Orioles: Recap of a Busy Trade Deadline in Baltimore

Orioles trade Mancini and Lopez while adding Brett Phillips and pitching depth.

Mike Elias and the Baltimore Orioles front office were put in a unique situation when the Orioles got within a couple of games of a playoff spot after a 10-game win streak right before the All-Star break in July. Before the win streak, the consensus seemed to be that the Orioles would be obvious sellers at the deadline for the fifth season in a row, but the narrative then became that the Orioles could possibly look to add MLB talent in pursuit of their first playoff appearance since 2016.

However, despite the on-field success the Orioles decided to sell at the deadline and add minor-league pitching depth with the trades of Trey Mancini and Jorge Lopez. The reaction of Birdland to these trades has been mostly negative since the Orioles traded away two key pieces to a team that could compete for a playoff spot down the stretch. With the deals, the Orioles also added Yusniel Diaz and Nick Vespi to the active roster and traded for Brett Phillips from the Rays. Let’s look at each trade individually as the Orioles look to finish off the second half of the season. 

Orioles Acquire: Cade Povich, Yennier Cano, Juan Nunez, and Juan Rojas. Twins Acquire Jorge Lopez

This was the first trade to happen on Trade Deadline Day right before the blockbuster deal that sent Juan Soto and Josh Bell to the Padres. As such, the national media coverage of this trade was limited but it was somewhat surprising for the O’s to trade their lone All-Star in exchange for only one pitcher that ranks in the top 30 in the system in Cade Povich.

Povich is the 26th-ranked prospect in the O’s system with the changeup being his best pitch with an average fastball and average control. He has struck out 12 batters per 9 innings with the Cedar Rapids Kernels this season with an ERA of 4.46 in 16 starts. He pitched well at Nebraska for two seasons and pitched well for the Savannah Bananas in the summer of 2020. The 4.12 K/BB ratio is the most impressive asset of his game. If he continues to improve upon his changeup and his control, he seems like a similar pitcher to John Means who has seen plenty of success at the MLB level for the Orioles.

While Povich is the headliner, the Orioles also acquired three other pitchers in the deal: Yennier Cano, Juan Nunez, and Juan Rojas. Nunez and Rojas are young pitchers who have not pitched above rookie ball for the Twins. Rojas is particularly intriguing as he is only 18 years old and has posted a 3.60 ERA this season in the Florida Complex League. He is a full three years younger than the average player in that league and has struck out 11.4 per 9 innings while only walking 1.2 per 9. If he continues this trend throughout his development, the lefty Rojas could potentially have a solid big league career along with Povich. Cano is an older pitcher who made his MLB debut earlier this year and has spent most of the season with the Triple-A St. Paul Saints. With the Saints, Cano posted an impressive 1.90 ERA while walking 2.3 per 9 innings in 23.2 innings pitched. Walks have been more of an issue throughout his career, but Cano provides Major-League-ready bullpen depth more than anything in Lopez’s absence.

Of course, the Orioles lose their lone All-Star from this season in the trade that likely pushes Felix Bautista into the closer’s role for the remainder of the season. Lopez retired two batters in the midsummer classic and, similar to Mancini, has faced his own off-the-field adversity while his son battles a rare disease that has left him in a children’s hospital for much of his young life. The absence of Mancini and Lopez leaves the Orioles without two of the most notable clubhouse presences for most of this season. 

Orioles Acquire: Brett Phillips. Rays Acquire: Cash Considerations

Other than Yennier Cano, Brett Phillips is the only player with MLB experience that the Orioles added to the system and right now it looks like Phillips will join the Major-League roster as a left-handed outfield bat. Phillips has played for the Rays over the past few seasons and has struggled offensively with a .147/.225/.250 slash line in 75 games this season. Most of his value comes defensively where he has had 38 defensive runs saved over his career as an outfielder and a career Ultimate Zone Rating of 25.3. The defensive metrics have been a little worse for him this season compared to years past, but he still provides valuable defense. This move is somewhat surprising though since the Orioles are not lacking outfielders with Anthony Santander staying in Baltimore and Ryan McKenna having been a more than competent fourth outfielder this season. Phillips does provide another left-handed bat for the Orioles lineup but he likely would not get consistent at-bats unless they are willing to play him in the outfield and move Santander to DH.

Phillips has become a fan favorite in St. Petersburg over the past couple of seasons because of his quirkiness and ability to show light-heartedness and a jovial spirit on the baseball field. He became a household name to baseball fans after hitting an insane walkoff against the Dodgers in game four of the 2020 World Series. The Rays were down to their final strike before Phillips hit a double that scored Kevin Kiermaier as the tying run and eventually Randy Arozarena as the winning run due to a wacky sequence of events. Since then, Phillips has been known for his positive spirit and will hopefully bring positive vibes to an Orioles team that continues to rack up wins despite losing Mancini and Lopez.

Ultimately, there is any number of directions that the O’s could have decided to go this deadline, but they decided to stick with the rebuild and add young pitching depth while trading away fan favorites. While the moves were not well-received by much of the fanbase, the moves do make sense from a baseball standpoint. Even if the Orioles were to make a playoff spot this year, it is unlikely that they would compete with the Yankees, Astros, Dodgers, and Padres who only got stronger over the past several days with blockbuster moves, and adding depth helps the team in the future. It is tough to see a competitive team get weaker, but it will hopefully all be worth it when Cade Povich is starting in Game 7 of the 2025 World Series at Camden Yards.