On Tuesday night, the Orioles lost 3-2 in New York, suffering another loss in which the bats were silent and good pitching performances were wasted.
The bats have been quiet for a while now, as the lineup has struggled to produce on a consistent basis and the Orioles are finding their selves in limbo in the AL East.
The trading deadline looms, and while many fans want a starter like Johnny Cueto, the Baltimore front office needs to focus on trading for a big bat; preferably the bat of Carlos Gomez.
Yeah, that one.
Ken Rosenthal reported a couple days ago that the Orioles were interested in Gomez, who is being shopped around by the Brewers. The outfielder would be an instant upgrade in the outfield and would provide some pop in the middle of the lineup.
Gomez was once considered a failed prospect, but found his swing after a trade to Milwaukee and has been one of the top outfielders in the NL ever since. He finished the 2014 season with a .284 average, 23 homeruns, 73 RBI, and 34 steals.
His numbers have been down compared to last year’s stats, but he’s a five-tool player that would help the Orioles in many areas, especially on the base paths.
Gomez wouldn’t come cheap though, as the Orioles would have to be willing to deplete most of their farm system in order to get the star. A deal would probably require giving up Zach Davies and Chance Sisco, along with another prospect.
Dan Duquette might not want to give up that many prospects, especially with the injuries to Dylan Bundy, Hunter Harvey and Jomar Reyes, but the Orioles are in win-now mode. It’s time for the team to make moves that will help them now instead of waiting for guys like Davies and Sisco to develop.
The good news is Gomez is signed through the 2016 season, meaning he won’t just be a rental player. The Orioles could eventually reach a long-term deal with down the road if he continues to be successful in Baltimore.
It would be a costly move for the team but the Orioles need to make a splash at the deadline in order to catch up to the Yankees and move up in the Wild Card race.
The lineup would look a lot better with Manny Machado, Jimmy Paredes, Adam Jones and Gomez at the top half. Gomez would clearly help generate more runs and everyone would breathe a lot easier with him playing either left or right field.
The Orioles could also choose to trade for Justin Upton or Jay Bruce. Both players would also create an impact in the lineup but Gomez has the most versatility out of the three, and is the clear choice.
Hopefully, it’s only a matter of time before Duquette makes a move to improve the team. Furthermore, the hope here is that we’ll see Gomez in an Orioles jersey in August.
[cardoza_wp_poll id=”111″]
One Response
I doubt Mr.Angelos has time to read this from a simple but lifelong fan when he was too stubborned to Hall of Fame baseball men.ie Davey Johnson, Pat Gillick,Johnny Oates and Andy McPhail as well the most tragic of cases Mr. Mike Flanagan RIP.We as Orioles fans do not want to be like the Yanks or the other teams that throw ridiculous money at players. We were okay with losing Markakis, Cruz, Miller and Jim Johnson the year before (which was a smart move) We know we have a Buck Showalter retread make a contribution and someone will step up. I was OK with not getting another bat because we knew Manny and Weiters would be back and Crash couldn’t be that bad again could he? The one thing we needed was a bonefide #1 no doubt ace to go with an above average #2 and #3 SPs in Tillman and Wei-yin Chen. And there was Max Scherzer there to be had and we heard the same old bullshit we always get that we can’t spend that kind of cash because its not there. Then please explain to me how the Nats signed him for 30mil/yr for 10yrs and didn’t’ have to drop a top player. Now if I am not mistaken we own the majority of the Nats television proceeds so how is it they have the cash to do this but we can’t sign our own? Here is a thought for you to think about: We had Jake Arrieta , Eduardo Rodriguez, but still have Miguel Gonzalez as a decent #4 and the combination of Gausman, Bud Norris and the surprising Mike Wright. My biggest problem with the owner is he views OUR team as another one of his businesses which I understand but how can you make money when no one comes. Trust me I was there in the mid-90s and you couldn’t get a ticket on a Tuesday against Tampa before they were good. We love our baseball but not when the owner just throws away the last chance at a ring. We were right there to the end and adding Scherzer or even Shields or we were so close to the deal that would have brought Hamels to the O’s though I am not sure he fits.