Orioles Agree to Short-Term Deal With First Baseman

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There is a ton of excitement surrounding the Baltimore Orioles heading into the 2024 season.

After winning an American League-most 101 games last year, they’ll look to build upon that success and attempt to go further into the playoffs.

The roster is full of talent and they have plenty of exciting prospects waiting for their opportunities to get called up.

But, as the young players garner a lot of the attention, the Orioles have also shown a reverence for veteran-types like Anthony Santander, Cedric Mullens, James McCann, Ramon Urias and others.

That’s one of the reasons why Baltimore traded for Ryan O’Hearn prior to the start of the 2023 season, sending cash considerations to the Kansas City Royals to acquire the first baseman.

He had a rough five-year tenure with the Royals, recording an OPS+ of 83 across 1,071 plate appearances and 342 games, splitting time between their Triple-A affiliate and Major League roster.

It was the same case for O’Hearn with the Orioles initially.

He started out in Triple-A, but was called up in April after only playing in 11 minor league games for the organization.

The slugging first baseman had the best offensive season of his career, posting a slash line of .289/.322/.480 with 14 home runs, 60 RBI and an OPS+ of 122.

This prompted Baltimore to agree to a one-year deal with him in 2024 that also has a club option for 2025, which allows both parties to avoid arbitration according to Jake Rill of MLB.com.

Having O’Hearn back this year will be huge boost to the Orioles’ depth.

Ryan Mountcastle missed about 30 more games last season than he had in 2021 and 2022. O’Hearn will give them another option in case he gets hurt again, while also building in some rest days as well.

The short-term contract also gives the franchise flexibility.

There are tons of talented prospects waiting in the minors. If O’Hearn has a down season and one of these elite talents are ready to take the next step in their careers, then moving off the slugger isn’t financially difficult.