Insider Hints Baltimore Orioles Should Meet White Sox Asking Price in Cease Trade

If it feels like it's the same conversation surrounding the Baltimore Orioles at this point in the offseason, that's because it largely is.

Will they acquire the ace they're looking for this winter?

That's the most pressing question facing the Orioles as they continue to navigate roster additions before the start of the 2024 season.

Dylan Cease continues to be the hot topic of conversation about if Baltimore can pull off a trade to get the 2022 AL Cy Young runner-up on their team.

This prompted Ken Rosenthal to go on Foul Territory and talk about the ongoing search they are having to land an elite starter.

"We all know they entered the offseason looking for an ace. That is the one thing this team needs the most ... Now, there are a couple of ways to look at this. They have this loaded farm system, why don't they just give the White Sox what they want? That's of course one way to look at it," he said.

By now, virtually everyone knows what the Chicago White Sox are asking for in a trade package to acquire Cease.

They made it clear to the Orioles on what it would take to land him. The asking price is clearly high and has scared off other teams interested in the right-hander.

Rosenthal also mentioned the other way to look at things is because of the White Sox price, it's likely no other team will land Cease and it would be hard to blame Baltimore for not meeting those demands if no other club is willing to as well.

That's what general manager Mike Elias has to contemplate.

Baltimore will still be a good team in 2024.

They have a great group of young players in the field and in their lineup that should carry them to another playoff birth.

The starting rotation is what could limit their ceiling.

Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez certainly are top-of-the-rotation guys, and they have other options as well, but last year's postseason showed this group wasn't ready to compete for a championship.

Cease could change that.

If the Orioles don't land him this offseason, many speculate he could be a target at the trade deadline.

However, this might make things difficult for Baltimore as that's when many of the contending teams are focused on adding arms for potential playoff runs. This could drive up the price for the righty once again and potentially freeze them out of the conversations.

The best course of action would be to acquire him this winter and get two full years of Cease before he hits free agency.

But like Rosenthal said, if Chicago's asking price doesn't come down, it would be tough to demand an organization that's so reliant on developing their internal talent that they should give up multiple elite prospects to get back one player.