Because of the trade deadline, we haven’t had a mailbag for a few days, and since we’ve gotten so many questions about the Orioles’ trades, we have an expanded edition of the mailbag this morning. We’ll be back to our normal time on Tuesday.
Question: Like many, wondering what in the world is the strategy here? Presumably, the Orioles want to be competitive for the postseason in 2026. So why get rid of three proven major leaguers — Bryan Baker, Ramón Urias and Andrew Kittredge, who were all under team control in 2026, in exchange for high school and Single-A players who won’t even contribute until 2028-2029, if ever? From: Joel
Answer: Joel, I was a bit puzzled, as well. The strategy for the Baker trade was to get an additional draft choice, and I think the Orioles thought that they were selling high. I was most puzzled by Urías because I think they’ll need a similar player for 2026. As for Kittredge, he has a $9 million option for next year and he could be a free agent if the Cubs don’t pick up that option.
The Orioles thought they needed to accumulate additional players they could use in trades in the offseason and at next year’s deadline in order to buy pitching.
Left unsaid was that the Orioles haven’t had good returns from their draft class in 2024, and they needed more prospects in the system. It’s a long-term strategy designed to keep the window of contention open as long as possible, and we’ll see how good they are next year.
Question: What’s your reaction/grades for these trades? From: John Kaiser
Answer: John, since I don’t know the farm systems of other teams well, I can’t offer a grade, though others who study the minor leagues think the Orioles did well.
I was surprised to find out they traded Kittredge and Urias, but once they did that, I thought that Ramón Laureano would be on the market, and he was. I fully expected they’d trade Seranthony Dominguez, Charlie Morton, Cedric Mullins, Ryan O’Hearn and Gregory Soto. I also thought they would make a deal for Tomoyuki Sugano, but didn’t.
Question: Why did we bail on Ramón Laureano for prospects when we hope for a playoff run next year? From: Jim Vitak
Answer: Jim, Mike Elias said the Padres would not have given them six prospects without both Ryan O’Hearn and Laureano. They are particularly interested in Boston Bateman, a 19-year-old left-handed pitcher they received, and they needed to part with Laureano.
The guess here is that they’re going to be in the market for a right-handed hitting outfielder to replace Laureano in the free-agent market this winter.
Question: With this team now going with minor league players for the remainder of the season, do you think the team will continue to charge major league prices to see this stuff? From: Robert Austin
Answer: Bob, I received a similar question from Steven Cohen. Yes, they have a lot of inexperienced players, but they still have Adley Rutschman, Colton Cowser, Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg and Gunnar Henderson.
I think they’ll spend aggressively in the offseason, and I don’t think they’ll lower ticket prices, especially since attendance has been down this season.
Question: Does one piece of this make sense? Are we looking to finish so poorly for a high draft pick? If Elias wanted to create his own team he could have, but he has no love or pride in our Birds. Our guys have played hard with not one single game with our full roster. Does that not matter to anyone? From: Alexandra Willems
Anwser: Alexandra, no one is questioning the team’s effort, and unlike a few years ago, the Orioles aren’t guaranteed a top pick if they finish with a poor record. A draft lottery was instituted to caution teams against tanking. All non-playoff teams are in the lottery, and it’s possible the Orioles could finish with, say, the fifth or sixth worst record and still get the top pick.
Question: Did the Orioles at least try to offer Cedric Mullins and Ryan O’Hearn extensions for two or three years? It’s not clear to me we have MLB-ready replacements/improvements for any of them. So we’re counting on trades or free-agent signings in the offseason, and hopefully avoiding the rash of injuries, especially to pitchers, we’ve had this year? Our recent track record in those areas doesn’t inspire confidence. From: Kevin Martin.
Answer: Kevin, I don’t believe that contract extensions to either Mullins or O’Hearn were offered. I think it’s possible that Colton Cowser wlll be the regular centerfielder in 2026, and Dylan Beavers could get a shot in the outfield.
The Orioles also wanted to give Coby Mayo a chance to play regularly, and even though he isn’t a left-handed hitter, this move should let him play more.
I expect them to be active this offseason in both the trade and free-agent markets.
Question: With all the latest trades of expiring contracts, everyone mentions that the O’s can re-sign them. Seems to me that it’s pretty rare that they go back to the team that just traded them.Does that often happen or is it rare? From: Barry Culman
Answer: Barry, it is rare, though I remember the Orioles trading Mike Bordick in July 2000 then re-signing him a few months later. Sidney Ponson was traded in July 2003 and re-signed with the Orioles a few months later.
The Bordick re-signing worked out well. The Ponson one was a disaster.
I would be surprised if any of those traded re-signed with the Orioles.
Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.