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Breaking Down the Orioles’ Return for Gregory Soto

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The Baltimore Orioles traded left-handed relief pitcher Gregory Soto to the New York Mets on Friday afternoon, kicking off what could be a bullpen fire sale at the trade deadline. In exchange, Right-handed pitching prospects Wellington Aracena and Cameron Foster went to the Orioles. Soto is in his last year of team control, expected to hit free agency at the end of the season.

Jun 1, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Gregory Soto (65) throws during the seventh inning against the Chicago White Sox at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

Evaluating the Gregory Soto Trade for the Orioles

Experts saw the Orioles as likely sellers at the deadline this year, citing poor performance and several players hitting free agency in 2026. The team has now dipped into their bullpen to try and rebuild a now-depleted farm system. Despite the team losing a key performer, they did net players that could be difference-makers in a few years.

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Losing Soto

The loss of Gregory Soto for the Orioles indicates the team will likely auction off the back of the bullpen to get much-needed investment on their rotation. Performance-wise, the team now lacks a strong arm and must turn to its minor-league system.  The team still has Félix Bautista and Seranthony Dominguez, but they could be on the move if the price is right.

One of the candidates to slide into Soto’s spot is 10th-ranked prospect Chayce McDermott. The 26-year-old struggled tremendously between Double-A and Triple-A this year, holding a bloated 6.91 ERA and 1.837 WHIP. He also has 36 walks, or nearly one walk per inning, and six home runs over 43 innings. The numbers present a picture of a pitcher who’s in a rapid decline. His repeated injuries also cause concern.

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Cameron Weston is also a choice to fill Soto’s role. His numbers are slightly better than McDermott’s, holding a 4.93 ERA and 1.412 WHIP at Triple-A Norfolk. He has a similar home run problem, giving up 14 in 91 1/3 innings and walking 47 batters in the same period. While he has a slightly elevated strikeout rate, there is a major lack of arms in the Orioles’ system.

Grading Wellington Aracena

2025 Stats (Single-A): 17 appearances (8 games started); 64 1/3 innings pitched; 2.38 ERA; 38 hits to 35 BB (1.135 WHIP); 84 K; 0 HR; .166 OBA

Aracena becomes the team’s 19th-ranked prospect following the trade to Baltimore. Despite early struggles in the first three years of his career, the 20-year-old appears to be having a breakout season.

Overall, Aracena has tossed to a 2.38 ERA with a low 1.135 WHIP. He’s also inducing more groundballs than flyballs, which also goes hand-in-hand with surrendering zero home runs this season at Low-A. His control doesn’t look great, but promising, tossing 35 walks and only four wild pitches, down from 12 a year prior.

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Aracena brings a five-pitch arsenal with him from the Mets system. He has a heavy dependency on his four-seamer and cutter, both graded as plus-pitches. He does have a curveball that he will flash from time to time, but he has trouble generating whiffs. The changeup is also coming into form, but only appears 2.2% of the time.

He is a player the Orioles could heavily invest in over the next few years to develop into a solid mid-rotation starter, or perhaps an ace. Holding a 33.5% strikeout rate and .472 OPS is reason to put faith in Aracena, along with his five pitches. If he can solidify four out of those five, he’ll be worth the trade in the long run.

Cameron Foster Brings Experience

2025 Stats (AA-AAA): 21 appearances (1 game started); 30 1/3 innings pitched; 2.97 ERA; 24 hits and 8 walks (1.055 WHIP); 39 K; 0 HR; .214 OBA

Foster is an unranked prospect from the Mets system, also in the middle of his best year. In 21 appearances with 30 1/3 innings logged, he has also surrendered no home runs and holds only eight walks during that time. He also has an elevated strikeout rate while keeping contact to a minimum. There is some promise here that the team can smile about in the wake of the Gregory Soto trade.

While Foster’s numbers look good on paper, it should be important to note that this is a 26-year-old at Double-A. In two games at Triple-A this year, he struck out five but surrendered seven runs in 3 2/3 innings and walked three. There is an obvious learning curve he has to get around to be viable for the bullpen.

The good news is that Foster has enough experience to plug into Soto’s spot if the team wants to go that route. The big problem is getting him up to speed with major league batting. He’s an additional player and might not warrant more attention than Aracena, but he could still be a back-of-the-bullpen asset.

 

Main Photo Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The post Breaking Down the Orioles’ Return for Gregory Soto appeared first on Last Word On Baseball.