by Good morning, Birdland!
It won’t truly be “offseason” for another few weeks, but the Orioles are already making moves. On Friday, it was reported that the team would part ways with three coaches: backup coach Fredi González, major league coach Jose Hernández and assistant coach Ryan Fuller.
What impact these changes will have is unclear, especially since we don’t yet know if/how these coaches will be replaced. Considering how flat the club seemed from July onwards, hearing new voices seems like a welcome change.
Some have speculated online that the organization might look to promote Triple-A manager Buck Britton to the major league roster in some capacity. There’s no evidence that this is happening at this point and I’m not so sure the logic works. The current prevailing theory is that the Orioles need new prospects and guys who are battle-tested at the major league level. Britton, for all the success he’s had in the organization, is none of those things.
However, firing so many coaches at once seems to be putting a lot of pressure on Brandon Hyde. After last season, the club made pitching coach changes, reappointing Chris Holt and firing Darren Holmes. This year they have focused on changes to other elements of the game, including firing Hyde’s lieutenant González. If things go wrong again in October 2025 (assuming the team actually makes the playoffs), there will be nowhere else to go right by Hyde.
To some this may seem unfair. Hyde helped build this team from the disaster it experienced when he took over to today. But the talent of this team is undeniable and repeated short stays in the playoffs are unacceptable. They are dangerously close to wasting the best years of this player core. We hope any changes they make will be the magic bullet to fix the problems.
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Leftovers for breakfast | Smelled Kubatko
Here are some interesting Arizona Fall League updates, including some quick scouting from Tyler Burch. The 27-year-old currently reaches speeds of 98 miles per hour on his rides. He is eligible for the Rule 5 draft in December, so the Orioles likely won’t be sure what they have before making a decision. He threw a total of 9.1 innings this year after undergoing surgery on his right elbow to remove bone chips.
Who will lead the rotation and other offseason questions for O’s | MLB.com
It will be interesting to learn whether the lack of free agent spending so far is entirely due to the Angelos family’s recent spending restraint or whether it was also a team-building hire by Mike Elias. That’s not to say Dave Rubenstein can match Steve Cohen’s penchant for writing checks, but he should have more flexibility than the previous ownership group.
Examining the Orioles’ coaching changes | Baltimore baseball
Rich Dubroff points out how much turnover there has been in the last two seasons. It definitely feels like a turning point for Hyde. Should the person lead the Orioles to the promised land? Signs suggest that 2025 will be his last attempt.
Orioles birthdays
Is it your birthday? Happy Birthday!
- Francisco Pena is now 35. He played 19 games for the Orioles between 2016 and 2017.
- Nolan Reimold celebrates his 41st birthday. The outfielder had two injury-plagued stints with the Orioles, from 2009 to 2013 and again from 2015 to 2016.
- Paul Janish turns 42. He was a reserve infielder for the Orioles from 2015 to 2017.
- Leslie Brea is 51 years old. Between 2000 and 2001, he played a total of eight games for the Orioles.
- Sid Fernandez turns 62 today. Between 1994 and 1995, he appeared in a total of 27 games for the Orioles, mostly as a starter.
- The late one Ray Murray (b. 1917, d. 2003) was born on this day. He appeared in 22 games as a catcher for the 1954 O’s.
This day in history
1969 – The Orioles lose Game 2 of the World Series 2-1 to the Mets. Dave McNally is passed by the Queens combination of Jerry Koosman and Ron Taylor, who hold the O’s to just two hits.
1979 – A four-RBI game for Kiko Garcia leads the Orioles to an 8-4 victory over the Pirates in Game 3 of the World Series.
1997 – The O’s jump to a 4-2 lead against Cleveland and ultimately lose 8-7, falling to 3-1 in the ALCS. Brady Anderson, Harold Baines and Rafael Palmeiro all hit home runs, but it wasn’t enough to compensate for Scott Erickson’s poor start.
2012 – The Orioles’ fairytale season comes to an end as CC Sabathia and the Yankees beat them 3-1 in Game 5 of the ALDS. Sabathia threw a complete game, beating off an impressive start from Jason Hammel. The lone Baltimore run scored with a Lew Ford single in Matt Wieters.
