The unpleasantness that bubbled up after Orioles pitcher Wei-Yin Chen was temporarily demoted to the minor leagues Tuesday isn't likely to become a serious distraction for a team that's playing its best baseball of the season. But it's probably a sign of things to come for a club that is awash in contractual uncertainty.
Chen is likely headed for free agency after this season, so no one should be surprised that superagent Scott Boras expressed dismay at a move that will reduce the number of starts his client will make this year.
And, of course, no one should be shocked that Orioles manager Buck Showalter and baseball operations guru Dan Duquette found a way — albeit a "grossly irregular" one, according to Boras — to solve an imminent organizational roster problem.
The Orioles needed a roster spot and Chen has a minor league option, so there's no recourse for Boras and Chen but to make their disappointment public and remember all this when it's time to decide where the left-hander will play next year.
News flash: It probably will not be here either way.
Showalter cast the move as one that would help Chen remain fresh over the long, hot summer and possibly save him a tough outing against the big-swinging Toronto Blue Jays this weekend. He has not matched up particularly well in four career starts against the Jays (1-3, 5.40 ERA) and he is coming off an extended performance Monday night. So, there was some logic in keeping him out of Canada.
It's really not important who's right or wrong. This all shall pass, especially if Chen keeps pitching well and the Orioles continue their impressive summer resurgence. But this particular teapot tempest figures to be only the beginning of a summer and fall of contract speculation and roster volatility.
The Orioles have so many players who will be eligible for free agency at the end of the year that just about every significant move the front office makes between now and then is going to be debated in that context.
In fact, it has already happened. The decision earlier this month to option rookie starter Mike Wright after an impressive four-start performance to make room for the return of veteran Bud Norris didn't make perfect sense from a purely baseball perspective. Norris had struggled through spring training and was off to a tough start, but the decision on who to keep in the rotation came down to more than just who was pitching better at the time.
Norris is another potential free agent and won 15 games last year, so the Orioles needed to re-establish his value for some obvious reasons — including the possibility of dealing him at either the July 31 or Aug. 31 trade deadline.
From here on out, there is going to be speculation about any number of players. The call-up of versatile infielder/outfielder Chris Parmelee on Tuesday is — on its face — a pretty simple case of the Orioles wanting to prevent him from exercising his opt-out clause. But you can read a lot more than that into it.
Depending on the club's performance over the next couple of months, Parmelee could end up being a fallback option if the Orioles decide to get some talent in return for slugger Chris Davis before Boras steers him elsewhere next winter.
That probably seems to be an unlikely scenario at the moment, since the Orioles have rebounded from a series of early-season injuries to reassert themselves in the evenly matched American League East. But Duquette and Showalter have proven over the past three seasons that they are not bound by the limits of baseball orthodoxy — as Chen and Boras found out again Tuesday.
There will come a point where Duquette must begin to balance the needs of the present and future if the Orioles are to continue to be competitive beyond this year. The club already is preparing for the likely departures of Chen and Norris, and has Wright, Kevin Gausman and promising Tyler Wilson all waiting for their chance to step into the rotation.
The team does not have the same level of position depth, which should mute midseason speculation about Davis and Matt Wieters. However, nothing is ever out of the question with Duquette, except, perhaps, convincing Boras to consider a hometown discount.
In the meantime, there will be other curious roster moves and machinations — and perhaps some grumbling in the ranks. But Duquette and Showalter have proven to be pretty good at getting the most out of a 40-man roster.
It's no secret that they have different priorities than the agents who represent their players, but it's still very much in their interests to put those players in the best position to succeed. They have done that with Chen and his terrific performance over the past 15 months is all the proof anyone should need.
twitter.com/SchmuckStop
Read more from columnist Peter Schmuck on his blog, "The Schmuck Stops Here," at baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog.