The Baltimore Orioles are slated to potentially lose several key free agents this season, the most notable being slugging first baseman Chris Davis. The 29-year-old led baseball in home runs for the second time in three seasons, launching 47 longballs to go with 117 RBIs, 84 walks and and 78 extra-base hits.

Should Davis ultimately sign with a new club, replacing his production at the plate will be a near-impossible task. But at a fraction of the cost, Baltimore could elect to be opportunistic on the trade market to find their new starting first baseman for 2016.

While he’s never worn an Oriole uniform, Adam LaRoche has been connected to Baltimore multiple times over the years. The club was in the running to sign the Gold Glove Award winner before he inked his current deal with the White Sox, and also in the 2012-2013 offseason when he signed his second two-year deal with the Washington Nationals.

It may be later in LaRoche’s career than the Orioles would’ve liked, but they once again could have the chance to acquire the soon-to-be 36-year-old first baseman. He enters 2016 on the back end of a two-year, $25-million deal that he signed with Chicago prior to 2015, coming off a season in which he posted his lowest batting average, slugging percentage and home run totals in a season that he played at least 100 games.

LaRoche also spent a significant part of 2015 playing designated hitter, something he’d done in just seven career games prior to last year. The fact that he spent 58 percent of his games not playing defense, paired with his injury struggles, likely played a significant factor in LaRoche’s struggles.

With Davis and Steve Pearce both potentially leaving this offseason, the Orioles enter the offseason unsure who will man first base in 2016. LaRoche, if he were to go to Baltimore, could get back to seeing the field on a regular basis, which in turn could theoretically help sort out some of his issues at the plate. The 12-year veteran has always dealt with strikeout issues and struggled to hit lefties, but regular playing time at first base would all but certainly bring him from his 2015 .207 line back to near his career average.

It’s unclear how the White Sox would potentially value LaRoche in a trade, though one would have to think the demand on a return would be low if a club ate most of the first baseman’s salary. LaRoche is due to make $13-million next season, and moving him could free up significant payroll space for a club that already has large commitments to Melky Cabrera, David Robertson, Jose Abreu and others.

LaRoche doesn’t come close to replacing Davis in terms of offense, but he’ll provide a power bat behind Adam Jones and Manny Machado while offering Baltimore a defensive upgrade at first base. He’s long been known for his strong glove, and pairing LaRoche with fellow Gold Glove winners Machado and J.J. Hardy would give Baltimore arguably the strongest defensive infield in baseball.

The Orioles enter the offseason with a long to-do list. It’s perhaps so long that they can’t even bother entering winter with any sort of wish list. They’ll watch their best bat enter free agency for the second straight offseason, while finding their long-weak starting rotation becoming thinner than ever. And while replacing both of those needs is a tall task, perhaps LaRoche can kill two birds with one stone, solving the hole at first base while providing some strong defense for whoever ultimately toes the rubber in Baltimore next season.