The more the Orioles trade their stars away now, the more comfortable they'll be continuing it. So what will the impending competitive window actually look like?
The more the Orioles trade their stars away now, the more comfortable they'll be continuing it. So what will the impending competitive window actually look like?
Jorge Lopez's deadline day trade to the Twins was another in which the Orioles decided to trade a player while his value was highest and prioritized a longer-term return.
Mancini is a free agent in two months. He’s hitting pretty much exactly in-line with his career numbers (114 OPs+) and provides no defensive value. I would not be surprised if the O’s designated hitters for the rest of the season basically match that.
Lopez has been awesome. But he’s also already 29 years old, and relievers are a fickle, fickle bunch. Just look at how this team’s bullpen was constructed! I think that, personally, I wouldn’t have traded Lopez for that return, but it’s hard to get too worked up when the club has a ready replacement (Bautista) and lots of live arms to backfill into the middle innings.
Trading Lyles never made sense to me. He’s under contract at a reasonable cost for next season, and if they traded him they would then spend the offseason trying to sign exactly that pitcher. Plus, he would bring back next to nothing in a trade. I am surprised they didn’t trade Santander, but I guess there wasn’t much market for him.
As for Elias’s comment, I read that to mean he wasn’t going to make stupid trades when the team wasn’t really in a pennant chase. Like Gerardo Parra for Zach Davies in 2015. Or Bud Norris for Josh Hader in 2013. Not to mention the draft picks forsaken for Mike Gonzalez, Ubaldo Jimenez, and Yovani Gallardo.
The Twitter talk is all, "building for the future is more important than winning today," as if the Orioles are headed towards their own 2017 (Astros) with following competitive and winning seasons. This viewpoint doesn't take into account past behavior by the organization, however. The Orioles are never going to pay to keep any of these players when they want more money. The Orioles don't care about fans who know the game (baseball people) and the players anymore, they're chasing suburban family visits and concert goers, and the current strategy is just fine for that. That said, it's a fun team now for the first time in many years.
Mancini is a free agent in two months. He’s hitting pretty much exactly in-line with his career numbers (114 OPs+) and provides no defensive value. I would not be surprised if the O’s designated hitters for the rest of the season basically match that.
Lopez has been awesome. But he’s also already 29 years old, and relievers are a fickle, fickle bunch. Just look at how this team’s bullpen was constructed! I think that, personally, I wouldn’t have traded Lopez for that return, but it’s hard to get too worked up when the club has a ready replacement (Bautista) and lots of live arms to backfill into the middle innings.
Trading Lyles never made sense to me. He’s under contract at a reasonable cost for next season, and if they traded him they would then spend the offseason trying to sign exactly that pitcher. Plus, he would bring back next to nothing in a trade. I am surprised they didn’t trade Santander, but I guess there wasn’t much market for him.
As for Elias’s comment, I read that to mean he wasn’t going to make stupid trades when the team wasn’t really in a pennant chase. Like Gerardo Parra for Zach Davies in 2015. Or Bud Norris for Josh Hader in 2013. Not to mention the draft picks forsaken for Mike Gonzalez, Ubaldo Jimenez, and Yovani Gallardo.
The Twitter talk is all, "building for the future is more important than winning today," as if the Orioles are headed towards their own 2017 (Astros) with following competitive and winning seasons. This viewpoint doesn't take into account past behavior by the organization, however. The Orioles are never going to pay to keep any of these players when they want more money. The Orioles don't care about fans who know the game (baseball people) and the players anymore, they're chasing suburban family visits and concert goers, and the current strategy is just fine for that. That said, it's a fun team now for the first time in many years.