What Should Baltimore Orioles Do With Slumping All-Star?

The Baltimore Orioles won again on Wednesday, and once again they did so without any help from Austin Hays who watched from the bench as the Orioles pummeled the Boston Red Sox 6-1 at Camden Yards, improving to 35-19 on the season.

Baltimore has managed to play at an elite level in spite of Hays, not because of him.

The 2023 All-Star has completely fallen off a cliff this year, batting an anemic .164/.225/.205 with no home runs, five RBIs and more strikeouts (18) than hits (12) through 30 games. Despite getting only 80 plate appearances, he's already cost the Orioles nearly a full win (-0.9 WAR) with his performance.

Worse, Hays has not shown any signs of breaking out of his funk and seems to be losing confidence by the day, going 1-for-10 with four strikeouts over his last four games.

It hasn't helped that he's missed time this year due to illness and a stint on the injured list with a calf strain, preventing him from getting in a groove.

I hate to harp on it, but Austin Hays is absolutely lost at the plate. Continually swinging at crap well outside the strike zone. He's 12-for-73 (.164) this season. Zero home runs or triples and just three doubles. He's been on an 11-month slump - when will the Orioles act? pic.twitter.com/P2XM5WITaN
— Dan Clark (@DanClarkSports) May 29, 2024

With one-third of the season in the books, Baltimore finds itself in a tough spot with its scuffling outfielder.

Manager Brandon Hyde has already started slashing his playing time, giving him just two starts in the team's last seven games and turning him into a fourth outfielder/bench player.

On the one hand, the Orioles have far too much talent to keep wasting at-bats on Hays, especially while they battle the New York Yankees for first place in the AL East. On the other hand, Hays isn't going to snap out of his slump sitting on the bench.

He has been on a downward trajectory for almost a full year now.

He started last season strong but regressed badly during the second half, hitting .229/.289/.371 from June 21 on.

His struggles extend well beyond the first two months of the 2024 season.

At this point, Baltimore should consider trading Hays even with the July 30 trade deadline still two months away. He's only 28 and is still under team control through the end of 2025, so some team would probably be willing to take a chance on him based on his track record (three straight seasons with at least 16 homers and 60 RBIs).

Hays may not have much trade value right now, but he isn't worth the headache.

The Orioles should look to get what they can for him and move on in case his performance never rebounds, even if they have to cover some of his salary.

Hays looked like he was going to be a key part of Baltimore's team this year, but now he's an afterthought.

The Orioles don't need him anymore, so they might as well turn the page before it's too late.