While the Baltimore Orioles made the playoffs for the second time in Brandon Hyde’s tenure, they fell short in the Wild Card Series. As the Orioles look to make a deeper run in 2025, Hyde is looking to bring an experienced mind onto his staff.
Baltimore is interested in hiring David Ross as their next bench coach. It is not yet known if the Orioles formerly offered the job to Ross, nor if he is interested in the role, via Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
It won’t be the first time Ross has been offered a MLB bench coach opportunity. The New York Yankees tried hiring him when Carlos Mendoza was hired by the New York Mets. However, coming off of being a manager with Chicago Cubs, Ross didn’t want to accept the job.
But the 47-year-old will be two years removed from his managerial post. Out of the game completely in 2024, perhaps he is itching to return to the dugout. The Orioles offer both a promising present and future. If Ross ever wanted to return to the top job, having success in Baltimore would certainly boost his resume.
Over his four-year tenure with the Cubs, Chicago held a 262-284 record. They made the playoffs in his first season, during the CO-VID19 shortened 2020 campaign. However, the Cubs were ousted in the Wild Card Series and haven’t seen the playoffs since.
Still, David Ross is a well respected mind in MLB circles. He played in the majors for 15 seasons, winning two World Series titles. As the Orioles look to get over the hump, Brandon Hyde and company know a voice like his would go a long way.
Baltimore made sweeping changes to their coaching staff after their quick playoff elimination. They mean business in 2025 and want to prove their core can go on a deep run. He won’t be joining the Orioles’ litany of top prospects on the field. But Ross can help guide them as a mentor and bench coach.
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The number of available MLB stars on the trade market appears to be dwindling. Atlanta Braves catcher Sean Murphy will not be available for trade ahead of the July 31 deadline, Buster Olney of ESPN reported on Tuesday. Additionally, Cleveland Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan is unlikely to be moved as well, Olney added. The 30-year-old Murphy, an All-Star in 2023, is batting .240 with 16 home runs and 38 RBI this season for the Braves. Meanwhile, the 27-year-old Kwan is batting .288 with six home runs, 32 RBI and 11 stolen bases for the Guardians — numbers that were good enough for Kwan to make his second career All-Star appearance this year. A common thread for both players is that their respective teams have underperformed in 2025. The Braves are a miserable 44-55, and the Guardians are only slightly better at 49-50. Those underachieving records have given rise to trade speculation surrounding both teams. However, both Murphy and Kwan are under contract for multiple more years at very reasonable salaries. Murphy is set to make $15 million in each of the next three seasons (with the Braves holding a $15 million team option on him in 2029 as well). As for Kwan, he still has two more years left of arbitration eligibility before potentially becoming a free agent after the 2027 season. There could still be a lot of movement ahead of this year’s trade deadline, particularly with some marquee teams looking to buy. But those teams will probably be out of luck if they are eyeing a potential move for Murphy or Kwan before July 31.
Defensive end is going to be one of the most exciting battles to watch throughout Dallas Cowboys training camp. One of the biggest reasons why is Sam Williams, who is somewhat of an X-factor ahead of the 2025 NFL season. During limited playing time early in his career, Williams displayed dominant play. However, off-the-field trouble and most recently, a season-ending injury in 2024, has kept him from making that next leap. Now, it's unclear where he stands in the Cowboys' depth chart. He's a candidate to start while also being far from a roster lock and he'll have to fight for his spot on the team. To do that, staying on the field will be ideal. That didn't happen on the first practice of camp. According to ESPN's Todd Archer, "it appeared Brian Schottenheimer removed Sam Williams from team drills after he hit RB Phil Mafah hard and blew up TE Tyler Neville on a block in back to back plays." Obviously, it's good to see Williams being physical, which is exactly what head coach Brian Schottenheimer preached ahead of the team's practice, but you want players to be smart about it. Even more so Williams specifically, who has had issues with costly penalties in the past. In 2022, he was called for three unnecessary roughness fouls and in 2023, he was called for four personal fouls. This isn't a big deal, of course, and Schottenheimer might also have been thinking about potential fines for the team with that kind of physicality in a non-padded practice. Deep down, however, I wouldn't be surprised if he loved to see it. As for Williams, I can't blame him for getting excited at the prospect of live contact drills after being away from the football field for so long. He's going to be fun to watch throughout camp. But he also needs to be smart to stay on the field.
With training camp in full swing at Las Vegas Raiders HQ in Henderson, head coach Pete Carroll provided an important update regarding two of his key defensive linemen. As things heat up out in Sin City, the Silver and Black engine is revving up under a new regime spearheaded by Carroll’s arrival. As most fans are aware, Carroll brings with him a bevy of defensive knowledge—there’s a reason his Seattle Seahawks dominated the NFC West for years. It starts in the trenches and for the Raiders, there’ll be no exception. It’s for that exact reason that getting all of the defensive linemen healthy will be pivotal for the team’s success. We all know about what Maxx Crosby will bring this season but it’s his supporting cast that was questionable coming into training camp. Luckily, there is some good news and some not-so-good. Malcolm Koonce is back for the Raiders—but what about Christian Wilkins? Fans and teammates alike were surely disappointed when the news surrounding Koonce’s injury last year derailed what should’ve been a promising campaign. After recording eight sacks in 2023, Koonce was projected to be the next double-digit sack artist for Las Vegas. Regrettably, that was postponed a year. Now, under Carroll’s guidance, Koonce appears to be ready to pick up where he left off. “He should be ready to go. We’re going to look after him, make sure that we do it right and break him in, but he’s ready to go,” said Carroll, addressing the media on Tuesday. While that’s good news, the developments surrounding Wilkins aren’t exactly encouraging; however, it’s not the end of the world. After placing their prized defensive tackle on the PUP list, Carroll was dubious about any sort of return. “It’s still uncertain. We sort of have to wait it out,” Carroll stated. While we can’t have everything, the return of Koonce in excellent health alongside Crosby is certainly something to celebrate.
The Los Angeles Lakers brought in some toughness and defensive versatility with the addition of Marcus Smart. However, they're now going to have to play financial Jenga. As reported by Bryan Toporek of Silver Screen and Roll, they won't have a lot of money to make any more moves. "After waiving (Shake) Milton and (Jordan) Goodwin and signing Smart, the Lakers now sit $1.1 million below the first apron. Since they’re hard-capped, they cannot cross the first apron under any circumstance between now and June 30, 2026," Toporek wrote. As a result, the Lakers' best hope for help will come once the buyout market starts to take shape. "Since they’re only $1.1 million under the first apron, they currently don’t have enough room below the hard cap to sign anyone to even a veteran-minimum contract. They’d have to shed salary in a trade before they can make another free-agent signing," he added. That's not necessarily what LeBron James might want to hear. His agent, Rich Paul, claimed that he wanted to pursue another championship and that they would assess the team's roster to determine his future. This team got marginally better, but it still needs to add a defensive-minded big man, since JJ Redick didn't seem to trust Jaxson Hayes in the playoffs last season. The Western Conference is as stacked as it's ever been, and it will take more than what the Lakers have to keep up with other powerhouses. So, unless Rob Pelinka works his magic with another shocking trade, James will have to weigh all of his options.
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