The Orioles tendered contracts to all six of their arbitration-eligible players — outfielders Austin Hays, Cedric Mullins and Anthony Santander, pitchers Austin Voth and Dillon Tate and infielder Jorge Mateo — ahead of the Nov. 18 deadline to do so.
Had the Orioles opted against tendering a player, he would have gone to free agency. But all six remain under club control. The deadline for the team and these players to formally exchange salary figures for the 2023 season is Jan. 13 — if the parties have not already come to an agreement by then. The sides can continue to negotiate after Jan. 13, but an arbitration hearing will determine the player’s 2023 salary if need be.
MLB Trade Rumors projects the Orioles’ six arbitration-eligible players to earn the following in 2023:
Anthony Santander: $7.5 million (third year of arbitration)
Cedric Mullins: $4.4 million (first year)
Austin Hays: $3.1 million (first year)
Austin Voth: $2 million (second year)
Jorge Mateo: $1.8 million (first year)
Dillon Tate: $1.5 million (first year)
Santander, 28, hit .240/.318/.455 with a team-high 33 home runs across 647 plate appearances in 2022. The switch-hitter was especially potent against left-handed pitching (.293/.365/.548 with 11 homers). He mostly worked in the outfield (116 starts), but sprinkled in some time at designated hitter as well (34 starts).
Mullins, 28, took a step back from the 30-30, Silver Slugger campaign he authored in 2021, but he still was one of the most productive center fielders in baseball in 2022. He hit .258/.318/.403 with 16 home runs across 672 plate appearances. Mullins became a full-time left-handed hitter prior to the 2021 season and had a successful left-on-left debut, but he hit .209/.265/.313 against southpaws in 2022, marking an area of possible improvement in 2023.
Hays, 27, hit .250/.306/.413 with 16 home runs across 582 plate appearances in 2022. It was a tale of two halves for the outfielder, who hit .270/.325/.454 with 12 homers in the first half and batted .220/.276/.349 with four homers in the second half.
These three made up the most common outfield for the Orioles in 2022, but it remains to be seen whether that will be the case in 2023. Young outfielders Kyle Stowers and Ryan McKenna are on the 40-man roster, others like Colton Cowser are on the way and the team may want to make upgrades via trade or free agency.
Voth, 30, was claimed off waivers from the Nationals in June and eventually became a valuable member of the Orioles’ starting rotation, posting a 3.04 ERA in 83 innings (17 starts, five relief appearances). He could compete for a rotation spot in the spring, with a swingman role as a possible fallback option.
Tate, 28, has been one of manager Brandon Hyde’s most trusted relievers the past three seasons. He had a 3.05 ERA and five saves in 73.2 innings (67 appearances) in 2022, earning high-leverage work throughout the season. He projects to return to the back end of the bullpen along with Félix Bautista and Cionel Pérez.
Mateo, 27, was claimed off waivers from the Padres in August 2021 and turned into the Orioles’ everyday shortstop. Though he hit just .221/.267/.379 in 2022, he mashed 45 extra-base hits and graded out as one of the top defensive shortstops in baseball. Even if the Orioles sign a better bat at the position this offseason, Mateo will have value as a bench piece.
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