Baltimore Orioles Slugger ‘Needs to Land’ with These Teams in Trade

As July approaches, the time is coming for the Baltimore Orioles to decide if they are buyers or sellers at the trade deadline.

Well under .500, the Orioles are set to be sellers, barring an incredible surge. With a young roster they’ve built over the year through the MLB draft, the question is how much Baltimore will sell?

Players like Gunnar Henderson and Jackson Holliday would seem to be off the table. Others, like outfielder Cedric Mullins — who is a free agent at season’s end — may be on the table for the right team.

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But there may be no player on the roster with an expiring deal that has more value than Ryan O’Hearn.

The left-handed hitting 31-year-old has tremendous value because of his position flexibility. He can play either corner infield position, first base or slot in at designated hitter.

He’s also having a career season, which is perfect given he’ll be a free agent after the season. Through his first 57 games he has slashed .307/.389/.482 with an .871 OPS. He has eight doubles, nine home runs and 26 RBI.

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The Orioles are sure to get phone calls, especially if they slip further under .500. Teams with significant needs at corner infield or designated hitter may likely overpay to try and acquire him as a rental for a few months.

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) included O’Hearn in his notebook on Thursday. He wrote that he believes that O’Hearn and Arizona first baseman Josh Naylor could be moved at the trade deadline. He also has an idea about which teams would be the best fits.

“If Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Josh Naylor and Baltimore Orioles first baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn get moved, they need to land with two of these three teams: The Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants,” he wrote.

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Rosenthal admitted that O’Hearn’s offense has slowed a bit. But in his three seasons with the O’s he’s slashed .282/.342/.457 with a .799 OPS with 51 doubles, four triples, 38 home runs and 145 RBI. He’s remained a consistent offensive performer since he arrived before the 2023 season in a trade with the Kansas City Royals in which all the Royals received was cash.

Admittedly, dealing O’Hearn would open space on the Major League roster for prospects like Coby Mayo, who the Orioles envision as a corner infielder in the Majors. Or it could lead to the eventual promotion of the organization’s top prospect in Samuel Basallo, who can also play first base.

Either way, O’Hearn could give the Orioles enough in return to make the deal worth it.

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