Orioles Receive Bold MLB Trade Deadline Prediction From MLB Writer Months in Advance

The Baltimore Orioles have two of the three necessary things to contend already at a championship-caliber level; their lineup and defense.

With so many established young stars in the mix, with some only scratching the surface of their potential and more on the way, the ceiling is there for this to be among the most productive offenses for years to come.

For example, if free agent addition Tyler O’Neill remains healthy, he is a sizable upgrade over Anthony Santander in the outfield given his superior defense as a two-time Gold Glove Award winner and more consistent on-base ability.

Catcher Adley Rutschman and third baseman Jordan Westburg have already reached All-Star status. Shortstop Gunnar Henderson has, as well, and is already a yearly contender for the MVP Award.

Defensively, the team is incredibly solid, too.

Given the spaciousness of their outfield, it is necessary to have multiple players with range. The team has that with Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins and O’Neill who all three ahve the range of a center fielder.

On the infield, Ryan Mountcastle is improving every year at first base. Westburg is solid at the hot corner and second base. Henderson is excellent at shortstop and Jackson Holliday, continuing to make the transition from shortstop to second base, has elite range as well.

In those two regards, the Orioles can match up with anyone in the league.

Where they seem to fall short is on the mound.

Losing ace Corbin Burnes in free agency was a huge blow, one they didn’t do much to overcome.

Their strategy of adding depth over making a splash -- signing Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano -- looked even more questionable when their top starter, Grayson Rodriguez, battled injury in spring training and will miss the beginning of the campaign.

That lack of a prototypical No. 1 starter is why Chad Jennings of The Athletic (subscription required) is looking a few months into the future with his bold prediction for Baltimore in 2025.

“The core of homegrown position players will keep the Orioles in the hunt for four months, at which point it will be painfully obvious that, to go much further, the Orioles will need a top-of-the-rotation arm. No team will get more attention at the trade deadline as the Orioles have Coby Mayo, Samuel Basello and Heston Kjersted to dangle as bait,” he wrote.

Their star-studded lineup will keep them in contention, at which point, ahead of the deadline, they will be a popular team on the rumor mill in search of a bona fide ace to anchor their pitching staff.

The team would be wasting a golden opportunity not pushing more chips to the middle of the table.

This is the time to spend with so many core players not even arbitration eligible yet.

In the coming years, it is going to get increasingly expensive to keep this group together, so retaining the entire core may not be possible.

Finding playing time for everyone ready for a shot in the Major Leagues is an impossibility.

Baltimore should take advantage of the incredible positional player depth they have created and address the only weakness they have on their roster.

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