BALTIMORE -- Adam Jones will remain an Oriole past Tuesday's non-waiver Trade Deadline, Orioles executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette told reporters after Baltimore's 11-5 win against Tampa Bay.
"Adam is a 10-and-5 man, so he would have to consent to any assignment. So, you should talk to Adam about that," Duquette said. "As far as the club's concerned, we would expect that Adam would be with us after the Trade Deadline."
As a 10-and-5 player -- one with 10 years of MLB service, the last five of which were with the same team -- Jones retains the right to veto any trade the Orioles put in front of him. The center fielder shied away from Trade Deadline questions Sunday, only saying, "We shall see," in regards to a potential trade.
Sources told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand that Jones is unlikely to waive his no-trade clause and is leaning toward finishing the season with the Orioles. Given that the Orioles are entering a rebuilding phase, the club is unlikely to bring Jones back as a free agent next season, so finishing out 2018 in Baltimore would allow the veteran outfielder to end his time there on his own terms rather than finishing 2018 as a two-month rental elsewhere.
MLB Network insider Jon Heyman tweeted on Sunday that there was a potential deal in place with Philadelphia, but Jones decided to stay in Baltimore, citing family among his reasons.
Duquette did not rule out that the club may look into a waiver trade after Tuesday's Deadline, but again, it would require consent from Jones.
Duquette once again stressed that the Orioles have bought into a full-fledged rebuild, which would prioritize giving younger players more time at the big league level and thereby minimizing the on-field role for a veteran player like Jones, who is 32 and in the last year of his contract with Baltimore.
"I think the club is in the rebuild mode, and we're going to be taking a look at some younger ballplayers going forward," Duquette said, adding a priority would be turned to international free agents after trading Brad Brach to the Braves for international signing bonus slot money. "We've made that clear. That's the intent of the club, and that's the direction we're going to go in.
"His contract is up. I don't know whether Adam will be here or not, but the club is going in the direction of younger ballplayers, I can tell you that."
On Thursday, when asked if the door was open for a return in 2019, should he be traded this season, Jones responded, "Is the door [open]? You can want all you want. A lot of people want things. But if that door's not open, you're just going to be sitting outside knocking."