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The Baltimore Orioles enjoyed three years of success from 2022 to 2024. They won at least 80 games in all three seasons and made the postseason in the last two. However, 2025 has gotten off to a terrible start for the Orioles. Baltimore fired manager Brandon Hyde on May 17 in an effort to find something to kickstart their season.
Nothing has worked for the Orioles so far this season. The three-year, $49.5 million contract Baltimore gave to Tyler O'Neill this offseason is ugly. Grayson Rodriguez and the rest of the pitching staff have been decimated by injuries. Two months into the season, the Orioles are just a couple of games ahead of the Chicago White Sox in the American League standings.
Baltimore fans are wondering what the team could do in order to turn things around. While it isn't the desired path, Orioles general manager Mike Elias might consider moving one of the players that makes up one of the best young cores in the league. Their stars are all in the first half of their careers and almost all of them are less than 30 years old.
We categorized Baltimore's best players into three separate tiers of availability based on how the Orioles should approach moving their players around. Grayson Rodriguez is still recovering from injury and will be excluded from this list.
Untouchable: Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday
This is the true young core for Baltimore. This trio, along with a healthy return to form from Rodriguez, has fans excited about the future of the team. Holliday has found his swing after his father suggested an adjustment, but the other two stars are still struggling offensively. Adley Rutschman is the oldest of the three at 27, proving that this core could be together and be good for the better part of a decade.
Gunnar Henderson was a candidate for the AL MVP last season. This year, his production has fallen off a cliff. Positionally, he is still above average, but fans expect much more from the 23-year-old shortstop. Based on his history, he is unlikely to stay in his slump for much longer, but every game he doesn't break out of it increases the level of concern.
Of the three stars that lead the team, the most concerning start is Rutschman's. His bat is uncharacteristically cold to start the year, which is not uncommon for him. His history has shown that he is capable of turning things around, but he faces mounting pressure as one of the faces of the team. However, a rebound from him could trigger something for the entire team moving forward as they begin their climb back up the standings.
On the fence: Heston Kjerstad, Ryan Mountcastle, Ryan O'Hearn
These three players are having good seasons for Baltimore, but aren't as valuable to the team as their younger counterparts. However, Mountcastle is a mainstay for the Orioles and grew with the team as they entered contention. Offensively, he is one of the better players at his position. O'Hearn, on the other hand, is in his third year with the team and is one of their bright spots in a 2025 season that has otherwise been very ugly.
Kjerstad is the most intriguing of this trio because of his age. His is also in his third year with Baltimore, but at just 26 years old, fans are starting to group him in with Rutschman, Henderson, and Holliday. Kjerstad has had his moments, both good and bad, this season, but has proven his value to Elias' team.
These three would require an attractive deal for the Orioles to think about moving them, but it isn't impossible. Contenders will call about players across Baltimore's roster, but there is a jump in price when it comes to these three. The stars that the Orioles will build around are off the table, but a good negotiator could talk themselves into a deal.
Likely to be moved: Ramon Laureano, Cedric Mullins, Tomoyuki Sugano, Tyler O'Neill
If Elias doesn't see enough of a turnaround from his team before this summer's trade deadline, he could hold a fire sale. The Orioles have veterans on their roster that have reached the limit of how much they can give the team. It's just a matter of finding the right pieces to bring back in the deal. Moving O'Neill's contract isn't easy, but it would take a weight off the team's shoulders.
Sugano is an interesting piece, but at 35 years old, he isn't a player that Baltimore can expect a lot from in the long term. Laureano, on the other hand, is young enough that his future production could be attractive to the Orioles as they continue to build. Moving on from Mullins would require the right deal and a good explanation from Elias to the fanbase on why he moved a fan favorite veteran.
The Orioles find themselves at a crossroads two months into the season. The easiest solution would obviously be playing better and stringing together wins. If they can't figure things out, though, tough decisions need to be made. However, Baltimore's core is one of the best in the league and the team has a good chance of being good for the majority of the next decade if they have better injury luck.
In the short term, though, no team enters the trade deadline season with more to prove than the Orioles do. After three year's of success, the team is running out of time to prove that they still belong amongst the AL's elite.
