Baltimore Orioles Trade Away Young Potential Ace Ahead of 2026 MLB Free Agency
The Baltimore Orioles are coming off a disappointing season where they missed the postseason and are looking to shake things up. On Tuesday night, the Orioles and the Los Angeles Angels made a trade, exchanging one major league player for another and things look a bit crazy right now.
Let’s take a deeper dive into the trade and discuss what the thought process may have been for both teams involved.
Baltimore Orioles Trade Away Grayson Rodriguez
The Baltimore Orioles made a trade with the Los Angeles Angels as the Orioles traded away right-handed starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez in exchange for outfielder Taylor Ward. This trade is a bit confusing for the Orioles, but let’s take a closer look into this.
Baltimore is in the market for starting pitching and has just traded away one of their top pieces in 26-year-old Grayson Rodriguez. Rodriguez missed all of the 2025 season with arm issues and had elbow cleanup, meaning there could have been something the Orioles did not like. However, when he was on the field, he was able to look sharp.
Rodriguez pitched in 2023 and 2024 at the majors for a combined 43 starts and was 20-8 with a 4.11 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP over 238.2 innings. He averages more than a strikeout per inning and going to the AL West, his numbers should look better pitching in more pitcher-friendly ballparks.
The Baltimore Orioles now have a projected starting rotation in 2026 looking like:
- Trevor Rogers
- Kyle Bradish
- Dean Kremer
- Tyler Wells
- Cade Povich
Rodriguez is under contract through the 2029 season and they sent him to the Los Angeles Angels for a rental in outfielder Taylor Ward. Ward is a good hitter, but has a career .766 OPS and played a career-high 157 games last season.
Ward slides into left field and pushes the like of Tyler O’Neill into the bench or potentially a trade. This trade makes the lineup a bit more intriguing with power, but based off 2025 stats, it is very similar to the production they already had.
Having a pitcher with the potential and cost-control of Grayson Rodriguez feels like a player who should have netted more than a veteran outfielder on the final year of his contract. It will be interesting to see if Baltimore is going to be playing in the deep waters for a starting pitcher, but on its own, this trade leaves more questions than answers.
