Orioles Trade Givens, and Milone

The Baltimore Orioles aren’t going to make any huge waves at the 2020 MLB trade deadline, but that doesn’t mean general manager Mike Elias can’t make this organization better and continue to add talent to his growing pipeline down in the minor leagues.

On Sunday afternoon, more than 24 hours before Monday’s 4 pm trade deadline, Mike Elias was able to do just that by completing two surprising trades including pitchers, thanks to a hot start to the 2020 season.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

Eventually, five new players will be joining the Baltimore Orioles, but we only know of two at the moment. With teams only being able to swap players on their 60-man rosters, we are going to have to wait until the offseason to find out who any Players To Be Named Later are, but we can go ahead and be excited about both moves made by the Orioles over the weekend.

First, let’s talk about Tommy Milone. Milone originally signed with the Orioles in February on a minor league deal to compete with Wade LeBlanc, Kohl Stewart, David Hess, and others for a starting rotation spot behind John Means, Alex Cobb, and Asher Wojcieshowski. Those plans eventually took a different turn.

Milone ended up filling in for John Means on Opening Day, giving up four runs on four hits and taking the loss against the Boston Red Sox. The 33-year-old soft-tossing lefty quickly turned things around, giving up just nine earned runs over his next 26.1 innings (3.10 ERA), walking only one hitter, and striking out 26. The changeup was fun to watch and it appeared as if the Baltimore Orioles had found themselves another decent piece for next-to-nothing to act as a bridge to better times.

Elias was able to capitalize on Milone’s impressive jump out of the gate, sending the former 10th-round pick to the Atlanta Braves for two Players To Be Named Later, reminiscent of last year’s Andrew Cashner trade with the Boston Red Sox.

Seeing as Milone is a one-month rental (plus any potential playoffs) and could burst at any moment, it’s likely that the return is going to be two low-level prospects, with at least one, if not both, coming from Atlanta’s Dominican Summer League roster.

Just the fact that Mike Elias was able to get not one but two pieces in return for Tommy Milone is a win. Unfortunately for Milone, he immediately made the trip to Philadelphia and started on Sunday night for Atlanta, giving up seven runs on eight hits across 2.1 innings.

The headline of the day was certainly the Mychal Givens trade with the Colorado Rockies. The Givens trade rumors have been swirling for well over a year now, but Mike Elias held on to his guy, waiting for what he felt like was a respectable return for a quality reliever with plenty of control attached. Turns out, his patience worked out well.

Elias secured three players in exchange for Givens, including first base prospect Tyler Nevin, infield prospect Terrin Vavra, AND a Player To Be Named Later. I’m not sure what the Rockies were thinking with this deal, but this could end up being a fantastic deal for the Orioles.

According to MLB Pipeline, Vavra was immediately ranked as the 12th-ranked Orioles prospect, with Nevin slotting in at #22.

Vavra is the highlight of the deal, showcasing an impressive bat and on-base ability in his brief time as a professional baseball player. Originally a third-round pick out of the University of Minnesota, Vavra closed out his collegiate career by posting a .386 average, .455 on-base percentage, and walked more times than he struck out, which he did just 22 times in the highly competitive Big Ten conference.

Vavra has continued that trend in the pros, coming off a 2019 season in which the 23-year-old hit 32 doubles and 10 home runs to go along with his .409 OBP and 1:1 K:BB ratio (62 each). He also swiped 18 bags en route to taking home 2019 South Atlantic League MVP honors.

Here’s what Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs and Kiley McDaniel, formerly of FanGraphs and now at ESPN, had to say about Vavra in a recent write up.

“His swing is kind of grooved, but Vavra is a pitch selection savant, adept at picking out pitches he can drive until he has to expand with two strikes. We think he’s going to hit, have doubles power, and reach base at an above-average clip. That could play every day at shortstop, but we think Vavra is much more likely to end up at second base, where his range could make him an above-average defender.”

While Vavra may not be a large home run hitter as he moves up the ladder and most scouting reports agree that he’s likely a utility piece at the major league level, he brings defensive versatility, a high propensity to get on base, and an above-average hit tool. The Orioles are clearly in need of middle infield help in the minor leagues and Vavra helps fill that void.

If the hit tool can develop into a 50/55 grade tool (as most reports indicate), Vavra has a path to the major leagues as a second baseman with the Orioles.

Tyler Nevin, on the other hand, does pack an impressive raw power tool, but there are major questions about his defensive abilities, which ultimately hurts his value as a prospect. But there’s still a lot to like.

Nevin, also 23, was the 38th overall pick of the 2015 draft (Ryan Mountcastle was taken two picks earlier), but injuries have limited Nevin to just 366 games across his five seasons. However, when Nevin is healthy, he produces.

Finally playing in a full season in 2019, Nevin hit .251 with a .345 OBP, 13 home runs, 26 doubles, and a 122 wRC+. Like Verra, Nevin is also good at limiting strikeouts and drawing free passes, posting a 12% walk rate last year with a 16% K-rate.

The 6-4, 225 pound infielder out of Poway, California has largely split his time between first base and third base over the course of his minor league career, but is seen as more of a first baseman in the majors. He’s also seen some time at both corner outfield spots, adding a bit to his defensive versatility, something we know the Orioles quickly fall in love with when it comes to their young players.

Nevin’s hit tool has drawn praise from scouts (55 FV per FanGraphs), but his impressive raw power has yet to show up in games and that is an issue for someone who profiles as a first baseman at the big league level.

If Nevin can hit at a respectable clip, I can see him eventually becoming a versatile bench piece for the Orioles, someone with the ability to play multiple positions and impact a game late with his power at the plate.

For now, both Nevin and Vavra come from a long lineage of baseball players/coaches, provide a bit of versatility, walk at a high clip, limit their strikeouts, and have what could end up becoming above-average hit tools in the major leagues. Throw in a Player To Be Named Later and it’s just icing on the cake.

As much as I enjoyed watching Mychal Givens over the years, it’s hard to be mad at a deal for a reliever, especially a reliever like Givens who has struggled as a ninth-inning guy recently with the Orioles. It’s a very solid move with the potential to be a great move for Mike Elias.

Now, we wait to see if the Orioles are done making moves. Will another team who loses out on Mike Clevinger or Lance Lynn get desperate and come calling for Alex Cobb? Will Pedro Severino be moved, or have the San Diego Padres caused enough of a mess as it pertains to the catching market? What about securing another big return for Tanner Scott or a sixth PTBNL for Miguel Castro or Paul Fry? We will find out by 4 pm on Monday.

Also, check out myself, Bob Phelan, and Zach Spedden on The Verge podcast late Monday night or on your way to work on Tuesday morning as we talk about every move the Orioles make and plenty more. You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and elsewhere here!