MLB Rumors – Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers

After a report which said a deal between the Washington Nationals and Darren O’Day could happen as early as Friday night, the night ended with the Baltimore Orioles still in the mix as the veteran reliever reportedly tried to decide between the regional rivals… The deal is reportedly for four years and is worth $31 million, per Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. We should know his decision by the end of the upcoming Winter Meetings, and apparently it’s still possible that Darren O’Day could choose Atlanta. While he’s been effective for the Orioles in each of those four seasons, his performance in 2015 was the best of his eight-year career. O’Day pitched to a career-low 1.52 ERA (on the heels of a 1.70 ERA season in 2014).

O’Day, 33, has been a reliable presence in the Birds’ bullpen since 2012, emerging as one of the league’s most dominant setup men during his first four years with the Orioles. He made the All-Star team in 2015 and will solidify the team’s bullpen once again as the Orioles look to return to the postseason. The Washington Nationals also expressed interest in his services, but they were outbid by O’Day’s current team. His wife, Elizabeth Prann, is a D.C.-based reporter for FOX News.

The reason: O’Day is good at pitching. Since the beginning of 2012, O’Day is 23-8 with a 1.92 ERA, with 283 strikeouts and 62 walks in 263 innings during that span. O’Day wrote on Twitter that he had “not reached an agreement with the O’s yet” and called reports of a deal “premature”. “We need to have a greater skill set to get out both right-handers and left-handers and we’re going to be active in that market, be it the trade market or the free agent market, because we think it’s a point of emphasis for us”.

O’Day has lowered his ERA every year with the Orioles, and 2015 was his best season yet. They won a World Series, partially in part to an elite bullpen, according to The Baltimore Sun.