With the Baltimore Orioles looking to have a major rebound year in 2026, it wouldn’t be shocking to see them go out and get aggressive with a big trade.
Today, we’ll be looking at a trade idea that would send MacKenzie Gore from the Washington Nationals to the Orioles.
That idea comes from ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel in an article that looks at a number of different trade ideas.
McDaniel writes that, “Gore hasn’t quite made the jump to front-line starter. But he has some qualities in common with higher slot lefties who are front-line types, like Blake Snell and Max Fried.”
This is a fair argument as to why the Orioles would want him.
For the Nationals, given that they just won 66 games last year, this team is in desperate need of more prospects. In the midst of a deep rebuild, it just makes too much sense for Washington to flip someone like Gore for multiple young players.
On the other side, the Orioles could reasonably start to push their chips in. They have the talent to make a deep run in 2026, and they should trade away some prospects in order to polish up their rotation.
MacKenzie Gore Sent to Baltimore Orioles: MLB Trade Pitch
To get a better understanding of whether a deal like this would actually be realistic, let’s take a look at McDaniel’s proposed package:
“The Orioles can send a prospect package featuring OFs Slater de Brun and Austin Overn and RHPs Esteban Mejia and J.T. Quinn to the Nationals”.
This isn’t a bad price for the Orioles to pay, but it’s still a move that would make sense for the Nationals, given their situation. Gore isn’t a superstar, but he’s a very good pitcher who just made his first All-Star game last year.
Last season, Gore had 3.0 WAR, 4.17 ERA, and 1.353 WHIP. When looking into Gore’s Baseball Savant numbers, though, they’re not as impressive.
Gore had a Pitching Run Value of 0 on the year, which was in the 40th percentile.
Does MacKenzie Gore Fit With The Baltimore Orioles?
Gore’s stats aside, he could fit very well with the Orioles, who really struggled with their starting pitching last year. In 2025, the Orioles starters had the 24th-ranked ERA in baseball at 4.65.
Right now, Cade Povich is projected to be the Orioles’ 5th starter. Replacing Povich, who had a Pitching Run Value of -18 (6th percentile) in 22 games, would be a huge upgrade.
Povich is only 25 years old, so it’s possible that he’ll find his way back into the starting rotation soon enough, but for the team to win in 2026, replacing him with Gore would be a great move.
It’s not the massive blockbuster move that many Orioles fans are hoping for, but it’s one that will certainly improve their rotation next season.
Altogether, this seems like a very realistic deal for both sides. Gore is a very good player, but the Washington Nationals would benefit a lot more from multiple prospects.
MacKenzie Gore Contract
Gore is under team control for two more years and is currently in the arbitration years of his contract. Spotrac estimates that his contract value will check in at $6.5 million next season.
