The Baltimore Orioles are doing what they can to make it seem like they have no interest in trading Manny Machado, but the things the team is saying publicly may not be consistent with what is taking place behind closed doors.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported on Tuesday that the Orioles have begun asking teams to make offers for Machado. The O’s would reportedly be willing to part with their star third baseman if they can acquire a couple of young, controllable pitcher starting pitchers.
The Orioles understand that they may not be able to re-sign Machado when he becomes a free agent next offseason, and they know the return for him could be significantly less if they wait until the trade deadline in 2018 to unload him.
Oh, and Machado doesn’t want to play third base anymore. Accoridng to Rosenthal, the 26-year-old wants to play shortstop. He was drafted as a shortstop with the third overall pick in the 2010 MLB Draft, and he understands that he could be paid more as a free agent if he’s a shortstop and not a third baseman.
Rosenthal speculates that the St. Louis Cardinals, who were willing to take on much of Giancarlo Stanton’s contract and could afford to re-sign Machado, make make the most sense for the three-time All-Star.
It would likely take at least $200 million for the Orioles to extend Machado, and it makes little sense for them to pay that. It would make even less sense for them to let him walk in free agency, so a trade this winter may be the best option. General manager Dan Duquette said what he had to about the situation recently, but we know better than to take that at face value.
