On Friday, in a significant trade, the Orioles acquired hard-throwing right-handed pitcher Shane Baz from the Tampa Bay Rays, giving up outfielder Slater De Blanc, catcher Kayden Bodine, right-handed pitcher Michael Follett, outfielder Austin Austin, and a Competitive Balance A-round pick in the upcoming MLB Draft, as reported by The Athletic. Meanwhile, the Rays were involved in another trade—a three-way deal with the Pirates and Astros—that saw them part ways with power-hitting second baseman Brandon Lowe.
Baz, 26, had his first full major league season in 2025, pitching 166 1/3 innings with the Rays, recording an 84+ ERA and a 4.37 FIP, following Tommy John surgery in September 2022 that sidelined him for the 2023 season and much of 2024. In his career, Baz has logged a 95+ ERA over parts of four big-league seasons. The Orioles are optimistic about Baz, noting his fastball averaged 97 mph last season, the highest velocity among starting pitchers, and his knuckle curve has a strong sweeping action. Baz is under team control through 2028, after which he can enter free agency.
The Rays originally got Baz in the 2018 trade that sent Chris Archer to the Pirates in exchange for Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows, with Baz as a later-added player in the deal. On the Tampa Bay side, Bodine was the 30th overall pick in last year’s draft, and DeBlanc was picked 37th. Follett, a 21-year-old right-hander, has posted a 2.90 ERA and a 3.31 K/BB ratio across two minor league seasons, advancing to Double-A in 2025. Auburn, a former third-round pick from Southern California, has appeared in 135 minor league games with a .772 OPS and also reached Double-A last season.
In another move involving the Rays, Brandon Lowe went from Tampa Bay to the Pirates, while right-handed pitcher Mike Burrows was sent from the Pirates to the Astros. The Rays, in turn, received two promising young players. According to Ken Rosenthal, Lowe, 31, is a power-driven second baseman entering his final contract year, who hit 31 home runs in 2025 and had a career-best 39 homers in 2021. Over eight MLB seasons, Lowe has compiled a 123 OPS+ and 17.8 WAR. Burrows, 26, was a rookie last year, pitching 96 innings with an ERA over 109 and a 4.00 FIP. Out of 23 games in 2025, 19 were starts, with a 95.5 mph fastball and a changeup that struck out 43.1% of batters faced.
The Rays also acquired Melton, a left-handed outfielder who has appeared on some top-100 prospect lists within Houston’s system, making his MLB debut in 2025 at age 25. Brito, 21, holds a 2.36 ERA over two minor league seasons, striking out 147 in 103 innings primarily spent in High-A last year. These trades help the Rays rebuild their young talent pipeline, extend years of control, and lower arbitration costs on Lowe and Baz. Additionally, the recent signing of Steven Matz adds flexibility for the Rays to trade from a surplus in their starting rotation.
Fan Take: This trade signals a bold shift for the Orioles as they invest in Baz’s potential despite injury setbacks, hoping his high-velocity pitching can become a key cornerstone. For baseball fans, these moves show how teams are balancing immediate talent with long-term growth, underscoring the strategic depth and evolving nature of roster building in the MLB.
