Proposed Trade Has Baltimore Orioles Acquiring Two Elite Arms From San Diego Padres

While it has been an active winter for the Baltimore Orioles, it has been a disappointing one so far.
After winning over 90 games once again in 2024, the Orioles are hoping to continue to build on what has been a successful stretch. While the team has had a lot of success in the regular season, that hasn't translated into winning in the playoffs.
In the last two years, Baltimore has been unable to win a game, which is certainly a disappointment.
This offseason, the Orioles knew they would have arguably the best pitcher on the free-agent market coming from their team in Corbin Burnes. Baltimore pulled off the trade with the Milwaukee Brewers to bring in the ace last winter, but with just one year remaining on his contract at the time of the deal, he ended up becoming just a rental.
While Baltimore added two veteran starting pitchers in Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano, neither is the front-end type of arm that Burnes is.
Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report recently proposed a blockbuster trade that would bring San Diego Padres ace Michael King and top reliever Jason Adam to the Orioles in exchange for Heston Kjerstad and Dean Kremer.
“For their part, the O's would get both King and Adam (who will earn $4.8 million in 2025) as a cost-saving throw-in on San Diego's part. The latter has a 2.12 ERA across the last three seasons, and he would thus upgrade a pen that needs another late-inning arm.”
This is a very appealing trade proposal for Baltimore, who could certainly use a pitcher of King and Adam’s caliber.
In the rotation, King would provide them with the ace they are currently missing. Even though he has only been a starter for one full season with the Padres, his numbers were impressive.
Last campaign, he totaled a 13-9 record, 2.95 ERA, and a WAR of 4.2. Those are some pretty elite numbers for the right-hander, and he would be exactly what the Orioles are looking for in the rotation.
In terms of Adam, he would help solidify a bullpen that was plagued by injuries last year. Last season, the right-hander totaled a 7-2 record and 1.95 ERA with the Tampa Bay Rays and the Padres.
Adam sliding into the setup role with Felix Bautista coming back healthy would be a great one-two punch for Baltimore.
Even though the Orioles would be giving up two young pieces in this trade who are both MLB-ready players, adding these pitchers from the Padres could be a massive difference-maker this coming season.
While the price is steep, it seems worth it.