O’s Trade Talk Swirls Around Bundy

You’ll have to excuse us Orioles fans. We don’t really know what to make of this whole “being relevant”  thing. You can see it when we have to deal with losing streaks amidst a successful season. You can see it when football training camp starts. It’s like watching a middle school dance – we’re not… really good at this whole support of a winning club… thing.  Give us a few years to work the awkward out, and we’ll put on a good show. Until then, you’re just going to have to bear with us.

Take, for example, the non-waiver trade deadline. Known for the past 15 years as the date when we try to get something to build for the future we suspect will never come, the trade deadline now represents an opportunity to make the club better now. But there’s a catch: instead of getting better in the long run, it requires getting worse in the long run.  Orioles fans aren’t used to that, and they’re certainly not used to the idea of parting with talent that could help them down the road.

O’s fans have largely acknowledged that the “great three” (Dylan Bundy, Kevin Gausman, Manny Machado) are completely off limits to potential trade suitors. Any discussion involving those three could be easily laughed away. If reports from FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal can be believed, the club may be willing to move Bundy for the right price.

We… um… you’re going to have to get back to us on this one. We’re not sure how to respond. Should we even consider moving Dylan Bundy, one of the “untouchables?” The way I look at it, one of six things can happen:

• We keep him, and he’ll never pan out.
• We keep him, and he’ll live up to those HUGE expectations
• We keep him, and he’ll be OK
• We trade him, and he’ll never pan out
• We trade him, and he’ll live up to those HUGE expectations
• We trade him, and he’ll be OK

Looking at the risk/reward, only two of those outcomes makes me gun shy: the chance that he might be the mega star we’ve been assured he’ll be (either for us, or for another team). In the grand scheme of things, that is a risk. But it’s not the most likely scenario. How many Dylan Bundy-esque pitchers get drafted and never succeed at the major league level? Good, contending teams have to weigh these risks year in and year out.

I say, if the price is right, do what you can to make the club better now, and take your chances that history will reward you in hindsight. Don’t empty out your farm system, and don’t get cheated, but Bundy provides a hell of a trade chip. One that should be able to put the Orioles in a better position in 2013 and beyond.

All of this may be for naught. The Orioles could get through the deadline without finding a suitable trade package to get in return for one of the organization’s most prized arms. But not listening to qualified offers is a mistake, and it’s one with which  O’s fans need to get more comfortable. This is the first time in a long time that the Orioles have had to engage in this awkward dance. Hopefully we grow out of this phase gracefully.