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Orioles' potential Tarik Skubal 'push' would be for all the wrong reasons

Orioles' potential Tarik Skubal 'push' would be for all the wrong reasons originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Let's face it.

The Baltimore Orioles will most likely not win the American League East title. And if they do, it'll be one of the more thrilling late-season comebacks in recent memory.

But being out of contention for the division crown does not mean the Orioles shouldn't make moves at the trade deadline.

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal wrote Monday that the Orioles could be one of the clubs that give the Detroit Tigers a call about left-handed ace Tarik Skubal.

However, Rosenthal's reasoning for why the Orioles should target Skubal should be borderline annoying to Baltimore's fans.

"The Baltimore Orioles’ head of baseball ops, Mike Elias, might be concerned enough about his job to push for Skubal," Rosenthal wrote.

If Elias makes the trade solely to save his job, then he's doing so for the wrong reasons. The focus should be on improving the team's chances of winning the World Series.

Plain and simple.

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Not to mention, Skubal would be a half-season rental for the Orioles. The back-to-back AL Cy Young winner reaches free agency at season's end.

There's no denying that Skubal would drastically improve Baltimore's rotation.

But adding him through a trade with the Tigers should be based on winning games this year, not the future of a front office executive.