Andrew Stetka: Important trading deadline looming for Orioles

As the Orioles hike their way through July, the end of the month looms as one of the more crucial periods in the franchise's recent history. The July 31 non-waiver trade deadline could provide a good sense of where the team is going the rest of the season, and perhaps over the next few seasons. The Orioles have eight pending free agents on the roster. Many have questioned the team's ability to re-sign certain players like Matt Wieters, Chris Davis and Wei-Yin Chen. Those are what I would consider the big three of the current class, but there are other important bullpen pieces like Darren O'Day and Tommy Hunter, and perhaps even Bud Norris.

For a team that's been sitting at or near the top of the division, no one is suggesting that trades should be made to dump players. Anyone doing so clearly doesn't have the picture in focus. This is a team that wants to win, and wants to win now. They were right on the doorstep last year with an American League Championship Series appearance and in a fairly wide open AL, and have as good a chance as anyone to get back there this year with the right amount of retooling and luck. What's unclear for the team is what takes place beyond this season if it's not in the cards for them to win a championship - or for that matter, even if it is.

As someone who writes on a Web site full of fan-generated content, I feel like I have a pretty good pulse on the fan base of the team. By no means am I claiming to be an authority on the matter, but I spend much of my time reading blogs, comments on those blogs, message boards and exploring the Twitterverse to get the temperature of the room when it comes to the O's and their fans. Many are freaking out about what happens beyond 2015. This isn't a new feeling. It's not something that's suddenly developed.

The looming free agency of Wieters and Davis has been known for quite some time, and it started as the focal point of concern. Wieters is obviously still a question mark because of injury. Though he's proven to be valuable to the team and especially the pitching staff since his return, I don't know that he's given enough evidence that he can be the everyday catcher he once was. That may come in the future, but it may not. Davis has clearly fallen from grace since his historic 2013 season, but he still provides a value that many teams would cherish. I've long doubted that the O's would be that team beyond this year, but stranger things have happened. Wieters and Davis are the centerpieces of a free agency class that includes Chen, who will garner big bucks on the market as a left-handed starter that has proven more than capable. His value continues to grow as he pitches the way he has for the first three-plus months of the season.

Beyond what the average fan can see on the current roster, there isn't a ton of positivity being shed on those who currently aren't on it either. Injuries to prospects Dylan Bundy and Hunter Harvey have soured many on the future of an Orioles rotation that once looked so promising Even beyond the top prospects, the team's farm system has sat at the bottom of many experts' rankings for some time now. There are a few promising players, but the depth is lacking.

I don't believe the Orioles are far off from having a team that's just as good, if not better, than the one that dominated the AL East last season. A little tinkering might need to be done, but they are close. I get the sense though, that if the team stands pat at the deadline, the majority of the fan base won't like it. The Orioles are in the business of winning baseball games, not pleasing fans with certain moves. The hope is that they're able to set themselves up to be able to both win now and beyond this year to keep everyone happy. Fans don't want to see this current run end. The last thing they want is to deal with the fear of facing another long losing streak.

Andrew Stetka blogs about the Orioles for Eutaw Street Report. Follow him on Twitter: @AStetka. His thoughts on the O's appear here as part of MASNsports.com's continuing commitment to welcome guest bloggers to our little corner of cyberspace. All opinions expressed are those of the guest bloggers, who are not employed by MASNsports.com but are just as passionate about their baseball as our roster of writers.