The Orioles Underrated Trade Chi

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Exactly one year ago today, the Orioles and Brewers agreed to that sent to Baltimore. Since Burnes has now moved on to sign with the Diamondbacks and the Os didnt win a playoff game in the star right-handers lone season at Camden Yards, debates may rage for years about who won the trade, even if an argument can certainly be made that both teams made off well. From the Orioles perspective, there was clear benefit to installing an ace like Burnes atop the teams rotation. On paper, a frontline pitcher was the final piece Charles Nagy Jersey needed to put a young, deep, and talented Os team over the top as a World Series contender, even if things didnt ultimately work out for Baltimore in October. Giving up , , and a Competitive Balance Round-A draft pick for one season of Burnes services was seen as an acceptable trade package, since the perception was that the Orioles could afford to be a little aggre sive, given the extra depth afforded by their very deep farm system. Fast forward a year, and the Orioles (perhaps frustratingly to the team and their fans) find themselves in roughly the same spot heading into the 2025 season. Still looking for a postseason breakout, the Os havent been sitting on their hands, as , , , , and have all been signed as free agent additions, boosting the clubs payroll from roughly $102.5MM in 2024 to a $157.3MM in 2025. Such a payroll hike is quite substantial, but ONeill is the only one of those players signed beyond next season, as the Orioles havent yet shown the increased appetite for longer-term spending that many expected under new owner David Rubenstein. The roster as it stands on February 1 still looks like a strong one, and the Orioles should certainly be considered favorites to at least reach the playoffs for the third consecutive year. Still, if the Os want to make one more splashy move and arent yet willing to break the bank in free agency, that leaves the trade market as GM Mike Elias best route for an upgrade. Even if Baltimores farm system has now been depleted by trades and several players graduating out of prospect status and onto the MLB roster, the Orioles also have another kind of one-year-only surplus that might yet prove beneficial in landing more experienced talent by Opening Day. Unlike in the NFL, NBA, or NHL, Major League Baseball doesnt allow its teams to trade draft picks.with one exception. The teams that receive a bonus pick via are allowed to deal that pick away, which has provided an interesting wrinkle to trade discu sions since the CB rounds were instituted prior to the 2017 draft. These bonus picks are allotted to teams that fall within the leagues bottom 10 in either market size or revenues, and the Orioles have qualified for an extra CBR pick every year. As noted earlier, the Orioles willingne s to include their CBR-A pick (the 34th overall selection in the 2024 draft) was a key component of the Burnes trade, and the Brewers used that pick to select slugging Tenne see first base prospect last July. This offseason saw the Reds trade their CBR-A pick to the Dodgers as part of the , the Athletics included their CBR-A pick as part of that brought to West Sacramento, and the Diamondbacks sent and their CBR-B selection to the Guardians for . Because the teams who qualify for CBR selections switch rounds every year, Baltimores extra pick comes in the second Competitive Balance Round in 2025, currently slotted as the 71st overall selection. This means the Orioles will be on the clock six times within the first 94 picks of the 2025 draft, between their regular picks (19th, 59th, 94th) in the first three rounds, their CBR-B pick (71st), and the compensation picks (30th, 31st) that the club received when Burnes and signed elsewhere. Because the Orioles are a revenue-sharing recipient, and because Burnes and Santander rejected qualifying offers and signed deals worth more than $50MM, the Os landed right after the end of the first round. The double dose of compensation picks might make the Os more likely than not to move their CBR-B pick, just because its fairly uncommon for a team to have two qualified free agents depart in the same offseason. It should be noted that the Orioles decision to trade their CBR-A pick for Burnes mightve been influenced by another bonus pick the team received in that 2024 draft cla s. The Os received the 32nd overall pick under the leagues Prospect Promotion Incentive rules, since won the 2023 AL Rookie of the Year Award after being ranked within the top 100 of preseason prospect lists from (at least two of) MLB Pipeline, Baseball America, and ESPN.com. Even if a CBR-B pick doesnt carry as much value as the CBR-A selection dealt for Burnes, the Diamondbacks Naylor trade is evidence that a CBR-B pick can still bring back some quality talent. Hypothetically, the Orioles could look to replicate the Burnes trade as closely as po sible, and include their CBR pick as part of a larger trade package for an ace pitcher. Even if the Orioles might technically have a rotation surplus if all their starters are healthy, it isnt clear if any of , , Morton, or Sugano are nece sarily the pitcher youd want starting the first game of a playoff series. A mention of here is unavoidable. The Padres are known to be gauging interest in Cease, who (like Burnes) is a year away from free agency. Baltimore had interest in Cease last winter before the White Sox dealt him to San Diego, and that interest extended , as the Orioles reportedly saw a Cease trade as a pivot move in case Burnes signed with a new team. Further extending the comparison to Burnes, the Os might well be viewing Cease as another one-year rental, with an eye towards recouping another compensatory pick next winter if and when Cease were to leave in free agency. It would obviously take more than just the CBR-B pick to obtain Cease, but just having a tradable draft selection gives the Os an interesting chip that most other teams linked to Cease cant offer. Of the teams publicly known to have interest in Cease, Minnesota is the only other club who has a CBR selection the Twins select in CBR-A this year, so their po se sion of the 36th overall pick could even give them a leg up over the Orioles. However, what the Twins dont have is two extra compensatory picks expanding their overall draft pool, so Minnesota might well be le s willing to move its CBR pick than the Orioles. Regardle s of whether the CBR-B pick is traded or not, Baltimore is already going to be getting a heck of a bounty back in the 2025 draft. Selecting six prospects within the top 94 is a terrific way to help restock a thinned-out farm system, but selecting five prospects and trading the 71st overall pick for some immediate help might be the more effective way of managing the Orioles long-term and short-term goals. Eli Morgan Jersey