1 last-minute trade Orioles must make before deadline

The Baltimore Orioles are one of the hardest teams to predict in terms of how they will operate at the MLB trade deadline. The team won 101 games back in 2023, and many more wins were expected to come over the years to follow because the Orioles were littered with elite prospects and young superstars, so they were expected to have a long contention window. Instead, the development of the youngsters has stalled, and the Orioles are at risk of missing the postseason for the third straight season.

As of now, the Orioles are just on the outside looking in when it comes to securing a Wild Card spot. Therefore, the team could go a number of routes at the trade deadline. Baltimore could operate as sellers and take advantage of this market that has a surplus of buying teams willing to pay a premium for talented veterans. They could also decide to go all in on a postseason spot by adding talent at the deadline. A combination of both selling and buying seems like the Orioles’ most likely path.

The Orioles have already traded away Dean Kremer for a minor leaguer in the lower levels. They also traded for Jake Rogers to provide catching depth for a position group that is not only injured, but at risk of losing Adley Rutschman to a trade. So, with the deadline just one day away, what is the last-minute trade that the Orioles should make?

The Orioles should trade for one of the top starting pitchers available

Los Angeles Angels receive: Ike Irish, Trey Gibson

Baltimore Orioles receive: Reid Detmers

As mentioned above, Rutschman is on the trading block for the Orioles. That is too bad because it wasn’t long ago that he was the top prospect in baseball. Jackson Holliday and Gunnar Henderson have also been the number one prospect in the sport in recent years, and players such as Samuel Basallo, Coby Mayo, Jordan Westburg, and Colton Cowser were all highly touted before making the majors, too.

Unfortunately, much of Baltimore’s young core has either underwhelmed in comparison to expectations or struggled with injury issues. The Orioles can’t blow it up yet, though, so they need to bank on their offensive prospect-turned-major leaguers turning things around, if not by the end of this season, at least for next year.

Regardless of how the team’s batters perform going forward, though, it is clear the Orioles need pitching help. The Kremer trade created a hole in the team’s rotation, but help, especially top-line starter help, has been needed for a while. Trevor Rogers, Kyle Bradish, Shane Baz, Chris Bassitt, and Zach Eflin form an underwhelming rotation, and the latter two of those hurlers are on the 60-Day Injured List. Baltimore ranks just 19th in ERA (4.24) and 23rd in strikeouts (883).

However, a typical rental, bound for free agency in the offseason or without a strong future ahead of them, wouldn’t make sense for the Orioles in the context if the team holding onto their young talent. Therefore, if the Orioles are going to add pitching help, they should only be looking at arms with years of team control left.

Reid Detmers is one such player, as the Los Angeles Angels control him for two more years after this season. The Angels are one of the clear-cut sellers of this year’s trade deadline, and Detmers is arguably their top trade chip. The lefty has been dominant this year, evidenced by the fact that he only trails Cristopher Sanchez, Jacob Misiorowski, and Dylan Cease in strikeouts.

Baltimore desperately needs someone with ace potential, and Detmers could be their frontline starter for years to come. Plus, the Orioles are severely lacking left-handed pitchers. The problem is that Detmers’ youth and long-term security for a potential suitor means that he is going to cost a pretty penny at the trade deadline. Tarik Skubal, arguably the top pitcher in baseball, was already traded, but he went for an underwhelming package due to his status as a rental. Detmers may cost even more than Skubal did.

A trade package of Ike Irish and Trey Gibson could be enough to get a deal done, though. If the Orioles do decide to hold onto Rutschman, then Irish becomes expendable. The 2025 first-rounder has catcher, first base, and outfield versatility, and his ability to play a number of spots would have to be intriguing for another organization. Gibson is in Triple-A and ready to make an impact at the big league level soon. The Angels could view him as Detmers’ immediate replacement. Irish and Gibson rank second and eighth, respectively, in Baltimore’s farm system.

After graduating so many prospects from a once-great farm system in recent years, trading away even more prospects wouldn’t be an easy pill to swallow. The Orioles can’t afford to remain stagnant, though, and Detmers is just the player that the team needs.

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