Baltimore Orioles: Reflections on the Trade Deadline

When most MLB experts through Baltimore Orioles would be sellers, the O’s unexpectedly bought players, leaving the experts wondering why.

In their current situation, the behavior of the Baltimore Orioles baffled the national media. And most of the national experts believe that the O’s made a huge mistake not moving players by the July 31st deadline.

One of the biggest complaints came from Ken Rosenthal. On his Facebook page, Rosenthal addressed the movers and shakers as well as the teams that did nothing.

Disappointing the experts

Rosenthal was disappointed in three teams for not moving veteran players, but he was extremely critical of the Orioles. Rosenthal wrote:

"The team’s refusal to trade Zach Britton and fellow reliever Brad Brach was disturbingly short-sighted, but par for the course for a team that spends almost nothing internationally and does not draft particularly well."

He also described the Orioles as “operating on their own planet.” This is due to the fact that the Orioles are currently sitting with a 3% chance of making it to the playoffs. Usually, teams with this type of a chance don’t go out and buy. But, the O’s did – and they invested in a pitcher who will be a free agent at the end of the season. They are essentially borrowing him for a few months for an incredibly unlikely shot at October baseball.

Tough division rivals

The Orioles still have an empty farm system and they have to deal with Division rivals like the New York Yankees. Brian Cashman expertly managed to trade away an injured youngster and a few more players for Sonny Gray. Now, the Yankees have a pitching rotation and bullpen that are truly dangerous, as well as line up filled with hitters like Aaron Judge and Todd Frazier (who seems to have turned it up since leaving Chicago). They’ve also got Clint Frazier who they acquired last year when they traded Andrew Miller. This list goes on and on. And, it didn’t take Cashman long to build this brand new team. (For the record, I am NOT a Yankees fan – but what Cashman did was impressive.)

And, the Orioles also have to deal with the Boston Red Sox, who also have an unstoppable rotation. They’ve also got young position players who can get the offense going.

Adding Hellickson and Tim Beckham won’t give the O’s what they need to power over these two division teams. The stats simply don’t add up in the O’s favor.

Remaining problems with the rotation

USA Today’s writer Jesse Yomtov considered the Orioles to be Trade Deadline losers along with the Houston Astros and the Detroit Tigers. He wrote:

"Jeremy Hellickson will provide the team with some innings this season, but is a free agent and does nothing to address the team’s long-standing pitching concerns."

He’s right. The Orioles’ rotation still has one of the highest ERAs in the MLB. Hellickson might bring the team ERA down a little, but they will still be near the bottom, unless the whole rotation can top giving up five or more runs per game.

Failing to consider the future

On his blog, Buster Olney was also not a fan of the Orioles’ choices. He echoed the criticisms of Rosenthal and Yomtov, especially considering the minimal chance of making the playoffs. He criticized them for not going…

When most MLB experts through Baltimore Orioles would be sellers, the O’s unexpectedly bought players, leaving the experts wondering why.

Disappointing the experts

Tough division rivals

Remaining problems with the rotation

Failing to consider the future

Schedule