Re: General Discussion
12376Roberto will be missed . A terrific handler of pitches. Same reason they wanted Hedges.
Whether the Orioles see Santander as a long-term piece is another intriguing element, as a case could be made that the O’s should try to sell high on Santander now (or perhaps before the 2021 trade deadline) if they don’t think he’ll still be a prime contributor by the time Baltimore is ready to contend. Given that the Orioles still have a long ways to go in their rebuild, they might not be ready to compete by 2024, Santander’s age-29 season and his last under team control.
The Orioles’ financial situation adds another wrinkle, as The Athletic’s Dan Connelly reports that the team offered salary deferrals to Santander and Trey Mancini when talking to both players about their 2021 contracts. Both turned down the offers, which would have seen around 25% of their salary pushed ahead to 2022 or 2023. Mancini ended up avoiding arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $4.75MM deal.