The Baltimore Orioles added some power to their lineup on Tuesday via a trade with the Los Angeles Angels.
The Orioles announced that the team has agreed to trade right-handed pitcher Grayson Rodriguez to the Angels in exchange for outfielder Taylor Ward. The one-for-one swap lands Baltimore the power outfield bat they’ve been searching for at the expense of losing a promising young arm.
Ward’s 103 RBIs across 152 games led the Angels last season. His 36 home runs and 75 walks both ranked second on the team behind Jo Adell (37) and Mike Trout (87), respectively. While Ward had productive counting stats, his .228 batting average and 175 strikeouts likely made him expendable in the eyes of Anaheim’s brain trust.
Baltimore experienced a major power outage last year with the departure of Anthony Santander and the regression of stars Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman. The Orioles did not have a single batter hit more than 17 home runs in 2025.
Ward brings some much-needed pop to what was an anemic Orioles offense last season. The man also isn’t afraid to put his body on the line in the outfield.
The downside for Baltimore is that Ward is set to hit free agency after next season, while Anaheim acquires Rodriguez under multiple years of team control before arbitration.
The 26-year-old pitcher missed the entire 2025 season due to various injuries. Rodriguez had a solid 3.86 ERA with a 13-4 record across 20 starts in the Orioles’ banner 2024 campaign. His 13 wins ranked just behind then-ace Corbin Burnes, who tallied 15 wins and finished fifth in AL Cy Young Award voting that year.
Rodriguez has flashed ace-level potential in his brief MLB career, giving him a higher ceiling compared to Ward, who turns 32 in December. The Angels are banking on Rodriguez getting over his health issues in the years to come.
