Question: Will Dylan Beavers make the Opening Day roster and will he start in left field? From: Charles Luck
Answer: Charles, I think Dylan Beavers will make the Opening Day roster, but I think he’ll primarily be a rightfielder. Taylor Ward has played left field exclusively for the last three seasons, and I assume that’s where he’ll play this year.
Beavers could platoon with Tyler O’Neill in right. I know that manager Craig Albernaz dislikes the term “platoon,” but O’Neill historically has had success against left-handers.
Question As I see that Kyle Stowers was selected as one of the top 10 leftfielders by the writers at MLB.com, did you ever wonder why they let him go in a trade? Someone determined that he wasn’t as good as Heston Kjerstad. Did someone make a mistake? It certainly seems like it. From: Gerry in Jarrettsville
Answer: Gerry, I got this question often last year before starting pitcher Trevor Rogers had such a good year. Rogers’ WAR (Wins Above Replacement) was 5.5 while Stowers’ was 3.6.
Many people criticized the trade early last year before Rogers began pitching so well.
As for Kjerstad, he was struggling after he was by a pitch a few weeks before the trade deadline, and he had a rough 2025.
It’s certainly easy to think the Orioles made a mistake, but perhaps the Marlins preferred Stowers to Kjerstad. The Orioles were fortunate to get such an excellent pitcher in the deal. It seems that the trade has worked out well for both teams.
Hopefully, both Stowers and Rogers have good years in 2026, and Kjerstad is fully healthy.
Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.