We've known for a while that the Orioles are open to trading franchise infielder Manny Machado and that a number of teams are interested. Recently, however, the buzz surrounding a potential Machado blockbuster has died down a bit, and it began to look like the O's would open the 2018 season with Machado still on the roster.
Well, now comes this from Jon Morosi ...
Source: #Orioles continue to hear from multiple teams interested in trading for Manny Machado. It does not appear Orioles have a firm deadline on negotiations. @MLB @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 28, 2017
Earlier this winter, teams like the Cardinals, White Sox, Yankees, Red Sox, and Diamondbacks were linked to Machado, and no doubt some of those clubs are still pressing Baltimore GM Dan Duquette to make a deal. So it may happen yet.
Machado is on the block because he's entering his walk year, and the Orioles likely have no shot at re-signing him. He's going into his age-25 season, and he owns an OPS+ of 117 across parts of six big-league campaigns. That's of course in addition to being a standout defensive third baseman who can also play short on a regular basis (Machado reportedly wants to return to shortstop in 2018).
Any team that trades for Machado will likely be getting just one season out of him, but he certainly has the skills to put a contender over the top. The question is whether any club will pay the price the Orioles seek on a player who's under team control for only one more season.
