MLB trade rumors: One player each team should target

PITTSBURGH, PA - JUNE 27: Andrew McCutchen #22 of the Pittsburgh Pirates catches a ball hit by Wilson Ramos #40 of the Tampa Bay Rays (not pictured) during the sixth inning at PNC Park on June 27, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images) /

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PITTSBURGH, PA – JULY 02: Jordy Mercer #10 of the Pittsburgh Pirates fields a ground ball in the third inning against the San Francisco Giants at PNC Park on July 2, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Baltimore Orioles: Jordy Mercer

When J.J. Hardy went down with a broken wrist, the Orioles were forced to scramble to find a shortstop to replace him. They were forced to settle on a combination of Paul Janish and Ruben Tejada. Both are fine players if you are asking them to play once a week, which is what the Orioles were doing with Ryan Flaherty before his own injury.

The Orioles are not prepared to be sellers at the deadline and will be looking to do everything in their power to push themselves back into the playoff conversation. Most have written them off due to their poor starting rotation.

Dan Duquette has been forced to chase stopgap measures in the rotation for most of his tenure running the Orioles. With a rotation full of retreads, is there really much point in trading for someone like Scott Feldman or Jeremy Hellickson. For better or worse, the Orioles are married to a god-awful starting rotation.

If the Orioles are not going to be able to pitch, they cannot afford to run out an offensive zero at shortstop every day. Jordy Mercer is having one of the better seasons of his career, and the Pittsburgh Pirates could look to cash him out before his walk year. Mercer is not an elite hitter at his position, but is much closer to league average and would offer the Orioles another year of control next season.

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