Draft, international signings done, Orioles’ Elias can turn his attention to trade talks

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• Personally I think the deadline is going to be pretty boring, certainly nothing compared to the great fire sale of '18. The only chip that you'll get anything for is Cashner and, well, it's Andrew Cashner not Greg Maddux.

  • I don’t think there’ll be a lot of interest this year in Greg Maddux, Bancells.

    • Watching the 2019 Orioles rotation, I'd take a flyer in him Rich

    • I think his point was Cashner is no Greg Maddox.

  • I think Bancells comment was tongue in cheek....go O’s

• Elias has done well,everything expected of him. Agree Cashner,Bundy only chips available. Givens,Bleier have performed themselves off of any worthy trade attempt. Mancini will have to go but next winter. There was a time I was in the "build around him" camp but his defensive/speed lackings have deemed him replaceable. LaStella (2B)out for Angels--good spot for Villar?

  • If the Angels trade any prospects for Jonathan Villar to fill in at second base for 2 months the whole front office should be fired immediately. They have the best player on Earth locked up for the rest of his career, they should be doing everything in their power to insure he gets a ring, not now but 3-4 years from now.

  • I am curious as to why you think Mancini would have more value over the winter than he does right now.

    A team on the cusp of the playoffs would be far more likely to give up value than teams doing it over the winter. Mancini is a better than average player, but he is light years away from stardom. However, in the heat of trying to make the playoffs RIGHT NOW!!!!!, teams often will overpay for players they believe would put them over the top. I think Mancini is their top trade chip, the one most likely to bring multiple players in return (and this from a guy who said a few weeks ago that if the Os traded him nobody would be in the stadium). Given where the Os are at this moment, and the likely window before they are decent again, it makes no sense at all to hang onto Mancini. By the time the young players in the minors are ready to contribute, Mancini will be on the far side of 30 and while he might still be productive, it would probably help the organization to explore whether or not there is some team out there desperate enough for the postseason to give up three prospects--and those players could actually speed up Orioles relevancy. I wouldn't just give him away, but they have nothing to lose by shopping him.

    Cashner will go, but I wouldn't expect anything of real value in return. Villar is the worst Orioles baserunner since Alan Wiggins and not a real great defensive player either--I'd shed no tears over his departure. Bundy, despite the W-L record would undoubtedly draw interest, but he is still young enough that he could anchor the staff in two seasons when they might actually be ready to contend again, so I am not sure you move him. They could conceivably move one of their catchers knowing that Rutchsman should probably be here sometime in 2022, and they could just plug one of their minor league guys in as the backup for either Sisco or Severino (and that would probably be Sisco since if they moved one I'd think it would be Severino) until they become the backup to Rutchsman. I think Alberto might draw interest as well, if they think there are minor league infielders who could produce next season. Even on a team with the Os record, there are chips to be put into the game.

    Really, would trading anybody materially affect the record? They are going to fly past 100 losses again--maybe a good bet would be whether the Os reach 100 losses or the Ravens reach 2 wins first. That's a dead heat from my perspective....

  • The one thing that makes Mancini attractive is he has 3 more years of team control. So unlike Cashner or Machado last year he wouldn’t be a rental. In the off-season, teams that are not contenders now but hope to be next year ( White Sox, Mets) might be more inclined to bid for a relatively cost effective first baseman/corner outfielder. Also some teams that are contenders now may find themselves in the market for a first baseman/corner outfielder. Of course if the Orioles are blown away with an offer they should seriously consider it. Looking at the list of free agent 1B one name stood out to me. Ryan Zimmerman. 18 million team option which the Nats most likely wouldn’t pick up. He could re-sign with them for less but if not Mancini would be a good fit for them. Nats have some good prospects. Would the Orioles dare make a trade with Washington? They never have.

• Let's be honest the Orioles aren't getting anything significance in trades this year and quiet frankly you need someone to pitch!!

  My bigger question is what will come of last years fire sale?

  • Yusniel Diaz is likely the best prospect they received from last year's Fire Sale. He's just now starting to come-around. This is what happens when you sell-off at least one year too late...

• What "really good players" does Hyde expect to get for what we have to offer? Sometimes the man totally baffles me. I don't expect much from trading, and we have a lot of bodies from trades and drafts and int'l signings already to absorb into the system. If we keep Cashner, it'll be fun watching Hyde yank him early so that he doesn't get those hundred innings he still needs.

• The team needs a Cashner , a veteran pitcher to show the youngsters what it means to be a major league pitcher. Keep his salary this year and next and omg get rid of Davis

  • 100% totally agree, Cash is worth keeping, he’s already said he loves Baltimore, go O’s....

  • I can’t disagree, but with each quality start his trade value continues to rise. It will be interesting to see what happens!

• Midway through his first season, I give Elias high marks as he works to rebuild the train wreck of an organization he inherited from PA and DD .

  As for Mancini, I would prefer to see the team sign him to a six year extension. Hopefully, the Orioles would be a competitive team by year 3 or 4 of the contract. But if they aren't going to extend Mancini, trade him now when he has maximum value at age 27 with 3+ years of team control remaining.

• Rich, your summary of the Orioles potential trade chips was spot on. However, I think Givens may have more trade value than we think. With the Orioles, he is miscast as a closer on a team that rarely has a lead. On a contender he would be most likely slotted as a 6th and 7th inning guy. As for Cashner, it might make sense for the Orioles to bring him back next year at a reduced cost. Outside of Akin, they don’t really don’t have anyone at AAA ready to come up next year and even Akin isn’t a sure thing. Somebody is going to have to pitch the innings.

• I would consider trading the Bird for a player to be named later

  • Hey now, the Bird has been a solid contributer all year and let's be honest, he'd be a pretty bad fit on any of the contending clubs. His game translates, no doubt, but sticking a six foot tall orange and black bird with no pants in the middle of the Yankee lineup could be detrimental to their October chemistry.

  • Thanks BanMo... I needed that.

• Mancini defensive liabilities won’t be evident if he were to play 1st base will he belongs. Now that Mountcastle is playing left in Norfolk I think Elias sees Manicini as our next first baseman once Davis is DFA. Sign Mancini long term and keep Cashner . Apparently he has threatened to retire if traded as he loves Baltimore

  • I agree with Hoffman and I’ll add this. Way to many on this board are still hopeful for a winning season. There is a couple of off seasons coming up. Until then the team needs to at least be competitive and that will take Cashner and the likes of Manicini. If trade talks produce a knock-your-socks-off trade deal, take it. But, it best be a gain for the organization. I think Elias is doing a great job. And, thank you PA for keeping your nose out of it.

    • Not trying to be a smart guy, but do you think the Os are competitive now, with Cashner and Mancini?

      To me, being competitive doesn't mean you aren't getting beat by five runs every night, it means that on any given night there is a 60% chance or better of winning a game. The Os winning percentage right now is .299, which might be a good BA, but it stinks as a winning percentage. IF dealing those players means that NEXT year you could get a team winning 40% of their games, and the year after somewhere north of 50%, then pull the trigger right now.

      • Like Branch Rickey told Ralph Kiner, "I finished last with you, I can finish last without you."

  • I haven’t seen anyone on this board hopeful of a winning season. I do agree Elias has been great, and I like Hyde so far too.

  • Let me rephrase my thought. Fans expect more wins.

    • I guess I'm a fan then, PA, I do expect more wins than some on this board, who would seem to be happy with none. If you want a number, I don't want 100 losses. That's the first step. Then I want a consistent .500 record. I don't regard these as unreachable goals for the first two years of rebuilding. They are goals, of course, and they may not be reached. But I will be very disappointed if they lose 100 games next year. In sports, wins, not participation, are the measure of success. And learning to win is a skill in itself. Friday's win was a good one and very satisfying. We should enjoy every one because that is the greatest motivator for improvement.

• They have to trade away some vets for a few more prospects. I think they could get something possibly for a Villar, Givens, Bleier, Smith. I would trade Cashner if he could be convinced to go. Bundy if they could get something good for him. I would not undersell him at all.

• Mike Wright was just DFA by the Mariners. Armstrong looks like a all star compared to him. Good trade Elias. Poor Mike never had the head to pitch in the majors of course Bucky stuck with him longer then he should have.

  • Buck played the people that Duquette supplied....go O’s...

• The cashner innings clause was news to me, thanks Rich!

• He could make it to 340. He will make his 17th start on July 6 in game 88. Suppose he makes 15 more starts (could happen, he would have to start every 5th game and not miss any). Now suppose he averages 6 IP per start (possible, he’s pitched 89 innings in 16 starts, averaging about 5 2/3 innings per start). He had 153 IP in 2018. He needs 187 IP this season. He needs 88 more innings including his work in game 88.

• Yanks paid Sabathia a $500,000 bonus he hadn’t quite earned. But we’re not the Yankees, and this is $10 MILLION. I’d bet the ranch O’s don’t let Cash reach 187!! It will be interesting to watch Hyde pull Cash early in some starts. LOL, the Orioles can’t even LOSE correctly.

• I suggested this earlier in the thread. Glad to know I'm not alone. Hyde's record on pulling pitchers --even in a no-hitter-- will provide cover for him. On the other hand, despite Cashner''s current value to the club, this might be a reason to trade him.

• Cashner is a goner, and we are stuck with Cobb for two more years.

  • Agreed, stuck w/Corn Cobb, rather keep Cash & get rid of Cobb, but who’d want him, TB could’ve had him but didn’t want him, they knew what we didn’t...go O’s