In a move late Saturday night, the Baltimore Orioles have landed outfielder Alejandro De Aza from the Chicago White Sox for Mark Blackmar and Miguel Chalas. De Aza, 30, should give the Orioles necessary depth as they try to make a serious run in October. Blackmar and Chalas are in high-A and AAA, respectively. The move also makes sense for the White Sox, who are in the midst of a rebuild, and are looking to ditch any player of value that doesn’t fit with their long-term plans.
The Orioles have acquired OF Alejandro De Aza from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for minor league RHPs Miguel Chalas and Mark Blackmar.
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) August 31, 2014
The Orioles, who appear to be the last team standing in the wild AL East, need the depth De Aza can give. On the season, De Aza is hitting .246, with a .312 OBP, and 5 home runs. The move comes as many grew weary of De Aza’s play. Rick Hahn played his cards well, and found the best deal in the desperate Orioles, who want to win this year. De Aza was soon to be made obsolete, with Adam Eaton, Avisail Garcia, and Trayce Thompson either in the major leagues, or soon to be called up.
The White Sox, who are out of contention, and in the middle of a massive change, wanted to get what they could for spare parts. While Blackmar and Chalas aren’t exactly the next Chris Sale or Craig Kimbrel, they give the White Sox future depth at a hard to come by position. The real winners of the deal might be Blackmar and Chalas. If there was one criticism for the Orioles, in their inability to build homegrown pitching. In leaving Baltimore, they might have a better chance down the road.
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