Do the Orioles have other trade chips stacked on their table?

The question was delivered with Anthony Santander and Trey Mancini in mind.

During a recent Zoom conference call with the local media, Orioles executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias was asked about the possibility of acquiring players via trades rather than free agency.

"Trades where we're adding to the major league team or trades where we're trading veterans for prospects?" Elias asked.

Either way, but I was more interested in talks involving Santander and Mancini.

"I think everyone knows that we're listening right now," Elias said. "We've traded a number of veterans the last few years, dating back to 2018. We're pretty transparent about what we're doing. I think if you're a buying team right now, that puts us toward the top of the list. We've got some talented players, many of whom have a lot of years of contractual control left, and it's natural to get those phone calls. But it doesn't mean we're going to do anything.

"We always do our job in terms of fielding calls, working the market and finding out what's going on out there. But I can't say that anything is likely."

Less than a week later, the Orioles had a trade in place to send Alex Cobb to the Angels for second baseman/outfielder Jahmai Jones.

But nothing about Santander and Mancini.

The Angels wanted a veteran starter and clearly enjoy working with Elias, who in turn likes the young talent in their system. Needless to say, Cobb wasn't part of the rebuild and might not have brought back the No. 7 prospect in the Angels system (per MLBPipeline.com) at a later date.

Cobb was signed in March 2018 to help push the Orioles back into the postseason. It didn't work and the only purpose for keeping him now was to get innings and leadership while gauging the best trade partners.

So, who's next?

The Orioles explored the trade market for a shortstop before signing Freddy Galvis to a one-year deal, but that seemed to be an aberration. It's more likely that they'd deal a veteran in exchange for a prospect or four.

Elias talked about his expectations for Santander and Mancini during the Zoom call. How they'd hit in the middle of the order and Mancini probably would get most of his starts at first base.

Those words don't tether Santander and Mancini to the Orioles, but the duo is expected to stay.

Then again, so was Cobb, but let's move on from him - as the Orioles did.

Chris Davis can't be traded. There just doesn't appear to be any market for him. The curiosity is whether a 162-game season would ignite talk of releasing him with the elimination of prorated pandemic salaries.

The Orioles can't trade Hanser Alberto and Renato Núñez because they're already gone, the former signing a minor league deal with the Royals.

Catcher Pedro Severino is out of minor league options and seems more like a potential deadline chip, but I thought the same about Cobb. Severino is set to make $1.825 million after avoiding arbitration and the Orioles could keep the position warm for Adley Rutschman by going with a combination of Chance Sisco and Austin Wynns/Nick Ciuffo/Taylor Davis.

I don't think it would impact the club's chances of making the playoffs.

Reliever Shawn Armstrong avoided arbitration by agreeing to an $825,000 deal. Utility infielder Pat Valaika can make $875,000 if he's in the majors and $300,000 if he's in the minors. They're expected to be on the opening day roster, but so was Cobb.

Valaika is able to play everywhere and his importance grew with news that Richie Martin broke the hamate bone in his left wrist, which thinned the utility competition. If Martin was really in it instead of being set to play shortstop with Triple-A Norfolk.

Jones, who has two minor league options, could hop into the competition. He made two starts at second base with the Angels last summer, 225 on the farm after converting from the outfield and 14 in the Arizona Fall League in 2019. He's played left, center and right.

Nothing at shortstop or third base professionally.

Jones, who had a commitment to the University of North Carolina before the Angels drafted him in the second round, possesses the speed, athleticism and arm strength to move all over the field. And he played in the middle infield as a freshman and sophomore at Wesleyan High School in Norcross, Ga. before moving to the outfield.

He also was a slot receiver in high school before focusing only on his current sport. If the Orioles want to toss around a football as part of their workouts, he's going to be awfully hard to cover.

Note: Former Orioles reliever Grant Jackson died yesterday of complications from COVID-19. He was 78.

Jackson pitched for the Orioles from 1971-76, when he was part of the famed 10-player trade with the Yankees. He faced the Pirates in the 1971 World Series and was their winning pitcher against the Orioles in Game 7 of the 1979 Series.

"Buck" was 24-12 with a 2.81 ERA, 1.119 WHIP and 39 saves in 209 games with the Orioles. Does anyone remember him making nine starts in 1971?

His 1973 season was spectacular. The left-hander went 8-0 with a 1.90 ERA and a 0.971 WHIP in 45 relief appearances.