My mother used to always quote the late Yankees manager Casey Stengel on why his teams won so often: “It’s simple, you’ve got to have the horses.”
I reflected upon this while watching and listening to the introductory presser at Camden Yards on Nov. 4 for new skipper Craig Albernaz.
I am not so much focused on the answers Albernaz skillfully gave to a myriad of solid questions from the assembled media. That manager Stephen Vogt, his best friend and boss with the Guardians, flew across the country to support him spoke volumes to me about what kind of man the Orioles have at the helm.
No, I was reflecting to what Orioles owner David Rubenstein said on more than one occasion about the club having the necessary funding to support raising the payroll. No, that doesn’t mean the club is suddenly going to jump into the stratosphere where the Dodgers, Mets or Yankees reside.
Lost in the disappointment of the 2025 season is that Rubenstein’s ownership group jumped the payroll from about $103 million in 2024 (remember, Rubenstein took the team over on Opening Day) to $160 million in 2025.
And while I can’t give you a grand total spent by Rubenstein’s group, I do remember Elias thanking his ownership group for pitching in cash at the trade deadline so the ballclub could get better prospects in some of the deals.
While some fans and media pundits berate this ownership group for being frugal — and yes, there will be some significant cost increases for fans — the Orioles are not likely to sit toward the bottom of baseball in payroll in 2026.
The Orioles have plenty of work to do on the roster this offseason, but Albernaz will enter 2026 with talented players like Samuel Basallo, Dylan Beavers, Kyle Bradish, Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, Andrew Kittredge, Dean Kremer, Coby Mayo, Grayson Rodriguez and Jordan Westburg.
Compare that to what Brandon Hyde had during his first year at the helm in 2019: Hanser Alberto, Thomas Eshelman, Richie Martin, Joey Rickard, Pedro Severino, Chance Sisco, Dwight Smith, DJ Stewart, Dan Straily and Jimmy Yacabonis.
True, Hyde did inherit some talent, but almost each carried some sort of asterisk — unproven prospect, injured or clearly on the way out: Dylan Bundy, Andrew Cashner, Alex Cobb, Chris Davis, Austin Hays, Trey Mancini, John Means, Cedric Mullins, Tanner Scott and Mark Trumbo.
Hyde got nothing out of Davis or Trumbo. Bundy, Cashner, Cobb and Scott were dealt for prospects before long. Means was intriguing and talented but couldn’t stay healthy. Mancini was a very solid pro who was never the same after his colon cancer battle. Unfortunately, Cobb’s tenure with the Orioles was torched by injuries before being dealt.
The point is that as disappointing as the Orioles’ play has been since the middle of 2024, the Baltimore job was attractive enough to reel in one of the hottest managerial candidates of recent years. Vogt said it was clear during their talks after the season that Albernaz was particularly attracted to the Baltimore job.
Now he has that job.
Nothing Albernaz said at the presser really means much because in the end, it’s all about the horses. That’s why Albernaz has a pretty good chance at succeeding. He starts with a pretty good stable, and Elias is now better funded than he ever has been with an ownership group that is focused on putting a very competitive team on the field. Elias is now focused on how to fill that stable.
Albernaz will set the course for the 2026 voyage by setting the tone for a new culture in the Orioles clubhouse. From now until the Orioles show up in Sarasota, Job 1 is giving Albernaz what he needs to win.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Baltimore Orioles