Baltimore Orioles acquire infielder Tim Beckham, no deal for Zach Britton

Despite numerous rumors about Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton, the lefty remains in Baltimore and the Orioles acquire infielder Tim Beckham from the Tampa Bay Rays as the MLB Trade Deadline ends.

In this year’s edition of the MLB Trade Deadline, there’s one word to describe the Baltimore Orioles trade deadline plans: Complicated.

The Baltimore Orioles aren’t exactly in the thick of the American League playoff race, but they aren’t out of the playoff picture either. At 50-54, fourth-place in the AL East standings, the Orioles sit 6.5 games back from first place in the division and trails the Kansas City Royals by 5.5 games for the final AL Wild Card spot.

So, instead of surrendering the season, the Orioles keep Britton and upgrade their shortstop position with the acquisition of 27-year-old Tim Beckham from the Tampa Bay Rays, per Marc Topkin of TampaBay.com.

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In exchange, the Orioles sent right-handed pitching prospect Tobias Myers (yes, a pitcher) to Tampa Bay. Myers made seven starts for the Single-A Aberdeen IronBirds this season with a 2-2 record and a 3.94 ERA.

To put it lightly, the Orioles moves in this year’s 2017 Trade Deadline was unexpected and disheartening to many Orioles fans as the team remains neutral on the direction of the franchise. To summarize, the Orioles gained starting pitcher Jeremy Hellickson and infielder Beckham and lost the services of fan favorite Hyun Soo-Kim and a pitching prospect in Myers.

Beckham was drafted first overall in the 2008 June Amateur draft by the Rays and has played at the major league level the past three seasons. The shortstop has already smashed a career-high 12 home runs in 2017 and his 36 RBIs on the season is just two shy of his career-high 37 RBIs he set in his rookie season.

Topkin of TampaBay.com shared a picture of Beckham on the phone just moments after the trade went down.

The former Rays shortstop has flashed potential as a shortstop as well, including a dazzling grab to prevent Alex Bregman from an infield base hit.

However, Beckham has sputtered the second half of the season with a faulty .114 batting average in 11 games, along with a home run, 3 RBIs, and 12 strikeouts. Beckham.274  batting average to end the first half has plunged to .259 as he opens his career with the Orioles.

Baltimore Orioles trade rumors were centered around closer Zach Britton for the past few weeks in an effort to acquire much-needed pitching prospect to feed a starved pitching prospect organization.

Baltimore Orioles Vice President of Baseball Operations thought otherwise with intentions to rejuvenate the Orioles exhausting 2017 season.

Next: How the Orioles are in prime spot to move up in standings

With the MLB Trade Deadline behind us, the Orioles schedule brings them to a defining three-game series against the Kansas City Royals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. A sweep of the Royals and the Orioles are right back in the thick of things in the AL Wild Card race.