Baltimore Orioles Star Outfielder Plays Way to Top of Free Agency Rankings

The Baltimore Orioles have an outfielder who is about to enter free agency and should have plenty of options.

Aug 13, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles outfielder Anthony Santander (25) celebrates his third inning solo home run against the Washington Nationals with designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn (32) at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. / Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

The Baltimore Orioles have reaped the benefits of the development of Anthony Santander, a player they selected in the Rule 5 Draft in late 2016.

Eight years later Santander is one of the top hitters in the O’s lineup and in baseball. But he’s also entering free agency for the first time. And he heads into the open market as one of the most highly-regarded bats in free agency.

Recently, MLB insider Jim Bowden, the former general manager who writes for The Athletic, ranked Santander as his No. 7 overall free agent. He also considers him to be the third highest-ranked bat on the market.

Part of that is tied to Santander’s power. He’s one of three free-agent position players under age 30 that has hit 25 or more home runs this season. The others are Juan Soto and Pete Alonso.

The 29-year-old has a career-high 36 home runs, which makes his impending free agency opportune for a big payday.

Bowden wrote that Santander was the “most underrated free agent in this class” and the top corner infielder in this class.

He has slashed .240/.307/.525/.832 and has driven in 80 runs. His career high is 95 runs, which he collected last year.

When the Orioles selected Santander from Cleveland, the hope was that he would develop into a quality MLB player. The Guardians signed Santander out of Venezuela in 2011 but he never got the call to join Cleveland.

Rule 5 rules required the Orioles to put Santander on their 40-man roster. He reached the Majors in August of 2017, and after a couple of starts and stops, he broke through in 2022 with a then-career high 33 home runs and 89 RBI in 152 games.

Last year he played in 153 games and slashed .257/.325/.472/.797 with 28 home runs and 95 RBI.

The Orioles are under new ownership, as David Rubenstein and his group now own 100% of the franchise. This offseason will be his first chance to influence how Baltimore spends money in free agency. With ace Corbin Burnes set to hit the market, will the Orioles spend the money for both?

The O’s depth in the outfield could influence the decision, too. Young players like Colton Cowser and Heston Kjerstad may allow Baltimore general manager Mike Elias to promote from within and let Santander test the market.

And once Santander tests the market, the Orioles might just get priced out of a chase for the slugger.