The 2024 Trade Deadline

[Malike]

2 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

I always liked his stuff when I watched him and he’s a young LHP.  Maybe he never blossoms but he looks like he has the tools to me.

He's under control through 2027 which is also a bonus. Lots of walks and hits but can strike guys out. I wouldn't give up a ton for him, though. I still don't get why the Angels aren't letting him stay up, but he's getting roughed in AAA. 8HR in 24IP.

[Sports Guy]

35 minutes ago, Malike said:

I like Estevez and Nardi a lot, I'm not sure what you see in Detmers other than age, I guess. He'd be a solid enough 3/4 if he doesn't cost a lot.

Detmers has good statcast numbers, misses bats, gets Ks, throws strikes, is young, has a lot of team control and his xErA and FIP are far less than his ERA. 

[Malike]

4 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Detmers has good statcast numbers, misses bats, gets Ks, throws strikes, is young, has a lot of team control and his xErA and FIP are far less than his ERA. 

He's a mid 4 FIP guy so that's not great. He's got okay statcast numbers in a few categories but nothing that screams this guy is going to be an excellent pitcher. He's under control for a long time and getting shelled in AAA, not sure what his deal is.

[Sports Guy]

2 minutes ago, Malike said:

He's a mid 4 FIP guy so that's not great. He's got okay statcast numbers in a few categories but nothing that screams this guy is going to be an excellent pitcher. He's under control for a long time and getting shelled in AAA, not sure what his deal is.

His issue is that he pitches in a terrible developmental organization. 

[Roll Tide]

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Some of the rants on social media are aimed at executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias for failing to react after surgeries removed Kyle Bradish, John Means and Tyler Wells for the rest of the season and reliever Danny Coulombe until perhaps September. Meanwhile, he’s actively searching for pitching. He’s engaged in talks with numerous executives. It just isn’t live-streamed on the internet.

 

 

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Jackson Holliday is and always will be in the latter category and it’s a waste of brain power to think otherwise. I’ve heard it again from multiple scouts. It costs nothing to ask but the answer is “no.”

This isn’t a scientific poll and it doesn’t reach all 29 clubs, but I’m still hearing that Coby Mayo is off the table. The Orioles haven’t settled on a full-time future position. They aren’t running short of corner infielders or outfielders. But they love his bat.

 

 

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Teams are asking about outfielders Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser. They’re asking about Double-A Bowie catcher Samuel Basallo, who’s obviously blocked at the plate because of Adley Rutschman but could co-exist by also playing first base and serving as designated hitter.

https://www.masnsports.com/blog/some-thoughts-and-murmurings-on-orioles-pursuit-of-pitching

[CaptainRedbeard]

Getting really sick of hearing “Basallo is blocked by Rutschman.” I understand it from surface-level national writers, and at least Roch mentions that they could “co-exist” by Basallo also playing 1B and DH. But still.

Even ignoring the very important and obvious fact that Adley only has 3 years of control after this year and Basallo is 19, meaning they’re unlikely to even overlap on the same team for much more than 2 years, the Orioles use Adley at DH a LOT. McCann played 70 games last year and is on pace to play the same amount this year. 

If Basallo’s bat is so good that they’d similarly want to limit his catching to get him in the lineup more often as a 1B/DH, like they do with Adley, there’s really not that many starts Adley would be “blocking” Basallo from making at C. And Adley is getting older and they may want to decrease his catching workload even more to smooth out his aging curve and keep his bat in the lineup. 

So even if Adley is the superior defensive catcher, he catches 100 games a year and Basallo catches 60. And that’s if they don’t ramp Adley’s catching workload down at all. If Basallo were on a different team, maybe he catches 100 instead of 60. That’s not that much of a difference where you feel like you’re wasting Basallo’s defensive ability on the Orioles. And it comes with a significant depth benefit - and we know how Elias feels about depth - if one of them gets hurt for any period of time, you’re not starting a replacement level catcher in half your games. 

In a weird way, having an elite offensive catcher that DHs a lot actually makes it EASIER to accommodate another elite offensive catcher that will DH/1B a lot. It’s not entirely unprecedented either - the Blue Jays and Braves in recent years have carried two starting level catchers because they realize the benefit of having two good catchers when at least one of them DHs frequently. 

[CaptainRedbeard]

If Basallo is able to catch at the MLB level, having him and Adley is a roster construction cheat code. You don’t have to give all the ABs to miserable .250 wOBA backup catchers that every other team has to suffer through.

Given catcher is different than every other position in how much your starter has to rest, and especially if your starting catcher DHs a lot and the prospect is projected to as well, catcher prospects shouldn’t be considered “blocked” in the same way as other positions. It’s just exceptionally rare for one team to have two really good catchers, because really good catchers are one of the most valuable commodities in baseball.

[Warehouse]

Mountcastle, Kremer, and Stowers for Luis Castillo. Then backfill Kremer by trading for Detmers.

I have been skeptical about Seattle trading away pitching but a lot of that is driven by their lack of depth.  If they can get a pitcher back that they can pencil in for <4.50 ERA and credibly start a playoff game in a pinch, then they can afford to sacrifice some top end pitching for offense.  They also shed some salary for the next few years and maintain their prospect firepower for another big deadline move.

Orioles 2025 rotation then lines up as Castillo, Rodriguez, Detmers, [offseason FA or trade], Irvin/Povich (with Tyler Wells expected back in June).

[RVAOsFan]

Today is a good day to trade Urias + for a BP arm and promote Mayo.  That is all.

[Bemorewins]

10 minutes ago, Warehouse said:

Mountcastle, Kremer, and Stowers for Luis Castillo. Then backfill Kremer by trading for Detmers.

I have been skeptical about Seattle trading away pitching but a lot of that is driven by their lack of depth.  If they can get a pitcher back that they can pencil in for <4.50 ERA and credibly start a playoff game in a pinch, then they can afford to sacrifice some top end pitching for offense.  They also shed some salary for the next few years and maintain their prospect firepower for another big deadline move.

Orioles 2025 rotation then lines up as Castillo, Rodriguez, Detmers, [offseason FA or trade], Irvin/Povich (with Tyler Wells expected back in June).

You believe that Ryan Mountcastle can headline a trade for a number 1 starter? Stowers has little to no value and Kremer would be the number 5 starter on SEA with Castillo gone.

Seems like we get much better in this exchange and the Mariners probably get a little worse.

You don’t think they will want at least one prospect in exchange for their #1?

[Aristotelian]

Why would Seattle trade MLB pitching for offense when they can trade prospects? They have a reasonable payroll. Castillo is the only pitcher making any money. They have at least four prospects in the top 100. They don't need to trade off their MLB roster to get offense. 

[OriolesMagic83]

32 minutes ago, RVAOsFan said:

Today is a good day to trade Urias + for a BP arm and promote Mayo.  That is all.

I don't think anyone wants Urias but the O's.

[Rbiggs2525]

34 minutes ago, RVAOsFan said:

Today is a good day to trade Urias + for a BP arm and promote Mayo.  That is all.

I’ll second that. 

[RVAOsFan]

12 minutes ago, OriolesMagic83 said:

I don't think anyone wants Urias but the O's.

Pretty sure if you put Urias on waivers today he would have multiple claims.  By himself probably not a ton of trade value.  Combine him with a middling prospect and I think we can get a BP arm that would be useful.  Just my opinion though, who knows.

[Bemorewins]

1 minute ago, RVAOsFan said:

Pretty sure if you put Urias on waivers today he would have multiple claims.  By himself probably not a ton of trade value.  Combine him with a middling prospect and I think we can get a BP arm that would be useful.  Just my opinion though, who knows.

Would you be willing to name some contending teams that you believe would play Urias at 3B?