The MLB trade deadline is less than a week away.

The Orioles’ needs are clear: pitching and more pitching. But what will it take to get a starter? Our staff put together a few trades the Orioles might need to make to bolster the roster for October.

Danielle Allentuck, Orioles reporter

Orioles get: Tarik Skubal

Tigers get: Kyle Stowers, Connor Norby, Samuel Basallo, Dylan Beavers, Moisés Chace, Edgar Portes

The Orioles are in desperate need of pitching not just for this year but for years to come. Corbin Burnes is a free agent after this season, and Tyler Wells and Kyle Bradish won’t return until midway through next season, and that’s only if everything goes as planned.

Grayson Rodriguez has the stuff to be a No. 1, but next year will be just his third major league season. It may not be his time yet. Acquiring Skubal, who is under team control until 2027, would give Baltimore its ace for the next several years. If Rodriguez develops into one and Bradish returns to his previous form, they could have three top-of-the-line pitchers, something no team would ever complain about.

Skubal does come with risks — he had Tommy John elbow surgery in 2017 and flexor tendon surgery in 2022 — but so does any pitcher nowadays. He has a 2.34 ERA through 20 starts and was a first-time All-Star.

Skubal’s price is high. Of the three top prospects — Jackson Holliday, Coby Mayo and Samuel Basallo — I think the Orioles are the most likely to trade Basallo, because they already have a top catcher in Adley Rutschman and they can probably find another backup for cheap (current backup James McCann will be a free agent after this season).

In this deal, the Tigers would get two major league-ready players in second baseman/outfielder Norby and outfielder Stowers, plus huge future potential with Basallo and Beavers, who are both in Double-A and projected to debut in a year or two. Chace and Portes are two right-handed pitchers in High-A with high upside. Any team wants pitching depth, and these two guys would be a low-risk add-on for the Orioles to give away.

Paul Mancano, audience engagement editor

Orioles get: Jameson Taillon

Cubs get: Seth Johnson, Jud Fabian

It’s difficult to find the perfect fit for the Orioles at this deadline. There are fewer sellers than ever because of the extra wild-card spots, and the rebuilding teams don’t have much to offer by way of pitching.

That’s what makes Jed Hoyer’s concession speech notable. The Cubs’ president of baseball operations announced he’s open for business, and there are several players on Chicago’s roster who could pique Mike Elias’ interest.

Taillon is in the second season of a four-year, $68 million deal and has rebounded from a brutal 2023 season by putting up a 3.10 ERA in his first 16 starts. Taillon, who averaged 159 innings a season from 2021-23, can be a stabilizing presence in an Orioles rotation that could be very young in 2025. The 32-year-old could also start Game 3 of a playoff series three months from now.

It may seem like a sideways move to deal one of your top pitching prospects for a veteran arm, but the Orioles might not have the patience to let Johnson work through his walk issues while he holds a valuable 40-man roster spot. Fabian, meanwhile, doesn’t have a clear path to Baltimore’s big league outfield.

Kyle Goon, sports columnist

Orioles get: Tyler Anderson

Angels get: Connor Norby, Kyle Stowers

The other folks in this roundtable are grounded, rooting their viewpoints in what the Orioles might do based on Mike Elias’ philosophy and history. I like to be a little more fantastical. This is a trade the Orioles should do, maybe even if they’re giving up a lot at face value.

Anderson is having one of his best years at 34 and is under team control for next year. He’s been lights out against lefties (.167 batting average against), but even against righties (.222 BAA) he’s keeping hitters relatively quiet. He doesn’t strike out many guys and his walks are a bit higher than ideal, but he’s leading the Angels in WAR (4.3) and probably plays well in front of a defense as good as Baltimore’s.

His performances this year against the Yankees, Brewers, Rangers and Astros were solid, if you’re looking for how he’ll fare in possible playoff series. Plus, he’d be the lone lefty in the Orioles rotation unless the team makes other trades or brings back Cade Povich.

The Angels are in constant need of talent, and the franchise consistently thinks short term on how to scale its young players to the big leagues. Norby and Stowers would hold appeal as guys who could play right away or at least soon. Frankly, there just isn’t much room for either to see time in the field as things stand, so even though the O’s have been loath to let either go for more than a king’s ransom, it would be fair to let both seek an opportunity elsewhere after proving themselves over and over again in Norfolk.

It’s the kind of deal that feels as if it could be a win-win. But it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Orioles aren’t willing to part with two big league-ready players even if there’s nowhere to play them.

Jon Meoli, Orioles columnist

Orioles get: Trevor Rogers

Marlins get: Mac Horvath, Cameron Weston, Tavian Josenberger

If I haven’t written the words “Every trade you read on the internet is bad and dumb,” I have at the very least thought them. That said, I’m happy to contribute one. Here, the Orioles get a reclamation project who was an All-Star in 2021 but has seen his stuff drop off due to health issues. As of Wednesday, he had a 4.59 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP in 100 innings. The plusses are that he’s a lefty with a decent arsenal and definite upside considering what he’s done in the past, the Orioles have the resources to help get the best out of him, and he’ll be reasonably priced in his two remaining seasons before free agency if it works out.

That’s what makes this package feel maybe a little light — the control — but he’s also three years and several injuries removed from his top form, so it feels fair to me. Horvath and Josenberger have the low whiff rates the Marlins have been seeking, they’re athletic and versatile defenders, and Horvath especially has tantalizing raw power. Neither is a massive name, but there’s upside there and traits that are attractive to the Marlins. Weston isn’t going to overpower with a low-90s fastball but misses bats with his slider and changeup. He has a 2.36 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 10.4 strikeouts per nine between Aberdeen and Bowie this year.