The Orioles found an infielder Blaze Alexander from the Diamondbacks, according to announcements from both clubs. The right hand Kade Stroud he goes to the Diamondbacks and a few minor leaguers: right-handers Wellington Aracena and an infielder Jose Mejia. The trade is neutral for the 40-man, as Alexander and Strowd are the only guys with roster spots here.
Alexander, 27 in June, has appeared in the last two major league seasons for the Snakes. He stepped to the plate 451 times with a .237/.322/.366 line. That’s below league average, which translates to a 95 wRC+, and comes with a career-high 29.9% strikeout rate. He has shown some versatility by lining up at three infield spots in left field at first base and some time in the outfield.
While Alexander was somewhat of a utility player in Arizona, it would be difficult for him to hold down a roster spot going forward now that he has finished his final season. The Diamondbacks are somewhat determined to get their players out this offseason. They traded another player who was out of options last month during the diversion Jake McCarthy in the Rockies.
Arizona has Nolan Arenado thirdly, Geraldo Perdomo at shortstop as well Ketel Marte the second time. Besides Alexander, they have boys Tim Tawa again Jordan Lawler in the mix of bench jobs with multiple positions, or John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM says the club will now turn to free agency to replace Alexander with someone who can play second and/or third base.
The Orioles seem more than willing to keep Alexander as part of a multi-position bench. They plan to be Jordan Westburg thirdly, Gunnar Henderson in short again Jackson Holiday on the keystone. Prior to this deal, their top outfield depth options were the same as the boys Jeremiah Jackson again Bryan Ramos. Ramos is a winger who was recently selected in a DFA trade for cash consideration. Jackson has only 48 games of major league experience and still has options.
Alexander jumps into the club’s top bench and will be used as a team player. A right-handed hitter, he has a .269/.365/.434 line and a 125 wRC+ against lefties in his career thus far. Baltimore projects to have a number of remaining players receiving regular playing time, including Henderson, Holliday, Dylan Beavers, Colton Cowser again Samuel Basallo. With Alexander breaking up the defense in a variety of ways, he should help the O’s protect those guys against tough lefties.
Although he is out of options, his service clock is just over one year. That means he’s two years away from being eligible for compensation and would be unrestricted for five full seasons before becoming a free agent, if he continues to hang onto a roster spot.
To make that consistent addition to their roster of quality players, the O’s parted ways with a major league arm. Strowd, 28, made his major league debut with the Orioles last year. He threw 26 1/3 innings over 25 relief appearances, allowing just a 1.71 earned run average over nine earned runs. He averaged 96 miles per hour with his seamer and sinker but mostly threw a low-90s cutter while pitching a curveball and a sweeper.
His 12.4% walk rate was high but his 22.9% strikeout rate was respectable and he got a low on 56.7% of balls in play. There was definitely some luck in that ERA, as his .227 batting average in balls in play allowed and 83.9% strand rate were both on the lucky side but the 3.40 FIP and 4.02 SIERA suggest he could have managed decent results even with neutral luck.
The bullpen was a disaster in Arizona in 2025. Their support groups should have been titled AJ Puk again Justin Martinez but both needed major elbow surgery last year and various other pitchers suffered injuries. The result was that the club’s pitchers had a collective ERA of 4.82, ahead of the Angels, Rockies and Nationals.
However, dealing with the Bulls in a big splash would not be possible due to increasing the club’s salary. General manager Mike Hazen admitted last month that he was essentially deciding between re-signing Merrill Kelly by exchanging or using that money in a vending machine. He chose Kelly, which means the club will be paying cheap money.
Since Strowd was recently released last year, he has only 74 days of major league service time. He has at least three years of eligibility left and has few options, meaning he doesn’t even need to be guaranteed a major league roster spot. Baltimore made significant bullpen upgrades this winter through signings Ryan Helsley and gain Andrew Kittredge. They seem to feel they have enough depth in relief to separate Strowd from Alexander.
The O’s are also getting a bit into their farm system. Aracena, 21, was recently acquired in July during the O’s trade Gregory Soto to the Mets. He pitched 92 innings last year, in Single-A and High-A, split between starting and relieving. He had a 2.25 ERA, a 30.3% strikeout rate and a 46.5% groundball rate but a whopping 13.6% walk rate. Baseball America recently ranked him as Baltimore’s #23 prospect. He had a triple digit fever but obviously needs to cool it down a bit. That lack of control may push him to the top in the future but he has yet to reach Double-A, so his future remains to be seen. Mejia, 20, is a long-term player. He is young and has only two games of experience in full season football.
Steve Gilbert of MLB.com first reported that Alexander was going to Baltimore for Strowd and several minor leaguers. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic provided the identities of those minor leaguers. Photos courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Allan Henry, Rafael Suanes, Imagn Images
