Baltimore Orioles double down on mediocrity with trade deadline moves

Rather than capitalize on a great chance to start rebuilding, the Baltimore Orioles used the trade deadline to make some questionable additions.

It can be difficult for a team to commit to a rebuild, especially when it has been fairly successful at making the postseason in recent years. At the same time, going all-out to buy at the trade deadline serves little purpose for a club whose playoff hopes are dim at best. Being caught in the middle can trap a franchise on a treadmill with no end in sight. The Baltimore Orioles‘ moves at this year’s deadline suggest they’re content to keep spinning their wheels.

Since going 15-8 in April, the O’s have managed a 36-46 mark. Their -71 run differential suggests they’re fortunate to even be where they are in the standings. Many speculated that general manager Dan Duquette would look to sell before the deadline, especially when he held one of the most coveted potential trade chips in closer Zach Britton.

Despite whispers of a serious pursuit by the Dodgers and others, Britton remained in Baltimore as yesterday afternoon’s deadline passed. The Orioles weren’t exactly compelled to move him: With another year before he hits free agency, the team could (and likely will) shop the reliever again in the offseason or at the next deadline. But the extra few months of control certainly wouldn’t have hurt his value.

While you can find some logic in holding on to Britton (i.e. his injury and inconsistent performance this season may have slightly blemished his price tag), it’s hard to detect much of any in the deals the O’s did make. They made a pair of notable additions, neither of which seems likely to move the needle much over the next couple months.

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The Orioles’ rotation has been an abject mess all year; their 5.81 ERA is only better than the Reds (6.05). So they went out and nabbed Jeremy Hellickson from the Phillies. The veteran righty becomes one of the team’s better starters almost by default, but that’s merely a reflection of just how bad the Baltimore staff has been. Hellickson owns a 4.73 ERA, an even worse 5.50 FIP and 1.26 WHIP over 112.1 innings. It’s difficult to imagine those numbers improving much in the AL East.

Then the O’s went within the division yesterday to swing a deal with the Rays, acquiring infielder (and former number-one pick) Tim Beckham. The 27-year-old has been a significant disappointment at the big league level, but he has shown some pop this year with a career-high 12 home runs. Otherwise, he sports a pedestrian .259/.314/.407 slash line in 87 games. He’s under team control through 2020, but Beckham feels like nothing more than a middling utility player moving forward.

Baltimore didn’t give up much in the process, and to be fair, they don’t quite have the prospect capital to make a trade that would have transformed their chances in 2017. But these additions don’t accomplish much of anything, especially when Duquette declares, “We’re gonna take a shot at getting the most out of this season.”

At 4.5 games behind in the Wild Card race, you can’t blame the Orioles for believing they still have a chance. But in order to jump over the likes of the Royals, Rays, Red Sox and Yankees – clubs that did improve themselves with prominent deadline acquisitions – they will need to play like a completely different team than the one that has showed up over the past three months.

Next: Which teams won the trade deadline?

It’s clear the O’s are hoping to take one last shot next season while Britton and Manny Machado are still in town. But unless their usual formula of banking on the offense to carry a shaky rotation changes, the story won’t end any differently. About a year from now, the franchise could be facing an even more intense – and unavoidable – dilemma over whether to finally push the rebuild button.