Monday, Monday, Monday. It’s the start of another week, and it’s time for another Orioles news roundup. It’s been quiet on the free agent front for the Orioles, but that doesn’t mean we here at Birds Watcher have slacked off by any stretch. We’ve got a bunch to catch you up on, so let’s get right into it!
Orioles News 12/12/22 – Best AL East players 25 and under, plus more MLB news
The Beast that is the (American League) East
The American League East was an absolute gauntlet last season with four teams, including our Baltimore Orioles, finishing with winning records. Each team is brimming with talent, much of it young and on the rise. Contributor Andrew Bassan examined each team to formulate his official list of the best AL East players aged 25 or younger. You know Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson made the cut, but how do they stack up to the young studs that play in Toronto, Tampa Bay, Boston, and New York? Check here to find out!
How does Adley Rutschman’s hug game compare to the elite?
In case you missed it this weekend, I dove into the art of Adley Rutschman’s post game hug and tried to figure out just how great they are, and how they stack up to the elite huggers of our time. Is he a better hugger than Barney the dinosaur? Spoiler alert: yes.
MLB News
Senga’s Genesis
The New York Mets seem to really enjoy this whole spending money thing, like a lot. Like, about to spend $400 million JUST ON PAYROLL a lot.
Their newest addition is 29 year old Japanese righty Kodai Senga, who agreed to a five years, $75 million contract late Saturday night. Senga began his career as a reliever and has blossomed into a dominant power pitcher for a dynastic Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks team that has won six championships during his tenure. Senga’s fastball pushes triple digits and rests comfortably in the high 90’s, but the star of his arsenal is a freaky off speed pitch known as a “ghost” changeup that’s some sort of forkball/splitter hybrid. I’m pretty sure it was cooked up in the same lab that Felix Bautista’s splitter was. It’s hard to say of a player who hasn’t thrown a pitch in Major League Baseball, but a $15 million average annual value for Senga could be tremendous value for the Mets.
That’s all for today, everyone! Enjoy your day, and see you back here tomorrow.