When Yennier Cano was traded to the Orioles as part of the package that sent Jorge López to Minnesota, he seemed like an afterthought or a way to make the 40-man roster math fit the swap. Turns out, those of us who thought of him that way were ill-informed at best. Mike Elias saw something in him and we saw exactly what it was in Cano’s incredible 2023 season.
Cano made his major league debut with the Twins in 2022 and it had not gone well in a small sample size. Three games with the Orioles later that same year did nothing to improve his season statistics.