Orioles most obvious Corbin Burnes Plan B sounds like he wants no part of Baltimore

The Baltimore Orioles continue to sit on their hands as opportunities pass them by. There was an expectation that new owner David Rubenstein would usher in an era of aggressive free agent bids and legitimate spending, but so far, Mike Elias and the front office have been up to their old tricks.

Even the most optimistic O's fan has to be critical of Tyler O'Neill as Baltimore's only substantial addition to date — especially when he's replacing the arguably superior Anthony Santander, who swatted a career-best 44 home runs for the Orioles in 2024. Meanwhile, the pitching staff looks as vulnerable as ever without Corbin Burnes, who departed for a discounted $210 million contract in Arizona.

The O's are running out of backup plans to replace Burnes. Top free agents Blake Snell, Max Fried, and Burnes all signed elsewhere. We haven't seen Baltimore pop up as a credible landing spot for Roki Sasaki, while the O's also failed to trade for Garrett Crochet or Jesus Luzardo. Even some of the tier-below options, such as Nathan Eovaldi or Walker Buehler, are now out of reach.

Unless Baltimore can pull out the stops for a Dylan Cease trade or something in that vein, fans will start to lose patience. Perhaps the best remaining free agent — and the only noteworthy name with significant buzz in Baltimore circles right now — is Jack Flaherty, a player the O's are a little too familiar with.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on  The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop during the MLB offseason.

Don't expect Jack Flaherty to sign his career away to the Orioles

The Orioles "recently inquired" about Flaherty, per Katie Woo and Will Sammon of The Athletic. Ken Rosenthal once called him a "fallback option," should Burnes depart. Flaherty spent the final months of the 2023 campaign in Baltimore, where he hit a wall and finished with a 6.75 ERA across nine regular season appearances (seven starts).

It was a bad experience all around, which is why Rich Dubroff of Baltimore Baseball is skeptical of a reunion.

Flaherty "didn't have a good time" in Baltimore, which obviously complicates the Orioles' free agent pitch. The O's can inquire all they want, but if Flaherty doesn't want to come back — and if there are other comparable offers on the table — then he's probably going to spurn Baltimore, even if the O's are set up favorably in a wide-open AL East.

It's worth noting that, in Rosenthal's initial report, O's officials believed Flaherty was "worn out" when Baltimore acquired him in 2023. Thus, there is more confidence in his production moving forward, especially after his stellar 2024 campaign, which culminated in a World Series ring with the Dodgers.

If the O's can convince Flaherty of their belief in him and assuage concerns about rekindling an unhappy marriage, there could be a path here. We certainly can't rule it out, especially with so many top pitchers off the board and few contenders more desperately in need of arm talent than Baltimore. Maybe the O's weren't willing to bid up the price on a Corbin Burnes or Blake Snell, but that doesn't necessarily preclude them for spending in Flaherty's range.

It's unlikely, but never say never.