Would the addition of Paxton and Stephenson make the Off-season shopping seem OK?

[Say O!]

35 minutes ago, Frobby said:

I’d say that would be a very good offseason.   Not as much help in the rotation as I hoped for, but more help n the bullpen than I expected.  We’d have a lot of flexibility on how to use Wells, Hall and Irvin in this scenario.   Start with Paxton but we’d have plans B, C and D sitting in our bullpen in case of injury to a starter or two, and enough bullpen depth to adjust.

Agree.  Lots of flexibility and sets up nicely to still make a mid season move to upgrade the team depending on what’s working/not and which potential rookies step up. 

Edited January 13 by Say O!

[jem709]

I still Think a combination of Wells/Hall/Irvin if you space out the starts between the three of them wouldn't be the worst.

[wildcard]

I can see Paxton possibly.   O's are not spending on Stephenson.

[Jim'sKid26]

5 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

[oriole]

I am set up to be massively disappointed. Paxton is one of the more realistic guys out there and that’s just embarrassing.

[btdart20]

Stephenson alone is a success in my book.  Two solid arms to backfill Bautista and sure up regression elsewhere.

On Paxton, I’d prefer other options, but I’m intrigued by him.  On the surface he feels like a good target for a 2nd division reclamation like someone earlier said.  He would definitely tilt the scale from the low risk/solid floor toward the high risk/high ceiling and be something of a management shift.  The anti-Lyles you could say.  Paxton was really good all those years ago.  He showed glimpses last year but never answered the big question.  It’ll be interesting if he’s SigBot approved.

[bpilktree]

No Paxton is about Worthless rather just let Wells start.  Either upgrade the number 3 spot or just go with Wells,Irvin, and Means as the 4 and 5 guys.  I also and not as high on Stephenson as most on here.  He was great in Tampa but that one good half season of 38 innings is not enough for me to pay over 10 million a year for multi years.  

[emmett16]

I’d sign up for that right now.  That improves the team substantially.  We need a good BP arm and Paxton would be a fun lottery ticket and add competition to the group.  

[wildbillhiccup]

34 minutes ago, bpilktree said:

No Paxton is about Worthless rather just let Wells start.  Either upgrade the number 3 spot or just go with Wells,Irvin, and Means as the 4 and 5 guys.  I also and not as high on Stephenson as most on here.  He was great in Tampa but that one good half season of 38 innings is not enough for me to pay over 10 million a year for multi years.  

It's definitely a small sample size, but at least there's something to point to for his success. He made a small tweak to what become his best pitch. That makes me believe what he did might be more sustainable. 

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/2023/09/16/robert-stephenson-pitch-tweak-cutter-slider-mlb-reliever/

 

[24fps]

After last year's breakout success, I think something a little better than merely OK is warranted.  Plus, given the revenue that's currently flowing into the organization there's really no excuse for the team to act like it's poverty-stricken.  That said, I think Stephenson is a good pitcher but he's not someone I would overpay by much.

[dedwretched]

Yes, it would make the off-season OK. Just OK.

[Roll Tide]

On 1/13/2024 at 11:39 AM, Jim'sKid26 said:

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/01/orioles-interested-in-james-paxton.html

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/orioles-interested-in-robert-stephenson.html

Let's say that the market for Stephenson didn't materialize at 4/$36 MM. If you could get him for 2/$20 with an option and an opt out and Paxton at 1/$13 with an option based on IP, would you be ok with that? You could always chase down Dylan Cease at the deadline.....

Thread title question no!  But, I don’t want Cease either

[crawjo]

To be honest, I'd rather sign Paxton than trade for Cease, if Cease requires giving up a lot in prospects. A rotation of Bradish, Rodriguez, Kremer, Means, and Paxton makes a lot of sense when you have Tyler Wells and DJ Hall potentially waiting in the wings. 

At this point, I don't expect the Orioles to spend much money. I trust the front office to find good arms on a budget. What most interests me heading into 2024 are the players that are already in the organization. 

Last year the consensus was that the Orioles had blown the chance to take a step forward. Well, we won 101 games and a lot of the players that people wanted us to sign ended up being busts (such as Carlos Rodon). I trust Elias to put the best possible team on the field. I'm not going to get worked up over somebody like Dylan Cease. 

[Roll Tide]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:45 PM, Frobby said:

I’d say that would be a very good offseason.   Not as much help in the rotation as I hoped for, but more help n the bullpen than I expected.  We’d have a lot of flexibility on how to use Wells, Hall and Irvin in this scenario.   Start with Paxton but we’d have plans B, C and D sitting in our bullpen in case of injury to a starter or two, and enough bullpen depth to adjust.

Low expectations Sir … John Angelos been sending you honey potion with your season ticket bill. Paxton and Means are both severe injury risks. Why do we keep wasting money on that type of player. Hopefully they learned from Givens. 

[emmett16]

I hope everyone saying no to Paxton is also in the camp of saying no to Cease

Paxton Career era 3.69 / ERA+ 112 / FIP 3.46 / BB9 2.8 / K9 9.9 / WHIP 1.24

Cease  Career era 3.83 / ERA+ 113 / FIP 3.86 / BB9 4.0 / K9 10.8 / WHIP 1.35

They are pretty darn close and Paxton doesn’t cost any prospects.