The Baltimore Orioles have undoubtedly been one of baseball’s most disappointing teams in recent years.
It feels like it was just yesterday that the O’s had won 101 games with one of the MLB’s most exciting, young rosters and seemed poised to be a threat in the AL for the foreseeable future.
Fast forward two years, and Baltimore is fresh off a season in which it won just 75 games and was never a factor in the playoff picture.
The lineup still features plenty of youth and upside, but it’s clear that if the Orioles want to get back to their winning ways, the pitching staff needs to be overhauled.
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MacKenzie Gore Sent to the Orioles in MLB Trade Proposal
The departure of Corbin Burnes last offseason killed the rotation, and Grayson Rodriguez’s inability to get on the field (elbow) buried them even further.
Rodriguez was recently traded, crossing his name off the list of starting arms who could help Baltimore’s starting staff take a step forward next year.
With limited options, the Orioles are going to have to be active within the starting pitching market this offseason if they’re going to put together a bounce-back year in 2026.
Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report has predicted that the O’s will make a trade this winter to shore up the front end of their rotation. Reuter believes the Orioles will go out and trade for MacKenzie Gore from the Washington Nationals.
The proposal includes Baltimore sending LHP Cade Povich, OF Dylan Beavers, RHP Esteban Mejia, and RHP Trey Gibson to Washington in exchange for Gore.
“The Nationals are still at least a few years from serious contention, so there is a growing expectation that he will be traded this winter… The Orioles have a clear need to add a third quality arm atop the rotation alongside Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish, and he would slot in nicely as a multi-year option who still has some untapped upside,” wrote Reuter.
Should The Orioles Make This Trade?
As Reuter notes, given Gore’s production and contract status, his services won’t come cheap.
Povich is already in the big leagues and could still find his footing at just 25 years old, Beavers and Mejia are regarded as two of Baltimore’s top prospects, and Gibson put up some solid numbers across three minor league stops last season.
Still, this is a trade that Baltimore should be pulling the trigger on.
Waiting on young talents to develop and emerge as major-league contributors shouldn’t be the Orioles’ focus. All attention should be turned to building a starting staff that can match what the offense is capable of when key contributors are playing at their best.
Gore can help them do just that. He took a step back in the second half of the year after posting a 3.02 ERA through his first 19 starts, but his season-long stat line is still very solid, and he’s shown that he can be a meaningful piece of any rotation.
He would give Baltimore the upgrade it desperately needs, and the Orioles should absolutely send this offer over to Washington’s front office.
MacKenzie Gore Stats
After getting off to an incredibly strong start in 2025, Gore was named to his first All-Star Game last season.
2025 Stats:
30 starts
5-15 record
159.2 IP
4.17 ERA
1.353 WHIP
185 Ks