The Orioles introduced Friday that they’ve traded outfielder Austin Hays to the Phillies in trade for right-hander Seranthony Dominguez and outfielder Cristian Pache. Baltimore is designating righty Levi Stoudt for project to open a 40-man roster spot, the group introduced.
It’s a uncommon swap of main leaguers between a pair of World Sequence hopefuls. Hays will give the Phillies a extra impactful right-handed bat of their outfield combine than that they had within the glove-first Pache. Hays isn’t having his finest season however was a 2023 All-Star and has pounded left-handed pitching each in 2024 and all through his profession. Dominguez, equally, is having a down season however sports activities a a lot better observe file. He’s nonetheless a hard-throwing reliever with high-leverage expertise and has at instances operated because the Phillies’ nearer.
Hays, 29, is hitting .255/.316/.395 this season in 175 plate appearances. He missed almost a month with a calf pressure earlier this season, and it’s actually doable that harm impacted his manufacturing; Hays hit simply .111/.200/.111 in 50 journeys to the plate previous to that IL stint however has returned with a superb .313/.363/.509 slash in 125 subsequent plate appearances.
That slash is probably partially attributable to the truth that Hays has been platooned greater than in seasons previous, due to the emergence of lefty-hitting outfielders Colton Cowser and Heston Kjerstad in Baltimore. Between that pair, middle fielder Cedric Mullins, proper fielder Anthony Santander and first basemen/designated hitters Ryan O’Hearn and Ryan Mountcastle, the O’s are dealing from a wealth of nook depth on this swap. Hays has been solely a nook outfielder this 12 months and hasn’t performed middle area with any regularity since 2020.
Previous to this season’s tough begin (and the emergence of these younger high prospects), Hays has been a fixture within the Baltimore outfield. The previous third-round decide was a top-100 prospect himself and from 2019-23 tallied 1886 plate appearances with a robust .264/.317/.441 batting line (109 wRC+). Hays doesn’t stroll a lot (profession 5.9%) however strikes out at a 21.5% clip that’s barely under league-average. He’s usually posted common or higher grades in left area, although his marks this season are down throughout the board. Once more, nonetheless, that’s not essentially a shock for an outfielder who’s battled a lower-leg harm that impacted his pace and mobility.
Hays will give the Phillies a productive platoon companion to pair with lefty-swinging Brandon Marsh in left area. Each Marsh and Hays (in a pinch) can deal with middle area as effectively, although it’s probably that defensive standout Johan Rojas will proceed to patrol that place often — barring an extra outfield acquisition from president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. Hays has bludgeoned lefties at a .328/.394/.500 clip in 72 plate appearances this 12 months and touts a lifetime .272/.328/.463 output towards southpaws.
The Phillies will be capable of management Hays by means of the 2025 season in the event that they select, although he’d be an costly part-time participant in the event that they plan to platoon him all season in 2025. He’s incomes $6.3MM this 12 months in his second arbitration season and will likely be due one remaining increase this winter — prone to a quantity north of $8MM — earlier than qualifying as a free agent within the 2025-26 offseason.
Turning to the Orioles’ finish of the deal, they’ll firstly add an skilled reliever within the type of the 29-year-old Dominguez. He’s been tagged for a 4.75 ERA this 12 months in 36 innings however entered the 2024 marketing campaign with a profession 3.31 earned run common, 27 saves and 52 holds. Dominguez has been uncharacteristically homer-prone this 12 months and thus struggled to strand runners, however his velocity (97.5 mph common fastball), strikeout charge (25.5%) and stroll charge (7.6%) all stay sturdy. This 12 months’s stroll charge is definitely a career-low, and Dominguez’s 25.5% strikeout charge isn’t terribly far off the 27.5% mark he carried into the season.
As is usually the case with relievers, Dominguez’s pedestrian earned run common is skewed by a small variety of meltdowns. He’s been tagged for 4 earned runs on two separate events this season, accounting for 42% of his earned runs in these two journeys to the mound (simply 5.2% of his whole appearances).
That clearly doesn’t make the bottom-line outcomes any extra palatable, nevertheless it’s preferable to have a reliever who’s had a handful of terrible outings versus one who’s liable to giving up a run or two each different day trip. With Craig Kimbrel at the moment in a tough patch and Danny Coulombe on the 60-day injured checklist, Dominguez might discover himself in some leverage conditions.
Like Hays, Dominguez might be managed by means of the 2025 season — however the selection is on the group’s discretion. He’s enjoying out the second season of a two-year, $7.25MM contract that lined his remaining two arbitration seasons and features a membership choice for what would’ve been his first free-agent 12 months. The O’s will maintain an $8MM membership choice over Dominguez that comes with a $500K buyout — successfully rendering it a internet $7.5MM choice. If he can rebound to his prior type following the swap, that would show to be a palatable worth level even for what’s usually been a frugal Orioles membership (albeit below their now-former possession).
Baltimore will even add Pache to its bench combine. It’s an offensive downgrade, because the 25-year-old is hitting solely .202/.288/.269 in 118 plate appearances and carries a .179/.243/.272 slash in elements of 5 MLB seasons. That stated, Pache is a lights-out defender who’s been credited with a dozen Defensive Runs Saved and 16 Outs Above Common in simply 1334 profession innings within the outfield. He’s a plus-plus defender in middle area, providing the O’s a extra true fourth outfielder than Hays did, however he can actually play sturdy nook protection as effectively.
Pache is out of minor league choices, so he can’t be despatched to the minors with out first being designated for project and uncovered to waivers. As such, he’ll want to stay on Baltimore’s roster. For a group that’s a near-lock to make the postseason, this kind of outfielder — gentle hitting, plus protection, good pace — is a very helpful asset.
Pache is incomes simply north of the league minimal this season. Dominguez is being paid $4.25MM and has the $500K buyout on his choice. The swap is near cash-neutral, however the Phillies will likely be taking up about $297K in further payroll. When factoring of their luxurious tax standing, the commerce will value them about $481K general.
On account of this swap, the 26-year-old Stoudt will be designated for project for the third time this season. He’s bounced from the Reds, to the Mariners (his authentic group), to the Orioles by way of a collection of waiver claims. Stoudt allowed 11 runs in 10 1/3 innings throughout final 12 months’s MLB debut with Cincinnati. He was one in every of 4 gamers the Mariners despatched to the Reds within the Luis Castillo blockbuster two seasons in the past.
A former third-round decide, Stoudt ranked among the many high 20 prospects in each the Mariners’ and Reds’ techniques from 2021-23. He’s labored primarily as a starter within the minors, however the O’s put him of their Double-A bullpen after claiming him. He’s posted a 4.26 ERA in 12 2/3 innings in that position but additionally walked 12.1% of his opponents, persevering with some longstanding command points. The Orioles can commerce Stoudt till Tuesday’s deadline. Failing that, he’ll probably be positioned on outright waivers.
