Baltimore Orioles Predicted to Lose Star Slugger to AL East Rival in Free Agency

It would be devastating for the Baltimore Orioles if this free agent were to sign in the division.

Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles enter the offseason with some huge questions looming after another season without winning a single playoff game as has been the case for the last decade, being swept in the Wild Card round by the Kansas City Royals.

Baltimore took a step back from their historic 101-win 2023 season, winning 91 games while scratching and clawing to make the postseason, but the result in October was the same in both seasons and ended in a sweep. As the Orioles get set to approach free agency, there are two massive elephants in the room that hang over everything in free agents Anthony Santander and Corbin Burnes.

While the team would love to bring back both, it may not be extremely realistic and if one has to be prioritized over the other, it has to be Burnes. Despite the fact that Santander is coming off a career season, Burnes would and should be the priority as the value of a proven ace pitcher at the top of the rotation is too much to pass up. If it does play out that way and Baltimore can't afford to keep Santander, there are some destinations he could end up that would sting. Matt Johnson of SportsNaut projected the All-Star slugger to wind up with the AL East rival Toronto Blue Jays if they cannot land some of the bigger fish on the open market.

"The Toronto Blue Jays would love to have Juan Soto, but that seems unlikely," Johnson wrote. "Alex Bregman would be another huge addition to the Blue Jays lineup, but Toronto might need to overpay to keep him from choosing between allegiances to the Houston Astros or joining A.J. Hinch in Detroit. That leaves Anthony Santander."

Santander played in 155 games in 2024, the most of his career. He was named an All-Star for the first time in his eight-year career after a 44 home run and 102 RBI campaign, career highs in both. While he does not bring a ton to the table on defense, his power bat is enough to intrigue any team needing to add some pop to the lineup with 105 blasts over the last three seasons combined.

Baltimore would love to bring back the slugging Santander, but if they cannot, look for the Blue Jays as a team to potentially swoop in.