By now, the Orioles’ game plan regarding international bonus slot money is fairly well known. Instead of spending said money on prospects from out of the country, Baltimore commonly uses it to trade for players.
It’s a controversial strategy to many, considering the amount of talent coming into the major leagues from afar. Yet recently, the Orioles have been unwilling to participate in the international market in a significant way. But the fruits of their labor from trading bonus slots in the past year plus are starting to show now.
The Baltimore Sun’s Jon Meoli chronicled a series of trades Baltimore made in 2017 using international bonus money in this piece from last summer.