Trio of Orioles elects to file for free agency

By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com
11/03/09 8:15 PM EST

Three Orioles refused an outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk and instead elected to file for free agency on Tuesday.

Left-hander Rich Hill, outfielder Jeff Fiorentino and catcher Guillermo Rodriguez all filed paperwork with Major League Baseball and have informed the O's that they will become free agents, a team spokesman confirmed.

Right-hander Alfredo Simon, limited to just two starts this year and coming off Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery, accepted his assignment.

All four players were taken off the 40-man roster last week.

Hill, Fiorentino and Rodriguez could all re-sign with the O's this offseason, but the filing allows them to talk to other organizations, as well.

The day after the end of the World Series marks the 15-day window when eligible free agents can file. After declining the club options for third baseman Melvin Mora and catcher Chad Moeller, the Orioles also have lefty Mark Hendrickson and right-hander Danys Baez as pending free agents.

Hill, 29, went 3-3 with a 7.80 ERA in 14 games (13 starts) in his fifth season in the Majors, before being shut down because of shoulder inflammation. The 26-year-old Fiorentino batted .281 with eight RBIs in 24 games in the Majors. Rodriguez, 31, hit .244 with 30 RBIs in the Minor Leagues this year and saw action in seven games for the Orioles.

Alden Gonzalez is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

<http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091103&content_id=7615056&vkey=news_bal&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal

Rich, Jeff and Guillermo...
Don't let the door hit you on the way out...

No problm signing Hill or Fio to minor league deals. Fio looks like he could be a decent 4th oufielder if we dealt Pie.

"Fio looks like he could be a decent 4th oufielder if we dealt Pie."

... so does Matt Angle, if you like Brett Gardner/Reggie Willits types. I do.

Exactly. Although, Fio is ready to be that 4th outfielder now while Angle still is at least a great year at Bowie or bowie/norfolk, although i see no reason to rush him) away from the big leagues.

I don't mind guys like that (Fuld, Willits, Angle, Gardner, Fio etc.) as 4th outfielders, just not as starters. It's my opinion they'll have a hard time replicating their Mil OBP numbers in the majors.

With respect to the above mentioned players, I do think Gardner stands out, especially because of his skill/defense in CF and his speed.

I think Fio has quite a bit more power than the aforementioned guys as well. At least according to his Mil track record.

You know i'm partial to this kind of player, the high-OBP outfielder who everyone and their mom overlooks and dismisses b/c they have no power. That said, Fuld hasn't had any problem making it transfer (albeit in limited at-bats), and neither had Willits prior to the Angels not giving him at-bats (100 last year and 80 this year don't count, especially given that in 2007 when he had over 400 at-bats he had an OBP of .391 - Willits's problem is that he has no power at all (certainly not enough to justify him at a corner outfield spot) and that defensively he's a real reach in center, making him kind of homeless defensively. Fuld, by all accounts, can play a legit above-average defensive center field and probably projects as a good long-term option there (batting second in the lineup). Ditto Gardner, who had a very good year for the yankees this year (.270/.345 in big-league at-bats 128-400 or so) also is an elite center fielder and one of the fastest guys in the big leagues. I know we tend to disagree about these guys' viability as long-term MLB options, but big-league clubs tend to pull the plug on them because of their lack of power long before we get a chance to see if they can make their MiL obp numbers translate (every one of them has been deprived of regular at-bats and an everyday job by their respective teams over the long term). Knowing what we know about OBP, it seems to me that teams would be well-served to have any of these guys featured in their batting orders every day. I'm just not sure that the point that "they'll have a hard time replicating their MiL obp numbers in the majors" has enough evidence to support - teams pull the plug on these guys too quickly for us even to know (and many of them have experienced quite a bit of success early on, which would seem to undermine the point just a little bit).

I know you didn't send that post to me, but I agree with you. I would have liked to see the Orioles sign Hill and Fiorentino to minor league deals.

They still can. Hill and Fio are free agents.

I just read on mlbtraderumors that the Orioles have interest in re-signing him (Hill) to a minor league deal, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.

It's open forum James. Feel free to respond to me anytime you want. Yep, I agree with you. Wouldn't mind signing both of those guys to Mil deals.

I read we re-signed Scott Moore again. He'd be open as a rule 5 selectee though.

That's not a bad signing and not a huge loss if he's taken in Rule 5. I can't imagine any team keeping him on its big-league roster for a full year just to retain his services, but more power to them if they think he's that valuable at this point.

If they're going to stock from the scrap heap, they at least should have the decency to bring in fresh scraps.

Hill and Fiorentino are known scraps. If you look to other organizations, it's always a gamel... smoak and mirrors.

LOL... You're still in mid-season form, for sure.