The Baltimore Orioles are widely expected to be one of the more active teams this offseason. Whether they’re pursuing starting pitching, bullpen help, or outfield upgrades, the front office is positioned to be aggressive.
Mike Elias has been linked to several of his former Houston Astros players, with Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez standing out as strong potential fits. Another ex-Astro — has also been floated as a possibility, but a new report from Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic significantly dims those chances.
As Sammon and Rosenthal note, Elias was the Astros’ scouting director when Houston drafted Bregman second overall and Kyle Tucker fifth in 2015. Despite that connection, the Orioles are not expected to pursue Bregman.
The reason is straightforward: Baltimore’s infield is already loaded with young, major-league-ready talent, leaving no real opening for a high-profile third baseman on a big contract.
While the Orioles may still target other former Astros brought in during Elias’ tenure, Bregman does not appear to be in their plans.
With Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg, Coby Mayo, Gunnar Henderson, and Ryan Mountcastle already in place, the Orioles’ infield is packed — and that’s without even factoring in the limited DH opportunities due to Samuel Basallo and Adley Rutschman.
There simply isn’t space for Alex Bregman. Even though he’d represent an upgrade over some of Baltimore’s infield options, it wouldn’t be logical to add him at the expense of their young core.
Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez remain realistic targets, but Bregman isn’t. Given Baltimore’s roster construction, he’s not someone Mike Elias is expected to pursue, and he’s likely to land with another team.