On an Orioles team that's not good enough to avoid the trade deadline chatter but too good for that to feel right
The Orioles have been playing near-.500 baseball for the last six weeks. That's not going to keep them from trading players next month, but it's enough to change how that feels.
Enjoy these next couple of weeks if you can.
Before long, following the Orioles will mean drowning in a deluge of consternation over whether the team will play a money game with the first overall pick, then trade away the best players on a club that’s nearing respectability to build on the frustration even the most promising half-decade of losing can’t totally erase.
On the former, there’s no escaping that, and won’t be until Rob Manfred announces the pick on the night of the draft. On the latter, it’s probably going to be the same deal – I just wish it didn’t have to be that way.