NY Mets: 4 monstrous trade packages for Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer

MLB Rumors: Orioles need pitching. Why not Justin Verlander?

Word on the street is that the Orioles will not trade for Shohei Ohtani, instead making incremental improvements to their roster. Baltimore needs pitching, which is why I’ve linked them to Verlander in this case. Marcus Stroman, among others, make sense as an ace-level starter who can lead them to the postseason, but perhaps won’t cost then entire farm system.

Verlander does have a no-trade clause, and waiving that to move from New York to Baltimore may seem counterproductive. However, Verlander has another year left on his current deal. If he wants to play for a contending team close to his (new) home in NYC, the O’s make some sense.

Baltimore is loaded with prospects, so much so that they’d almost be forced to part ways with a top-100 player.

This may seem like a lot, but beyond Norby, the other two prospects rank outside the Orioles top-15 per MLB Pipeline. Norby is a top-70 prospect in all of baseball and can play multiple positions. He is 23 years old, so he’s nearing the MLB level and should compete for a spot in spring training.

Because Norby is involved in this trade, I’m including Canha in the deal heading back the other way. While he may be a bench bat in Baltimore, he adds value to a contending team in the postseason because of his positional versatility.

Several seasons of Justin Verlander is worth this return, even if he depreciates in value a bit as he reaches his twilight years.