Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias seems unconcerned that top prospect Jackson Holliday is still looking for his first big league hit after his first three games.

Baseball’s No. 1 ranked prospect is 0-for-11 with seven strikeouts after going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts Friday night. Holliday did not start today against Brewers' lefty and former Oriole DL Hall.

Milwaukee won this afternoon 11-5 and the Orioles (8-6) need a win Sunday to avoid being swept. 

Elias, in an interview with reporters today in the Orioles dugout before the game, said Holliday’s first couple of series in Triple-A this year were “reassuring is the word I would use, those of us that were leaning toward adding him Opening Day with the thought he was ready.”

He was not on the Opening Day roster, but Holliday, 20, is here now and searching for hit No. 1.

The Orioles have activated reliever Yohan Ramírez, acquired from the Mets this week for cash considerations, and optioned Jonathan Heasley to Triple-A Norfolk. These moves were anticipated last night.

Heasley allowed six runs in two innings in an 11-1 loss. Manager Brandon Hyde said during his afternoon media session that Ramírez would be arriving within the next few days.

He’s here.

Ramírez, who is wearing No. 48, has made five career relief appearances against Milwaukee and allowed two runs in 6 1/3 innings.

Also, infielder Tony Kemp cleared waivers and elected free agency rather than an outright assignment to Norfolk.

DL Hall went through the usual, almost clichéd, struggle this afternoon to find the visiting clubhouse at Camden Yards.

The strangeness never goes away for players changing teams and routines. The sense of direction is lost. Amusement follows in the retelling.

“Definitely a little weird for sure,” he said after greeting members of the Baltimore media with a smile and handshake. “I was walking in today, didn’t even know where to go. I was like, ‘I’ve been here but I don’t know how to get to the visiting side.’

“Definitely a weird feeling but awesome. Super excited, obviously.”

The Orioles made their big winter strike by trading Hall and elite-fielding shortstop Joey Ortiz to the Brewers on Feb. 1 for former Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes, a three-time All-Star and the bona fide ace that the front office hunted.

Now that they have added the 2021 National League Cy Young award winner, right-hander Corbin Burnes, just how good is the Orioles rotation? Does it stack up among the top groups in the American League?

A discussion of this on MLB Network this week led the analysts to ponder that question and believe the answer is likely yes.

They listed a graphic of “notable 2024 projected rotations" in the American League, listing in no particular order, Seattle, Baltimore, New York, Houston and Toronto.

Here are the pitchers projected to be in all five:

Seattle: Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo

Calling it a “big moment for our team,” Orioles executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias, via Zoom call with the media today, discussed the acquisition of right-hander Corbin Burnes from the Brewers.

Elias said trade talks with the Brewers have been ongoing since just after the World Series ended. He wasn’t sure if Milwaukee would actually deal the 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner. But the trade was finalized last night as the Orioles sent lefty DL Hall, infielder Joey Ortiz and the No. 34 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft to the Brewers get Burnes.

The 29-year-old three-time All-Star and 2022 NL strikeout leader went 10-8 with a 3.39 ERA in 32 starts in 2023. He had an ERA of 2.43 in winning the ’21 Cy Young and has a career 3.26 ERA and 1.055 WHIP.

Since the 2020 season, he has finished, in order, sixth, first, seventh and eighth in the Cy Young voting while pitching to an ERA of 2.86 in that span. That is an ERA+ of 146.

“This is a big trade and big moment for our team,” Elias told reporters. “Corbin Burnes is exactly what we needed. We were in a dogged pursuit of him the entire offseason.

We entered the month of February exactly two weeks away from the Orioles’ first workout for pitchers and catchers. The most recent transaction was their minor league deal with first baseman-turned-pitcher Ronald Guzmán, two days after the minor league deal with outfielder Daniel Johnson. The last major league move was the trade for corner infielder Tyler Nevin on Jan. 22 that left the 40-man roster with 39 players.

Closer Craig Kimbrel was the undisputed champion of impact additions with his signing at the Winter Meetings to a contract that guarantees $13 million and includes a club option for 2025.

Time remained, but teams holding aces weren’t folding to the pressure to trade them.

And then, it happened.

The Orioles defied the predictions and acquired a starter who fit at the top of the rotation. Not a middle-to-back-end arm. A former Cy Young Award winner, a three-time All-Star and one of the best pitchers in baseball.

One day after the Orioles' pending ownership change was announced by the club, the team tonight announced it has acquired the frontline starting pitcher it sought all winter with a trade for Brewers right-hander Corbin Burnes.

The Orioles are sending lefty pitcher DL Hall, infielder Joey Ortiz and a 2024 draft pick to Milwaukee to get the 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner. The pick is the No. 34 overall selection, a Competitive Balance Round A pick. Competitive Balance picks are the only ones that can be traded. After this deal, the Orioles would still have the Nos. 22 and 32 picks in this summer’s draft.

The last four seasons in Cy Young voting, Burnes, 29, has finished sixth, first, seventh and eighth. He is a three-time All Star.

Burnes is, at this point, a one-year addition for the Orioles. He is repped by Scott Boras and can be a free agent at the end of the 2024 season.

Last year for the Brewers, he went 10-8 with a 3.39 ERA over 32 starts and 193 2/3 innings with a 1.069 WHIP, a 3.1 walk rate and 9.3 strikeout rate.

I’m counting 23 days until Orioles pitchers and catchers must report to the Ed Smith Stadium complex in Sarasota. However, the number of early arrivals seems to increase every year.

Many of the position players also arrive before their date. Great complex, great weather, and an eagerness to start a new season.

I’ve shared some early predictions over the past few weeks that I’ll gladly walk back if I must do it. You learn to admit that you’re wrong if it happens enough times.

There's no substitute for experience.

Me: The Orioles won’t tender contracts to all 17 of their arbitration-eligible players.

Now that we know the roster for the upcoming Birdland Caravan, we can formulate a plan for interaction and, if you’re in the media, to conduct interviews.

I wrote last month that I hoped for a Félix Bautista sighting, but he isn’t on the list. We’ll just assume he’s feeling good and his recovery is going well after Tommy John surgery. And, of course, he’s working hard to come back.

Also, no Kyle Bradish to talk about finishing fourth in Cy Young voting in the American League. We’ll save it for spring training.

Anthony Santander won't be there, preventing the media from calling him a "trade chip" in person.

You’ve already been told about Adley Rutschman’s previous commitment to speak at an event at Oregon State, and Gunnar Henderson’s commitment to receive his AL Rookie of the Year award in New York. They send their regrets and hope to see fans in Sarasota.

Want an endorsement for the Orioles trading for a starting pitcher rather than competing in the free agent market?

Michael Wacha received a two-year, $32 million contract from the Royals that included an opt-out clause after the first season. Good for him. And good for Kansas City, which committed a reported $105 million to six free agents.

Wacha can earn $16 million in each season. He’s gone on the injured list nine times in his career, five due to shoulder issues.

The oblique, knee, hamstring and intercostal muscle also are responsible.

Every contract comes with certain risks. Wacha can be really good when able to pitch, but he hasn’t topped 134 1/3 innings since 2017.

Four days in Nashville for baseball’s Winter Meetings allowed media to gather and sometimes break news, like the app downloaded on phones to provide assistance in getting around the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center without taking a wrong turn every 30 seconds, slipping into panic mode and remembering that airport security confiscated my flare gun.

It was the most important discovery of the week. Bigger than the Juan Soto trade talks.

That place is the North Pole at Christmas if José Canseco bought it.

I boarded my flight on Sunday morning filled with questions, which I shared with readers, and wanted to check back for any resolutions. Don't stop me if you've heard these before.

Is there interest in Japanese right-hander Naoyuki Uwasawa?

NASHVILLE – Saying you “have to give something to get something,” Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias is in somewhat of an enviable position when it comes to making a trade. Whether it would happen here at the Winter Meetings or later.

He doesn’t feel pressure to make a trade. Just because he has probably the deepest farm system in baseball doesn’t mean he has to deal from it. During his press update with local media Monday, he talked about making good trades that are balanced and indicated just because you can outbid others for a deal doesn’t make it the right deal.

But he also knows when you cannot outspend clubs to sign free agents you may to have to outbid them with prospects in trades.

“We are as well-equipped as any team to rattle off prospect packages for any player,” said Elias. “That doesn’t mean that we want to do that just because we have the No. 1 farm system, and we could theoretically outbid any team. At some point it becomes a trade that you don’t want to do. It equips us to get involved in every conversation. But there is more to making trades than just being the high bidder. The trade has to make sense. A lot of our prospects are so close to the majors if they are not there yet. These are guys that are going to help the 2024 O’s too. We have to keep all that in mind.”

I asked Elias if the Orioles are prepared to lose some of their best prospects?

NASHVILLE – Orioles executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias cited his No. 1 priority earlier today as making the team better, with more avenues to do so on the pitching side because the group of position players is almost entirely back. And more are coming.

The miles traveled from Baltimore didn’t disrupt the team’s plans or rearrange its goals. Only the time zone changed.

Conversations have picked up lately in attempts to upgrade the rotation and back end of the bullpen. However, Elias isn’t driven by a sense of urgency to complete any deals before leaving the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center.

“I’ve never been one to view these meetings as some type of compressed time frame where you’ve got to do something. It’s just not the way we approach these meetings,” he said this afternoon while meeting with local media in his suite.

“I think they’re very efficient from an interaction and info gathering. I think in our business it’s kind of hard to get all your executives and scouts and manager in the same room, and so it tends to speed up trade conversations, idea generations, some creativity. Sometimes that leads to deals here. Most of the time it doesn’t. But we’re not worried about making any deals while we’re here.

There are a lot of questions to be answered for the Orioles between now and Opening Day 2024 on March 28 versus the Los Angeles Angels.

The makeup of the pitching staff and starting rotation is a big one.

If the Orioles add a starter who could slot into the top half of their rotation – something they have said they seek – it will be getting pretty crowded in that starting five.

There are already the quartet of Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez, John Means and Dean Kremer who could easily take four of the five slots. A new addition could grab the last spot.

So where does that leave everybody else, including lefty DL Hall, once one of baseball’s top pitching prospects and right-hander Tyler Wells, a pitcher who had a 3.18 ERA as a starter at the 2023 All-Star break? And a pitcher who on the last day of the first-half led MLB in WHIP at 0.90.

With family and friends gathering soon for the Thanksgiving holiday, the baseball business could slow but won’t necessarily halt. The screeching sound isn’t brakes. More likely talk radio.

Mike Elias could turn off his phone or charge it in another room while the turkey’s carved. He might be traveling and temporarily unavailable. But he’s aware of a fast-developing market after his time at the general managers meetings in Arizona. How pitching could fly off the board – unlike turkeys, who can’t fly – with so many teams searching for it.

The expanded playoffs increase the aggressiveness of executives, especially after the second-place, 84-win Diamondbacks reached the World Series. Snoozing brings the risk of losing.

Elias is known to prefer club control beyond one year if listening to trade offers, but the quest for a starter who slots high in the rotation might now allow it. Some of the biggest names assumed to be available are approaching free agency, most notably Milwaukee’s Corbin Burnes, Cleveland’s Shane Bieber and Tampa Bay’s Tyler Glasnow. The White Sox’s Dylan Cease has two years left on his contract.

The rentals can command less in return, but higher demand and desperation also can plant the sellers more firmly in the driver’s seat. Bidding wars aren’t confined to free agency.

Two moves made by the Orioles in the offseason put players on the 40-man roster who are out of minor league options.

Left-hander Tucker Davidson, who signed a one-year contract last week, cleared outright waivers yesterday and was assigned to Triple-A Norfolk. Outfielder Sam Hilliard will try to avoid the waiver wire as the Orioles create more space for future transactions. He also can’t be sent down without going through the process.

The Orioles depend on flexibility that allows for a roster churn, the shuffling done especially to freshen the bullpen. But there are numerous relievers who have run out of options.

The list includes left-handers Danny Coulombe, Cionel Pérez and Cole Irvin, and right-handers Jacob Webb and Mike Baumann.

Irvin made 12 starts and 12 relief appearances, and the Orioles haven’t said whether he’s viewed in one role next summer. Baumann was told late in camp that he’d be used strictly in relief and in fewer innings, and there’s no reason to deviate from that plan moving forward.

The question of do the Orioles more need a starting pitcher or a reliever may well be asked but isn’t the answer probably “both.” And can’t they get both?

Not only can they, they probably will. They surely can multi-task and it’s very unlikely that any one addition will keep them from making another. Even in the same spot on the roster, that spot being the pitching staff.

What is their biggest need is subjective to all of us pondering the question and whatever we come up with may or may not match the team’s thinking and that is the one that counts the most.

And unless they make a major expenditure here and sign someone to a larger than expected contract, adding someone as a starter or reliever is not likely to impact the addition of the other.

When it comes to the market, how that plays out may also determine in what order the Orioles proceed here. It takes two to tango and sometimes players and their agents want to wait to see others sign before as they say, “setting the market.”

There must have been times this summer when left-hander Dayton Lane Hall, once a highly-ranked Orioles pitching prospect, felt he might not make a return to the majors this year. Much less be on a playoff roster and pitch well in the postseason.

But his five-plus weeks spent in Florida in midsummer to build arm strength and get his fastball velocity back in the final analysis were five truly productive weeks for Hall.

He began this year at Triple-A Norfolk and was the 27^th man on the O’s roster for a doubleheader April 29 versus Detroit. But after that game, his next big league appearance would be nearly four months away. A back injury that limited him during spring training was such that he never fully regained his fastball velocity or strength. The Orioles sent him to Florida to find both. And while he was out of sight, out of mind for a while there, he never stopped working and always had pitching in key games late this year for the Orioles as a motivator.

He was in Florida from mid-June to early August and finally returned to pitch in games again July 25 in the Florida Complex League. Then he rejoined Triple-A on Aug. 5 and three weeks later was back with the Orioles. 

“It was a lot of working out and rehabbing,” he said of his time in Sarasota. “Just trying to get the stability back in my legs and back and just really crushing the weight room. It was something I couldn’t do when I was hurt. Couldn’t lift weights. I was trying to pitch at the beginning of the year without lifting and didn’t really have my strength. So I just focused on getting stronger down there.

Next stop for the Orioles – the MLB postseason. Their next game will be Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Saturday Oct. 7 at Baltimore’s Camden Yards against the Tampa Bay-Texas wild card series winner.

They are three wins from the League Championship Series, seven from the World Series and 11 from winning the World Series for the first time since 1983.

They will enter the playoffs with a roster devoid of much playoff experience. Manager Brandon Hyde though believes his club has indeed had big-game experience dating to late last season. And he believes it will help a lot coming up.

“I think it started last year with all the close games that we won and the type of games that we played, (and those) benefitted us big time this year,” said Hyde. “We’ve won a ton of one-run games (going 30-16) and won a lot of close games late. I think it’s been beneficial for the regular season and feel like we’ve been playing playoff-type games. Especially these last couple of weeks. The four games against Tampa, three games in Houston. Feel like we needed to win those two in Cleveland. Felt the guys wanted that and needed that. So, I feel like we’ve been playing some high-pressure games and I hope that benefits us in the postseason.

“But you never really know. There are a lot of guys without postseason experience. I do believe in the makeup of our club, I think it’s a real confident group. The young guys that have never been in the playoffs, they play with a ton of confidence. I don’t think they’ll be shaken by how different postseason baseball is.”

For some of the youngest Orioles, winning an American League East championship last night was something they had talked about when they were together on the farm. Then those players rose through the ranks in the minors and now are part of a 100-win team in Baltimore.

“That is what you dream of when you get drafted,” O’s 22-year-old rookie Gunnar Henderson said this afternoon. “You have good friends you go through the minors with, to come up relatively the same time and be on a winning team your first full year, you dream of it.”

I asked Henderson if there was a time in the minors when he looked around and thought the group of players he was with then could produce something special.

“Just felt like from all the pieces that were added over the years and the drafts that we’ve had, it’s been cool to see everyone buy in together," he said. "Everyone just wants to win. The work ethic that we have shows we want to play winning baseball. Even at the minor league level it seems all the teams are winning and doing well.

“It’s also about having good people. Never have run into anyone with a cocky attitude or that is hard to be around. It’s all just good people, and that makes for a good clubhouse. That allows everyone to go out there and play their best game. You can really enjoy playing the game and spending time with each other. That allows for great relationships and for us to play our best game.”