The Baltimore Orioles acquired right-hander Shane Baz in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday, sending a four-prospect package and a draft pick in a rare intradivision deal.
Following a search all winter for starting pitching, the Orioles targeted Baz and paid a heavy price, giving up outfielder Slater de Brun and catcher Caden Bodine -- both first-round picks this year -- breakout right-hander Michael Forret, outfielder Austin Overn and a competitive-balance Round A pick that comes with more than $2.5 million in slot money, sources said.
In Baz, the Orioles landed a 26-year-old coming off his best major league season. Over 166⅓ innings, Baz struck out 176, walked 64 and posted a 4.87 ERA. With just shy of four years of major league service, Baz will not be a free agent until after the 2028 season.
The Rays, who are also finalizing three-way deal in which they would send second baseman Brandon Lowe to the Pittsburgh Pirates and receive outfielder Jacob Melton and right-hander Anderson Brito from Pittsburgh, are replenishing a farm system as they try to navigate an increasingly competitive American League East.
Bodine and De Brun are the headliners of the return package from Baltimore. Bodine was chosen with the 30th pick in the draft out of Coastal Carolina, where he was touted for his strong defense and superior swing decisions. After signing, he played 11 games in Low-A, where he hit .326/.408/.349. Seven picks later, Baltimore took De Brun, a toolsy, talented outfielder whose size -- he is listed at 5-foot-10 and 187 pounds -- belies a well-rounded offensive game.
Forret, a 14th-round pick in 2023 out of junior college in Florida, put up a 1.58 ERA between High-A and Double-A this year, striking out 91 and walking 21 in 74 innings. At 6-foot-3, Forret features a wide arsenal of pitches and could hit the big leagues by 2027.
Overn, 22, was a third-round pick in 2024 who has track-star speed and stole 64 bases between High-A and Double-A this year, batting .249/.355/.399 with 13 home runs and 43 RBIs.
The Orioles have been the busiest team in baseball this winter, signing first baseman Pete Alonso and closer Ryan Helsley, trading for left fielder Taylor Ward and reliever Andrew Kittredge, and now adding Baz to a rotation that includes left-hander Trevor Rogers, right-handers Kyle Bradish and Dean Kremer, and some combination of Tyler Wells and Cade Povich for the fifth spot.