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MLB Rumors: Cardinals budging on Arenado, Orioles-Ohtani package, Yankees backup plan

By Cody Williams

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 23: Nolan Arenado #28 of the St. Louis Cardinals reacts at first base after his single in the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on July 23, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 23: Nolan Arenado #28 of the St. Louis Cardinals reacts at first base after his single in the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on July 23, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images) /
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MLB Rumors, Orioles, Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /

MLB Rumors: Proposed Orioles trade package for Shohei Ohtani

Having overtaken the Rays in the AL East race, we could see the Baltimore Orioles take on an unfamiliar role at the trade deadline as one of the contenders buying aggressively. And no team is better off to make such moves than the O’s, an organization that has constructed the best farm system in baseball, a major reason for their success in the 2023 season, it should be said.

But what if they went after the white whale of the trade deadline, one Shohei Ohtani? MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reported on Monday that the Orioles have checked in on Ohtani’s trade availability already, along with the Diamondbacks and some others,but also noted that the Angels remain wholly undecided on what to do with Ohtani or as buyers or sellers at the deadline.

So that begs the question of what Baltimore’s trade package for Ohtani would look like. Jake Rill of MLB.com floated a five-prospect package that included INF Joey Ortiz, INF/OF Connor Norby , LHP DL Hall , OF Dylan Beavers, OF Kyle Stowers. That’s four of the Orioles’ Top 10 prospects, including two Top 100 prospects in MLB in Ortiz and Norby.

At the same time, though, Rill noted that the Orioles could keep their top prospects — Jackson Holliday, Colton Cowser, Jordan Westburg and Heston Kjerstad — off of the table since they’d be looking at a rental of Ohtani.

With that being said, a player of Ohtani’s caliber has never been even conceivably on the trade block (or perhaps in baseball, period), so how much does that rental cost? Would the O’s have to add one of their Top 4 prospects, though Holliday seems still farfetched as baseball’s overall top prospect? It’s quite possible, especially given a bevy of buyers inquiring about the two-way star.

Having said that, no organization has the farm system depth and flexibility to win those negotiations like the Orioles, so if they are indeed in and, most importantly, the Angels end up willing to sell, Ohtani and Baltimore, as wild as that would’ve sounded just a year ago, could be a reality.

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