How the Orioles Are Building Their Opening Day Roster

With the Baltimore Orioles set to begin their 2026 Spring Training games on Friday, new manager Craig Albernaz continues to develop his plans for the team's Opening Day roster.

Batters

The most recent significant development on this front was an unfortunate one, as second baseman Jackson Holliday underwent surgery to remove a broken hamate bone in his right hand. His recovery is expected to sideline him for all of Spring Training, as well as the first few weeks of the regular season.

With Holliday out of commission for the time being, Blaze Alexander is expected to fill the void at second base. Alexander, who was acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks in a trade a couple of weeks ago, projects as a solid - if unspectacular - depth infielder with defensive versatility and room for growth at the plate.

Alexander will partner Gunnar Henderson in the middle of the O's infield. Henderson will once again be a stalwart of the lineup, with the shortstop looking to prove that his offensive "down year" in 2025 was an outlier and continue fulfilling his potential as a franchise cornerstone and upper-echelon MLB superstar.

Sep 28, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Baltimore Orioles third baseman Jordan Westburg (11) is greeted at home plate by shortstop Gunnar Henderson (2) after hitting a solo home run against the New York Yankees during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images | John Jones-Imagn Images

First baseman Pete Alonso and left fielder Taylor Ward, both offseason additions in Baltimore, add significant power to the lineup from the right-handed batter's box. In fact, Alonso's 158 homers and Ward's 98 homers rank 2nd most and 18th most among all right-handed batters since the start of the 2022 season. However, both players have well-documented defensive shortcomings, and will each likely spend some time serving as the designated hitter in the heart of the Orioles' batting order.

Longtime Oriole Ryan Mountcastle currently projects as (potentially overqualified) depth at first base, and could be a pivotal piece of the team's lineup against left-handed pitchers. Last season, the Orioles were a basement-tier offensive team against southpaws by virtually every metric in the book, so Mountcastle's career .282/.334/.479 slash line against lefties could prove crucial to solving this issue in 2026.

Other nailed-on projected Orioles starters include Adley Rutschman behind the plate and Jordan Westburg manning the hot corner. Both Rutschman and Westburg were former top prospects within Baltimore's farm system who have since seen their stock slide a bit due to stagnating production, and will be looking to bounce back in 2026.

The O's current top prospect is highly touted 21-year-old catcher Samuel Basallo. The hefty lefty looks set to deputize in a rotational role, both as valuable depth behind Rutschman (catchers typically need more days of rest compared to other position players) and a designated hitter option. It will be interesting to see how aggressive Albernaz is with his management of Basallo, as the youngster continues to adjust to the MLB level and develop into a core contributor.

The rest of the Orioles hitters, as currently projected, include young two-way outfielders Colton Cowser and Dylan Beavers, veteran corner outfielder Tyler O'Neill, utility spark plug Jeremiah Jackson, and speedy defense-first outfielder Leody Taveras. This would leave young corner infielder Coby Mayo among the players on the "outside looking in" at the 26-man active roster on Opening Day.

Notable Non-Roster Invitees (NRI's) attending O's Spring Training include veteran multi-position players Sam Huff, Ryan Noda, and Jhonkensy "Big Christmas" Noel. Enrique Bradfield Jr., who was selected 17th overall by the Orioles in the 2023 MLB draft and rocketed up all three levels of the organization's farm system in 2025, will also have the chance to earn a roster spot.

We have invited the following 30 non-roster players to Major League Spring Training in Sarasota: pic.twitter.com/KDome5e65i
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) February 4, 2026

Albernaz certainly has some decisions to make on the fringes of the O's roster, particularly in regard to divvying up playing time between the veterans and youngsters battling for playing time in the outfield.

Pitchers

The blueprint for Baltimore's starting pitching rotation and bullpen is a lot more cut-and-dry. A six-man starting pitching rotation has become the standard in an league which has seen injuries to pitchers skyrocket in recent years, and the Orioles may be no different.

If Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish can carry their form from the second half of last season into 2026, they'll provide an excellent one-two punch as frontline starters. Chris Bassitt slides into the middle of the rotation as a durable, reliable veteran right-hander.

Shane Baz, Dean Kremer, and Zach Eflin comprise the bottom half of the Baltimore rotation, with Baz and Kremer eager to translate their brief flashes of brilliant play into sustained dominance to earn bigger roles moving forward. Mike Elias recently noted that Tyler Wells is training as a starter, but with a fully healthy starting rotation at the moment, he'll likely slide into a "long reliever" role for the time being.

Aug 30, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Trevor Rogers (28) delivers a pitch against the San Francisco Giants during the third inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

Former All-Star Yennier Cano and unsung August 2025 waiver pickup Rico Garcia are expected to handle the lion's share of middle relief duties for the O's in 2026. Lights-out lefty Keegan Akin returns as the go-to set-up reliever, while Andrew Kittredge, re-acquired by the Orioles from the Chicago Cubs, is equally dependable as both a middle reliever and set-up man.

Former Reliever of the Year Ryan Helsley was signed in free agency to be the Orioles' closer. He will hope to temporarily fill the giant shoes of stalwart high-leverage reliever Félix Bautista, as the 6-foot-8, 284-pound flamethrower remains out for the indefinite future as he recovers from both a torn rotator cuff and torn labrum.

This leaves the Orioles a bit thin on proven MLB relievers. As such, a hodge-podge of inconsistent pitchers - most notably Cade Povich, Dietrich Enns, Yaramil Hiraldo, Grant Wolfram, and Jackson Kowar - are attending Spring Training alongside the team's top pitching prospects to battle for the chance to earn their seat in Baltimore's bullpen on Opening Day.

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