Tagged: Orioles

Salazar deal ignites trade season

The Orioles got the trade season rolling on Sunday with a minor deal that sent utility infielder Oscar Salazar to San Diego in exchange for right-handed reliever Cla Meredith, and Baltimore manager Dave Trembley said it could be the start of a hectic two weeks.

Baltimore may look to move veterans like Aubrey Huff, George Sherrill and Danys Baez before July 31, and Trembley said he wouldn’t be surprised if his team dramatically changed.

“I think we’ll all have to stay tuned to see what happens,” said Trembley of the non-waiver trade deadline. “I think it’s the time of the year right now when we’re not the only team that’s doing their due diligence. This is basically the second Hot Stove season. You’ve got the offseason leading up to Spring Training, when there’s all kinds of talk about movement of players. And now, obviously, there’s talk about moving players before the trade deadline.”

Trembley said he’d continue to talk to Andy MacPhail, the Orioles’ president of baseball operations, about the team’s prospective moves. And he also said that Salazar’s teammates were thrilled to see him get an opportunity elsewhere in the Majors.

“It would’ve been harder to lose him or send him back to the Minor Leagues,” Trembley said. “I thought Andy MacPhail did the right thing. Oscar Salazar deserved the opportunity to go play for somebody in the big leagues. We didn’t have a roster spot for him here.”

— Spencer Fordin