Gallardo's Deal With O's Now in Limbo

Over the weekend, the Baltimore Orioles made it official with Rangers free agent starter Yovani Gallardo, at least that's what we thought.

The deal meant the Rangers were finally off the hook with Gallardo and his first-round draft pick tied to him after he declined the Rangers' qualifying offer back in November, and all was well. But now, the Orioles have concerns over Gallardo's medicals and reports say the deal is still very much "up in the air."

The Baltimore Sun reported Wednesday that it isn't a matter of passing or failing his physical, but more of a case of the Orioles being concerned Gallardo might not make it through the three years on his new contract because of wear and tear on his shoulder.

The article points out that Gallardo has never been on the disabled list for an arm issue and only missed significant time with a torn ACL while averaging right around 190 innings through much of his career, but that, in theory, results in wear and tear.

So what now? Well, the Orioles could try to negotiate a shorter-term deal, but if that happens it could turn Gallardo off to the organization and sour him on the idea of joining the team. Then what? A one-year deal back with the Rangers? Probably not, but stay tuned because this is just beginning.

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