The Baltimore Orioles made the best of a poorly managed situation by receiving five prospects in exchange for Manny Machado.
After listening to offers from several teams for several weeks, the Orioles decided on a five-player trade package from the Dodgers. No major league players were included. However, given the circumstances, Baltimore came away with promising young talent. But the way the Orioles allowed the whole process to drag out was a reflection of mismanagement.
It’s been no secret that the Orioles were likely not going to be able to retain the services of Machado beyond his arbitration years. Given his age, intentions to test free agency, and status as one of Major League Baseball’s premier young talents, Machado’s value on the open market exceeded what the Orioles would be willing to spend to retain him.
Machado made his major league debut in 2012. From 2012 through 2016, Baltimore went 444-366 with three postseason appearances. After a sustained period without a playoff appearance the franchise appeared to have turned things around. However, the glass slipper fell of during the 2017 season. The Orioles finished in the AL East cellar for the first time since 2011.
Last year’s trade deadline provided Baltimore with an opportunity to trade Machado and net a substantial return. The recipient would have received an All-Star third baseman for the remainder of that season with another full season of team control. That would have allowed the Orioles to ask for (and likely obtain) a worthy haul for someone of Machado’s ability. Baltimore passed on the opportunity.
The Orioles watched as the rival New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox separated themselves even further from the rest of the division during the offseason. New York acquired Giancarlo Stanton to pair with Aaron Judge. Boston added J.D. Martinez to a team that includes perennial Cy Yong contended Chris Sale and MVP candidate Mookie Betts. Baltimore was always looking finishing third, at best, in the AL East but chose to make one last run with a core that includes other impending free agents Adam Jones and Zach Britton.
Fast forward to this year’s All-Star break and not much had gone right for the Orioles. They have the second worst record in the American League at 28-69 and are 39.5 games back of the Red Sox in the division. The only drama remaining is whether Baltimore will pile up the most losses in franchise history and who else will follow Machado out of Baltimore.
The Orioles, understandably, did not want to trade Machado prior to this year’s All-Star Game, giving him what would in all likelihood one more chance to represent the team. It became increasing likely he would not be a member of the team when they play their next game on Friday.
Baltimore received 21-year-old outfielder Yusniel Diaz, 22-year-old third baseman Rylan Bannon, 26-year-old second baseman Breyvic Valera, 22-year-old starting pitcher Dean Kremer, and 21-year-old relief pitcher Zach Pop as part of their deal with the Dodgers. Diaz, the centerpiece, hit two home runs during this week’s Futures Game and is batting .314/.428/.477 with six home runs, 30 RBI, and eight stolen bases at Double-A. Valera will begin the Orioles portion of his career at Triple-A while the others will be optioned to Double-A.
Valera has been optioned to Norfolk, while Díaz, Bannon, Kremer, and Pop have been assigned to Double-A Bowie.
— Norfolk Tides (@NorfolkTides) July 19, 2018
For the Orioles, this is the start of what will probably be a long rebuilding process. The process arguably could have been accelerated had Baltimore traded Machado sooner, increasing the likelihood of receiving higher-rated prospects and maybe even a major league player along with them. With that leverage no longer available, the Orioles chose what they felt was the best group of players offered. Only time will tell if they Orioles played their hand correctly and how well they made out in the transaction, while fans will wonder whether they could have done better had they parted with Machado sooner.
