side of Chicago, Yankees, Red Sox, padres, you know, mean, these, these were, these are competitive bait, not all of them, but over the body of the work, it feels like garbage time, because maybe you’re not watching Melvin Mora and Boo pow, squirt people like I am on my social media thread and you’re not on every pitch or whatever, because you’re betting on football. You’re watching college football. Or, hey, the Terps are good, and the Terps have a quarterback, we haven’t talked. We have no oxygen for any of that with Monday Night Football and black jerseys and Matt APKs injury and, you know, just all of that goes on, but this has been a competitive streak for all of them to be judged, as you and I pointed out a month ago to say, What’s holiday doing in Garbage Time? What’s gunner doing in car? Who’s Who’s raking, you know what? You like all of who’s performing well, and to have top rotation guys performing well, I don’t know you’d rather have the bats come to life. You and I’ve talked about the some bats, but I would agree. But having this is a this is a good circumstance for the or is good news for the Orioles, yeah,
Luke Jones 12:43
and, and let’s be clear, and this is where I’ll apologize even a little bit Tyler. Wells has been pretty, pretty good as well, right? I was
Nestor Aparicio 12:50
gonna throw him into the mix too, because so easy. This is a Grayson Rodriguez. He’s out bright right now, right? Well, I
Luke Jones 12:57
in the present now. He’s had, but he’s had durability concerns the last you know, even going back a couple years ago. But could
Nestor Aparicio 13:03
he make 26 starts next year and be the next Dean Kramer in that and pitch to a
Luke Jones 13:07
four he could, or he could be a meaningful part of their bullpen next year? I mean, what we’ll see how it plays out. Obviously, spring training, you’ve got an off season. I mean, we saw two two winners ago. Even in the winter, health can creep up, as it did for Kyle Bradish. But I would say, when you look at especially the first two, but also throw wells in there, because I want to, I want to give him a proper nod, because he’s pitched well. I mean, he’s has an era just over two in his first three starts. You know, it hasn’t been, oh my gosh. This is amazing swing and miss stuff like Kyle Bradish continues to show or in the case of Trevor Rogers, he’s now done it for well over half a season. But you’re you’re starting to look at this rotation and you’re saying, hey, they still need to go out and get a very legitimate starting pitcher. Let’s not, you know. I’m not going to say they don’t. But three months ago, Nestor, you’re kind of looking at this rotation and it was just back end guys and a bunch of ifs, whereas now you’re starting to look at this and say, okay, they need another top half of the rotation guy, whether it’s a one, a two or a three, but I’ll buy that guy with Kyle Bradish and with Trevor Rogers as Being a kind of a top three that would look okay, look better than okay in an October series. And you know, you throw wells in there, you know, you still have Dean Kramer and you know, go down the list of other guys that are kind of fit into that, you know, that mix, and you say, all right, it still needs some work. Again, definitely one, if not two, starting pitchers. They need to go out and get in. The other guy would be, in my mind, more of the, you know, the Kyle Gibson back half of the rotation. I don’t mean Kyle Gibson, just that model, you know, when they got him to three years ago. So we’re going to see how that plays out. The bull. 10 is still, I mean, who the heck knows, right? I mean, Keegan Aiken is going to be in the bullpen, you know, hopefully not closing games, because we’ve seen how that’s kind of gone, but, but he’s a legitimate Major League relief pitcher, right? He’s just not a closer, you know? I mean, he’s miscast right now, you know, Cage Stroud has looked of all these kind of no name guys that they’ve called up over the last two months, Cage Stroud has acquitted himself well enough to say, Hey, I’d go to spring training and pencil him in for one of my last bullpen spots if he has a good spring. You know, Dietrich ends, you could kind of throw into that same category, but we know they have a ton of work to do on the bullpen, but seeing what Rogers has done, and seeing Bradish look the way he’s looked, and we talked about this, that man, the Orioles, needed this because of what happened with John, means, because of what happened with Felix Batista this year. You know, it’s made me look bad because I’ve, you know, I’ve pushed back on when we’ve talked about Tommy John, you’ve been more skeptical. But I’ve just tried, tried to present it from a a league wide data standpoint, that the return rate from Tommy John is very, very high in this day and age. But when you have a couple bad examples like the Orioles have had recently, then yeah, you do start to have some doubts about what’s going on. So to see Bradish look the way that he’s looked, to see Tyler wells look the way that he’s looked, understanding that, yes, it’s still a small sample, but so far so good in terms of how they felt, how they’ve looked, how the velocity has looked, how the stuff has looked, it does make you feel better about that aspect of what they need to do this off season, on the flip side, and you mentioned it, and this is where I’ll transition into this. And I don’t want to be too long winded about this, but I found it interesting. I’m going to get I’m going to share two stats with you right now, Nestor, since the trade deadline, remember the Orioles traded away their entire bullpen. And we know the bullpen. You know it. It maybe hasn’t been as bad statistically as I feared it might have been, but it still hasn’t been good. We know that a tryout literally, right, exactly, but, but right now, as they go into this final week since the all star break in the major leagues, the Orioles are a respectable 11th in team era. Now the rotation has really been a big reason why. But the point is, they pitched, and they’ve pitched better than we would have expected offensively since the or not, not, since the all star break, since the trade deadline, when, hey, o’hern’s gone. Cedric Mullins is gone, Ramon Laureano gone. They’re last in the majors in run scored. I mean, just let that marinate and and I get it like they’re they’re a couple that’s the worst offense in Major League Baseball over the last two months for a last place team with a young core that. And look, I know there’s still been that’s supposed to be the strong side of the ball. I get it and people say, well, Adley hasn’t played. And Westberg noted, that’s not me saying I expect them to be number one in the league then because of what what I just said. But last I’m going to continue to say it, man. They will talk about their injuries. Noted injuries absolutely were a massive part of what happened to this ball club in 2025 there’s no question around that. That’s not an excuse. That’s That’s reality when you have as many injuries as they had. We will talk about Mike Elias offseason and the failure of the rotation early on, that put them in a hole where they were 16 and 34 through their first 50 games. I mean, it was over before Memorial Day. We’ll talk about that, and that’s part of it, no question about it, this young core has been a failure this year. I mean, it just has been. There’s no need to sugarcoat it. These guys are professionals. It’s been a failure. Now, I’m not trying to pick on any one individual, but as a collective group, knowing that this team deliberately was bad for multiple years to draft these guys early, and that Mike Elias built everything around this young core, they were a colossal disappointment this year. And really, all of them saved for beavers coming up and doing what he’s done, which has been the most encouraging development out of anyone on a position player front you know, basayo, it it’s still such a small sample for him. Jackson holiday grading on a curve. He’s trending up compared to where he was last year. He’s still not where he needs to be. You know, Gunner Henderson hasn’t had a bad year in a vacuum, but relative to what you need him to be, it’s been disappointing. Adley rutschman for a second straight year, has you asking, like, what hap what’s happened to this guy? I Jordan Westberg, his production is not bad, but he can’t stay on the field. Colton cowser has been a massive disappointment. Heston kerstad, we don’t even talk about it anymore. And again, I want to be sensitive to whatever issues he’s dealing with that this club will not talk about publicly. Which leads you to believe that it’s more than just, you know, a typical baseball injury, but you kind of just go down the list, and it’s like, these are the guys that are supposed to be leading the way, and they’ve been a colossal disappointment. So everything that Mike Elias needs to do this off season on the pitching side, in terms of hiring a manager and a coaching staff, reshaping the front office,
Nestor Aparicio 20:38
well, there’s no question about who’s in charge, right? He’s not getting fired a week from now, right? At least, at least not right now. Yeah. I mean, you know, he’s running a joint and he made all you know, he is, um, he’s Bill Parcells. He’s in the grocery store picking pick any ingredients, right?
Luke Jones 20:54
But this is going to be me, and I’m not alone in this. Or plenty. There are people that were saying this before me where I was a little more skeptical about this, they need to go out and get a couple bats. Because if you are counting on this young core to lead the way to the extent that they’re going to need because, you know, even with all of the optimism with the rotation, with Bradish and what Rogers has done, what Wells has looked like in his first few starts back. We’re not talking about a pitching staff that’s going to be, you know, one of the best in baseball next year, but certainly, you know, you have optimism that it can be better if, I mean, they’re going to figure out how to build a bullpen. I mean, that’s going to be really interesting to see how that’s going to play out. But this offense, I mean, pu it’s, it’s not nearly good enough. I mean, the runs, I think they’re second, and they have the second worst strikeout rate over the last two months of the season. You know, where only the
Nestor Aparicio 21:53
well, that’s not shocking, right? That’s form. That’s what these guys have been to some degree, right,
Luke Jones 22:00
to a point, but not really.
Nestor Aparicio 22:02
I mean, I look at Kobe mayo and I think he’s Dave Kingman without the home runs, and that dude, that’s it.
Luke Jones 22:07
That’s that’s part of the prop, but that’s part of the problem not to pick on mayo, and he’s someone I didn’t mention. Look, Mayo’s played. He’s had everyday playing time for two months. And let me be clear, if you’re going to ask me, in a big picture sense, if I still am a believer that Kobe Mayo can figure it out and become a good major league hitter, yes, however, I’m starting to have my doubts if it’s going to be on the timeline that’s going to align with where this franchise needs to be. With only three more years of gunner Henderson control left, right? I mean, only a couple more years of Adley rutschman control left, you know, the the fact that they need to win now, right?
Nestor Aparicio 22:42
And also thinking that it was going to replace mount Castle’s best day, right? Whatever that is, that it was going to be a 2530
Luke Jones 22:48
good. Mount Castle’s not that good. I mean, I what he was four years ago,
Nestor Aparicio 22:53
yes, that on his best. Say yes, that he was going to be a 25 to 28 home run guy, hit 251, drive an 80 run be a niggling first base statistic. Guy, not necessarily 42 home runs or Santan there, but thinking it could get there. They think all of these guys could get there. I mean, other than maybe westburg, they believe all of these guys are 25 to 40 home run, 100 RBI that think they believed all of them could walk maybe 60 to 90 times somewhere in there, but they would all strike out 100 right?
Luke Jones 23:27
Yeah. I mean, I think the walk piece, maybe I’d push back on because, I mean, I don’t see anything in their philosophy that that emphasizes that. I mean, beavers is the exception. You know, right now, if you’re going to ask me to to fill out my 2026 lineup. Beavers is going to be my leadoff hitter. Well, to your
Nestor Aparicio 23:45
point, there’s no statistical evidence to show that any of these guys have any pedigree to walk more or strike out less.
Luke Jones 23:52
I mean, they’re right. There are a couple guys, but it hasn’t been nearly enough of an emphasis. Now I will say this because I want to. I want to say this in the interest of fairness, despite the fact that, as I said, over the last two months of the season, they’ve been last in the majors and runs scored. They actually are sixth in walk rate, but they’re 29th and strikeout rate. Only the angels have struck out at a more frequent clip than them. But you know, the power hasn’t been there so and look, the coaching definitely factors into this. This is why I don’t want to hear about any and I don’t think it’s going to happen, but I don’t want to hear any notion of because they’ve played marginally better since firing Brandon Hyde, and they have, right? I mean, they’re, what, going into this final week, they’re eight games over 500 from the time that they were, what, 18 under in late May, you know? I mean, okay, like, whoop dee doo, right? I mean, they’ve been better. I think we all thought at the time that they weren’t truly going to be a 110, loss team in terms of talent. Yeah, right, which is where they were trending at that point in time. So I think we all expected them to play better, but that’s where I look at this and say, you need a new manager. You need all new coaches. That’s not to say that all these coaches are inept. I think you just need fresh eyes and fresh minds on this group, because they’re supposed to be really talented, right? I mean, it’s one thing to look at the pitching staff going into the season and saying that rotation isn’t good enough on paper. It’s another thing to look at these highly touted prospects that you’ve held on to and you didn’t trade them for known commodities, with a couple exceptions and but, but, but it hasn’t come together, right? And these guys have not been very good, or they’ve had injury issues, like, it’s just they’ve got to figure that out, because I’m sorry if they don’t have a higher percentage of this young core to figure it out and become the guys that they need them to become. And it doesn’t mean 100% but it needs to be a higher rate than it is right now, then this isn’t going to work. Like, okay, will they be better next year? Sure. Like, I’ll buy that. But being better and being a fringe wild card, that’s not what the rebuild was supposed to be. The rebuild was supposed to be that you had a chance to build something that had a really serious chance of winning a World Series. Well, they were
Nestor Aparicio 26:22
bragging about how many one ones they have, which basically is bragging about how how bad you, how shitty you are. Yeah. I mean, how many one ones you gonna put together, and then they have to blossom, right? And well,
Luke Jones 26:33
and the point, and what’s funny about that is, I mean, you didn’t have to be a one. And let’s be clear, 2019 2018 they weren’t deliberately trying to get the number one pick that we know that Adley rutschman was the result of. They the Duquette era cratered at the end, right? They actually, you know, they signed Alex Cobb and wanted to try to win a wild card that year. So we understand that year. But what’s ironic about this is the guys that you’re feeling the best about right now, as we’re winding down the 2025 season. You know, I still put Gunnar Henderson at the top of the list. Gunner wasn’t a one one. Jordan Westberg, if he can stay healthy, but he wasn’t a one one. Dylan, beavers wasn’t a one one, right? So when you talk in terms of, you know, being bad. You know, staying bad in 2020 and or 19 and 20 and 21 and you know that you look at the one ones, I mean Richmond. I mean, where the heck? Where the heck is he in his career at this point in time? You know, Jackson holiday has taken a step, but, man, I’m hoping there’s at least a couple more steps with from where he is right now. Otherwise, you know, is that really a one, one that’s dramatically moving the needle? So, man, there’s a lot, there’s a lot that needs to happen on the coaching front. And quite frankly, this isn’t JV baseball. These are professionals, right? These guys, even when you’re making the minimum, you’re still being paid very handsomely in Major League Baseball, these guys got to figure this out, because this is way below the bar, you know? And if there was something I wanted to take away from the final two months of the season, beyond Bradish coming back and wells coming back and Trevor Rogers continuing to do his thing. What did I say? It was, it was wanting to see the young core trending in the right direction. There’s not nearly enough of that going on right now. Beavers, yes, seeing besides, Oh, get some big hits, even if his numbers overall still aren’t very good. I’m, I’m fine with that, right? But, you know, Colton cowser, I mean, two months ago we were at we were trying to see if he was going to be the everyday center fielder. Now I’m starting to question whether he should be an everyday player, or does he need to be a platoon guy? I mean, that’s how much he’s how discipline
Nestor Aparicio 28:55
tune guy in your 26 What are you right?
Luke Jones 28:59
I’ll disagree with that. There’s a lot of that. I mean, the Yankees platoon guys, the Blue Jays platoon guys, there’s more of that than you think in modern baseball. But the point is, compared to where you thought he was going to be when he was second in rookie of the year last year. Man, it hasn’t gone in a good direction. So, and you know, to go you mentioned Kobe mayo, and I just said this in passing. Look, if this were 2021 and the Orioles were still perceived to be a couple years away from contending, then I’d be fine with saying, all right, Kobe, go get them. Go out there, and you’re going to start 145 games at first base, and you’re going to figure it out, is this team really in a position where they can afford to give him every day at bats, when you’re already going to be doing that with Samuel basayo, who, you know, has been extended, and I still feel really good about the sale big picture wise, but I don’t think you can do that with two spots like I don’t think you can do that. With first base and DH, so that’s where I kind of look at this thing and say, you absolutely need an outfielder. Because, okay, beavers at one spot, cows are at one spot, even though, like I said, I mean, I’m starting to wonder if he’s a guy that you’re gonna have to sit against lefties because he’s struggles so much. Tyler O’Neill, yeah, if he’s healthy, he’ll be in the lineup, but you can’t count on that for more than maybe 100 games at best, and that’s going off of his more favorable years of his track record. So you need an outfielder, but I kind of look at how they’re constructed. You know, I’m not really interested in seeing Ryan mountcastle back on an everyday basis for what he’s going to make in his final year of arbitration, and Kobe Mayo just hasn’t taken advantage of the opportunity nearly enough. So I’d argue, I think you need a first baseman now. Will the Orioles agree with that? You know, I don’t. I don’t know nearly enough as a major league baseball analytics department in a front office that certainly thinks they know everything. So we’ll see. But man, to bring it back full circle, and then we can, you know, pivot to another talking point. I’ll continue to say it, because I’ve said it since April. This offense was a colossal disappointment, and in my mind, a way bigger disappointment than the pitching in 2025
Nestor Aparicio 31:17
All right, we’ll take a break. We’ll come back. We’re getting some back. Football. Happening. Sunday football, Monday Night Football. Ravens on the field. Nandi Mada, BK injury, who’s going to rush the pass or all that? I am Nestor. We are wnst. Am 1570 Towson, Baltimore. Don’t say we ignore the Orioles. Katie, we’re here for you, Mr. Rubenstein, we still like baseball. You.
