:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47825715/usa-today-8807377.0.jpg)
Remember that time 36 hours ago when we all got excited that the Orioles were going to sign Darren O'Day to a new contract, and then that other time like 34 hours ago when no less than O'Day himself appeared on Twitter to tell everybody to pump the brakes? Yeah. On Monday night, the baseball reporter class re-asserted that the deal has been completed: four years and $31 million.
The contract is still pending a physical, but other issues, which may have involved either the composition of a partial no-trade clause or the dispersal of deferred money, have been resolved. And while you never entirely know with Orioles physicals, the Orioles, being the team that has employed O'Day for the past four seasons, should have a pretty good idea already what they're going to see in there.
So it's still not official-official, but it's pretty much official. Unless something changes, the Orioles will keep their dominant 1-2 punch of O'Day and Zach Britton at the end of games, with players like Brad Brach and Mychal Givens free to try to grab hold of the seventh inning role to establish the kind of dominant trio that the Royals have partially ridden to postseason success the past two years.
If you believe reporters from outlets that are 85% owned by the Orioles, this signing does not close the door on the O's efforts to retain Chris Davis. The Orioles could still end up keeping three of their six free agents, when I could have just as easily predicted they'd keep one or none. Remember, I know even less than Jon Snow.
The Baltimore Sun wrote on Sunday afternoon about the importance of O'Day's leadership on the team. It's all too easy as a blogger to scoff at this kind of stuff, but it sure sounds a lot like O'Day has more to offer the team than just being an awesome pitcher. Four years for a reliever is a lot. A total of $31 million for a non-closer is a lot. O'Day is the man, and he gets to stay ours. There's nothing bad about that.