Orioles Make a Trade

The Orioles have shipped out utility player Oscar Salazar to the San Diego Padres in exchange for relief pitcher Cla Meredith. Salazar was out of options so he had to remain on the roster and could not be optioned down to the minor leagues without being placed on waivers. In that scenario, a team most likely would have put in a claim and received Salazar while the Orioles would have not gotten anything in return.

Oscar's stay on the roster became in issue once Cesar Izturis was reinstated after his surgery. Salazar did make the most of the small amount of playing time he received, slugging two homeruns and driving in six runs.

Meredith has a 4.17 ERA this year coming out of the Padres bullpen. San Diego needed a player to fill the infield void since both David Eckstein and Edgar Gonzalez are injured, and Salazar fit that need. We will see what Meredith brings to the table in the coming weeks and good luck to Oscar Salazar in his new home.

Miguel Angel Sano Sweepstakes

With the international prospect signing period having recently began, MLB teams are doing their homework and scouting to see what players may have an eventual impact on their franchise. Miguel Angel Sano is a shortstop from the Dominican Republic who is considered to be the consensus best international prospect of 2009. He just turned 16 years of age; however, his age is under investigation because of age accuracy rumors. The sweepstakes has been narrowed down to what seems like three franchises.

Along with the Orioles, the Minnesota Twins and Pittsburgh Pirates have shown interest in this international talent. The Orioles have been said to see Sano as a first round pick if he were in the MLB draft, so they may offer up a deal higher than both that of Brian Matusz and this year's top pick, Matt Hobgood.

One of the main factors here is the confirmation that Sano is indeed 16 years old. Once the age situation is investigated and straightened out, the sweepstakes between the teams will heat up.

I think that Sano could sure up the shortstop position in the future while it will be held down by Cesar Izturis in the present. A last thing of note, it was mentioned somewhere that Sano has been compared to Miguel Cabrera, which in case you haven't watched baseball in the past 9 years is a great compliment.

More news will be posted on Miguel Angel Sano as this situation continues.

Former Oriole Updates

News broke recently that B.J. Ryan, reliever for the Toronto Blue Jays, was in fact released by the team. Ryan became a household name playing for the Orioles from 1999 until 2005, after he was acquired in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds. After the 2005 season, B.J. Ryan inked the largest contract ever given to a closer, which was 5 years and $47 million. This season, Ryan was injured early on and lost his closer's job in favor of reliever Scott Downs.

Another former Oriole made headlines recently. Ryan Freel was in the news yet again as he was traded and will be playing for his third team in just about half a season. Freel was traded to the Chicago Cubs from Baltimore in exchange for Joey Gathright earlier this year. After not producing in Chicago, the utility player was again shipped off, except this time, to the Kansas City Royals back in the American League. Maybe this change of scenery will help Freel to salvage the rest of what seems like a lost 2009 season.

Examining the Bedard Trade

Before the 2008 baseball season, the Orioles traded staff ace Erik Bedard to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for five players. Headlining the deal was stud prospect Adam Jones and reliever George Sherrill. The Orioles desperately needed a closer when Chris Ray would not be able to play in the upcoming season. Sherrill was predominantly a set-up man during his tenure in Seattle and performed at a high level in that role.

Jones was drafted as a shortstop but was shifted to the outfield by Seattle. The other pieces in the trade were three pitchers: Tony Butler, Kam Mickolio, and Chris Tillman. Tillman has huge upside as a potential top of the rotation starter, while Mickolio profiles as a bullpen guy. Butler is currently injured but I am sure will be given a chance to be part of the Orioles future.

Overall, I think this was a brilliant move by the Orioles. They took advantage of Erik Bedard's breakout year and got a strong haul in return. A year and a half after the deal, the Orioles have reaped the benefits of Sherrill and Jones being All-Star selections in 2008 and 2009 respectively.

Bedard, the other side of the deal, had an injury plagued first year in Seattle but has pitched very well in 2009 when healthy. This year is big for Bedard because he will potentially become a free agent at the conclusion of the season.

This trade was supposed to propel Seattle over the LA Angels of Anaheim into first place in the American League West division. Furthermore, it would have given Seattle a lethal one, two punch at the top of the rotation with a maturing "King Felix" Hernandez and Bedard.

Bedard has pitched twice against the Orioles this year. The first start resulted in a win for Seattle as Bedard was definitely on his game. Bedard was on a pitch-count for last night's contest since he was coming back from injury. He did show his velocity and movement as there was a point where he struck out four Orioles hitters in succession.

Looking back, this trade definitely worked toward helping the present and building the future for the Orioles franchise. Seattle has control over its destiny with Bedard and it comes down to whether they believe he can be that go to starter they sought.

Random Updates/All-Star Selections

I wanted to congratulate to Orioles CF Adam Jones on being selected as a reserve to the 2009 MLB All-Star game taking place in the new Busch Stadium in St. Louis. While coming down to earth offensively recently, Jones is still by many measures having a great year and it is good that his merits go recognized.

The great thing about the All-Star game is seeing each team represented; not to mention whichever league wins receives home field advantage in the World Series.

In other recent Orioles news, Chris Ray has been placed on the disabled list while RP, Kam Mickolio was called up to take the roster spot. Also, Cesar Izturis will begin a rehab assignment in the minors as his return from his appendicitis nears.

Downtime

Hey everyone! Sorry that it's been awhile since my last post. I have been busy with working and took a short vacation down in Ocean City.

I just wanted to reassure everybody that I will still be updating here with any important Orioles news that unfolds.