Burnes, Santander, McCann, Means, 4 others file for free agency; Orioles director of pitching Chris Holt leaves

Free agency began on Thursday, and the Orioles’ top starting pitcher, Corbin Burnes, and leading home run hitter, outfielder Anthony Santander, declared for free agency. They were joined by left-hander John Means, catcher James McCann and outfielder Austin Slater.

Right-hander Brooks Kriske, who was selected off waivers from Cincinnati on August 25^th but was never recalled from Triple-A Norfolk, also declared for free agency.

Right-hander Burch Smith and outfielder Daniel Johnson refused outright assignments to Norfolk and have elected free agency.

The Orioles acquired outfielder Daz Cameron from Oakland for cash considerations. Cameron spent the 2023 season with Norfolk and hit .200 with five home runs and 15 RBIs in 66 games with Oakland this season.

The Orioles’ 40-man roster has 33 players.

Holt leaves: Chris Holt, who came with executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias to the Orioles in 2018, has left the team. Holt was director of pitching in 2024 after also serving as pitching coach from 2021-2023. He’ll be replaced by Forrest Herrmann, who was the team’s lower-level pitching coordinator last season. The news was first reported by MASNSports.com and confirmed by an industry source.

Staffing news: The Orioles announced a series of front office promotions. The most prominent were: Mike Snyder to vice president, pro scouting; Brendan Fournie to senior director, baseball strategy and operations; and Di Zou to senior director, baseball systems & analytics operations.

Trey Wiedman, who was MLB strength coach, is now head MLB strength coach.   

Call for questions: I answer Orioles questions most weekdays. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com.