In a few months, the Orioles’ decision to alter the left field dimensions at Camden Yards again might be insignificant compared with bigger moves made by the front office.
Two weeks into the offseason, though, the announcement that Oriole Park’s left field wall will be moved back in is a consequential one with wide-ranging implications.
Orioles Executive Vice President and General Manager Mike Elias, who announced the new dimensions during a news conference Friday afternoon, said the ballclub “overcorrected” in 2022 when it moved the wall back nearly 30 feet and raised it about 6 feet. The new wall, which is between 9 and 20 feet closer to home plate and 5 to 6 feet shorter, is a “happier medium” and closer to the club’s “original goal,” which was to create a neutral venue.
The change will not be as significant as in 2022, but it will be noticeable to fans and players. Here are the five people who will be most affected by the Orioles’ new left field wall:
Ryan Mountcastle and his right-handed hitting teammates
Shortly after announcing the change, Elias said: “I’m sure you can name the guys on our team that are probably the happiest about this news.”
Happy might be too tame an emotion to explain what first baseman Ryan Mountcastle must’ve felt when he learned of the change. Mountcastle is far from the only right-handed slugger to be terrorized by the wall, but it was evident how much the wall hurt him since its debut in 2022.
The wall was so strange that Baseball Savant created a dedicated webpage earlier this year to track homers lost to it, but its results were no shock at all. No one needed Statcast tracking data to learn the wall was stealing homers from Mountcastle. Of the 72 homers the Orioles lost to the wall, Mountcastle accounted for 11 of them — three more than any other player.
In 2021, Mountcastle blasted 33 homers to set the Orioles’ rookie home run record. Since the wall was moved back, he’s hit only 53 in three seasons, seeing a 40% decrease in his home run rate. The change won’t fix everything, as the new wall is a middle ground between the original wall and the recent one, but it could help Mountcastle get his power groove back.
This change will help all right-handed hitters at Camden Yards — and even a slight one to left-handed sluggers. Among active Orioles, switch-hitter Adley Rutschman (seven homers lost) and right-handed hitters Jorge Mateo (seven), Ramón Urías (five) and Jordan Westburg (four) were among those most affected. Prospect Coby Mayo could also see a boost as one of the best power-hitting prospects in baseball. And left-handed hitters Ryan O’Hearn, Gunnar Henderson and Colton Cowser all have enough power to go deep over the new left field wall.
Teoscar Hernandez and other free agent hitters
In free agency, money talks more than almost anything else. But it’s hard to imagine the best right-handed hitters in free agency seriously looking at signing with Baltimore after witnessing how much the wall depressed power to left field.
Not anymore.
While the new wall won’t be hitter-friendly, it will not rob no-doubt home runs to straightaway left field as it did frequently over the past three seasons. Perhaps that puts the Orioles better in the running for a right-handed hitting outfielder like Teoscar Hernández, who could serve as a suitable replacement (and perhaps upgrade) if the club doesn’t re-sign Anthony Santander. Or it allows them to invest in such a player — with Tyler O’Neill and Harrison Bader as other potential options — now that the wall won’t dampen his power.
However, Elias said that was not the main factor in changing the wall again.
“That’s not the reason we’re doing it, and in many ways, this may make the park less attractive to pitchers, which is one of the reasons that I initially made this change,” Elias said. “We overcorrected and the offensive environment shifted a little bit, and we got more than we bargained for, and it’s something we modify and adjust, and we think it’s too far right now and this is a change that I made and that we made, and we’re hoping to see more of a happy medium after these changes now.”
Dean Kremer and his fellow Orioles pitchers
This alteration won’t be as impactful to individual pitchers as it will be for a hitter like Mountcastle. But for starter Dean Kremer, whose eight homers saved by the wall lead all active Orioles, it could lead to a few more long balls soaring into the stands next year.
Grayson Rodriguez is second on that list with six, while Albert Suárez was perhaps the biggest beneficiary of the wall in 2024 with four homers saved.
Left-handed pitchers take the biggest hit because they typically face more right-handed hitters. No pitcher had more homers saved than the 11 by Cole Irvin, who is no longer with the organization.
Cionel Pérez is one of baseball’s best relievers when it comes to preventing the long ball, but the wall is partially why. Since the lefty joined the Orioles in 2022, he’s surrendered only four homers, but he’s had three saved by the wall.
Colton Cowser and the future of the Orioles’ outfield construction
The surface area of Camden Yards’ left field will still likely be one of the largest among MLB stadiums. But the need for a plus defender in left field won’t be as critical with the new dimensions.
An Orioles left fielder was a Gold Glove finalist in each of the past two seasons, and it appeared that Colton Cowser’s future defensive home would be in Camden Yards’ large left field. Now that it will no longer be abnormally large, is a move to right field possible?
Cowser has plus arm strength, making him a strong candidate to play right field. This change might not be drastic enough to move Cowser from left field, especially since there will still be plenty of ground to cover under the new dimensions.
This change could, however, alter how Brandon Hyde manages his outfield. He treated left field at Camden Yards as a second center field and was hesitant to put someone there who wasn’t a plus defender. That will likely be less of a factor moving forward, which means Heston Kjerstad, Ryan O’Hearn and others will be stronger candidates to play there if Cowser is in center field.
Mr. Splash and fans in the Bird Bath Splash Zone
It’s good that Elias announced the change in November. It will give Mr. Splash time to work on his splashing mechanics from his new perch.
Elias said the wall change will include a “flat platform for Mr. Splash to do his thing.” It will allow Mr. Splash to keep his balance and better spray fans in the Bird Bath Splash Zone after the Orioles score and their hitters smack extra-base hits.
The new platform is at a different angle and will allow Mr. Splash to spray fans from the front rather than from the side. And perhaps with the new wall, there will be more homers for Mr. Splash to celebrate.
Have a news tip? Contact Jacob Calvin Meyer at jameyer@baltsun.com, 667-942-3337 and x.com/JCalvinMeyer.
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