Grading the Corbin Burnes trade for the Orioles

This is a week to remember in Baltimore. On Wednesday, the team was sold to David Rubenstein. On next day, they pulled the trigger on a trade to bring an ace to the Charm City: Corbin Burnes. The last 48 hours in Birdland was something.

Basically, the Orioles traded a top-30 prospect, a young arm and a draft pick to Milwaukee for the 2021 NL Cy Young and top-10 Cy Young vote-getter since 2020. On social media, "the Orioles fleeced the Brewers". This could be true from a "Burnes has more trade value" perspective, but there are some more points to explain this trade.

How did the Orioles fare in the Corbin Burnes trade with the Brewers?

Firstly, Burnes has one more year of team control. He'll be a free agent next year. Do the Orioles envision him like the Houston Astros did with Justin Verlander in 2017? It's a possibility if Baltimore continues the blueprint for Astroball roster construction. For curiosity, the Detroit Tigers acquired Franklin Perez, Daz Cameron and Jake Rogers for Verlander. Prospects #6, #9 and #22, respectfully per MLB Pipeline (Astros Top 30).

Secondly, Baseball Trade Values clasifies this as a fair trade. Corbin Burnes (33.30) almost has the same value as the Brewers haul of Hall (18.90), Ortiz (13.60) and the 2024 competitive balance round A draft pick (4.0).

Burnes is an ace. He's a coveted player in a contract year who immediately upgrades the Orioles rotation from good to great. Alongside Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez, John Means and Dean Kremer, this group will be one of the best rotations for the Orioles since the late 90s. Burnes is the crown jewel for an upstart core.

About the players (and a draft pick) who go, it's a new start in a place with a good young core. Joey Ortiz can be an everyday player without a roadblock or a loaded farm system ahead of him, as was the case in Baltimore. His glove will be a must-see for Brewers fans. For Hall, he has his chance to put his stamp in an MLB rotation. Like Ortiz, he didn't have the same chance in Baltimore. The Orioles have four picks in the top 100 for next year's draft anyway, so the draft pick isn't a major loss.

The final grade:

The Mike Elias way got the deal done: a fair trade, without giving up a top-5 prospect in their system and a farm system that remains the best in all of baseball. Burnes could change the Orioles' fortunes in 2024 and perhaps for years to come should they extend him. For Ortiz and Hall, good luck on the next chapter in their careers.