Elias indicates Orioles are serious shoppers: ‘We do have more room for moves, multiple moves’

ORLANDO–What happened? The first day of the Winter Meetings concluded without the Orioles making news or any moves, although the New York Post is reporting that slugging first baseman Pete Alonso will meet with team officials at the meetings.

Heyman also is reporting that the Orioles are among the teams interested in left-handed starter Ranger Suárez.

When Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias met with the media on Monday he described the initial day as “kind of the usual, a lot of communication and meetings and information. A lot of furtherance of some really important conversations for us.

“We’re talking to a whole bunch of hitters, and we just view it as, ‘Do they improve the team? Do they improve the roster? Do they raise the ceiling of the team? Do they have an impact?’

“If the player’s good enough, we can figure out ways to accommodate them.”

Besides talking to free-agent hitters, Elias is also talking to teams about trades for hitters.

He said there’s enough room to sign both a frontline pitcher and an impact bat.

“You look at our payroll as it stands right now, and it’s still well below where we were at last year, and we’ll just consider opportunities as they come up,” he said, “and we’ll have those conversations with ownership, but we do have more room for moves, multiple moves.”

Elias said the Orioles have made substantial offers to starting pitchers.

“We’ve offered them a lot, and we’re absolutely willing to do that,” he said.

Elias said he’s not sure if the Orioles will add more than one starter

“That’s a possibility that we add multiple starting pitchers on major league contracts, but there’s a possibility it’s just going to be one,” he said. “It’s going to depend on the personnel.”

As for the bullpen, the Orioles have added closer Ryan Helsley and brought back Andrew Kittredge. There could be further additions.

“I think it’s a better spot than it was before the offseason began,” he said. “We’re still looking to tinker. I think we have a really interesting group, some of the younger guys that were optionable last year and auditioned and debuted a little bit. There are some interesting arms in there, too. We want to leave some room for those guys to compete and pop and help the team, but we’re still looking at external bullpen additions.

Some of those fitting that description could be Kade Strowd, Yaramil Hiraldo and Grant Wolfram. The Orioles also added Cameron Foster and Anthony Nunez to the 40-man roster, and they’ll get a look in spring training.

Elias said that a utility player could already be on the team. He mentioned Jeremiah Jackson.

“That’s also something that we’re talking about and looking externally and is on the shopping list,” he said.

Rule 5 draft outlook: The Orioles’ 40-man roster is full and unless they drop a player between now and the Rule 5 draft on Wednesday, they won’t be a participant for the third straight year.

“It’s looking maybe a little less likely,” Elias said. “But we haven’t had our formal meeting about it yet.”

Seen in the lobby: Former Orioles shortstop and broadcaster Mike Bordick is at the Winter Meetings, and he’d love an opportunity to get back in the game. He provided excellent insight in his time as an Orioles broadcaster.

What does it mean? So far, the Winter Meetings have been quiet, and while fans are eager for the Orioles to make moves, the days following are vital to see if the Orioles will make moves.  

What’s the word?- “You always want to showcase who you are to everyone. And every player just wants to feel like they feel valued. And that’s something that I believe in, that every player should feel valued. If they’re the last man on the 40-man who might get a call up or not, that person is going to help us win, that player. For me, it’s just taking the time out and hearing everyone and talking to them.”-Orioles manager Craig Albernaz on building trust with players.

What’s the stat of the day? The Orioles have a 9.24 percent chance of winning Tuesday’s draft lottery, the fourth-best odds.

What’s next? On Tuesday, Elias will meet with the media again. The Baseball Writers Association of America will announce the winner of its career excellence award. Perhaps there will be news of additional Orioles participating in the World Baseball Classic with availabilities of team general managers and managers.

Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich,@BaltimoreBaseball.com