3 players the Orioles will regret not trading for at the 2024 deadline

When the Orioles passed on the opportunity to acquire Tarik Skubal from the Tigers....nah, who are we kidding. That trade was never on the table, as much as we'd hoped it would be at the time.

Overall, Mike Elias and the Orioles did a decent job at the deadline. They picked up Zach Eflin, who has been exactly what the O's rotation needed over the past two months. Seranthony Dominguez has been solid at the back end of the bullpen. Gregory Soto had some early hiccups but has been effective over the last six weeks.

The one trade that really blew up in the Orioles' face was the Trevor Rogers deal, but they have the lefty under contract for another two seasons. Outside of that, Elias was able to keep the Orioles in a good spot. While they didn't get the AL East title like fans had hoped, they're still locked into the Wild Card round. With the way the injury bug hit this team this year, it's not a bad outcome.

But that doesn't change the fact that there are moves the O's could have, and should have made, to help the cause down the stretch. Here are three players the Orioles should have gone after harder at the deadline, and could come to regret not doing so over the next month.

Former Orioles' closer Tanner Scott has helped the Padres lock in a playoff spot

Going into the trade deadline, Tanner Scott was one of the better relievers on the market. The former O's closer had pitched to a 1.18 ERA through 45 innings with the Marlins and Miami was insistent on moving him while they had the chance.

It was reported ahead of the deadline that the Orioles called and asked about Scott, and allegedly had brief conversations with Marlins' GM Peter Bendix about a potential deal. Unfortunately those talks didn't amount to anything and the Marlins shipped him off to San Diego just before the deadline.

Considering the price the Padres paid to acquire him, it might make sense why Elias backed off. AJ Preller gave up his numbers 2, 4, 5, and 24 ranked prospects to land Scott and fellow reliever Bryan Hoeing.

However, with the way Scott has been pitching, along with the unfortunate second half bullpen collapse in Baltimore, it might have been worth it for Elias to entertain moving a stronger package of prospects in a potential deal.

Stud reliever Lucas Erceg landed in Kansas City and has been lights out in the second half

Lucas Erceg was a shut down reliever for the Athletics prior to the deadline this year, pitching behind superstar Mason Miller. While Erceg was never officially linked to the Orioles in any capacity, fans in Baltimore tabbed him as a potential deadline add to shore up the O's bullpen deficiencies.

During his time with the Royals, Erceg has pitched to an outstanding 2.88 ERA and a 1.17 FIP in 25 innings. He throws an absolute bowling ball of a sinker that batters have just not been able to figure out. Even better for the Royals, the price to acquire him wasn't particularly high.

Kansas City sent their numbers 4 and 17 prospects to Oakland, as well as a non-prospect outfielder, in exchange for Erceg. For a pair of players whose future impact at the major league level is in question, the Royals were able to acquire a potential shut down reliever for the playoff stretch.

It looks like the Orioles acquired the wrong left handed starter at the deadline

When the Orioles acquired Trevor Rogers, fans groaned. We could see this coming from a mile away, and sure enough Rogers struggled in his brief time in Baltimore before being demoted to Triple-A. While the O's were busy trying to fix Rogers, the Astros were running away with the AL West in part due to acquiring lefty Yusei Kikuchi.

Prior to the deadline, Kikuchi had pitched to a 4.75 ERA, though his 3.66 FIP suggested he'd actually pitched much better. After going to Houston, Kikuchi delievered. He's posted a 2.70 ERA in 10 starts with the Astros and will likely start game 2 of the Astros' Wild Card series.

It may have taken more for the Orioles to acquire Kikuchi than what it cost Houston, considering that the Blue Jays may have been hesitant to trade within the division. However, the price for Kikuchi was very reasonable. He's a free agent after this year so the Astros only gave up a couple lower tier prospects in the deal.

Will the Orioles regret not trading for any of these three players? We'll have to hope not. The Birds look strong heading into the Wild Card series and having just gotten Jordan Westburg back, hopefully the offense can pick up some of the slack. Baltimore can make a deep run with the squad as currently built, but there were opportunities earlier this year that Elias chose not to pursue. Let's hope that doesn't come back to bite them in October.