The MLB trade deadline has passed, and the dust is starting to settle. A flurry of moves were made amongst the previous few days, with fans of most teams anxiously waiting to see if their team joined in the fray.
For the Baltimore Orioles, the trade season began on July 19 when they acquired right-hander Shintaro Fujinami from the Oakland Athletics, a relief pitcher with a triple-digit fastball, who would help extend the bullpen and add to the back-end of Yennier Canó and Félix Bautista, for minor league left-hander Easton Lucas.
It didn’t stop there, as the Orioles would designate right-hander Eduard Bazardo for assignment. As Bazardo was left exposed on the waiver wire, the Seattle Mariners jumped to the front of the line by offering minor league right-hander Logan Rinehart.
Rinehart is a 25-year-old who was drafted in 2019. He is still a couple years away from appearing in the majors, so the value of this move is still a few years away.
Last but not least, in what was the organization’s biggest deal, the Orioles acquired right-handed starter Jack Flaherty from the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for infielder César Prieto (O’s No. 16 prospect), left-hander Drew Rom (O’s No. 18 prospect) and 19-year-old right-hander Zack Showalter.
Flaherty is a veteran, former first-round pick with a career 3.58 ERA. Not a front-line starter, but a middle rotation guy who has averaged close to six innings an outing across his career.
Overall, if you look at the pieces added versus what was subtracted, the deals actually are pretty fair on all sides and add pieces to much-needed areas on this Orioles club.
Fujinami has the potential to be an integral piece to the bullpen. As seen in three of his last four appearances, he has pitched 4.2 innings, allowing one hit, two walks and striking out seven while not yielding a run. If he maintains that type of production learns to better command his stuff, he becomes a big steal.
With Flaherty, the same concept is faced, except in a starting role. Flaherty is expected to slot into Tyler Wells’ role in the rotation. Having pitched to a 3.03 ERA in July, the soon-to-be 28-year old could provide innings and another arm to help rest younger players like Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish and the aforementioned Wells, who have all exceeded last year’s innings totals.
Orioles GM Mike Elias did not jump the gun on big money contract stars. Easily able to match or even outbid most teams, Elias stuck to his guns and blueprint by placing his faith in the team he has constructed.
Like key players and veterans Kyle Gibson and Adam Frazier, they fill pieces of a bigger picture. While they might not be what fans envisioned or wanted, Elias has not deviated from the plan nor sacrificed young talent for the sake of making a move.
At this time, the moves grade out as a “B” grade. They fill needs without overreaching or overextending payroll. They also are pitchers in the prime part of their career that are easily retainable if they provide the success that Elias envisioned at the time of these moves.
Of course, a final verdict on the moves to the major league roster will have to be revisited at the end of the season to give a true evaluation. As of now, Elias and the Orioles receive a “B” for these acquisitions.
What grade do you give these acquisitions? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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