Orioles fans will hate MLB insider's rumored potential trade deadline reunion

As fans are well aware, the Orioles are in hot pursuit of pitching help at the trade deadline. They've been linked to a variety of arms, both starters and relievers, including everyone from Tigers' ace Tarik Skubal to aging veteran Rich Hill.

As we get closer to next Tuesday's deadline, it looks increasingly likely that the Tigers will hold onto Skubal but he's far from their only trade chip. They have a handful of assets that could move, and on paper they seem to be a match for the Orioles.

However, the guy the Tigers are most likely going to move is none other than right hander Jack Flaherty. The Orioles acquired Flaherty from the Cardinals at the 2023 deadline, sending Cesar Prieto and Drew Rom to St. Louis in exchange for the Cards' righty.

Flaherty faltered down the stretch in Baltimore, pitching to a 6.75 ERA in 7 starts. He gave up a run on 2 hits in 2 innings in his lone postseason appearance with the Orioles in last year's playoffs and left Baltimore on a down note in the offseason.

The righty signed a one-year deal with the Tigers this past winter and has pitched well enough to garner trade interest across the league. He's appeared to regain the form he found back in 2019 as he's now down to a 2.95 ERA with 133 strikeouts in 106.2 innings with Detroit.

Orioles fans lack confidence in Tigers' starter Jack Flaherty

Despite Flaherty's previous struggles in Baltimore, it appears that Mike Elias is considering a reunion. The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Katie Woo have reported that the O's haven't ruled out bringing Flaherty back for the stretch run in 2024.

Flaherty makes a ton of sense for the Orioles, who have shown a penchant for signing and trading for pitchers on one-year deals. There's absolutely some hesitancy when it comes to dealing away significant prospect capital to acquire someone like Skubal or Chicago's Garrett Crochet.

But Flaherty will be a free agent after the 2024 season, meaning the Orioles won't have to worry about a long-term commitment. If Flaherty works out, then it would be a huge win for Elias and the Orioles but if not, it's no sweat off their backs.

Unfortunately for Orioles fans, the memories from Flaherty's poor performance in 2023 are still fresh. It almost doesn't matter that he's pitching better in 2024. He's actually been much better than he had been to this point last year when the O's traded for him, but fans seem overwhelmingly hesitant about acquiring him.

If given the chance, Flaherty would certainly be willing to redeem himself to the Baltimore faithful. And if he does come here and pitch well down the stretch, you can bet that Orioles fans will be asking Elias to sign him this winter.

But for now, there's still some skepticism among fans about bringing Flaherty back. It's tough to blame anyone with this mindset, even if Flaherty seems like a perfect fit for the O's right now.