Dealing from strength: Should O's consider moving relievers?

When other teams come knocking at the Orioles' door looking for relievers, should they listen?

Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette said today that other clubs are showing a lot of interest in pitchers in the Orioles bullpen in trade discussions. There are a couple of good reasons for that. For one, the O's 'pen led the American League with a 3.40 ERA that ranked third in the majors. Secondly, the club's top relievers are under team control for at least two years, some more than that.

Brad Brach, who went 10-4 with a 2.05 ERA, is arbitration-eligible and under team control through 2018. Zach Britton went 2-1 with an ERA of 0.54 and 47-for-47 in saves and is arbitration-eligible and under team control through 2018. Darren O'Day went 3-1 with a 3.77 ERA and is signed through 2019. Mychal Givens went 8-2 with a 3.13 ERA and is under team control through at least 2021. If teams come looking for relief help, no doubt the names of one or all four of the above are being sought after.

The Orioles insist they are reluctant to trade Britton, and for a team that has designs on contending again, that makes sense. From another standpoint, if a team is offering a major haul for Britton, that is worth looking at. At a time when closers like Kenley Janson and Aroldis Chapman may soon be earning $16 to $18 million per season and possibly more, Britton at a projected $11.4 million this year looks like a bargain. Maybe a team that loses out in the sweepstakes to get Jansen or Chapman would come hard after Britton. The Orioles should at least be willing to listen. There was a time when they called Jim Johnson a centerpiece of their future bullpen and then traded him. No one is predicting that the Orioles deal Britton, but listening to a team highly motivated to add a ninth-inning stopper is just prudent.

Brach had an incredible first half, when he went 6-1 with an ERA of 0.91 and made the All-Star team for the first time. Even with his struggles in the second half, Brach posted the lowest ERA of his career and finished sixth in the AL in reliever strikeouts.

When you consider that left-hander Brett Cecil signed for four years and $30.5 million with St. Louis and O'Day inked a deal last winter with the Orioles for $31 million over four years, Brach at $2.9 million is a another bargain and would be attractive to many teams. That is his salary arbitration projection from MLBTradeRumors.com.

Givens has two more seasons, through 2018, before he will even be arbitration-eligible. If he can continue to pitch as he did in 2016, the Orioles have a solid late-inning arm making at or near the big league minimum. Of course, there would be other teams interested in adding him.

Duquette also cited some depth in the minors the Orioles have with relief arms. Pitchers like Jesus Liranzo (now on the 40-man roster), Tanner Scott, Parker Bridwell, Jimmy Yacabonis, Jason Garcia, Jayson Aquino and Stefan Crichton are all Double-A or higher-level pitching prospects that are good enough to be among the team's top 30 prospects. Not to mention a host of pitchers we have already seen at the major league level like Donnie Hart, Oliver Drake, Tyler Wilson and Mike Wright.

The Orioles have a surplus of solid relievers. If you trade from strength, it must be an area the club could use to make some deals.

McGregor note: Former Orioles left-hander Scott McGregor, the current pitching rehabilitation coordinator for the organization, has emerged as a candidate to replace Rick Peterson. The Orioles are looking for a minor league pitching coordinator, although the actual title of the position has not been defined.

McGregor certainly is a strong internal candidate. He has coached with the Orioles since 2002, the last five seasons in his current role where he is involved in helping injured pitchers, both from the majors and minors, get back on the mound. We've also seen McGregor fill in on the major league staff in the last couple of seasons.

In 2002, he was the pitching coach at short-season Single-A Aberdeen. From 2003-05, he was with Single-A Frederick. In 2006-07, he coached with Double-A Bowie and he was back with Aberdeen from 2008-11 before moving into his current position in 2012.

He's got a solid background for this job and seems to have the trust of the O's brass. Wade Miley cited a conversation with McGregor in September when McGregor told him to "try easier" as helping him end his year pitching much better. That strong resume includes the fact that McGregor was on the mound at the end of Game 5 of the 1983 World Series. He pitched a shutout as the Orioles won their last World Series.