The Baltimore Orioles have had a characteristically quiet offseason so far, but it has been extremely quiet even for a club such as Baltimore that tends to not overspend and rather builds from within.
While other teams have been working the telephones organizing blockbuster trades or courting huge free-agent superstars, the Orioles have been content with what got them to the American League Championship Series in 2014.
If it ain’t broke, they won’t fix it.
Nonetheless, the decision to not bring back either corner outfielder in Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis has opened up opportunities for other players to inherit more playing time than they would have been given had the club chosen to re-sign either free agent.
In addition, the decision not to move any of the club’s impending free-agent starting pitchers has caused a logjam at the position, leaving one man out due to the positional surplus.
While any organizational move has the chance to put a negative impact on any player’s season or even career, it seems that Baltimore’s lack of activity this offseason has opened up a lot of opportunity for playing time across the board.
Let’s take a look into the biggest winners and losers on the Baltimore Orioles this offseason.