It looks like the Millwood to the Orioles deal is close and I, for one, am somewhat perplexed:Orioles beat reporter Jeff Zrebiec is reporting that the O's are very close to closing the deal that would send reliever Chris Ray to the Texas Rangers for veteran starter Kevin Millwood. Stay tuned. His story will be up on the Web site momentarily.The focus for the Orioles needs to stay on the future. They are not going to compete in 2010. Hell, if I was an Orioles fan, I'd be thrilled to see this team win 75 games as long as the young players continue to develop accordingly. There's no way that Kevin Millwood will be a part of the Orioles' long term plans and it would be a shocker if Millwood returned to the Orioles after 2010.
So what's the point in trading for a veteran pitcher, who has no real future with the club?
The only reason why I can see the Orioles wanting Millwood is if they want a steady, veteran presence at the top of the rotation so that all the pressure is not on their young pitchers. Maybe GM Andy McPhail thinks that Millwood can teach guys like Tillman, Matusz, and Hernandez a thing or two in the process, which should help speed up the learning process as their young guns learn to pitch in the majors.
We'll see what the terms of this deal officially turn out to be, but I'd expect the Rangers to pick up a large portion of Millwood's contract in any deal.
