This week will be remembered as a landmark week for the Baltimore Orioles.
The first step is to sell the club. Now, Corbin Burns.
A day after the Angelos family announced they had agreed to relinquish control of the franchise, the team acquired the Milwaukee Brewers ace in exchange for shortstop Joey Ortiz and left-hander DL Hall.
according to The AthleticAccording to Keith Law's rankings, Ortiz was the No. 5 prospect and Hall the No. 6 prospect in the Baltimore organization heading into the 2023 season. The Brewers will also receive a 2024 Competitive Balance A-round draft pick from the Orioles to complete his deal. The pick will be the 34th pick.
The Orioles, who have perhaps the most complete farm system in baseball, were willing to move talent to acquire Burns, a top starter in the rotation they had sought throughout the offseason.
The move comes for the Brewers, who appeared to have solidified their status as a favorite to win the National League Central Division after signing first baseman Reece Hoskins to a two-year, $34 million free agent contract on January 23. It was a little surprising. However, due to Barnes' free eligibility, the Brewers decided at the end of the season that they wanted more than a draft pick in return from his agent.
Barnes, 29, is a three-time All-Star and the 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner. He recently agreed to a one-year contract worth $15.6375 trillion with the Brewers, covering the final year of salary arbitration. However, the Orioles signed him knowing that he might only last through the 2024 season.
Barnes, who is represented by Scott Boras, whose clients prefer to establish value through open bids, is almost certain to hit the free agent market next offseason. The Orioles may at least have a chance to retain him under a new ownership group led by billionaire David Rubenstein.
The Orioles won 101 games last season, the most since 1979, and won their first American League East title since 2014.
The addition of Barnes will further strengthen them as a contender to win the division. Barnes joins a rotation that already includes two starting pitchers in Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez, who were among the best pitchers in the game after last season's All-Star break.
Barnes pitched 193 2/3 innings for the Brewers last season, posting a 10-8 record and a 3.39 ERA, with the highest walk-to-hit ratio per inning in the National League and fifth-best in the majors. (Braidish came in 4th place). The Brewers spent much of the offseason internally debating whether to trade him.
It's unclear whether the Barnes trade will spark another move for the Brewers and move them into more of a building mode in Pat Murphy's first year as head coach replacing Craig Counsell.
The addition of Ortiz could give the team the flexibility to trade shortstop Willie Adames, who also becomes a free agent after the season. The Brewers are also considering the possibility of trading closer Devin Williams, who was named the National League's top reliever in 2023. Williams will be under the team's control for two seasons after recently agreeing to a one-year, $7.25 million contract with a $10.5 million club option. 2025.
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