The Orioles have already made a few notable moves in the lead-up to the trade deadline. outfielder to the Phillies for fellow outfielder and reliever , and also bolstered their rotation by from the Rays. But they still have work to do, with reporting that they are looking to add another reliever, who would ideally be left-handed, as well as a right-handed hitting outfielder to replace Hays and perhaps another starting pitcher. Even with Eflin slotting in Jarren Duran Jersey behind and , its easy to see why the Os would want to add yet another arm into that mix.The final two rotation spots are currently held by and , both of whom could be improved upon. Kremer has a servicebale 4.32 earned run average in his career and a 4.20 mark this year, but his .240 batting average on balls in play here in 2024 might be keeping that ERA artificially low. In general, hes been more of a back-end guy than the type of arm they would want in the mix for starting a playoff game. Surez is in the big leagues for the first time since 2017, having spent much of the interim pitching in Japan and Korea. His 3.48 ERA this year is certainly respectable but hes 34 years old and the Os have kicked him to the bullpen before. Rosenthal adds that the club is willing to add a rental starter to that pile, listing , , and as po sible fits. Snell has another year left on his deal but has an opt-out at years end. Rosenthal says teams are expecting him to trigger that opt-out but its not a guarantee, as its entirely po sible some injury or poor performance leads to him taking the proverbial bird in the hand. Trading players with opt-outs is a tricky situation that MLBTRs Anthony Franco recently explored in . The mention of Flaherty is interesting as the Os acquired him at last years deadline and it didnt go well. The righty had a 6.75 ERA in 34 2/3 innings with Baltimore last year, getting bumped to the bullpen in the proce s. However, he has completely turned things around here in 2024. In 18 starts with the Tigers, he has a 2.95 ERA, 32% strikeout rate, 4.6% walk rate and 43% ground ball rate. Thats the best form hes been in since 2019, when he looked to be breaking out as one of the better pitchers in the league. He then suffered through a number of injury-marred seasons and took some time getting over them, but theres no doubting hes been excellent this year. Front offices are generally loath to reacquire a player if they already had him and it didnt go well. If the second attempt also fails to deliver, then it invites the obvious criticism of why they tried the same thing that already didnt work once, something that was recently discu sed on the . However, published a column a few days ago that said the Os arent ruling out another run at Flaherty. Though theres a chance for a negative PR situation if Flaherty struggles in Baltimore again, hes got the best combination of talent and availability among starting pitchers. He is on a one-year deal and therefore a rental, pitching for a Detroit club that is 5.5 games out of a playoff spot. While pitchers like and are in a similar range as Flaherty in terms of impact, they may be harder to pry loose. Both of Skubal and Crochet are controllable for two years behind this season, meaning the price will be higher. Crochet also has the extra complication of his unclear path to the end of the season, as his limited workload makes it unclear what he can contribute. Some clubs may want to move him to a relief role but Crochet himself to continue starting and would want to sign a contract extension prior to adjusting his routine. With the question marks around Skubal and Crochet, it makes sense that the Os arent cro sing Flaherty off their list of targets, as the other options are le s appealing. Kikuchi and Montas are having okay but not amazing years, to differing extents, while Snell has been inconsistent and also has the aforementioned contract complications. Turning to the bullpen, though Domnguez is a nice addition, further upgrades make plenty of sense. Baltimore relievers have a collective 3.87 ERA this year, which places them 14th out of the 30 clubs in the majors. With on the injured list, their southpaw contingent is made up of , and . Akin has really good numbers this year but hasnt been pitching in many high-leverage situations. Prez has been given more meaningful a signments but with a subpar 4.40 ERA. Irvin was in the rotation before some struggles got him nudged into a long relief role. Upgrading that group is plenty sensible and the Os have already been to of the Orioles. Other lefties that could be available include of the Tigers, of the Rockies, of the Giants and others. In the outfield, the club leans heavily left-handed with Hays now out of the mix. Pache is right-handed but hes mostly a defensive specialist, having hit .179/.243/.272 in his career. is a switch-hitter but each of , , and hit from the left side, as does designated hitter and shortstop . Getting another righty in there makes sense, especially if they end up moving on from first baseman . They are open to trading him and/or Mullins, though sending out Hays perhaps makes those scenarios le s likely. Rosenthal throws out veterans and as a couple of righty-swinging outfielders that could make sense for the Os, though guys like , , , and could also be available. The trade deadline is 5pm Central on Tuesday July 30. Jacob Wallace Jersey