Source: Orioles nearing a deal to re-sign home run king Mark Trumbo

Baseball’s 2016 home run king is close to returning to the place that crowned him.

Mark Trumbo and the Baltimore Orioles are nearing an agreement on a three-year contract worth around $37 million, sources familiar with the talks told Yahoo Sports.

The 31-year-old Trumbo, traded last offseason for backup catcher Steve Clevenger in a salary dump, proved well worth the $9.15 million the Baltimore Orioles paid him by hitting 47 home runs, exceeding his career high by 13, and making his second All-Star team.

Considered a mediocre outfielder and baserunner, Trumbo’s bat is his calling card, and his power is undeniable. Since a 29-homer rookie season with the Angels, Trumbo has exceeded 30 three times and didn’t just need the friendly confines of Camden Yards last season to launch. He hit 25 home runs at home and 22 on the road.

Still, because of his glove, baserunning and low on-base percentage, advanced metrics do not like Trumbo. His highest season of Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball-Reference.com, was his rookie year in 2011, when he had 2.9. Last season, he finished with 1.6.

That didn’t matter to the Orioles, who were willing to forfeit the draft pick they would have received had Trumbo signed elsewhere. He re-joins a Baltimore team that lost the AL wild card game last season and has fortified its lineup with the addition of outfielder Seth Smith and catcher Welington Castillo. The Orioles, according to sources, remain in the market for a starting pitcher.