Rubenstein on involvement with Orioles, All-Star Game; Means going to Guardians

SARASOTA–What’s happening? Orioles owner David Rubenstein visited the Ed Smith Stadium complex on Monday, met fans and the media in a wide-ranging press availability.

Rubenstein said that he’s in regular contact with executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias on the team. Elias is always complimentary of Rubenstein and his partners.

“I think in all of baseball, I’m not aware of any owners who say to their general managers, ‘Do anything you want and call me at the end of the season,” Rubenstein said. “I think all owners are involved, and we’re no different than anybody else.

“We didn’t have a financial limit on what he could spend or not spend, but he did want to let us know what he was doing all the time and get our input, and we gave him our input. But our input really was relating to learning more about the players. It wasn’t so much about the money. The money isn’t the big issue. We are financially in very good shape.”

Rubenstein enjoyed his first year owning the Orioles, and is looking forward to his second

“I was learning the Orioles, so I can’t say I was as hands-on as somebody who’s been doing it for 10 years, but I tried to not do anything damaging to the team,” he said. “So I think I did a reasonable job of trying to do what I was supposed to do, which was to try to energize the fan base a bit and try to show that I cared about what was happening in Baltimore and with the team. I can always do a better job, but I hope to be engaged publicly again with the Orioles and go to as many games as possible and be actively involved in the civic affairs of Baltimore.”

What’s happened? Tomoyuki Sugano is scheduled to throw his first bullpen session on Tuesday. Sugano, who traveled from Japan and arrived on Saturday was given an extra day to recover from the trip.

John Means, who pitched the most recent Orioles’ no-hitter on May 5^th, 2021 and had two Tommy John surgeries since then, has an agreement with the Cleveland Guardians on a reported one-year contract with an option for 2026.

Means’ contract is for $1 million this season and his 2026 option is worth as much as $7.5 million, according to ESPN.

The first full-squad workout is on Tuesday.

What’s up with? Scott McGregor is one of nine guest coaches the Orioles will have in spring training. McGregor will be in camp through Saturday.

McGregor is sixth in franchise history with 138 wins, pitching 13 seasons with the Orioles from 1976-1988. He pitched a shutout to clinch the 1983 World Series.

After his retirement, he spent many years with the team as a minor league coach.

He appreciates how the game has changed and still enjoys being around it.

“It’s definitely much more technical than it was in my day,” McGregor said. “In my day when I was playing in the minor leagues, I had a manager and a trainer, and they had a little white ball they gave me and they said, ‘go figure it out.’

“Now, they sit down together and they look through eyes at computers and the cameras and each other and talking. It’s definitely a modern game. It’s in college. It’s in high school. You can’t go back. That’s just where it is, and it’s working well. These guys have done great … Us and the Ravens got to learn to go one step farther.”

What’s what? Rubenstein’s meeting with the press was informative, and after hosting a public affairs show that bears his name on Bloomberg TV, is comfortable exchanging ideas as well as asking questions.

What’s the word? “I think baseball wants to show off its best all the time. We haven’t had an All-Star Game for quite some time. There are a couple other commitments that have already been made to major league teams for All-Star games, but they haven’t made commitments too far in advance. I think we have a reasonable chance, but we don’t have any commitments yet.” –Rubenstein on whether the Orioles will host an All-Star Game.

What’s the number? 56 percent. That’s the largest increase in payroll in Major League Baseball. The Orioles’ payroll is $160 million, 15^th highest in the majors.