Pay some A's?

[Just Regular]

BP ran a piece this morning from a resident A's fan, digesting the Bob Melvin to Padres news.   Rough for that fanbase, though a fan could always take the hopeful perspective managers are irrelevant as long as Beane stays.

Anyway, if selling Luzardo to rent Starling was one last stab at it with the Chapman/Olson group, and now everyone is getting too expensive, Oakland has a few good starters climbing the salary ladder and the ~33rd best shortstop in the world who is already expensive...maybe it is his turn to be an Oriole.

Paying some of Andrus' 2022 salary might get one of Manaea/Montas/Bassitt on the team via trade without having to bid/win a Free Agent - it just takes $$$.

Cot's already has some guesses for 2022 salaries penciled in:

Manaea at $10M as Arb4 before free agency

Bassitt at $8.5M as Arb3 before free agency

Montas at $5.25M - he is the only one where Club still has an Arb year in 2023.

Beane will have suitors around the game for these guys if it is a general teardown (or if he does the Theo thing and goes to do soccer or something, leaving it for Forst), but Manaea and Bassitt's surplus value isn't bigger than Andrus' underwater value, so I believe if the Orioles wanted to spend $20M on the 2022 club and keep everyone in the pipeline, you could maybe acquire another ~Means level guy and a SS placeholder for nearly no talent.

I think the Orioles more likely have $10M or less in new MLB player buys than they do $20M.

[vab]

How is going to just take money? Oakland is still going to take the best package in a trade even if they are dumping salary. 

[LookinUp]

I agree the price in trade chips would be something, as opposed to nothing, but don't discount the idea just on those grounds.

I think instead the question is whether they're the guys the O's would be targeting. I don't see them targeting guys with 1/2 years left before free agency. Those are the guys we generally sell off, and at this point in our rebuild, I just don't see us going that route.

But the trades are coming. Not sure it's this offseason, particularly with the CBA issues, but they are coming for sure, and I think Just Regular's ideas have some merit. Unfortunately, I think he just outlined the Yankees plan. Not the Orioles.

[fitzi22]

The trades are coming and that will be the sign of the O’s /Elias actually trying to win.  A trade with the Marlins almost seems too obvious to actually take place.  They have great pitching and no hitting and we are the opposite.  A trade for Meyer and Eder and letting Miami pick any 1 outfielder and any 1 infielder is a trade beneficial to both teams.