The 2026 Orioles calendar is an enormous miss

For most of my grownup life, I’ve been in a position to depend on receiving an Orioles calendar for Christmas from a well-meaning relative. When my grandmother was alive, she gave calendars to everybody, and since she handed, my mother has picked up the mantle. Christmas is a superb time to get a calendar as a result of I’d by no means trouble to purchase one for myself and whenever you obtain it, it’s virtually time to start out utilizing it. Pretty good.

The annual receipt of the calendar is an opportunity to replicate on the current fortunes of the crew in addition to its long-term outlook. In instances of chaos and misfortune, the calendar is suffering from gamers who aren’t even on the crew any extra, or if they’re, you anticipate nothing good from them. When issues are going nicely and there may be continuity, it’s a banger each month.

Two years in the past, the calendar-makers did about in addition to they may do. As 2024 started, all twelve gamers chosen for a month had been nonetheless on the Orioles. Eleven of the twelve had been nonetheless on the Orioles as their month arrived. Last 12 months, they missed by one, together with Austin Hays for some motive. I really feel that it isn’t an excessive amount of to ask for the annual calendar to at the least be capable to replicate updates based mostly on who has been traded (or acquired) in July. I do know from expertise that the calendar doesn’t meet this ask frequently.

I need to emphasize that, just like the 2025 Orioles, this isn’t a high quality product. This 12 months’s version may be the bottom high quality but when it comes to its potential to operate as an precise calendar. Unlike the platonic excellent of a calendar the place you get some sort of image above the fold and a grid of the times of the month beneath the fold, the 2026 version of the Orioles calendar has expanded the picture of the month’s chosen participant to take up about 40% of the true property on the underside web page, shrinking the out there area to learn the calendar and get some sort of sensible use out of it.

On the again of the calendar is the usual disclaimer:

The writer has made each effort to make sure the accuracy of the information introduced on this calendar version. We can’t be held chargeable for any errors, omissions, or inconsistencies. Please word: All gamers had been beneath contract at time of printing.

It could be the case that, just like the singer of The Verve Pipe’s “The Freshmen”, they will’t be held accountable. Yet they will’t cease me from making enjoyable of the weak effort they’ve put into this 12 months’s calendar. Let’s get to it.

Right out of the gate, a swing and a miss. Even the 2025 Orioles managed to win on Opening Day. Alas, there was not even some fundamental degree of oversight on this calendar that might have clued somebody in to the truth that Mullins was all the time going to be a free agent following the 2025 season and was by no means more likely to be beneath contract in 2026. Nor was there a closing accounting on August 1 of the very fact of who was traded away.

This is just not probably the most egregious misfire I’ve ever seen within the historical past of the calendar. The go-to instance for that’s the inclusion of Rodrigo López on the 2008 Orioles calendar. López was traded in January of 2007.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for his month? We already know that the reply is not any.

This is the second consecutive 12 months of Cano showing on the calendar. This made sense when he appeared final 12 months, since he had been nice in 2023 and never unhealthy in 2024, however issues fell aside in 2025 and he completed with an ERA over 5. The Orioles haven’t signed sufficient guys to definitively push him out of the image for 2026, and he does determine to at the least open spring coaching with the crew. If this 12 months goes to go higher than final, they will must do higher than this.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? Highly seemingly. You don’t should be glad about it.

March – Grayson Rodriguez

In final 12 months’s version of the calendar, Rodriguez appeared in December. I confidently asserted that in fact Rodriguez would nonetheless be on the crew for that month. Mike Elias obtained me fairly good, buying and selling Rodriguez to the Angels in November for Taylor Ward. This was after a season the place Rodriguez finally didn’t pitch in any respect, bouncing between elbow and lat soreness that he hopes will likely be resolved now that he’s had bone chips faraway from his throwing elbow. I proceed to suppose that Elias should not imagine Rodriguez will bounce again after the surgical procedure, or else he wouldn’t have traded him for one 12 months of a two-win participant.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? Nope. I don’t blame the calendar-makers for not with the ability to get this one proper, although.

Oh, Adley. What has been occurring with you? We’re all so fascinated with understanding what’s on the root of the poor hitting that’s now plagued him for a couple of season and a half value of baseball. Dating again to July 1, 2024, Rutschman is batting .209/.294/.332. That sucks! His incapability to rebound from the second half of the 2024 season was one of many issues that bothered the 2025 crew. Even with Samuel Basallo – not on the calendar – having gotten the contract extension final August, Rutschman stays necessary to the 2026 crew.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? Though some followers have spent the offseason imagining a Rutschman commerce is inevitable, he stays necessary to the 2026 Orioles and I feel so long as he’s wholesome he’ll begin the season with the crew.

Probably the most secure wager of any of those gamers to have nonetheless been on the crew. Henderson was one more Oriole whose 2025 efficiency lagged his earlier profession finest. Even this down 12 months for Gunnar was good for five+ bWAR, which is definitely spectacular, however the Orioles are going to wish greater than 17 residence runs from him within the 2026 marketing campaign. If he can keep away from lacking an enormous chunk of spring coaching resulting from an indirect damage or some other damage, that might be nice.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? I don’t even need to take into consideration what must occur for the reply to be no.

Bradish coming back from his Tommy John surgical procedure with six begins final 12 months that made it look so much like he was choosing up the place he left off pre-surgery was one of many issues in regards to the season’s closing month the place you might possibly kinda-sorta really feel like higher issues could be coming in 2026 for the crew. Bradish ought to be the Opening Day starter as issues stand now and may even nonetheless be the man even when the Orioles signal or commerce for an additional beginning pitcher.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? Same as the reply for Henderson with May.

The calendar-makers catch a fortunate break right here, with Eflin being introduced again by the crew as a free agent simply throughout the final week. Eflin was another Oriole who was both damage or unhealthy for the entire season of 2025. When he pitched, he wasn’t good, and when he was damage, worse pitchers obtained these begins. Elias is betting on a rebound in 2026, which will not be an terrible wager to make after Eflin has – he says – addressed career-long again ache with the surgical procedure he obtained in August.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? I really feel secure saying sure.

August – Ryan Mountcastle

For a number of years now on this web site, I’ve been writing of Mountcastle that he’s both going to wish to get higher or the Orioles should resolve they need higher from their 1B/DH. They have stored on rolling with Mountcastle, with Mountcastle not getting higher, till earlier this offseason after they signed Pete Alonso. This signing appears like it’s going to displace both Mountcastle or Coby Mayo from the roster totally, however for now, the established order stays.

Drafted in 2015, Mountcastle is the longest-tenured participant within the group proper now and one in all simply three gamers (together with Dean Kremer and Keegan Akin) who can hint their MLB time with the crew way back to 2020.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? With apologies to Mounty, I positive hope not.

September – Jackson Holliday

We all obtained sort of spoiled by Manny Machado being a difference-maker when he debuted in his age 19 season in 2012 and adopted that up with a Gold Glove win and a superbly succesful bat in his first full season. Holliday’s begin of his profession was rockier, and whereas he confirmed marked enchancment in 2025, he’s nonetheless obtained a option to go to realize the sort of stardom you might need hoped for when he rocketed to the highest of prospect lists whereas racing his manner up in the direction of MLB lower than two years after being drafted.

Worth noting: Of the three different gamers who had been drafted out of highschool ranks together with Holliday within the high 5 of the 2022 draft, just one has gotten as excessive as Double-A at this level. The different two stay in A-ball.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? Yes, except one thing completely loopy occurs.

Mateo was hitting .180/.231/.279 when he was damage in early June and he missed three months. Somebody someplace ought to pay attention to that and modify the tentative calendar plans. My spouse, who has been on the #CrewMateo bandwagon for a while, will likely be glad he’s gotten a featured month, although she’s unhappy he’s off the roster.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? Mateo stays a free agent, so it’s technically attainable he might nonetheless find yourself with the Orioles on a minor league deal and discover his manner again into the key league roster combine.

November – Jordan Westburg

It’s been straightforward to view Westburg as the final word glue man over the past two seasons, with the crew doing nicely when he performs and doing poorly when he doesn’t. That was stark in 2024, because the Orioles went 63-44 in Westburg begins and solely 28-27 with out him. The narrative wasn’t fairly as clear in 2025, because the crew wasn’t good solely from including Westburg, although the “with Westburg” cut up continues to be higher: 40-44 with him in comparison with 35-43 with out. For him it’s about staying wholesome somewhat than enjoying higher.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? It is hard to give you a state of affairs the place he’s not.

The previous 12 months was dismal for Cowser between his self-inflicted early-season damage and his enjoying like crap from July onward. A traditional “hope that a now-healed injury was the explanation” state of affairs, as we did study very late within the season that Cowser had been enjoying via fractured ribs following a June 12 collision with an outfield wall. As issues stand proper now, he appears to be the crew’s on a regular basis heart fielder, a proven fact that I’m actually attempting not to consider an excessive amount of as I search for causes to be extra enthusiastic about 2026.

Will he nonetheless be on the crew for this month? One might sketch out a state of affairs that makes Cowser redundant to the roster: Dylan Beavers wins the Rookie of the Year, Tyler O’Neill is wholesome and good, Enrique Bradfield Jr. arrives, Nate George retains racing up the minors. Is it very seemingly that each one of those happen? No. So I feel Cowser will nonetheless be round.

We start the 12 months with 9/12 months having a participant who is definitely nonetheless on the Orioles. They obtained actually fortunate with Eflin re-signing to bump them up from 8/12. I don’t suppose all 9 of them will nonetheless be with the O’s by season’s finish, however because it stands proper now, the one gamers on observe for post-2026 free company out of this group are Eflin and Mountcastle. We’ll see via 2026 what number of extra roster surprises Elias has in retailer that affect our assumptions about who will likely be on the crew for the medium-term future.