Taylor Ward has heard this song before.
As the Trade Deadline creeps toward Monday’s 6 p.m. ET finish, the Orioles outfielder finds himself back in the swirl of rumors, even though he has never actually been dealt in season.
That part of the business is familiar to him. What’s different now is the uniform.
“I mean, I had a pretty good run at this in Anaheim for about three years in a row,” said Ward, who was traded by the Angels to the Orioles in an offseason move on Nov. 19, 2025.
Baltimore has already started making moves, and the first one fit the sell-side label. Late Friday night, the Orioles traded right-hander Dean Kremer to the Twins. President of baseball operations Mike Elias had said Friday afternoon the club could go in both directions, buying and selling, and that flexibility could still shape the rest of the week.
That leaves room for more activity, especially with players on expiring contracts. Ward is one of them. The 32-year-old outfielder is set to hit free agency after the season, which naturally puts him in the middle of deadline chatter.
“At this point, it is what it is. I'd love to stay here.
Love the guys, love the coaching staff. I like where this organization is heading.
And I would love to stay,” Ward said after Baltimore’s 5-0 loss to Philadelphia at Camden Yards on Saturday night. "But I understand, at the end of the day, it's a business, and they've got to do what's best for the team."
The Orioles’ record says one thing - 54-57, with no .500 mark or better since late April - but the standings say something more complicated. They are still only 1 1/2 games behind the Guardians and Twins, both 56-56, for the third American League Wild Card spot. The Rangers, at 55-56, are in that same traffic jam too.
Elias’ approach appears to be less about chasing noise and more about making the right kind of deal. Baltimore still believes in a 2026 run, but it doesn’t want to lose sight of the bigger picture.
Ward’s season has been uneven in one very specific way: the power has disappeared. After blasting a career-high 36 home runs in 157 games for the Angels last year, he has seven in 110 games this season. Still, he has been one of the Orioles’ more dependable bats, hitting .245 with 20 doubles, a career-best 87 walks and a .729 OPS.
“I think there's just so much more out there, especially with the slug,” Ward said. “It’s just been a weird year with that. But I think there's more in the tank with that, and just got to figure it out.”
He isn’t the only Orioles player whose name is floating around. Catcher Adley Rutschman has been a major topic lately, with sources telling MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand on Saturday that several clubs have discussed the three-time All-Star with Baltimore, which could make him available.
Trevor Rogers is another possible trade piece. Like Ward, the left-handed starter is set to hit free agency this upcoming offseason.
“I just control the controllables. My wife’s on Twitter a lot, so I have to tell her, ‘Give your eyes a break, let’s relax a little bit, kind of stay where our feet are,’” Rogers said. “We’ll see what happens.”
Ward’s response has been more or less the same as it has been in previous deadline seasons: keep the routine, ignore the noise, and show up.
“You show up here every day, and at least for me, personally, I have my process I go through, and that usually keeps outside noise or any worry or anything other than what I'm focusing on that day out of what I'm thinking about,” Ward said. “For me, it's pretty easy.
Like I said, with the Angels, been through it. It is what it is.
So, not too hard for me.”
By Tuesday, Baltimore’s roster could look very different, with additions, subtractions, or both. However it shakes out, the Orioles still believe they can make a push and reach the postseason for the third time in four years. Ward believes that, too.
In Other News...
Orioles Fans May Hate What Adley Rutschman News Says About This Front Office
The Orioles rebuilding project has always been judged through the lens of patience, but any conversation about progress in Baltimore is going to feel different when it involves Adley Rutschman. The franchise centerpiece has been at the heart of everything the club has tried to build under general manager Mike Elias, which is why the latest news naturally lands as a referendum on the front office as much as on the player himself.
There is still a procedural step left before anything becomes official, and that is the part keeping this story from being complete. Even so, the mere fact that Rutschmans name is now tied to a move of this magnitude will force Orioles fans to reckon with how aggressively the organization wants to keep reshaping the roster, and whether the people making those calls can be trusted with the next phase of the rebuild. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Face One Deadline Decision That Could Define Their Rotation
The Orioles have already made one move that fits the deadlines usual balancing act, sending Dean Kremer out and bringing Jake Rogers in to shore up catching depth. Now the bigger question is whether they lean further into selling, or take a swing at adding help for a rotation that still has to carry them through a postseason chase. Baltimores front office is working with the same familiar tension that hangs over a contender near the deadline: protect the future, or push chips in for the present.
One possibility being discussed would address a clear need by adding a controllable left-handed starter, the kind of arm that could stabilize the staff beyond this season. It is the sort of deal that would require real prospect capital, and the Orioles have to decide how far they want to go to strengthen the rotation without thinning out the next wave of talent. For a club trying to thread that needle, this is the kind of decision that can shape not just the deadline, but the shape of the pitching staff for some time to come. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Just Helped A Wild Card Rival And Fans Know It
A late-summer trade sent veteran outfielder Taylor Ward from Baltimore to Seattle, a move that immediately drew attention because the Mariners are pushing to stay in the playoff race. Ward, on a one-year deal, gives Seattle another right-handed bat as it tries to shore up an offense that has been looking for a lift.
For the Orioles, the deal is a tougher sell to the fan base because they are still sitting near the wild-card picture themselves and moved a useful bat in the process. Baltimore did bring back three minor-league right-handers in Alex Hoppe, Harrison Kreiling and Brock Moore, though none of them were among Seattles top 30 prospects, which only adds to the feeling that this was a small return for a player who could have helped in the standings race. [Read more 🡒]