Orioles could face competition from top division rival to address their biggest offseason need

The biggest focus for Mike Elias this offseason will be upgrading the Baltimore Orioles' pitching staff. The starting rotation needs a headliner, and despite the re-acquisition of Andrew Kittredge, the Orioles will need a replacement for injured star closer Felix Bautista, as well as other late-inning arms for the bullpen.

Unfortunately, Baltimore won't be alone in pursuing these sorts of upgrades, and its chief rival, the New York Yankees, could make Mike Elias's life difficult as he fights with them over the same pool of players.

The Orioles will have to fight with the rival Yankees to fill their biggest needs

The Yankees' rotation might be in better shape on paper than Baltimore's, but in reality, they'll have some questions to answer. Carlos Rodón underwent a procedure to clean up his elbow that will have him miss at least the first few weeks of the season.

Combine that with uncertainty about when Gerrit Cole will be ready to return to action and what they can reasonably expect from the 35-year-old as he comes off Tommy John surgery, and you can see that, despite the presence of Max Fried, they need help at the top of their rotation.

As far as bullpens go, New York stands to lose both Devin Williams and Luke Weaver, though those might be addition by subtraction. On the season, the Yankees' bullpen finished 23rd in the league in ERA at 4.37, coming in just two spots ahead of the Orioles' 4.57 mark.

However, despite making multiple moves to try and address their struggling bullpen at the trade deadline, the numbers from August 1 through the end of the year have the Yankees at a pitiful 4.74 mark that ranked 26th, while the Orioles came in 22nd at 4.34.

This is where things will get really dicey for Baltimore. Despite the similarity in needs, the Yankees are still better positioned in the rotation and bullpen. The aforementioned Max Fried is capable of holding down the No.1 starter spot, while the Orioles have no one whom they can believe in to that degree.

In the bullpen, New York at least has David Bednar, who can hold down closer duties, even if the setup staff in front of him needs to be rebuilt.

The Yankees won't rest on their laurels, however, and they have deeper pockets, making them tough competitors on the free-agent market.

The trade market is relatively robust as well, but whether or not the Orioles have the advantage depends on who they'd be dealing with. Three of the top names thought to be available, Tarik Skubal, Freddy Peralta, and Hunter Greene, all play for contenders, so the young major league arms the Yankees have in Cam Schlittler and Will Warren could be more compelling if the Yankees were willing to part with one in a trade.

Conversely, the Orioles' stronger farm system would make them a more appealing partner for a rebuilding team like the Minnesota Twins, who will be dangling ace Joe Ryan.

At the end of the day, the Yankees lurking in the same markets as the Orioles will force Mike Elias to either pay up to get his guy or risk being left out in the cold.