BALTIMORE — The Orioles 2025 season is underway in Toronto.
The Birds are starting off with quite a different look.
Not only is it the franchise's first year under new ownership, but the team signed seven notable free agents in the off-season.
As fans were hoping, the club opened up their wallet adding $72.25 million in 2025 payroll.
Considering the O's have been swept out of the playoffs early in back-to-back seasons, many wonder if these players move the needle.
Lets recap the new faces General Manager Mike Elias and company brought in.
The starting pitching rotation represents the most noticeable shakeup.
Charlie Morton, a 41-year-old right-handed starter, signed for $15 million over one year.
Over a 17-year career, Morton's pitched for five teams, including in the American League East with Tampa Bay.
Although a reliable innings eater, Morton's never reached the 200 inning plateau in a season.
During that stretch, Morton allowed less hits than innings pitched, which bodes well in Camden Yards.
Last season Morton started 30 games with the Atlanta Braves, going 8-10 with a 4.19 ERA in 165 plus frames.
It's become sort of a trend for Elias to sign aging veteran starters to one-year deals.
There's no better example than the last minute addition of 37-year-old righty Kyle Gibson.
This is Gibson's second tour in Baltimore. He returns after spending the 2024 season with the St. Louis Cardinals, where he posted an 8-8 win-loss record and 4.24 ERA.
Alongside Morton, Gibson is just one of seven major league pitchers who've made at least 30 starts in four straight seasons.
Due to signing late, Gibson needs more training reps, and therefore won't be activated on opening day.
He's due to make $5.25 million this season. Cade Povich is expected to fill-in until Gibson is ready.
Joining Morton and Gibson in the rotation is Tomoyuki Sugano, a 35-year-old Japanese pitcher, with no prior major league experience.
Sugano's entire 12-year career came with the Yomiuri Giants professional baseball team in Japan.
Known for his control and low walk rate, Sugano is somewhat of a soft tosser lacking in strikeouts.
Last year Sugano won his league's MVP award, posting a 15-3 record with a 1.67 ERA in 156.2 innings pitched.
The O's rewarded him by shelling out a one-year $13 million major league contract, hoping he can replicate that performance in the U.S.
The trio of Morton, Gibson, and Sugano round out a rotation that also includes opening day starter Zach Eflin and Dean Kremer.
Mainly, they provide depth, as two of the team's top starters remain injured and unable to pitch.
Kyle Bradish is currently on the 60-day injured list, recovering from elbow surgery, while Grayson Rodriguez deals with elbow inflammation.
The most pricey acquisition of the off-season is 29-year-old outfielder Tyler O'Neill, who signed for three-years and $49.5 million.
O'Neill spent last season with the American League East division rival Red Sox, belting 31 home runs in 113 games, with a .241 batting average.
The club believes O'Neill's arrival offsets the departure of slugger Anthony Santander, who will face off against the Orioles on opening day in a Blue Jays uniform.
While O'Neill has shown power, he's also struck out at a high rate. In 411 at-bats in 2024, O'Neill whiffed 159 times.
Aside from the strikeouts, injuries have plagued O'Neill's career.
In five of seven big league seasons, O'Neill has played less than 100 games, granted one year was shortened to 60 games during COVID-19.
Last season was no different, as O'Neill was placed on the injured list on more than one occasion due to leg injuries and a concussion.
Prior to a 2024 resurgence, O'Neill struggled with the bat in 2022 and 2023.
His best season came in 2021 as a St. Louis Cardinal, hitting 34 long balls and 80 RBIs.
Despite a .286 batting average that year, O'Neill still managed to strikeout 168 times in 482 plate appearances.
On the positive side, O'Neill is regarded as a defensive upgrade over Santander, winning two career gold gloves with the Cardinals in 2020 and 2021.
Santander, who became a Baltimore fan favorite, said the O's came nowhere close to meeting his contract demands.
After three consecutive seasons hitting 28 or more home runs, the 30-year-old earned a five-year $92.5 million deal with the Jays.
While on it's face that may seem like a lot of money, Santander's annual salary of $14.31 million is still less than the $16.5 million per year O'Neill is set to make.
In comparison, Santander hit 13 more home runs last season than O'Neill, and knocked in over 40 more runs.
It's unclear if the decision to move on from Santander, and bring in O'Neill will pay off in the end. O'Neill also has an opt-out clause after 2025.
As it stands now the Orioles projected starting outfield includes O'Neill, Cedric Mullins, and 2024 Rookie of the Year runner-up Colton Cowser.
Another questionable Orioles acquisition is back-up catcher Gary Sánchez.
The 32-year-old journeyman burst onto the big league scene in 2016 as a young prospect with the New York Yankees.
He spent six full seasons in the Bronx, surpassing 20 home runs four times, earning two all star nods.
Despite an ability to hit the long ball, a low batting average hampered Sánchez, forcing him back to the minor leagues as recently as 2023.
Since 2022 he's played with four teams, never hitting above .220, yet the Orioles saw enough to give Sánchez a guaranteed one-year deal worth a reported $8.5 million.
Sánchez replaces another popular Oriole in James McCann, who actually hit for a better average last year.
McCann, whose two years older, was forced to sign an off-season minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves, meaning the O's could've saved millions had they retained him.
The Orioles also decided to commit $14 million to 35-year-old relief pitcher Andrew Kittredge (1-year/$10 million) and utility outfielder Ramón Laureano (1-year/$4million).
Adding Laureano seems like a head-scratcher, since highly regarded prospect Heston Kjerstad made the opening day roster.
One would think Kjerstad should get as many at-bats as possible, in order to develop into the special talent scouts have raved about.
As for Kittredge, he's already on the shelf with a left knee issue.
It's a mystery why signing Kittredge was necessary especially now that closer Félix Bautista is returning to head up a bullpen staffed with Yennier Cano, Keegan Akin, Seranthony Domínguez, Gregory Soto, Cionel Pérez, Bryan Baker, and Albert Suárez.
So the question is, what could or should the Orioles have done instead?
One option would've been to save the $72.25 million, and just let younger players like Kjerstad and fellow prospect Coby Mayo get some big league experience.
Another option could've been to put that money towards extending contracts of young franchise pillars like Gunnar Henderson or Adley Rutschman.
Instead of paying out more than $33 million to three starting pitchers older than 35, would it have made much a difference in the short term to keep Povich and Suárez in the rotation? Heck, for $33 million, might as well have kept Corbin Burnes, because that's what his new contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks pays annually.
In all fairness, Burnes went on record saying the Orioles made a fair offer, but he chose to pitch closer to home.
Back to the $72.25 million though, couldn't Elias have explored spending on a different group of more proven difference makers?
For example, Max Scherzer is a three-time Cy Young winner and sure fire future Hall-of-Famer, with more than 3,000 career strikeouts.
At 40-years-old, he's a year younger than Morton, but only cost the Blue Jays half-a-million more to sign.
While injury prone in recent years, Scherzer statistically outperforms Morton when healthy.
At the very least, Scherzer's presence likely would've increased ticket and team merchandise sales.
Earlier we compared O'Neill to Santander, so no need to rehash, but... there was another impact bat available on the market.
Former MVP Paul Goldschmidt signed a one-year $12.5 million deal with the division rival Yankees, which comes out to $4.5 million less than what O'Neill is owed.
Pretend for a second the O's added Scherzer with Goldschmidt, and kept Santander.
They could've then pursued a trade for multi-time all star outfielder Kyle Tucker, who was dealt to the Cubs from the Astros for three players, including former first round draft pick Cam Smith.
The package received by the Astros in return was no more impressive than say offering a combination of Kjerstad and Mayo.
Granted, Tucker is set to become a free agent at season's end, but at an annual salary of $16.5 million, his track record suggests he would've been an upgrade over O'Neill.
It appears the Orioles are in win now mode right?
Didn't Morton, Gibson, Sugano, Sánchez, Kittredge, and Laureano each sign for only one-year anyway?
So the fact Tucker becomes a free agent at season's end should not have been a determining factor.
Now, it's unclear if Elias contacted the Astros about Tucker's availability. We'd certainly like to think so considering his history in Houston.
Nonetheless, neither Tucker, Scherzer, Goldschmidt, or Santander are Orioles.
In fact, three of the four found new homes within the AL East. Two of them, Santander and Scherzer, will be in the opposite dugout today.
Had the Orioles signed the foursome, it would have cost $58.81 million in 2025, as opposed to the $72.25 million they're spending on O'Neill, Morton, Gibson, Sugano, Sánchez, Kittredge, and Laureano.
Who'd you rather?
Not to mention, the O's are going into the season without Henderson, whose nursing an injury.
Once again we ask are the 2025 Orioles better than last season?