Orioles Need To Make Veteran Pitcher Off Limits in Trade for Betterment of Franchise

The Baltimore Orioles are going to be open for business ahead of the MLB trade deadline this year, but not in the fashion anyone would have predicted.

Entering the 2025 season, they were viewed as legitimate contenders in the American League. If they could add a bona fide front end starting pitcher to the mix, they would be able to compete with any team.

A star-studded lineup with young stars was expected to help keep things afloat with a shaky pitching situation.

Fast forward to May 23, and the team isn’t contending for anything except the No. 1 pick in the 2026 MLB Draft Lottery.

Getting throttled by the Boston Red Sox in what will drop their record to 16-33 on the season, they are in the cellar of the AL East and going nowhere fast in 2025.

Manager Brandon Hyde has already been fired, the first of what could be many major changes the team undergoes this campaign.

Don’t be surprised if several players are traded away in the coming weeks, with pressure being on general manager Mike Elias to make the most of a bad situation.

The moves he and his staff made in the offseason have virtually all backfired. How they set up the pitching rotation should have him on the hot seat.

Veteran Tomoyuki Sugano has been the only true bright spot in their offseason haul after signing a one-year, $13 million deal in free agency.

Through 10 starts, he has an impressive 3.07 ERA across 58.2 innings. However, his expected ERA and FIP don’t paint nearly as positive a picture at 4.36 and 4.82, respectively.

Could Orioles Consider Trading Tomoyuki Sugano?

Alas, there are plenty of contenders who would love to add a reliable innings-eater like that to the back of their rotation to help make it through the regular season and provide insurance for the playoffs.

That isn’t something the Orioles should entertain because it would actually set the franchise back further than they are already right now.

“And a trade of Sugano, whom the Orioles signed to a one-year, $13 million free-agent contract in December, would not be a good look for an organization trying to establish a presence in Japan,” wrote Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required).

It has been a long time since a Japanese-born player suited up for Baltimore. In 2009, relief pitcher Koji Uehara began his nine-year MLB career with the franchise.

The team’s struggles certainly won’t help them entice foreign talent to join the club, but Rosenthal cautions that trading Sugano could make things worse if they are attempting to create a foothold overseas.