Pondering Zach Britton's future as Orioles' closer

It would appear almost a certainty that Orioles closer Zach Britton will return to the team in that role for the 2016 season. But there are some fans and readers who have wondered if Britton could help the team as a starting pitcher. Others wonder what he could bring back in a trade after seeing the Craig Kimbrel deal.

On Nov. 13, the Red Sox acquired Kimbrel from San Diego and gave up a package of four prospects - a haul some felt was too much for Boston to give up. Boston traded two of its top prospects in Single-A shortstop Javier Guerra and Double-A outfielder Manuel Margot. The Padres also obtained well-regarded infielder Carlos Asuaje and left-hander Logan Allen.

Kimbrel has 224 saves over the last five seasons, the most in the majors. And Boston has him under team control for three more seasons. Thus, the price was high for the four-time All-Star right-hander. According to the Boston Globe, Guerra and Margot would have been ranked among Boston's top six or seven prospects, and all four players projected among the Red Sox's top 25 minor league players.

ESPN's Keith Law knows how good Kimbrel is, but wrote that "this is a big overpay for 60 innings of his services. ... Boston paid a steep price: two prospects among the top 50 in the game and two other prospects of significant value."

Some fans wonder if Britton could bring a similar haul of prospects. In 2015, the left-hander went 4-1 with a 1.92 ERA and finished tied for third in the American League with 36 saves. Lefty batters hit .145 off of him and he recorded 24 straight saves from May 3-Aug. 10. Britton led major league relievers in groundball percentage (80.4 percent). Like Kimbrel, he also is under three more years of team control.

While Britton doesn't quite have the resume of Kimbrel, could a team desperate for a closer overpay big in a trade for him?

Britton is arbitration-eligible and MLBTradeRumors.com projected him to earn $6.9 million for 2016. After the 2013 season, when then closer Jim Johnson's salary was about to go from $6.5 million to $10 million, the Orioles traded the right-hander. Looking one year down the road, is Britton going to become too pricey as a closer for the Orioles?

That again leads us to the question of Britton as a future starter. A $10 million price tag is reasonable for a good starting pitcher. Will the Orioles reach a point where they want to look at him down the road at some point as a starting pitcher? It would seem difficult to go from throwing 70 innings one season in the bullpen to 170 or more the next in the rotation.

Britton was once ranked as one of the game's top pitching prospects. When he began the 2011 season going 5-2 with an ERA of 2.35 through 10 starts, he looked ready for the big league rotation. But we know now the rest of the story and he is currently a fixture as O's closer.

While talk of dealing the lefty or moving him back into the rotation make for interesting debate, for now it will most likely remain just that. This could change at some point, but for now, the Orioles have one of the AL's best closers and seem to want to keep it that way.