The Baltimore Orioles face a frightening activity down the stretch as they attempt to fend off the remainder of the loaded Mideast.

Their rotation has been sufficient to this point, however there are nonetheless loads of roles to come back. In order that they added right-hander Jack Flaherty in a commerce with the St. Louis Cardinals.

“We want assist carrying the innings all the best way,” mentioned Mike Elias, Orioles basic supervisor. “We’ve got quite a lot of younger newcomers who’ve by no means achieved this earlier than. We’ve got members of our aid groups who’re injured and drained, so we have been simply seeking to present help in all sizes and shapes.”

The Orioles are hoping the 27-year-old Flaherty can present sufficient of a lift to assist them keep atop the division. It wasn’t the largest transfer on Tuesday by any means, however Baltimore acquired Flaherty with out giving up any of the highest names within the star farm system.

With decrease payrolls and a wealth of prospects—significantly place gamers—the Orioles had the chance to be certainly one of baseball’s most aggressive groups on the commerce deadline.

“We did some huge swings, and a few issues got here shut,” mentioned Elias.

One potential goal, Dylan Stop of the Chicago White Sox, was finally not traded. The New York Mets despatched high-priced veterans Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander to Texas and Houston, respectively, each of which had non-trade clauses to navigate.

Baltimore ended up with Flaherty. He may turn out to be a free agent after this season, however the Orioles haven’t fielded any of the eight prospects ranked in Baseball’s High 100 by MLB Pipeline. They gave up quarterback Cesar Prieto, Drew Rom left, and Zack Showalter proper. Prieto is Baltimore’s No. 16 candidate and Rom is No. 18.

“The highest of the record of leads is nearly as good as there’s,” Elias mentioned. “It took a very long time to get folks off that a part of the record.”

That is to not say the Orioles would not have traded a few of their extra well-known prospects, however they finally determined to take a smaller step.

“A variety of groups actually centered on quite a lot of gamers that we felt weren’t proper for these offers,” Elias mentioned. “That is a part of the rationale this got here to the final minute for us.”

Flaherty was 7-6 with a 4.43 ERA this yr for the Cardinals, who’ve sunk to final place within the NL Central. St. Louis additionally dealt left-hander Jordan Montgomery to Texas on Sunday.

Flaherty completed fifth within the 2018 Nationwide League Rookie of the 12 months voting, and the next yr went 11-8 with a 2.75 ERA for the Cardinals, ending fourth within the Cy Younger Award race. His efficiency has turn out to be extra common since then, with ERAs surpassing 4.00 in 2020, 2022, and this yr.

The Orioles have succeeded this season with none true stars of their rotation. They have been wholesome, with the identical six pitchers who’ve made all however one begin, however which means fatigue could also be an element for a number of the younger starters. Baltimore not too long ago despatched Tyler Wells to the minors to present him a relaxation. Presumably, Flaherty will take that spot right into a spin.

The Orioles additionally relied closely on Felix Bautista, their standout nearer, and fellow All-Star Yinier Cano. Baltimore acquired reliever Shintaro Fujinami from Oakland final week however did not add any extra assists on deadline day.

317 in 27 video games with Triple A Norfolk this season, and 23-year-old Romm went 7-6 with a 5.34 ERA for Norfolk. The 19-year-old Showalter went 0-2 with a 2.37 ERA for the Class A Delmarva.