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Taveras has already elected free agency and the rest figure to follow suit. The biggest name here by a country mile is Kjerstad, but it was actually Taveras that wound up having the biggest impact for the Orioles last year, racking up 482 plate appearances, hitting .219/.288/.345 with eight homers and 11 steals.

The Orioles were expecting to rely less on Taveras after claiming Luis Robert Jr., but injuries haven’t allowed it. He’s hitting .216/.286/.339 in 474 plate appearances, and Baseball-Reference had him right at 0.0 WAR coming into tonight. He’ll likely be non-tendered this winter if he isn’t cut loose before then.

Taveras scored the Orioles’ only run of this game and nearly scored their second – which would have tied the game in the ninth inning – but was thrown out at home on a perfect relay from Brandon Nimmo to Nicky Lopez. Alas, Taveras has been mildly productive in a nearly full-time role this season with six home runs and 10 stolen bases across 100 games.

Taveras got the Orioles on the board in the second inning, tagging right-hander Seth Lugo for a 448-foot (107.8-mph EV) two-run shot that gave the O’s a 2-1 advantage. He then put his squad on top to stay with an RBI single in the sixth inning before coming around to score on a balk. With his two-hit afternoon, the dynamic 27-year-old outfielder finishes the first half hitting .237/.314/.364 with four homers, 34 RBI and 10 stolen bases in 290 plate appearances.

With Dylan Beavers back in the mix, we could start to see Taveras’ playing time start to dip a bit. The Orioles are rolling with Colton Cowser in center field and Beavers in right against Nationals’ right-hander Zack Littell on Sunday afternoon in Baltimore.

Taveras had three of the Orioles’ six hard-hit balls and was the offensive player of the game, but he was nearly the goat after botching what seemed to be a game-ending fly to right in the ninth, giving the Dodgers their second run. Fortunately, the Orioles held on to win 3-2. Taveras is batting .255/.332/.368 through 236 plate appearances. He’s fourth on the Orioles with 28 runs scored and sixth with 29 RBI despite having homered just twice in 66 games.

It appears to be nothing more than a routine night off for the 27-year-old outfielder. Tyler O’Neill will start in his place in right field and will bat eighth for the O’s against Griffin Canning and the Padres.

Taveras had started in each of the team’s previous four games, so he’ll get a breather in this one. Colton Cowser will start in his place in center field and will bat seventh for the O’s against Marlins’ right-hander Max Meyer.

Taveras smacked a two-run triple off of Lance McCullers Jr. in the fourth inning of this one, but all it did was pull the Orioles to within seven runs at 10-3. He has been sizzling at the dish in recent weeks and is slashing a healthy .288/.397/.455 with two homers, 17 RBI and a stolen base in his first 79 plate appearances with the O’s.

The Orioles scored their first run with two outs in the top of the ninth to turn this into an extra-inning game. Both teams went scoreless in the 10th and plated one in the 11th. In the 12th, the Orioles took a lead on a Samuel Basallo single before Taveras appeared to finish things. The Royals, though, came back with three runs before making an out in the 12th, only to sputter out afterwards. Taveras came into tonight as a lifetime .280 hitter with the bases loaded, but he’d never gone deep in 50 plate appearances. He’s been a great surprise in the early going, hitting .341/.453/.554 to take over as the Orioles’ primary center fielder. His success might get Colton Cowser demoted at some point.

Taveras also drew a walk in the contest, reaching base twice on a day in which Messick was nearly un-hittable. He also scored the O’s first run on a sacrifice fly by Gunnar Henderson in the ninth. He’s off to a nice start at the dish this season, slashing .375/.487/.469 with zero homers, eight RBI and a 9/7 K/BB ratio in his first 40 plate appearances.

The deal is now official. Taveras heads to Baltimore as additional outfield depth behind young starters Colton Cowser and Dylan Beavers after struggling to a subterranean .530 OPS with three homers and nine steals in 58 games between the Mariners and Rangers last season. The 27-year-old is just a few years removed from being one of the top prospects in baseball, but he needs to show something at the dish if he’s going to remain a viable option in the majors.

It’s a $2 million deal, per Heyman. Once among the top prospects in the game, Taveras was awful in stints with the Rangers and Mariners in 2025 with a combined .205 with a .530 OPS OPS in 171 at-bats across 58 games. The 27-year-old will likely be a fourth outfielder for Baltimore with the ability to play all three outfield positions.

Taveras failed to capitalize on a fresh start with Seattle after being claimed off waivers from the division-rival Rangers, batting .174/.198/.272 with two homers and three steals in 28 games. The 27-year-old former top prospect should be able to latch on somewhere this offseason as a low-risk reclamation project, but he’s been a non-factor at the dish in the big leagues for a couple seasons at this stage of his career.