As a pending free agent on a rebuilding team, Orioles center fielder Adam Jones is a logical trade candidate leading up to Tuesday’s non-waiver deadline. While the 32-year-old has drawn interest on the trade market this month, he’s more likely than not to finish the season in Baltimore, Dan Connolly of The Athletic hears (subscription required). “Multiple” clubs have asked the Orioles whether Jones would be willing to waive his 10-and-5 rights and accept a trade, but the “sense” is he’ll stay where he is, Connolly writes. Even if Jones does remain with the O’s through the season, that doesn’t necessarily mean the team will re-sign the longtime franchise linchpin over the winter, Connolly notes.
More from Baltimore…
- Unsurprisingly, general manager Dan Duquette announced Saturday that the rebuilding O’s are primed to cut spending at the major league level over the next couple years, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com relays. “We’re going to invest enough to develop a competitive major league team, and I would expect the club will take the payroll down next year and the year after and reinvest those resources,” said Duquette. The Orioles’ Opening Day payroll this year checked in a bit under $149MM, per Cot’s, placing them just above the middle of the pack in spending. Baltimore’s hopes of contending blew up in its face, though, and now the club’s at the beginning of a teardown. Fortunately, Duquette revealed that the Orioles will look to “invest heavily in the foreign market” after largely ignoring it to this point – an ownership-driven call that has garnered widespread criticism. Of course, with Duquette’s contract up at season’s end, it’s unclear whether he’ll play any part in the Orioles’ rebuilding efforts heading into 2019. Neither Duquette nor manager Buck Showalter, another soon-to-be free agent, gave direct answers when asked about their futures, according to Dubroff.
- Third baseman/outfielder Danny Valencia has been a decent buy-low pickup for Baltimore after signing a minor league deal in March, but he’s not drawing much trade interest, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. The righty-swinging journeyman has offered league-average offense across 265 plate appearances this year (.268/.321/423 with nine home runs), and he has typically posed a threat against left-handed pitchers. But Valencia’s not a strong defender, Kubatko observes, which is likely hampering his market. In the event Valencia’s not dealt this month, he could still end up as an August trade candidate if teams are continuing to look for bench help, per Kubatko.
- Outfielder Joey Rickard faces long odds of returning to the Orioles next year, in part because their “system seems packed with outfielders,” Dubroff writes. An Oriole since they selected him in the 2015 Rule 5 Draft, the 27-year-old Rickard has picked up 687 major plate appearances since 2016 but has batted just .247/.295/.370 and posted a replacement-level fWAR. Considering he has minor league options left and still has four arbitration-eligible seasons remaining, the Orioles could keep Rickard at the Triple-A level or try to find a taker via trade if they’re uninterested in continuing to use a 40-man spot on him.
As long as the owner and his kids remain…….
That’s priority #1!!
Just hearing that Angelos’ sons are having more to do with baseball operations just makes me want to puke.
Better the sons be involved than Peter. They’re the ones who are giving Duquette the go-ahead to tear it down.
@Samuel, you know NOTHING. You are not an Orioles fan and you haven’t paid any attention to the team. You’re just a troll who found an opening to take another uninformed swipe at an easy target.
Peter Angelos is in failing health and has not been involved in the operation of the team since last year. The sons have been much more willing to correct the failings of the team, including but not limited to investing in Latin America. Peter Angelos avoided the international market because he was unwilling to deal with the rampant fraud and corruption. The Orioles have been connected to Victor Victor Mesa, the top prospect from Cuba this year. They gave multiple year contracts to Cashner and Cobb. They traded Machado and Britton. In previous years ownership was unwilling to do a rebuild even when everyone (including the fans) would have recognized its necessity.
Things are changing for the better in Baltimore, It will suck for a while, but we will be back.
That’s not the reason they didn’t sign IFA’s. Duquette just had an interview in which he said the reason he wasn’t allowed to sign them is because ownership used all of that money on domestic scouting and just ignored Latin America. And that turned out awful.
I think it’s fair to criticize given them paying a relatively high payroll for a team that is on pace for one of the worst single-seasons in MLB history. Their farm is also well below average as well. Every executive in baseball would agree the international market is worth exploring, and would rebuild if they were the worst team in baseball. The Orioles are just finally doing what any other team would do, so it is going to take a WHILE before they are competitive again. They relistically have no real trade chips outside of Bundy, Gausman, Schoop, and a few guys in their bullpen.
Well I’m a guy that’s been watching and following the orioles for the last 27 years (since I was 7 years old) so when you use the words “it will suck for a while” is an understatement because it’s been (sucking) in Baltimore since the last 35 years (that’s coming from an orioles fan) yes they had some really good teams here and there in the last 35 years but it never turned into a World Series (which is the only thing that really matters) maybe fun to watch them play at times but no World Series appearance it about 35 years just tells me that Baltimore has been sucking. They had their window to win in the mid 90s (lost) nothing in the early 2000s and they had their window in the last 5 years (lost) I don’t see them even coming close to a playoff appearance for at least another 5-6 years and they’ll most likely lose again. And that’s coming from a die-hard orioles fan. I have to tell it like I see it
They have a serious problem with that horrible Cobb contract they are stuck with
Say Baltimore was willing to deal Jones and agreed on a salary dump; essentially Jones for a PTBNL with the acquiring team taking on his salary. If Jones uses his 10-5 rights, I still think they could move him.
Couldn’t Baltimore just put him on waivers in August and let that same team (or another, doesn’t really matter at that point) claim him and still achieve a salary dump without the PTBNL? Letting him go through waivers would still be allowed, correct?
I know he’s a franchise pillar, but if they could achieve substantial cost savings, which could be used to build up a presence in Latin America, I would definitely do it.
No he can still veto. Can’t be sent to another team without his consent. Transaction would be void.
I only know this because A-gon had to waive his NTC when the dodgers claimed him off the Red Sox in 2012
Seriously? The international market doesn’t mean Asia… Dominican Republic? Cuba? Venezuela? There’s so many star players from other countries in our league right now
Sorry. Replied to the wrong comment. My bad
What good/great players have come from the international market as of late besides Ohtsni?
Really???
How about Acuna, Albies, Soto, Vlad Jr, Tatis Jr, just to name a few off top of my head.
In fact I’d expect about the same amount of stars are signed internationally as are drafted.
Didn’t realize how much Soto was tearing it up. Good examples.
I’ve been very impressed with both Gurriels as well
Still mind blowing where the O’s spend their money.. Crash Davis, Ubaldo, Trumbo.. But couldn’t sign Machado.
Davis is stupid,Trumbo wasn’t that bad considering the market and Ubaldo was a mid rotation starter and got 12 a year. Only deal I say was bad was Davis and his 160 million is half what it would have took to pay Manny. Obviously none of the 3 deals have worked out, and for the Orioles to compete damn near every deal needs to work.
Alex Cobb is up there.
Maybe they’ll target Victor Victor Mesa, since they have pool $$$ left