Baltimore Orioles Seen as Ideal Trade Fit for San Diego Padres' Dylan Cease

The Baltimore Orioles have an immense need of help for their rotation and have been named an ideal fit for Dylan Cease.

Oct 9, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres pitcher Dylan Cease (84) throws in the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game four of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images / David Frerker-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles have made the postseason twice in as many years, the first time that they have accomplished that feat this century.

With a strong offensive core headline by shortstop Gunnar Henderson, they will have no trouble scoring runs.

However, as their pitching staff is currently constructed, with the potential departure of ace Corbin Burnes in free agency, they may have trouble keeping other teams from scoring runs.

The Orioles alleviated that issue last offseason by trading for Burnes with the Milwaukee Brewers, receiving an ace in his final year of club control.

In a recent article from MLB.com, Brian Murphy states that the club could do that once again this year, in a trade with the San Diego Padres for their ace, Dylan Cease, who Murphy named an ideal fit in Baltimore.

Burnes may still be an option for the Orioles as long as he's still on the market. But with the signings of pitchers like Blake Snell and Max Fried, the market has dwindled to the point where Burnes is really the only ace-level option.

That means the price for his services has likely gone up. The Orioles have reportedly remained in contact, but other teams such as San Francisco and Toronto have reportedly made overtures that may be more advantageous financially to Burnes.

Baltimore's trade for Burnes worked well for them on the field last season and it could attempt to duplicate that with Cease, who was dealt last offseason from the Chicago White Sox to the Padres with two years of team control left. The O's would get him with just one year left before he hits free agency.

"Even after the trades for Burnes and Trevor Rogers, Baltimore's farm system is still plenty deep enough to get a deal done with San Diego. Cease, who turns 29 later this month, is one of seven pitchers who have made at least 30 starts in each of the previous four seasons. He has recorded a 120 ERA+ and an 11.2 K/9 rate during that span. Acquiring him would be a good way for the Orioles to counteract the headline add that the Yankees (Fried) and Red Sox (Crochet) have made to their starting staffs," Murphy wrote.

Adding Cease to the top of the rotation would be an instant boon to the production of their pitching staff.

The ace threw a no-hitter in 2024, along with posting a 3.47 ERA across a career-high 189 1/3 innings. Cease has qualified for the ERA title in each of the last four seasons.

It has been a relatively quiet offseason in Baltimore, but a trade for Dylan Cease would solve their rotation issues as well as create a little more excitement heading into 2025.