free agency

How much would be too much for Orioles' free agents such as Chris Davis?

On the evening of Feb. 3, 2013, the Ravens and San Francisco 49ers met to decide NFL supremacy. On Sunday afternoon, the two teams play again, hoping to stave off 2015 irrelevance. Staying on the NFL mountaintop has proven difficult for both organizations since Super Bowl XLVII. Retirements, free-agent departures and injuries have whittled away talented and deep rosters. There have been off-field issues and on-field deficiencies. After engaging in a classic shootout on the sports' biggest stage,

The Orioles will participate in the qualifying offer process this season to ease the pain of possibly losing some of their big-ticket free agents.

The Orioles could have a transformative offseason ahead with several key players set to hit free agency.

Orioles vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette touched on a variety of topics during Monday¿s season-ending press conference at Camden Yards.

Chris Davis says that the Orioles still have a lot to look forward to even if he and other free agents don't return next year.

As the Orioles' disappointing 2015 season came to a merciful end Sunday with a 9-4 victory over the New York Yankees, it definitely felt like the end of an era.

Coming up short in 2015, possibly losing key players and reported discord in front office have Baltimore Orioles fans are hoping they don't return to the 14 years of futility.

Lots of changes in store for the Orioles, and not just because of six pending free agents.

Orioles center fielder and team leader Adam Jones has said repeatedly that he will make his opinions known to management and ownership on what he would like to see happen this offseason. On Thursday, while holding court with reporters, he was asked specifically about his feelings toward slugger Chris Davis potentially leaving the team after four-plus seasons as an Oriole. In his typical style, Jones didn't shy away, calling Davis "probably the highest priority" for the Orioles.

When the Houston Astros beat the Seattle Mariners early Tuesday morning, the Orioles' pursuit of the 2015 playoffs officially ended after weeks of sputtering and hoping. With that elimination comes the reality that this Orioles club likely will undergo drastic changes in the next few months.

After missing much of the last two seasons because of elbow surgery, will the Orioles be able to spend what it takes to keep catcher Matt Wieters?

In getting down to a 53-man roster Saturday, the Ravens showed a willingness to move on from their draft picks, the importance that they place on special teams and how much they value having defensive depth.

Ravens safety Will Hill delayed free agency by at least a year by agreeing to a two-year deal worth as much as $7 million.

Trusting that Will Hill will perform on the field and behave himself off of it, the Ravens signed the safety to a two-year deal.

Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter tried again to justify the club's offseason decision-making during a special Q&A session for the team's best customers Saturday afternoon. But it was hard to do that without leaving the impression that the same kind of thing is going to happen several times over this coming winter.

Chris Davis has mentioned how much last year's early season oblique injury affected him throughout a disappointing 2014. Though he came into this season healthy, the residual effects of that injury lingered in the early parts of this season, Davis said. Now, that's a thing of the past.

Ravens kicker Justin Tucker means more to fans, and perhaps his team, than the average NFL kicker.

Steve Blake has heard the same line for more than a decade, as the NBA careers of three of his former Maryland teammates came to an end.

Despite their continuing struggles, the Orioles still have no intention of becoming sellers as the non-waiver trade deadline approaches in a week.

The midseason deadline for making trades without waivers is looming and everyone wants to know the same thing. Will the Orioles be buyers or sellers as they look ahead to the final months of this season and the tremendous uncertainty that lies just over the horizon? Maybe it won't be that simple. Maybe the Orioles will have to be both to strike some kind of practical balance between the present and future.

The Ravens have a tough schedule. So does everybody else in their division.

Here is our annual All-Star break edition of five questions facing the Orioles, with the best answers we can provide at this confusing, murky point in the club's year.

Ravens wide receiver Marlon Brown plans to raise his standard of play in 2015, as he seeks a starting job. And if he pulls it off, he'll do so drawing inspiration from two people he loved and lost — his grandmother, who died in February, and his college girlfriend, Abby Fishburn, who was killed in a car accident two years ago.

Getting Sam Koch and Jimmy Smith signed were big first moves, but the Ravens will have plenty more to do next offseason.

The Ravens have locked up punter Sam Koch with a five-year, $16.25 million extension making the total value of his contract $18.75 million over the six years of the deal, according to sources.

The Washington Wizards and free-agent swingman Alan Anderson, formerly of the Brooklyn Nets, have agreed to a one-year, $4 million contract.

Damion Cook, who was initially signed by the Ravens as an undrafted free agent and spent parts of three seasons with the team, passed away Friday night.

The Ravens have never started back-to-back seasons with the same offensive line alignment in franchise history, but that streak could be coming to an end.

Torrey Smith and Marlon Brown both started for much of their rookie seasons. The Ravens don't necessarily need Breshad Perriman to do the same.

It's a comeback attempt with an undetermined future for Pitta despite some encouraging signs from him.

While we learned a little last week about Joe Flacco's adjustment to Marc Trestman's version of the West Coast offense, Timmy Jernigan's ascension to the starting defensive line and just how much longer 36-year-old wide receiver Steve Smith might play in the NFL, all of that has been sufficiently discussed and dissected.

Nick Perry, a safety, and Trey DePriest, an inside linebacker, are products of the University of Alabama, the alma mater of Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome and a frequent source of Ravens defensive talent. They play positions where undrafted players frequently stick on the Ravens roster.

With organized team activities set to begin, several Ravens' veterans will be under the microscope.

Leon Brown had an inkling that the Ravens were the right place for him to go as an undrafted free agent, reinforcing that notion during a successful tryout at their rookie minicamp.

Kyle Arrington's addition provides depth and experience to the Ravens secondary and it also could mean a more simplified role for much-maligned safety Matt Elam.

Kyle Arrington wasn't surprised, but he was certainly disappointed.

The Ravens top decision makers continue to tinker with the roster. Will Kyle Arrington be the next addition?

The NFL had the Ravens and teams with a similar free-agent philosophy in mind when the league shifted a key date this year. Instead of having the compensatory draft pick formula count against teams when they signed unrestricted free agents prior to June 1, the league moved the date up to Tuesday.

Anthony Levine is a valued special teams performer for the Ravens who started three games at cornerback when injuries hit the team.

All eyes were on the Ravens' wide receivers at the rookie minicamp over the weekend.

Oklahoma cornerback Julian Wilson chose the Ravens after being in heavy demand following the NFL draft.

The Ravens drafting of two tight ends doesn't mean that Dennis Pitta won't play again. But it does reflect the reality of the situation.

Before the NFL turns over the league¿s calendar each year, top Ravens officials join owner Steve Bisciotti in Florida for a comprehensive look at the upcoming season and the one that will follow it, taking into account roster construction, salary cap issues and free agency.

Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has signed his $2.356 million second-round restricted free agent tender, according to sources.

Ravens tight end Phillip Supernaw signed his $510,000 exclusive-rights free agent tender.

Chris Davis had a rough 2014 statistically and then was suspended. Matt Wieters missed most of last season. But there's little reason for either to take a hometown discount when free agency arrives.

The Ravens have no problem sending up smoke screens during the draft buildup but there is some legitimacy to owner Steve Bisciotti's desire to get a pass rusher.

The Orioles' 274 wins the past three seasons are the most the franchise has compiled over a three-year span in three decades, when the 1982-'84 teams won 277 games, including the club's last World Series title in 1983. Next season is almost certain to bring major roster turnover.