A bunch of other former Orioles find themselves with a change of scenery for the 2011 season. One former Oriole, Kris Benson, decided to call it a career and chose to retire. Another pitcher, Brian Burres, is currently out there on the free agent market after being non-tendered by the Pirates. Anybody remember Bruce Chen? He seems to have found a home in Kansas City with the Royals as he resigned for another year with the franchise.
This hitter, may not even be remembered because of his short two year stint with the team; but the Orioles at one point had Jack Cust. More recently, Cust had a home with Oakland where he was the DH. At the conclusion of the 2010 season, Oakland cut ties with Cust; allowing him to sign with west coast and division rival, Seattle. Willie Harris, who was with the Orioles briefly (one year), has caught on with a NL team for the 2011 campaign. After three years being a defensive replacement/pinch hitter for the Nationals, Harris stayed in the NL East, agreeing to a deal with the New York Mets.
Former catcher pre-Wieters, Ramon Hernandez is also going to be in the National League, resigning with the Reds. The Orioles traded Ramon to the Reds for utilityman Ryan Freel back in 2008. Needless to say, Freel had a VERY short tenure here in Baltimore.
In what I would say is a decent move, the World Champion San Francisco Giants retained their first baseman, and former Oriole, Aubrey Huff by extending him with a 2 year $22 million contract. Back to pitching now, former Oriole prospect John Maine is still looking for work, as the Mets non-tendered him. Hopefully he can hook up with a team as a reclamation project, due to injury concerns in recent years. He is still capable of eating innings for a team. A more recent Oriole that finds himself still in the hunt in free agency, is Julio Lugo. Lugo got the job done during his stint here, but more was expected of him when he arrived in Baltimore.
Since the Orioles signed Justin Duchscherer, I think the door is officially on last year's #1 starter, Kevin Millwood, returning to the orange and black. Currently, Millwood still sits in free agency, reportedly being pursued by the Cleveland Indians (where he spent 2005) and the New York Yankees (who seem to be signing just about anyone lately).
Corey Patterson, who had two different stints with the Orioles in his career, will now be suiting up for the AL East rival Toronto Blue Jays. Patterson enjoyed moderate success here in Baltimore but never seemed to recognize the huge potential he showed in the Cubs minor league system. There have been flashes at the major league level. With that said, Patterson has still made a decent career for himself, a former first round pick. Another former outfielder, Jay Payton is still playing as he inked a minor league deal with the Colorado Rockies.
Along with Aubrey Huff, there was one other former Oriole in the World Series. Chris Ray, Baltimore's closer from 2006-2009, was on the Giants for their title run in 2010. Ray was traded to Texas in the deal that landed Millwood in Baltimore. Ray was traded again, mid-season from Texas to the Giants, in exchange for Bengie Molina. The 2011 destination for Ray is none of the aforementioned teams. He will be playing on the west coast once again, this time for the Seattle Mariners.
Former AL MVP, who had two stints with the Orioles is changing zipcodes as well. Miguel Tejada, after being traded to San Diego last year, now calls San Francisco home. He will help fill the void left by Juan Uribe, who signed with the Dodgers, and Edgar Renteria, who is now in Cincinnati.
Last, but certainly not least, is Gregg Zaun. He had two stops in Baltimore in his career. After playing with Milwaukee last year, he signed a minor league deal to play in San Diego.
That's this year's rundown. I wish all the former Orioles the best of luck for the upcoming season and to have lengthy baseball careers.
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