The Baltimore Orioles will try to replace their injured All-Star Cedric Mullins with veteran outfielder Aaron Hicks. The team announced on Tuesday that they had signed Hicks to a major league contract while sending Mullins to a 10-day injured list in a corresponding move.
Hicks was a free agent after previously being released by the New York Yankees. He will receive a prorated veteran’s minimum of $483,871 for the remainder of the 2023 campaign.
Mullins suffered a strained right groin in Monday’s 5-0 loss to the Cleveland Guardians. He is expected to miss an extended period, which is why the Orioles had to act quickly.
“We had noticed that he was a free agent even before the injury,” said Orioles general manager Mike Elias of Hicks. “When the injury occurred, and it became pretty clear this was going to be an IL, it seemed like a good fit, even more so at that time.”
Baltimore will now hope that Hicks can benefit from the change of scenery and bounce back after the disastrous first part of the campaign with the Yankees. The 33-year-old player played in 28 games in 2023 and had only 15 hits with a .188 batting average and no home runs.
The Orioles are currently exceeding expectations, sitting second in AL East with a 34-20 record.
