DALLAS—Orioles executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias was delighted to finally have some free-agent signings to talk about. On Tuesday, the Orioles announced the signings of outfielder Tyler O’Neill and catcher Gary Sánchez.
O’Neill signed a three-year contract, with an opt-out after the 2025 season, for $49.5 million. Sánchez signed a one-year deal for a reported at $8.5 million. ‘
“Pretty clearly two profiles we had been seeking going into the offseason,” Elias said on the second day of the Winter Meetings. “They both bring tremendous amounts of right-handed power. They’re good against both sides, right and lefty pitching, but extremely productive, Tyler, in particular, against left-handed pitching.”
Elias thoughtthe Orioles needed to add right-handed power, particularly in the outfield. Colton Cowser, Heston Kjerstad and Cedric Mullins are all left-handed. So is Ryan O’Hearn, who plays the outfield and first base.
“I think Tyler O’Neill fits in perfectly with that group,” Elias said. “He’s a good defender and he can play center field if you need him to, but he’s really good at both corners. He’s a guy that can run a little bit here and there. He’s still very young. He’s 29 years old. This was a good roster fit and something that we were lacking.”
O’Neill is set to replace switch-hitting slugger Anthony Santander, who is a free agent.
Sánchez will replace James McCann, another free agent, as the backup catcher to Adley Rutschman.
“I think it’s a good profile to match with Adley,” Elias said. “He’s a guy that throws well. It’s good to have a Spanish-speaking catcher to pair with an American catcher.
“He’s a veteran. He’s been in the playoffs and had a good season with Milwaukee last year and drew a lot of good reviews from their players and coaching staff.”
O’Neill played only 113 games because of injuries in 2024. He has played more than that only once in his seven-year career.
“I think the injuries that he has had have been minor. They’re things that have blown over,” Elias said. “We’ll take good care of him. We’ll have DH at-bats available for him. We’ll have days, maybe we’re facing a tough righty, where he’s not going to be in the lineup. He brings a lot of talent to our roster.”
O’Neill has played more left field than right, and Elias said he’s likely to play both positions, even though Cowser was a Gold Glove finalist in left.
“We’ll see him in all three positions. You’ll see him in left and right,” Elias said. “What the ratio ends up being, I don’t know … We need more than three outfielders. Now I think we’ve got a really good outfield mix.”
Cowser is looking forward to playing with O’Neill.
“Very excited. I got to see a lot of him this year,” he said. “He’s got a lot of pop. He had a good approach. I think he’s going to bring a lot of diversity in the outfield, and I’m looking forward to getting to know him, not just as a player, but as a human.”
Elias didn’t rule out signing another outfielder.
“I definitely think we have room for more,” he said. “We’re going to keep in touch with the market and see where it all falls, but obviously this is a really big piece for the outfield.”
Notes: Cowser said the rehabilitation of his fractured left hand has gone well. He broke the hand while swinging at a pitch in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series. He expects to be ready for spring training in February …E lias said he expects to name a new athletic training staff before spring training and possibly before the end of the year.
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