Insider shuts down Orioles potential free agency reunion with All-Star
One day before the 2025 MLB trade deadline, the Baltimore Orioles dealt first baseman Ryan O’Hearn and outfielder Ramón Laureano to the San Diego Padres in exchange for prospects Boston Bateman, Tyson Neighbors, Tanner Smith, Brandon Butterworth, Cobb Hightower, and Victor Figueroa.
While this deal made sense for Baltimore to make, given that the team was already out of playoff contention at that point in the year and therefore might as well have started building toward the future, it was still a sad day for Orioles fans. This is because O’Hearn and Laureano were beloved among the fan base, largely because they were two of the only players on the roster who were performing up to their capabilities in 2025.
O’Hearn was named the Orioles’ lone 2025 MLB All-Star (marking his first time being an All-Star), and was hitting .283 with an .837 OPS and 13 home runs for Baltimore at the time he was traded.
Hearn chose a great time to have a career year, as he is becoming an unrestricted free agent once this 2025 MLB season concludes. And given how mutually beneficial his time in Baltimore seemed to be, there has been some speculation that Orioles President of Baseball Operations Mike Elias might try to pursue a potential reunion with O’Hearn (who Spotrac projects will sign a one-year, $11 million deal) this winter.
Baltimore Insider Pours Cold Water on Ryan O’Hearn Reunion Idea
However, MASN’s Roch Kubatko explained why a reunion with O’Hearn doesn’t make sense when a fan asked him about it in an October 21 article.
“The problem with bringing back O’Hearn is that first base isn’t open. Let’s assume that Coby Mayo breaks camp with the team. We know that Samuel Basallo will be on the roster. We don’t know about Ryan Mountcastle, but first base already accounted for and O’Hearn should be able to find more playing time elsewhere,” Kubatko wrote.
This stance makes all the sense in the world, especially because Baltimore appears insistent on keeping Adley Rutschman on their roster rather than trading him and giving Samuel Basallo the keys to the starting catcher job. With Rutschman behind the plate, Basallo will need to either play DH or first base to keep his bat in the lineup, which means there isn’t room for O’Hearn.
It sounds like any Orioles fans who were hoping O’Hearn would be back in Baltimore come Opening Day 2026 shouldn’t hold their breath.
