Chris Ray a Brave? LaRoche an Oriole?

Well, now the Braves are supposed in talks with the Orioles about again trading Adam LaRoche, this time for Ray and a complimentary player. Ken Rosenthal from foxsports.com reports:

" The Orioles have renewed their pursuit of Braves first baseman Adam LaRoche, this time without offering second baseman Brian Roberts.

Earlier this month, Orioles owner Peter Angelos nixed a trade of Roberts and right-hander Hayden Penn to the Braves for LaRoche and second baseman Marcus Giles.

In the latest discussions, the Braves likely are targeting Orioles closer Chris Ray, who could join closer Bob Wickman and setup man Rafael Soriano to give the team formidable late-inning relief.

The Braves probably would want another player in addition to Ray — perhaps Penn. They have been reluctant to trade LaRoche for Pirates closer Mike Gonzalez without receiving another piece in return.

The Orioles don't want to move Ray, but they would be foolish to dismiss the idea if they could add LaRoche, a left-handed hitter who could thrive at Camden Yards.

Ray, who turns 25 on Jan. 12, is five years away from free agency, but LaRoche, 27, also qualifies as a young, developing player he's three years away from going free.

By adding three free-agent relievers — right-handers Danys Baez and Chad Bradford and lefty Jamie Walker — the Orioles have built enough bullpen depth to thstand the loss of Ray."

Hopefully this will be nothing more than a rumor. I think the trade would be good on paper for both teams, as the Orioles need a power bat and LaRoche is young. The Orioles do have a stacked bullpen now, but Ray is cheap and not even near the arbitration stage yet. I'd be apprehensive in trading Ray right now, but we do need the power.

However, I don't think we should trade 2 young pitchers for LaRoche. Right now, pitching is at a premium, and if Penn ever does develop and if Ray keeps up his numbers over the next few season, this may look to be a lopsided trade for the fact that the future might have been mortaged to win today. I'd say trade should happen with Ray and perhaps a prospect in the lower level of the organization, not a pitcher like Penn.

It's a flip for me. If I were the GM of the Orioles, as much as I like Ray, I'd look into this deal.