At the beginning of August, with the Orioles in much the same position they are now, the decision to trade away two key members of the organization signaled how the front office cared more about the future than the present.
That was when first baseman Trey Mancini was shipped to the Houston Astros and All-Star closer Jorge López went to the Minnesota Twins. In the aftermath of those moves, executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias said the Orioles had “a shot at a wild card right now. But it is not a probability that we’re going to win a wild card.”
In proceeding public comments, Elias emphasized his belief that Baltimore could make the playoffs. But until Wednesday, the club’s actions at the trade deadline belied those claims.
Then the Orioles welcomed top prospect Gunnar Henderson to the major leagues and signed first baseman Jesús Aguilar to a minor league contract. Aguilar and left-hander DL Hall, the Orioles’ No. 4 prospect according to Baseball America, officially joined Baltimore on Thursday when rosters expanded by two spots.
With that face lift, the front office signaled something else.
This Orioles team? The one many predicted to rack up 100 or more losses once again?
A push for the postseason is suddenly more than sentiments from Elias. It has taken the form of actions.
“I think we’ve shown that, you know? I think we’ve shown what this team is capable of,” manager Brandon Hyde said ahead of Wednesday night’s 4-0 win against the Cleveland Guardians, in which Henderson hit his first major league home run. “We’ve beaten a lot of really good teams as of late. Now we just added Gunnar and Aguilar, and DL will be with us in September also, and we’re excited about that. We’ve added talent to our team, and you never know.”
The whims of a baseball season are never predictable, but the rise of the Orioles isn’t random. The bullpen, despite losing López, still holds the fifth-best ERA in the majors at 3.17. The blend of wily veterans and open-eyed rookies who don’t know anything besides winning helps, too.
Since catcher Adley Rutschman was promoted, Baltimore is 52-37. Now there’s another top prospect in the mix, with Henderson homering in his second at-bat Wednesday as part of a 2-for-4 debut. Around them are rookies Félix Bautista, Kyle Stowers, Kyle Bradish, Terrin Vavra and Hall, many of whom have already contributed to three straight winning months.
The Orioles could have promoted Henderson earlier, especially as their infield struggled over the past month to produce at the plate. But by adding him Wednesday — a day before rosters were set to expand — showed a desire to win, or at the very least give Henderson some valuable experience.
“Last year, I got called up to [Double-A] Bowie, and they were in a playoff push,” Henderson said. “Being able to do it again this year, especially at the big league level, is gonna be really awesome and really special.”
Making room on the roster for Henderson before September call-ups also opens a spot for Aguilar, a nine-year veteran with a powerful bat. Before his release from the Miami Marlins, Aguilar hit 15 homers. And unlike past years, when a free agent might look at Baltimore as a less-than-desirable destination, Aguilar, 32, emphasized his excitement to join a team in the midst of a playoff push.
“It’s a young group, but they know how they’re going to play the game,” Aguilar said. “I’ll be happy to try to help finish what they started.”
For as strong as the bullpen has been this season, the strain on late-inning arms since López departed has been noticeable. Thrust into more high-leverage positions, Joey Krebiel (5.79 ERA in August) and Bryan Baker (4.50 ERA) have struggled. Entering Wednesday, the 499 1/3 innings pitched by Baltimore’s bullpen were the eighth most in the league.
Hall’s presence gives the club another useful arm, an ability to provide a lift at the right time.
And this is the right time, with a postseason place within reach and 33 games remaining. For the last month of the season, Baltimore has an opportunity to make a push. And the three moves it made this week — adding Henderson, Hall and Aguilar — could be all the difference.
