NEW YORK - Mark Reynolds is arbitration-eligible and the Orioles hold an $11 million option on his contract for next season. Nate McLouth can become a free agent.

If Reynolds and McLouth have their way, they will remain with the Orioles in 2013.

“I’d definitely like to come back,” Reynolds said. “This is the most fun I’ve ever had playing baseball, this group of guys. There’s a bunch of ballplayers in this room. No prima donnas, nobody for themselves. Just ballplayers who pull for each other, and who wouldn’t want to be in that environment?”

Asked if wanted to return next season, McLouth said, “Of course.”

“It’s exciting and I thoroughly enjoyed my time here this year,” he said. “Personally, I couldn’t have had a better time in the time I’ve spent here, the two months I’ve been up here. I’m appreciative they gave me the opportunity and I had a great time.”

McLouth was a central figure in today’s game because of his fly ball to right field that umpires ruled foul. Many of the Orioles thought it nicked the pole, which would have tied the game in the sixth inning.

“I couldn’t tell,” McLouth said. “I was satisfied. I still haven’t seen the replay, but he was a lot closer than I was. They took a look at it and I was satisfied after they took a look at it that it was foul. They saw what they saw and I was satisfied that they took the steps necessary to get the call right.

“Things like that happen, and honestly, I can’t totally speak on it because I haven’t seen the replay. But it was really close. I do know that. When I was watching it kind of running down the line there, honestly, I thought it was foul. I couldn’t tell if it hit the pole or not. They watched the replay and they didn’t think so.”

McLouth will watch the replay later.



“I’ll probably look at it, yeah,” he said. “Again, that’s what they saw and I’m not criticizing because I haven’t seen it. If it was that close that they couldn’t tell in whatever replay that’s available to them, then it’s just one of those things.

“I really do think it was a big momentum changer. They had just scored the half-inning before and that would have tied it. But in the end, our downfall was we just weren’t able to get the big hit this series like we had so often.”

Reynolds was convinced that McLouth’s ball should have been ruled a home run.

“I thought it went right over the pole,” he said. “It’s a tough call. The replay, you really couldn’t tell much on it. I thought it was out, I thought it was fair from my angle. I was sitting right by the pole and had a perfect shot of it. But that’s the way it goes.”

Said catcher Matt Wieters: “From the dugout, it looked like it went right over the top. They’ve got replay and we took a look at it and it was still really close.”