Saying farewell as Santander chapter officially closes

This story was excerpted from Jake Rill’s Orioles Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

BALTIMORE -- Once Tyler O’Neill signed a three-year, $49.5 million deal with the Orioles on Dec. 10, it became fairly obvious that Anthony Santander wouldn’t be returning to Baltimore.

That didn’t make Monday sting any less for O’s fans.

Santander’s time with the Orioles is over, but he won’t be leaving the American League East. The 30-year-old outfielder signed a five-year, $92.5 million deal with the Blue Jays, cashing in on his 2024 All-Star campaign that featured a career-high 44 home runs.

On Tuesday, Santander posted a goodbye message to Baltimore on Instagram, then shared praise for the O’s during his introductory press conference with the Toronto media.

“I’m so thankful for Baltimore, because it was the organization who gave me the opportunity to show up as a player,” Santander said. “I mean, just hitting my first base hit, my first play, my first homers, going to the playoffs -- it’s something that’s going to be in my head. But now, we’re the Toronto Blue Jays. It’s time to go and face them and [win] some games.”

Only a dozen players have hit more homers in an Orioles uniform than Santander -- who belted 155 over eight seasons -- and it’s quite a star-studded group:

Most home runs for the Orioles
1. Cal Ripken Jr. -- 431
2. Eddie Murray -- 343
3. Boog Powell -- 303
4. Brooks Robinson -- 268
5. Adam Jones -- 263
6. Chris Davis -- 253
7. Rafael Palmeiro -- 223
8. Brady Anderson -- 209
9. Ken Singleton -- 182
10. Frank Robinson -- 179
11. Manny Machado -- 162
12. Melvin Mora -- 158
13. Anthony Santander -- 155

Santander is a likely future Orioles Hall of Famer. However, there was much more to his time in Baltimore than home runs or any other numbers.

That’s because Santander was one of the easiest guys to root for. A Rule 5 success story — plucked by the O’s out of the Cleveland farm system at the 2016 Winter Meetings — “Tony Taters” became one of the most popular players to come through Baltimore in some time.

He flashed wide smiles on a daily basis. He wasn’t afraid to let out his emotion on the field -- perhaps never more so than on July 28, 2023, when he crushed a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning at Camden Yards to power the Orioles to a 1-0 victory over the Yankees.

Whenever Santander gave postgame interviews -- either on the field on MASN or afterward at his locker -- he would put his arm around O’s team interpreter Brandon Quinones, give him a pat on the shoulder and chest and exclaim, “My man!” It became quite a popular bit. (Even though “Q” didn’t have much Spanish to interpret in recent years for Santander, who has become a strong English speaker, something he takes great pride in.)

Manager Brandon Hyde often gets emotional talking about Santander. The outfielder’s play caught the skipper’s attention during his first Spring Training at the helm in 2019, and Hyde enjoyed watching Santander develop both as a player and as a clubhouse leader.

“Very soft spot for me. Somebody I care about a lot,” Hyde said at the Winter Meetings in Dallas in December. “Watch a guy grow from this young player with a lot of tools to put himself in this position. So proud of him, honestly.”

The Orioles have lost a big bat, but also a popular presence in the clubhouse.

How will they now try to fill the void?

O’Neill figures to be a big part of that answer, hence why Baltimore targeted the 29-year-old early in free agency and got a deal done. Coming off a 31-homer season for Boston, his right-handed bat should help offset the absence of Santander.

But Santander’s departure will also likely clear up some playing time for Heston Kjerstad. The 25-year-old should be a significant part of the mix in the corner outfield and at designated hitter, along with O’Neill and Colton Cowser.

Kjerstad, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, has played only 52 MLB games (all over the past two seasons), but his bat is filled with potential. He hit 26 homers with a .924 OPS in 132 games for Triple-A Norfolk over the past two years.

As for the leadership that Santander provided, it could be time for younger players -- ones such as Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg and others who now have more big league experience -- to step up.

“I do feel like some of our young guys are ready for that,” Hyde said at the Winter Meetings. “There are definitely guys in that room that have big-time leadership capabilities.”