Most Valuable Oriole candidates at the All-Star break

The vote for the Most Valuable Oriole is still two months away, and some of the top candidates at the All-Star break might not be with the team in September, which would make them ineligible.

But it’s always fun to speculate on awards, so here goes:

Ryan O’Hearn

O’Hearn seems like the obvious choice because he was the team’s only All-Star, voted in as the starting designated hitter for the American League.

He leads the team with a .286 average and a .382 on-base percentage, and his 11 home runs are tied for third on the team. O’Hearn’s 34 RBIs are third, and his OPS of .840 is second.

However, O’Hearn’s WAR (Wins Above Replacement) is 1.7, third on the team.

As a pending free agent, O’Hearn seems headed elsewhere ahead of the July 31^st trade deadline.

Ramón Laureano

Laureano is the surprising team leader with an .867 OPS, and he has 11 home runs and 35 RBIs. His .284 batting average is second to O’Hearn’s, and his WAR is 2.5, second on the team.

He also has seven outfield assists.

Laureano has a $6.5 million option for 2026, which could compel the Orioles to keep him but could also make him even more appetizing for a team.

Gunnar Henderson

Henderson has been voted the Most Valuable Oriole the last two seasons, and even though his stats aren’t as good as in the last two seasons, his 2.7 WAR still leads the team.

Henderson is tied for second with Laureano and O’Hearn with 11 home runs. His 31 RBIs, .280 average and .803 OPS aren’t in line with the stats expected from him, but still among the team leaders.

Unlike Laureano and O’Hearn, Henderson isn’t getting traded, and his stat line should improve in the second half of the season.

In 2018, after the massive trade-off, Adam Jones was the only logical candidate for the MVO, and that could be possible again this year.

However, there’s another contender who shouldn’t be ruled out.

Jackson Holliday

Holliday is second on the team with 12 home runs and 38 RBIs. His .259 batting average and .722 OPS aren’t great, but they’re not terrible.

One worrisome stat is that he’s stolen just nine bases in 17 attempts. Former manager Brandon Hyde encouraged Holliday to be aggressive on the bases, but at times recently, he’s seemed reckless.

However, that can easily be overcome, and with a good second half, he could challenge Henderson for the MVO, especially if other candidates have moved on.

Cedric Mullins

In 2021, Mullins was the easy winner of the award, and he’s leading the team with 13 home runs, 41 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.

However, his .218 average is the worst among all regulars, and his .713 OPS is ninth on the team.

For some reason, his defensive metrics have often lagged behind fans and media perception, and his defensive WAR of -1.6 drags down his total WAR to -.4, which is even worse than Tyler O’Neill’s -.3.

Mullins, another pending free agent, could also be on the move.

Félix Bautista

No Orioles pitcher has won the MVO award since Rodrigo López in 2002, and no reliever since Randy Myers in 1997.

Bautista lost out in 2023 to Henderson, and didn’t get much consideration because he didn’t pitch for the last five weeks of the season because of a right elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery.

Bautista has been excellent recently and has allowed just one run and three hits in his last 16 innings. The run he allowed wasn’t consequential, coming in a game the Orioles led by five runs.

In those 16 innings, Bautista struck out and walked seven.

While he’s not as overpowering as he was before surgery, he’s still been effective. Bautista’s ERA has dropped from 4.08 to 2.41.

Trevor Rogers

No, this isn’t a joke, but it is noteworthy. Relievers generally don’t pile up big WAR numbers. Bautista’s is 1.1, and he trails only Rogers’ 1.8 WAR.

In his six starts, Rogers has been wonderful with a 1.53 ERA, only one home run allowed in 35 1/3 innings. He’s given up fewer than five hits per nine innings and struck out more than three times as many batters as he’s walked.

Rogers has four quality starts among his first six. (three or fewer earned runs in six or more innings), and if he remains this effective, the Orioles may have not only found a starter for 2026, but a candidate for MVO.

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