3 prospects the Orioles need to move at this trade deadline

The Baltimore Orioles are hanging around the American League playoff picture, and as the trade deadline approaches, they will have to make a difficult decision about whether or not they want to leverage their farm system to supplement this 2026 Orioles team. If they do decide this is a team worth adding to, they'll then have to decide which of their prospects they are willing to move in trades and who they need to protect.

It would be frustrating to see the Orioles not add anything at the deadline and then miss the playoffs by a game, but it would be a disaster if they went all in and mortgaged their future for this team and then missed the playoffs anyway. With where their record stands and where they sit in the standings, both are possible.

Ike Irish is the Orioles best prospect that they should consider moving

Irish was the first player the Orioles took in the 2025 draft, and after there was some buzz he might go in the top 10, it was widely thought that the Orioles were fortunate to get their hands on him at the 19th pick. Irish has looked really good in High-A and has already started popping up on some top 100 lists, so he would represent one of the most valuable trade chips the Orioles have.

What makes him tradable is that he's a left-handed C/1B/OF, and the Orioles are all set at catcher and first base for the next five years and beyond, and they already have two left-handed corner outfielders that are under contract for the next 4-6 years. So Irish is about as blocked as you can get. The only reason not to trade him now would be if you're betting he rises up prospect rankings quickly and becomes a more valuable trade chip later, which, without much defensive value to speak of, seems unlikely.

Creed Willems' natural position makes him an obvious trade candidate

Willems has been in the Orioles system for a long time, and this year in Triple-A, he's having by far his best season since he was in low-A. His defense behind the plate isn't pretty, but his offensive game has really come together, and he's hitting for both average and power while getting on base.

The issue for Willems is that he's even more blocked than Irish, as he can only play catcher and first base, and those positions are well spoken for. With Willems, there is even more urgency for the Orioles to move him, though, as he is Rule-5 eligible this offseason, and given how he's played at Triple-A this year, he'd be taken in a heartbeat.

Ethan Anderson is one of the most improved prospects in the Orioles system

Anderson is yet another C/1B prospect who is having a breakout season. After being taken in the second round of the 2024 draft, Anderson had a brutal 2025 minor league season, putting up an OPS under .700 while playing at a level where he should have been considered advanced. This year, he's figured it out, and he's slashing .262/.362/.502 in Double-A. He's also been primarily catching, and that kind of production from the catcher spot is impossible to ignore.

As far as the reason to trade him, you may be picking up a theme here, but Anderson is blocked by Basallo and Alonso at the only positions he can play. The thing about all these blocked catchers is that if they were good defensive catchers, there might be room on the Orioles for them if the Orioles were to give up on Adley Rutschman, but all of these guys are offense-first, defense-questionable catchers, which makes it hard to even think about pairing them with Basallo, who is the ultimate offense-first catcher.

The thing about all of these guys is that the Orioles don't need to trade them because they are not good. They need to trade them because they are good, but they don't have a role/future with the Orioles. Right now, all of them are performing well, and their stock is rising. The Orioles have made the mistake of holding onto prospects, hoping their value would only go up, only to see them crash and burn and get nothing from them. Dare to trade some guys while the arrow is still pointing up.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow