Orioles Predicted to Trade Ryan Mountcastle to NL East Club

The Baltimore Orioles still have a decision to make with Ryan Mountcastle's future.

Sep 21, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles designated hitter Ryan Mountcastle (6) stands in the dugout before the game against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

When the Baltimore Orioles signed first baseman Pete Alonso to a lucrative five-year, $155 million contract during the Winter Meetings, it left one of their homegrown sluggers in a difficult spot.

Baltimore's successful pursuit of the Polar Bear created a new first base/DH rotation with Alonso and top prospect Samuel Basallo. The latter, who was signed to a long-term extension shortly after making his big league debut, will almost certainly be a full-time starter in 2026; because Adley Rutschman is already behind the plate, Basallo's main avenue towards playing time is DHing, although he can fill in for Alonso at first as well.

This effectively makes Ryan Mountcastle, who had anchored first base/DH duties with the since-departed Ryan O'Hearn over the past couple of seasons, expendable for the O's. A miserable 2025 season certainly doesn't help his case, as the 28-year-old registered a career-worst .653 OPS and -0.4 fWAR while being limited to 89 games due to injuries; that poor campaign may have also been a factor in signing Alonso.

Mountcastle still has upside, as his mastery over left-handed pitching made the platoon with O'Hearn work very well. But the Orioles shouldn't have a $6.8 million player rotting on their bench, so they should ideally capitalize on his upside by searching for a trade partner.

Would the Washington Nationals be a Good Fit for Mountcastle?

Sep 24, 2025; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder James Wood (29) reacts after hitting a home run against the Atlanta Braves during the eighth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

In a February 9 article, Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report brainstormed some realistic trades across baseball that could be made before Opening Day in March. Among his proposals was sending Mountcastle to the Nationals, Baltimore's neighbor in the nation's capital.

"If the O's don't see much value in carrying a pretty inflexible player on their bench to begin the season, he should be someone there's trade interest in," Kelly wrote. "The nearby Nationals have one of the five worst rosters in baseball, with their lineup in desperate need of a power source outside of James Wood. Mountcastle could take over at first base, where he's a more natural fit than Luis García Jr., who is a middle infielder by trade."

Read More: ESPN Insider Assesses Orioles' Next Move After Missing on Framber Valdez

From the Nationals' perspective, taking a flyer on Mountcastle would be a no-brainer because they are in the middle of a rebuild. They also only have two natural first basemen on their 40-man roster: Andrés Chapparo, who made just 73 plate appearances last year, and Abimelec Ortiz, who has yet to make his MLB debut. García, as Kelly alluded to, is also primarily a second baseman/shortstop and has played only 16 innings at first in his career.

But what about from the Orioles' perspective? The return for Mountcastle likely wouldn't be too much due to his awful 2025, but his success from 2021-2024 should warrant either a promising prospect or a major-league ready player. Baltimore would ideally want a pitcher due to how much their arms struggled last year.

One thing for the Orioles to consider when trading Mountcastle is that it would free up that aforementioned $6.8 million salary; they could use this extra space to continue their pursuit of a starter in free agency. Zac Gallen is notably still available on the market, and despite his own struggles in 2025, he is capable of rebounding into the ace-caliber arm he was in 2023.

Regardless, Mountcastle is no longer a viable fit on the Orioles. But Baltimore would prefer to at least get something for the slugger rather than releasing him for nothing, and the Nationals might be a club who would take a chance on him.

If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.