Good morning, Camden Chatters.<\/p>\n
MLB teams are continuing to make big moves for starting pitchers. Unfortunately, the Orioles are not currently one of those teams.<\/p>\n
The Texas Rangers were the latest to strike for a high-upside hurler, acquiring Nationals ace MacKenzie Gore yesterday for a five-prospect package. The 26-year-old Gore was a first-time All-Star last season for Washington, posting a 3.02 ERA in the first half before injuries slowed him in the final month. He\u2019s a hard-throwing, strikeout-happy, somewhat command-challenged lefty with two years of team control.<\/p>\n
The rebuilding Nats had Gore on the market all winter, and there were some whispers that the Orioles were interested, but ultimately it was the Rangers who made the deal. They gave up five of their top 18 prospects (as ranked by MLB Pipeline<\/a>), so it\u2019s not as if Gore came cheap. That kind of package might have been too rich for Mike Elias\u2019s blood, assuming the O\u2019s were even interested in Gore to begin with. The Birds already parted with a number of prospects in their December deal for Shane Baz, another 26-year-old with an intriguing arm and multiple years of team control remaining.<\/p>\n With Gore off the board, one day after the Brewers dealt Freddy Peralta to the Mets, there are precious few starting pitchers left on the trade market. If the Orioles were hoping to go the trade route for a rotation upgrade, they might have missed their chance. Then again, they could swoop out of nowhere and acquire some pitcher that nobody even knew was available. That\u2019s essentially what they did with Baz, who hadn\u2019t been linked to the Orioles in any rumors before the O\u2019s pulled off the trade. Elias tends to keep us on our toes, you know.<\/p>\n Do the Orioles have another pitching acquisition still to come, or are they going to roll into the spring with what they\u2019ve got now? The latter would seem like a disappointing outcome, especially when so many O\u2019s fans were convinced the team would act aggressively to land a top-shelf starter after the Pete Alonso signing.<\/p>\n It could still happen. But the opportunities are dwindling.<\/p>\n Orioles claim Weston Wilson (another Birdland Caravan update) – School of Roch<\/a><\/p>\n The Orioles acquired another outfielder who will probably spend all year at Triple-A. Who says they weren\u2019t busy yesterday?<\/p>\n