The Orioles have been thrifty so far in the off-season. They re-signed Nate McLouth, Lew Ford and Luis Ayala…..which were all smart moves as they all returned for the right prices. The Orioles have also traded for Danny Valencia, Trayvon Robinson and Yamaico Navarro so far this off-season and they will all compete for bench spots. Alexi Casilla and Conor Jackson were also picked up to compete for roster spots in spring training. The Orioles still have holes at 2B, 1B or DH (depending on where Chris Davis plays) and they could probably use a veteran for the starting rotation. Here is how I would go about filling some of these holes. I would try to wait out 2B Kelly Johnson and try to sign him for below market value on a 1-year contract. I think I would spend some money and try to sign 1B Adam LaRoche with the idea of DHing Chris Davis (where his mitt won’t hurt the team). For the starting pitcher, I would try to bring back Joe Saunders. If the O’s miss on him, I would consider bringing back Erik Bedard or possibly Roy Oswalt (if he’s focused) as they were both still throwing hard last year. The Orioles are close to being a legit World Series contender, so it’s the right time to spend some cash.

The Baltimore Orioles really need to get a 1B or 3B in the trade market that can make an impact with the bat. Top targets should include Justin Morneau (Twins), Carlos Lee (Marlins), Chase Headley (Padres) and Aramis Ramirez (Brewers). Of those four players, Carlos Lee would likely come the cheapest in terms of prospects, so that would be the direction I would head in. The Orioles are also likely going to be scouring the market for starting pitchers. I think they should stay out of the bidding for Zack Greinke, James Shields, Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza and Josh Johnson. There’s two reasons for that line of thinking. One, it would cost the Orioles a lot of quality prospects for any of those five pitchers. Secondly, the Orioles need to trade for more than one starting pitcher. With that in mind, they will likely be looking at guys like Francisco Liriano, Bartolo Colon, Jason Vargas, Kevin Correia, Lucas Harrell, Clayton Richard, Carlos Zambrano, Randy Wolf, Joe Blanton and Paul Maholm. Of that bunch, I think Jason Vargas and Joe Blanton make the most sense. They also need a lefty reliever to help out Troy Patton. They should be after Jose Mijares, Manny Parra and Joe Thatcher. I think Mijares should be the target here. In summation, I think trades adding Carlos Lee, Jason Vargas, Joe Blanton and Jose Mijares would keep the Orioles in the hunt for a playoff spot in 2012. They can’t stay pat.

The Orioles are in second place in the A.L. East with a 41-31 record, just three games behind the Yankees. With that in mind, the Orioles should try to bolster their roster right now. They need a starting LF and a starting pitcher or two. Two teams offer one stop shopping for the Orioles. The Cubs would be the more high priced, high upside proposition with Matt Garza and Alfonso Soriano available. But, I think a move with the Padres would seem more practical. They likely will make lefty starting pitcher Clayton Richard and righty starter Edison Volquez available. They also likely will have righty swinging Carlos Quentin and lefty swinging Will Venable available. With that in mind I would suggest a deal for Richard & Venable.

Sure, the Orioles are in first place right now and they are looking good. But, with the schedule being very heavy in division, the Orioles are going to likely need to make a couple of upgrades and I have a couple ideas. I would call up the Philadelphia Phillies first and I would offer them up righty reliever Kevin Gregg, 2B Ryan Adams and cash for lefty swinging Juan Pierre. Pierre would take over as the Orioles’ leadoff man and starting LF. Nolan Reimold would split time with Pierre in LF and Wilson Betemit at DH when he returns to action. The second move I would try to make would be to offer the White Sox righty starting pitcher Chris Tillman for veteran lefty reliever Matt Thornton. That would give the Orioles a second lefty in the pen, and a darn good one. So there you have it, my ideas to keep the Orioles a contender this year.

If I we’re running the Baltimore Orioles, I would be looking to add this trio of players to the mix for the 2012 season:

1. Hideki Matsui - The Orioles had to be disappointed with Vladimir Guerrero’s lack of power last year. Hideki Matsui was on a terrible A’s hitting team that didn’t give him much help. I think he would hit well in Camden Yards.

2. Kosuke Fukudome - The Orioles could use a solid lefty swinging #4 outfielder to share time with Nolan Reimold in LF in 2011. Fukudome can play all three slots in the field, so the O’s could find him 300-350 ABs in 2012.

3. Aaron Harang - The Orioles need another veteran at the top of the rotation to team with Jeremy Guthrie. Harang would be a good fit as he’s a workhorse and he pitched well for the Padres last year.

The Orioles should be aggressive in the trade market next week. The O’s gave it a good shot last winter in signing a lot of veterans but it just hasn’t worked out so far this year. With that in mind, Vladimir Guerrero, Derrek Lee and Kevin Gregg are likely at the top of the list of players the Orioles are willing to deal. Felix Pie and Koji Uehara could also be moved before next Sunday as well. Uehara’s name has popped up in a lot of trade rumors recently. The Orioles would probably kick in most of the cash for lefty reliever Mike Gonzalez if they could find a team that wants him as he has been a huge disappointment so far in Baltimore. The biggest chip the O’s have is righty starting pitcher Jeremy Guthrie. Guthrie has had back luck support wise from both the offense and the bullpen this year but he has done his part. The Tigers, Yankees, Red Sox and Cardinals would probably be the teams most interested in Guthrie. Out of the players mentioned above, none of them with the exception of Guthrie are in the O’s long term plans so it makes sense to deal them for players to help them in the future.

I’m thinking that the Orioles should deal a couple of veterans this month, but no one that they are counting on for next season. With that in mind, I think I would offer 1B Derrek Lee, OF Luke Scott and cash to the Arizona Diamondbacks for righty starting pitchers Armando Galarraga, Barry Enright and rookie outfielder Wagner Mateo. This kind of deal would give the Orioles a couple of decent, young starting pitchers and it would allow them to get a good look at Nolan Reimold at 1B and Felix Pie in the outfield. Scott & Lee would really add some spice to the D-Backs’ lineup the last three months of the year. This is the kind of deal that makes too much sense to ever actually happen.

The Baltimore Orioles are sitting at 31-35, 9 games behind the Boston Red Sox. If things don’t get better soon, the Orioles are likely going to be sellers at the trade deadline. Vladimir Guerrero, Luke Scott, Derrek Lee, Felix Pie, Jeremy Guthrie, Kevin Gregg, Koji Uehara and Mike Gonzalez give the O’s some interesting trade chips. The Orioles would likely want young position players and relief pitchers back in deals for their veteran players. The Orioles already have a impressive young starting rotation to build around for the future.

The Baltimore Orioles have seven free agents heading into this winter so some tough decisions have to be made. This is what I would do with these guys if I were running the Orioles:

Ty Wigginton: 33-year old righty swinging Ty Wigginton was the Orioles lone All-Star last season. He played in 154 games for the Orioles last season and he was 144 of 581 (.248 avg, .727 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 22 homers and 76 RBIs. Wigginton slumped badly in the second half of the year and that negated his versatility. VERDICT: I would let Wigginton go as I think he’s going to get a good offer from another team this winter.

Julio Lugo: 34-year old righty swinging infielder Julio Lugo got his chances to play this year due to the injury to Brian Roberts but he didn’t do much with it. Lugo played in 93 games for the O’s this year and he was 60 of 241 (.249 avg, .581 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 0 homers, 20 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. VERDICT: The Orioles should let him go because they should be able to find a better back up infielder in free agency.

Cesar Izturis: 30-year old switch hitting shortstop Cesar Izturis is a wizard with a mitt on his hand but he just can’t hit a lick. Izturis played in 150 games for the Orioles last season and he was 109 of 473 (.230 avg, .545 OPS) with 42 runs scored, 1 homer, 28 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. VERDICT: The Orioles are not a good enough hitting team to carry a player like Izturis for his glove so I would let him walk.

Corey Patterson: 31-year old lefty swinging outfielder Corey Patterson played pretty well for the Orioles last season. He played in 90 games last season for the Orioles and he was 83 of 308 (.269 avg, .721 OPS) with 43 runs scored, 8 homers, 32 RBIs and 21 stolen bases. VERDICT: Due to his speed and ability to play all three outfield positions I would seriously consider bringing him back as the #4 outfielder in 2011 unless he got a big offer from another team.

Kevin Millwood: 35-year old righty starting pitcher Kevin Millwood was supposed to be the veteran anchor of the starting rotation last season but that just wasn’t the case. Millwood started 31 games for the O’s last year and he was 4-16 with a 5.10 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. VERDICT: The Orioles shouldn’t be making even a minor league contract offer to Millwood.

Mark Hendrickson: 36-year old lefty reliever Mark Hendrickson pitched in 52 games (1 start) for the Orioles last season and he was 1-6 with a 5.26 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP. He was solid as a reliever in 2009 but not so good in 2010. VERDICT: I would pay the $200,000 buyout instead of the $1.2 million bucks Hendrickson would get if the O’s picked up his option.

Koji Uehara: 35-year old righty reliever Koji Uehara was exceptional when healthy for the Orioles as he worked as the closer after Buck Showalter’s arrival. Uehara pitched in 43 games (0 starts) for the Orioles last season and he was 1-2 with 13 saves, a 2.86 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP. He only walked 5 batters while whiffing 55 in only 44 innings pitched. VERDICT: I would try to re-sign Uehara and let him keep his job at closer, but he won’t come cheap with the way he pitched last year.

The Orioles are such a mess right now that they need quality and quantity at the trade deadline and they have some pieces that other teams want. I would ship righty starting pitcher Jeremy Guthrie to the White Sox for outfielders Jordan Danks, John Shelby and righty starting pitcher Jeff Marquez. Then I would flip infielder Ty Wigginton to the Twins for righty reliever Anthony Slama and catcher Jose Morales. The Braves could use another hitter and with that in mind I would send Luke Scott to them for righty reliever Jesse Chavez, outfielder Gregor Blanco and shortstop Diory Hernandez. I would flip lefty reliever Will Ohman to the Phillies for 23-year old reliever Matt Way. Finally I would flip Mark Hendrickson to the Giants for righty starter/reliever Joe Martinez. These trades would be solid ones if the Orioles could pull them off. Danks, Shelby, Slama and Way are solid prospects. Marquez, Martinez and Chavez would give them some solid arms that could help them right now. Morales is a solid hitting catcher, Blanco a solid CF and Hernandez has good versatility in the field.