During his pre-trade deadline information convention Friday, Mike Elias described the American League East as “arguably the strongest division of all time.”
After years within the division’s cellar, the Orioles at the moment are main it forward of Tuesday’s 6 p.m. commerce deadline. But Elias, the membership’s govt vice chairman and normal supervisor, mentioned going from worst to first in beneath two years hasn’t given him the arrogance to sit down on his arms whereas different AL East groups bolster their rosters.
On Monday afternoon, the Tampa Bay Rays, who entered the day 1 1/2 video games again of the Orioles, acquired beginning pitcher Aaron Civale from the Cleveland Guardians. The Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday acquired reliever Jordan Hicks from the St. Louis Cardinals.
Elias mentioned what their prime opponents within the AL and division do on the deadline might have an effect on how the Orioles strategy potential trades.
“We’re keeping an eye on what our division’s doing,” he mentioned. “Look, we’re a game and a half up in our division, there’s a long way to go. You’re not just worrying about the Rays in second place. We’ve got three other teams, and any one of those could challenge for the division. It’s certainly part of the equation is keeping an eye on what other teams are doing as it pertains to forecasting where we’re going.”
Ahead of Tuesday’s 6 p.m. commerce deadline, listed below are the three forms of gamers the Orioles might goal.
Starting pitchers
Elias mentioned he “would bet heavily” that any additions on the deadline can be for pitchers.
Adding a beginning pitcher, particularly one who can lead the rotation, is probably the membership’s largest want. It was made much more so after the Orioles optioned starter Tyler Wells to Double-A on Sunday after a string of ineffective begins.
“I think it’s no secret that that would be the areas of the team where we could A. either use more depth or B. look for upgrades,” Elias mentioned. “We’re participating in that market, and we’ll see what comes of it, but those are obviously the conversations that are first and foremost for us on the pitching side when we’re looking to bring in help.”
Without Wells, who was the Orioles’ greatest beginning pitcher within the first half, Baltimore is with out a named starter Thursday towards the Toronto Blue Jays. That spot within the rotation will both be given to left-hander Cole Irvin or an arm the Orioles purchase on the deadline.
While Kyle Bradish has been glorious the previous two months, he’s nonetheless simply in his second large league season. John Means might return from Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgical procedure restoration in early September, however whether or not he’ll be capable of begin video games and throw 90-plus pitches stays to be seen.
For these causes, a top-line beginning pitcher is the primary method the Orioles could make a splash on the deadline.
Possible choices: New York Mets right-hander Justin Verlander, San Diego Padres left-hander Blake Snell, Detroit Tigers left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez, Tigers right-hander Michael Lorenzen, St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Jack Flaherty.
Relief pitchers
The again finish of the Orioles’ bullpen doesn’t need assistance, however they do want help in attending to the dynamic duo of Yennier Cano and Félix Bautista.
At occasions this season, Baltimore’s bullpen has struggled within the center innings. Elias has already made one transfer to bolster the membership’s center aid corps, including right-hander Shintaro Fujinami from the Oakland Athletics. But that doesn’t imply the Orioles can’t add one other reliever.
“We’ve got a great back half of the bullpen, but there’s a couple of spots that are in flux,” he mentioned. “Any team can improve the middle part of their bullpen. By definition, you can always improve the middle part of your bullpen. Obviously, we’ve got the best closer in the game right now, and relative to him, the middle spots are an area that we can look around for and we’re doing that in addition to the Fujinami trade.”
While a reliever wouldn’t be as impactful as a starter, it could additionally value much less for the Orioles to amass one.
Possible choices: Padres left-hander Josh Hader, Washington Nationals right-hander Kyle Finnegan, Kansas City Royals left-hander Scott Barlow, Chicago White Sox left-hander Aaron Bummer.
Outfielders
Given the accidents to middle fielders Cedric Mullins and Aaron Hicks, it’s doable the Orioles may very well be out there for an outfielder who can play middle discipline.
However, Elias mentioned the aim for Hicks and Mullins is for them to spend “a large bit of August” again with the Orioles. He mentioned their accidents aren’t influencing how the membership is dealing with the deadline.
“We’re not that worried,” he mentioned. “Obviously, they’re out for a few weeks, but we’ve got [Colton] Cowser, [Ryan] McKenna, [Austin] Hays. We’re in pretty good shape.”
Possible choices: Cardinals’ Dylan Carlson, Nationals’ Lane Thomas, Mets’ Mark Canha, Seattle Mariners’ Teoscar Hernández, Mets’ Tommy Pham.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com