Where are they now? Taking a look at the 2016 Orioles who have flown the nest

If you think the 2017 Orioles look a lot like the 2016 squad, that’s not a surprise — they’ve brought back nearly two-thirds of last year’s roster. With the Orioles re-signing outfielder Michael Bourn and outfielder-turned-pitcher Dariel Alvarez to minor league deals last week, 30 of the 47 players who appeared in a game for the Orioles in 2016 are in the organization now — in the majors, minors or on the disabled list.

A handful of last year’s Orioles, however, have moved on to new homes in 2017. Here’s a look (in alphabetical order, except when doubled up with one team) at where they are now and how they’ve fared so far in this young season.

Julio Borbon: Acereros de Monclova

Borbon hung around the Orioles’ minors for the last three years and popped up to the majors for six games last year, but the club didn’t bring him back in 2017. He’s now in the Mexican League with the Acereros (Steelers), where he’s 3-for-13 in three games so far.

Odrisamer Despaigne and Vance Worley: Marlins (minors)

Despaigne, who joined the Marlins last September after the Orioles waived him, started 2017 on Miami’s disabled list with a strained left oblique. He’s made one dominant rehab start for Single-A Jupiter, pitching four hitless innings with seven strikeouts.

Worley was in spring training with the Nationals, but was cut at the end of camp after being outpitched by fellow ex-Orioles Matt Albers and Jeremy Guthrie. Worley signed a minor league deal with the Marlins and is toiling at Triple-A New Orleans, where he’s 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA in two starts.

Oliver Drake: Brewers

A last-minute addition to this list, Drake is not only an ex-2016 Oriole, but also an ex-2017 Oriole. He opened this season in the Baltimore bullpen but was traded to Milwaukee on Thursday after three appearances. He made his Brewers debut Friday and worked two innings, striking out four and allowing an unearned run.

 

Brian Duensing: Cubs

Last year, Duensing went from a minor league free agent signing to an appearance in the AL Wild Card game for the Orioles, parlaying his modest success into a $2 million guaranteed contract with the Cubs this past winter. He opened the 2017 season on the disabled list with lower back spasms, but made his Cubs debut with a scoreless inning Friday. His second outing Saturday went poorly, though, as Duensing coughed up three runs and blew a seventh-inning lead.

Yovani Gallardo and Ariel Miranda: Mariners

Gallardo has started twice for the Mariners, and both were the prototypical mediocre outings that Orioles fans often saw from him last season. Gallardo lasted just five innings each time. In the first start, he allowed three runs and put 10 runners on base; in the second, he was tagged for four runs and 11 baserunners. His ERA sits at 6.30 so far.

Miranda, dealt by the Orioles to Seattle in the Wade Miley trade last July, originally was ticketed for the minors to open 2017 until lefty Drew Smyly’s injury created a spot in the Mariners’ rotation. Miranda has made two winless starts, giving up six earned runs and 12 hits in 10 2/3 innings.

Tommy Hunter: Rays

The fun-loving reliever cracked the Rays’ Opening Day bullpen and got off to an outstanding start with Tampa Bay. In his first five appearances, Hunter retired 12 of the 14 batters he faced and didn’t allow a run, racking up four strikeouts. In his most recent outing Saturday, however, Hunter gave up a tie-breaking run to the Red Sox in the seventh inning to take his first loss.

Brian Matusz and T.J. McFarland: Diamondbacks (minors)

Matusz and McFarland, lefty brothers-in-arms in the Orioles bullpen for four years, are teammates again, this time in the minors. They’re pitching for Triple-A Reno, an Arizona Diamondbacks’ affiliate (where they’re joined by ex-Orioles outfielder Christian Walker, who hit .341 with three homers in his first 10 games at Reno).

Matusz hasn’t fared well, surrendering six runs and nine hits in 6 1/3 innings spanning four outings. McFarland has made a much better impression, throwing seven scoreless innings with six strikeouts in four games.

Logan Ondrusek: None

Ondrusek holds the dubious distinction of being the only 2016 Oriole who isn’t currently employed by a professional baseball team. The Orioles somewhat surprisingly re-signed him to a major league contract after the 2016 season, despite his ineffective seven-game stint with the club. The Orioles released him March 15 after he suffered through an injury-riddled spring training that ended with a sore elbow. He hasn’t landed anywhere yet.

Steve Pearce: Blue Jays

Here’s a microcosm of how Pearce’s 2017 season is going for the 2-10 Blue Jays: Three times this season he has batted against the Orioles in the ninth inning with the tying or winning runs on base. In all three cases, he made the last out of the game. It’s been that kind of year so far for Pearce, who is 5-for-32 (.156) with no extra-base hits or RBIs.

Nolan Reimold: Long Island Ducks

Unable to entice the interest of any major league organization, Reimold signed with the independent Long Island Ducks on April 5. He’s one of several ex-big leaguers on the club, including pitcher David Aardsma and infielder Marc Krauss. Coincidentally, another of Reimold’s new teammates is a right-handed pitcher named Tyler Wilson, no relation to the Orioles’ hurler. The Ducks’ season starts Thursday.

Chaz Roe: Braves (DL)

The reliever with the ability to grow a killer mullet found a home with the Braves after the Orioles waived him last August. But this year he’s off to a forgettable start in the Atlanta bullpen. Roe made three appearances, allowing six baserunners and two runs in two innings of work before landing on the DL on Wednesday with a right lat strain.

Drew Stubbs: Giants (minors)

Stubbs, who spent an unmemorable month with the Orioles in 2016, was invited to camp with the Twins in February but was released after batting .139 in spring training. He has since latched on with the Giants on a minor league deal and is 4-for-17 in four games for Triple-A Sacramento. Including the Twins and Giants, Stubbs has bounced among nine organizations since 2012.

Ashur Tolliver: Astros (minors)

2016 was a big year for Tolliver, who made his major league debut for the Orioles at age 28 and also welcomed his first child. He pitched only five games for the Orioles before the Angels claimed him on waivers, and this past winter he was claimed again by the Astros. So far in 2017 he has made four shaky appearances for Triple-A Fresno, posting a 3.00 ERA but issuing six walks in as many innings.

Matt Wieters: Nationals

Nobody was a more significant departure this winter than Wieters, the homegrown Orioles catcher who spent his first eight big league seasons with the club, amassing two Gold Gloves and four All-Star selections. Wieters took a quick hop down the road to the Nationals on a free agent deal, and so far his new home has been very much to his liking. In 11 games, Wieters is batting .314 with a .929 OPS, a home run and five RBIs. Five of his eleven hits have gone for extra bases. Defensively, he’s 1-for-7 in throwing out would-be basestealers.