gerardo parra

Former Orioles star Nick Markakis is enjoying a career year in the fourth year of his deal with Atlanta, with he and Ryan Flaherty providing the upstart Braves much of what they did for the Orioles, showing what their old team lacks in the process.

A first-round draft pick in 2012 who was in the major leagues less than a year later, Kevin Gausman has seen his constant efforts to fashion himself into a front-line major league starter play out in front of Orioles fans desperate for him to fill that role.

Taking a look at five decisions that hurt the Orioles in 2017.

Only two Orioles starters from this year's rotation are guaranteed to return in 2018.

The Orioles' trade for pitcher Jeremy Hellickson feels like the odd first piece of a bigger puzzle as the trade deadline approaches

The Orioles know it can be costly at the trade deadling, having dealt a bona fide major league starter away in each of the last four Julys.

Schmuck: Orioles shouldn't regret some of their former pitchers excelling elsewhere

Royals, Orioles going in opposite directions as clock ticks down for successful cores

Can either the Orioles or the Rockies afford Mark Trumbo?

I wonder how many sports fans are tired of hearing about all the great moves Orioles general manager Dan Duquette has made during his time with the Orioles? Are you as tied as I am seeing one of the worst starting staffs in all of baseball?

The Orioles are coming into national focus and the media microscope will increasingly focus on them over the next few weeks. They are an imperfect team that somehow has won more games (combined regular and postseason) than anyone else in the American League over the five seasons that Showalter and Duquette have been an item. But their imperfections are sometimes hard to overlook.

Nearly one year after the Orioles cut ties with right-hander Bud Norris following a disastrous first four months of the 2015, Norris has resurrected his career and is back pitching for a contender.

Twice this month, the Orioles have demoted a starting pitcher from the rotation, only to have him rejoin it shortly thereafter out of circumstance and necessity. There are only so many alternatives inside the organization, and when the Orioles begin to assess the market to add starters through trades over the next few weeks, they might be left wanting as well.

Very rarely, foul balls into the Camden Yards press box lead to casualties. And in the ninth inning Friday night, Pedro Alvarez's foul killed my laptop.

Orioles center fielder Adam Jones is out of the starting lineup for Thursday's game with soreness in his rib area, manager Buck Showalter said.

Whether the Orioles are ultimately able to lock up Yovani Gallardo and Dexter Fowler remains to be seen. Regardless of the outcome, the club heads into spring training this year with few roster and position battles. That's because leading up to this point, the Orioles' offseason focused on keeping its core group intact, and they've done that in retaining first baseman Chris Davis, setup man Darren O'Day and catcher Matt Wieters.

How important is the 14th overall pick? And how much should the Orioles be committed to keeping that selection in the upcoming draft?

The Orioles managed to bring back Matt Wieters, Darren O'Day and Chris Davis, three of the six players who were in a position to leave for a possibly more lucrative contract with another team. The price tag was staggering — $207.8 million — and that number figures to rise before the club is through upgrading the pitching staff.

Former Orioles outfielder/first baseman Steve Pearce is nearing a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, according to an industry source.

Orioles fans would love to live in a world where their team was willing to spend a guaranteed $230 million for Chris Davis and Wei-Yin Chen on top of $15.8 million next season for Matt Wieters and a record $31 million deal for setup man Darren O'Day. That would certainly show they are committed to fielding a competitive team after last year's .500 finish. What it would not have done, however, was make the Orioles a better team than they were last year.

The Orioles lost free agents Wei-Yin Chen and Gerardo Parra in quick succession Tuesday.

That first domino probably fell on Sunday, when the right-hander Jordan Zimmermann reportedly agreed to terms on a five-year, $110-million deal with the Detroit Tigers.

The Orioles most likely don't have enough to trade for an all star quality outfielder.

Up until Saturday, free agents were only able to negotiate with their 2015 clubs, but this morning the market is officially opened up to all teams. Free agents are now free to negotiate and sign with any team.

As of 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning, free agents could begin signing with clubs besides the ones they played for in 2015. That means the Orioles' six free agents — Wei-Yin Chen, Chris Davis, Gerardo Parra, Steve Pearce, Darren O'Day and Matt Wieters — can all begin testing their free-agent value elsewhere. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette has said the club will have the resources to add players via free agency.

The Orioles made qualifying offers to free agents Wei-Yin Chen, Chris Davis and Matt Wieters, ensuring the club of compensatory draft picks in case they sign elsewhere.

Which Orioles will receive qualifying others? Does a judge¿s ruling Wednesday to throw out an arbiter¿s decision involving the MASN rights dispute mean the club will have more money to spend on free agents?

The Royals might give some teams cover for staying on budget, but the Orioles don't need to take a lesson from anybody about that. If they want to take something from the Royals, how about a few of their key players?

What is the likelihood that free agent outfielder Gerardo Parra returns to the Orioles?

Baseball season is officially over following the Kansas City Royals' Game 5 victory over the New York Mets early Monday morning, meaning it's now time to turn up the hot stove.

The Orioles have talked to some of their six free agents since the season ended, but not to all of them.

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

Buck Showalter and Dan Duquette sought to quiet concerns among the fan base that the coming free-agent exodus would eviscerate the team, but couldn't say for sure that they would be able to prevent that.

Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette reiterated on Sunday that he sees attempting to re-sign first baseman Chris Davis a top priority.

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.

Baseball operations chief Dan Duquette sometimes seems to be in slow motion early in the offseason, but he should see the value in making some moves quickly this winter to allay fear among the fan following of a total roster rebuild.

Chen (11-8) was charged with two runs on four hits and three walks through six-plus innings.

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

It is a simple enough matter to break down the past season and find all the reasons why the Orioles did not score enough runs — or distribute them more evenly — to deliver their fans a fourth consecutive winning season. The Orioles offense was consistently inconsistent because it was not built with enough versatility and connectivity to overcome the predictable ebb and flow of a free-swinging lineup with an inordinate dependence on the home run.

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.

One of the side benefits of Adam Jones' persistent back stiffness is that it has allowed the Orioles to take the occasional look at Gerardo Parra in center field, in case there is a future need. Where Parra's future will be, however, is undetermined. But the pending free agent said he has enjoyed his time in Baltimore and would like to come back if there's a fit.

Adam Jones is back in center field this afternoon for the series finale at Fenway Park after not being available for the past six days with back spasms.

When David Lough was sent home following the end of Triple-A Norfolk¿s postseason series, he thought his season was over. But after spending a week back home in Akron, Ohio, he received an unexpected call from the Orioles telling him join the major league club Thursday in Washington.

The Orioles haven't lost their sense of humor despite being 3.5 games out of the last wild card spot with only nine games to go. On the flight to Boston, they had the rookies dress up in ridiculous costumes as part of an annual ritual.

The Orioles reaped their revenge against the Nationals without further incident, sweeping their beltway battle with a 5-4 victory over the Nationals Thursday afternoon in front of an announced 28,456 in the makeup game of Monday¿s rainout.

The Orioles left the nation's capital on a surprising roll, but they need to stay on it for another 10 days and they need a couple of their key players back to give themselves any chance of completing a miracle run to the playoffs.

Manager Buck Showalter indicated his team won¿t retaliate for third baseman Manny Machado getting plunked by Washington Nationals closer Jonathan Papelbon in the Orioles' 4-3 victory Wednesday night.

While Adam Jones told reporters before today¿s game that there was nothing specific keeping him out of the lineup, manager Buck Showalter said that Jones was not available to start today because of back spasms.