Report: Orioles interested in Cashner, Vargas
With multiple holes to fill in their rotation this winter, the Baltimore Orioles are already sizing up potential additions from the free-agent market.
In their search to replace Chris Tillman, Ubaldo Jimenez, and Wade Miley this offseason, the Orioles are said to have definite interest in right-hander Andrew Cashner and left-hander Jason Vargas, according to MASN's Roch Kubatko.
Cashner, who turned 31 in September, enjoyed a solid bounce-back season with the Texas Rangers, putting up a 3.40 ERA - his best since 2013 - with a 1.32 WHIP over 28 starts. Vargas' season was little more volatile, with the 34-year-old crafting a 2.62 ERA in the first half - earning his first career All-Star selection for his efforts - and imploding after the break, coughing up 16 homers over his final 15 outings to finish the campaign with a 4.16 ERA over 179 2/3 innings. Neither player received a qualifying offer, either, meaning they aren't attached to draft-pick compensation.
Cashner + Vargas, career, as SP
| Player | G | ERA | WHIP | FIP | WAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cashner | 137 | 3.75 | 1.30 | 3.92 | 9.8 |
| Vargas | 228 | 4.12 | 1.31 | 4.35 | 13.5 |
As things stand, the only starters from 2017 the Orioles will retain are right-handers Kevin Gausman and Dylan Bundy, the two most productive members of a ghastly rotation that finished last in the American League in ERA (5.70) and second-to-last in both walk rate (9.4 percent) and home runs per nine innings (1.69) a season ago.
"We've got to rebuild our starting rotation," Orioles general manager Dan Duquette told Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun last month. "I still think that Gausman can be an elite pitcher in the league. We'll have to find some starters beyond [Bundy and Gausman]. It’s going to come down to what any championship team needs, and that's pitching and pitching and pitching. So, that's the job for next year’s club."