The Orioles are currently in last place, eight games out in the AL East. The offense has been OK, the pitching lousy. This comes as no surprise; 2009 was viewed as a rebuilding year for Baltimore heading into the season. This is entirely speculative, but let's take a look at possible veteran trade candidates a month or two from now.
- Melvin Mora, 3B - $9MM this year, $8MM club option for '10 with a $1MM buyout. Mora, 37, caught fire in July and August of '08. He has a no-trade clause and has dealt with a hamstring injury this year. Could he help the Reds, if he starts hitting and shows a willingness to accept a trade? Walt Jocketty and Andy MacPhail matched up on the Ryan Freel–Ramon Hernandez deal last winter.
- Ty Wigginton, 3B - $2.5MM this year, $3.5MM in '10. Wiggy has been awful at the plate so far in 106 plate appearances, rendering him immovable.
- Adam Eaton, SP – signed through 2009, Phillies paying most of his salary. Eaton's had one good start this year, against the White Sox. He needs to find his way back to the NL.
- Aubrey Huff, DH/1B – $8MM this year. This year he's looked more like the pre-2008 Huff. Did MacPhail miss his chance last winter to move the entire $8MM?
- Danys Baez, RP – $5.5MM this year. He missed all of '08, but Baez is having a nice year in his first 18 innings. The O's have handled him carefully, as he ranks fourth in their bullpen in Leverage. He appears to be the most likely trade candidate on the team, and the cost shouldn't be much beyond paying his salary.
- Koji Uehara, SP – $5MM this year, $5MM in '10. Uehara has been the team's best pitcher, combining a decent strikeout rate with a tiny walk rate. Is this MacPhail's chance to sell high, despite the risk of making the '09 rotation even worse? Given the hoopla about Uehara being the team's first Japanese-born player, it's unlikely he's dealt a few months into the contract.
- Jamie Walker, RP – $4.5MM this year. Walker's been solid overall this year, but he's surprisingly been rocked by lefties.
- George Sherrill, RP – $2.75MM this year, under team control through 2011. Sherrill is trying to hang on to the team's closer job. He may be best-served back in a lefty-specialist role. He's similar to Guthrie in that he's past 30 but under team control for a while.
- Cesar Izturis, SS – $2.4MM this year, $2.6MM in '10. Izturis probably isn't a trade candidate unless an adequate replacement emerges, perhaps through a separate deal. Robert Andino hasn't gotten much of a look yet.
- Luke Scott, OF – $2.4MM this year, under team control through 2012. Scott's shoulder injury may knock him out for an extended period of time, keeping him off the trade market.
- Mark Hendrickson, SP/RP – $1.5MM this year. He at least takes the ball every fifth day, so the O's may keep him around just to eat up innings. Maybe they'll feel the same way about Eaton.
- Gregg Zaun, C – $1.5MM this year, $2MM club option for '10 with a $500K buyout. The contract could be a nice bargain if Zaun rediscovers his .340 OBP ability. The O's probably prefer he stays on to tutor Matt Wieters when the prospect comes up this summer.
- Jeremy Guthrie, SP – $650K this year, under team control through 2012. The O's are not in a position to trade away pitching, but Guthrie is already 30 years old. 3.5 years of Guthrie could be appealing on the trade market. Maybe he could be cashed in for multiple young players.
