Orioles repeating history to make offseason trade with Brewers would be ideal

The Baltimore Orioles and Milwaukee Brewers would make for great trade partners this offseason, and they're no strangers to each other.

Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles did a wonderful job ahead of MLB's trade deadline in July, making something of their underwhelming season. As surprise sellers, they restocked a farm system that not too long ago was ranked atop baseball.

After falling woefully short of expectations this past season, the Orioles aren’t far away from being playoff contenders in the American League. A few offseason additions and better luck in the injury department should put the team right back on track.

But to avoid another letdown, Baltimore needs to take a more aggressive approach to upgrading its pitching staff. Things were a disaster on the mound in 2025, and a repeat of that cannot occur.

Read More: Who the Orioles' top free agency target should be

Luckily, the Orioles don’t have to look too far back in history to find a blueprint of how to address their pitching need. During the 2023-24 offseason, they made a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers to acquire Corbin Burnes to be their new ace.

Orioles named potential landing spot for Freddy Peralta

David Banks-Imagn Images

This year, the Brewers once again have an ace available who has one year of club control remaining. Freddy Peralta fits the bill as a player Milwaukee may trade this winter, and it should come as no surprise that Baltimore has been listed by Mike Axisa of CBS Sports as a potential landing spot.

His affordable contract, owed only $8 million for the 2026 season, means virtually the entire league can fit him into their payroll. The market for him is going to be robust, but the Orioles have the prospect capital to get a deal done.

They should also have extra motivation after how poorly things went this past summer. The O's cannot afford to waste another year of their young positional player talent being so affordable before becoming arbitration eligible.

Peralta is exactly what Baltimore should be looking for to anchor their rotation. Injuries have plagued their pitching staff in recent years, and in direct contrast, the right-hander is one of the most durable starters in baseball.

"He's not scared of the moment. I love watching him pitch and he's a big reason why Milwaukee is on the run they're on." - @JakePeavy_22 on Freddy Peralta@Brewers | #ThisIsMyCrew | #MLBTonight pic.twitter.com/xFyV8wipv8

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) August 19, 2025

The 29-year-old has made at least 30 starts in three consecutive campaigns, being one of only 11 pitchers to accomplish this over the past three seasons. Since becoming a starter in 2021, he has consistently performed at a high level.

A two-time All-Star, Peralta has made 141 total appearances (139 starts) in five years while throwing 738.1 innings. He has a 3.30 ERA and 895 strikeouts, while producing an impressive 126 ERA+, 3.65 FIP and 14.8 bWAR.

Adding him to a rotation along with breakout star Trevor Rogers and a healthy duo of Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells would be a massive boost for the Orioles. Anything they get from Grayson Rodriguez would be a bonus, and they also have plenty of depth with Dean Kremer, Cade Povich and Chayce McDermott still on the roster.