There’s a sizeable segment of the Orioles fanbase that’s getting upset with Mike Elias and the O’s approach to the offseason.

While Elias brought in outfielder Tyler O’Neill on a deal worth $50 million, there was an expectation that the O’s would go out and acquire one of the handful of top free agent starting pitchers on the market this winter.

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. All of Corbin Burnes, Max Fried, and Blake Snell are off the board, and despite his flaws, Garrett Crochet was the biggest name on the trade market, and he’s already been moved.

There were a few guys in the next tier down who seemingly fit the Orioles’ needs that have signed elsewhere too, leaving the Orioles thin in terms of options.

Thankfully, there’s still time for Elias to make a move to improve the rotation ahead of spring training.

After all, Burnes didn’t arrive in Baltimore until February last year, and there are still a couple really interesting names, like Dylan Cease and Luis Castillo, who could be available in trades.

But even a trade to acquire a short-term ace won’t quiet the rumblings from the fanbase about Elias’ reluctance to spend money in free agency.

There are ways around that, though. If the Orioles were to ink either of the following two players to a longer-term contract extension this winter, it’d go a long way to quiet the fanbase and show that David Rubenstein’s comments about pushing for a World Series title were more than just talk.

These two Orioles are prime contract extension candidates

It feels a bit too obvious but Adley Rutschman is arguably the backbone of this Orioles roster. His second half slump in 2024 dragged the lineup down immensely.

He’d been one of the more reliable hitters and an important clubhouse presence during his first two seasons, and him hitting .207/.282/.303 in the second half was a problem.

However, that slump might be the best argument for the Orioles trying to work out an extension now.

Maybe Rutschman wants to go out and prove himself, and eventually work his way into free agency, but if the Orioles want to show faith in a big rebound, now is the perfect time.

Cot’s Contracts has him projected to earn $5.5 million in 2025, which will be his first year of arbitration. He’s currently slated to hit free agency after the 2027 season, and he’s only going to get more expensive from here. The O’s will have to pay a pretty penny to retain him, but he’s one of the best catchers in baseball and clearly worth the price of admission.

Last winter, the Dodgers signed catcher Will Smith to a 10-year, $140 million deal. Smith was 28 then, and Rutschman is about to enter his age 27 season, so there’s a slight age difference. But we’d almost certainly be looking at a 10-year deal for Rutschman.

He’d probably beat Smith in terms of AAV though. JT Realmuto leads all catchers in AAV – he’ll make just shy of $24 million in 2025. If you split the difference and say 11 years and $200 million for Rutschman, that seems like a deal that might work for both sides.

“You still have to remember, it’s still early on in his career. That was the first offensive adversity that he’s had. I look for Adley to have a big year next year.”

After a tough ’24 2nd half, #Orioles remain confident in Adley Rutschman entering ’25:https://t.co/jf3df0IgK5

— Jake Rill (@JakeDRill) December 18, 2024
Like Rutschman, it’d be easy to put Grayson Rodriguez in this second spot. But we’re not going to do that. Rodriguez still has 5 years of control left and it doesn’t really make sense for the Orioles to pursue an extension right now.

One guy they should lock up, especially after his performance in 2024, is righty Zach Eflin. Some might argue that it’s a bit short-sighted to think of Eflin as an extension target. However, we’ve seen the results of him pitching in front of strong defenses, first in Tampa then in Baltimore last year.

While his ERA’s have been a bit scattered, Eflin has posted a FIP above 3.80 just once in the last 7 years. He’s not an ace but he’s been remarkably consistent, limits walks about as well as anyone else out there, and can still miss bats when he needs to.

Entering 2025, Eflin will be in the final year of a 3-year, $40 million deal. The contract was back-loaded though, and he’ll earn $18 million next year. He’s about to enter his age 31 season, so the deal doesn’t need to be super long. But if

Sean Manaea can get 3 years and $75 million on the open market, the Orioles could offer that same 3/$75 to Eflin and lock him into the middle of the rotation for the next few years.

It’d take a lot of pressure off the Orioles plans for next winter to extend Eflin now.

They don’t currently have an ace, and are still waiting on true breakouts from guys like Rodriguez, Cade Povich, and Chayce McDermott. Eflin would give this team much-needed stability and wouldn’t break the bank to the point where they couldn’t add other top starters around him.