The Baltimore Orioles are in an excellent position with the July 30 MLB trade deadline coming up. Maintaining the best farm system in baseball and arguably the top team in Major League Baseball, this team can do a lot to improve.
Finding a starting pitcher has been the Orioles major focus for weeks, and there is a chance that they will sign a pitcher like Tarik Skubal. It is unclear if the Detroit Tigers would trade Skubal, but if there is one team he is interested in, it would be Baltimore.
A package would perhaps start with Jackson Holliday, the No.1 prospect in baseball. Whether the Orioles want to trade him or not is left to be seen, but they will likely not get Skubal back if he was not in the deal.
Although Holliday is a remarkable player and has the potential to be a superstar one day, trading for Skubal gives Baltimore a sure ace in their squad. While they already have Corbin Burnes, getting a 1-2 punch that would be better than any in baseball, would set them up well for October and in future if they pay Burnes.
At the end of the day, Holliday is still a prospect, and until he proves that he can play at the big league level, there is not much to report on him. This is why the Orioles front office has to consider moving him, no matter how crazy it starts.
Anthony Castrovince from MLB.com did a preview of the trade deadline and ranked nine teams that should be “all-in,” including Baltimore. He highlighted the fact that they were No.1 on this list last year and had a quiet deadline. Castrovince stated that how the rest of the season played out only adds to the fact that they need to be aggressive this time around.
“The O’s were No. 1 on this list a year ago, yet had a tepid Trade Deadline that arguably came back to bite them come October.
“But the offseason Corbin Burnes trade kicked this club into another gear. And given that Baltimore is still short on controllable starters and has endured season-ending injuries to Kyle Bradish, John Means and Tyler Wells, we expect that aggression to continue.”
He mentioned which player the Orioles could acquire, which included Skubal. However, Castrovince also added that they would be “venturing” into Holliday territory in that scenario.
Whether they trade for Skubal or not, there will be other ways to enhance this roster. Baltimore apparently has a window that could be open for the coming years, but as other teams have learned in baseball, windows are narrower than they look.
There is no reason for the Orioles not to do everything they can to improve their roster now.
