Throw out the playbook Mike Elias has been following the last five years. He’s got a new one.

Heading into Friday morning, the tenure of the Orioles’ executive vice president and general manager to this point was defined by patience. Elias inherited a 115-loss team in 2019 and spent the next four seasons rebuilding the organization. He stockpiled high draft picks and made nearly every move with an eye on building for the long-term.

Even after the team broke out as playoff contenders in 2022, the Orioles’ trade deadline moves were cautious. Elias added players at the margins of the roster without sacrificing any significant prospect capital or major leaguers under team control. Finally, in January, he waited out the trade market long enough to acquire former National League Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes.

On Friday, the Orioles’ moves are defined by another word: aggressive. With the trade deadline still four days away, Baltimore swung two deals in a matter of hours to address several key needs on a roster that entered the weekend in first place atop the American League East.

They first traded Austin Hays, a former All-Star who expressed an interest in signing a long-term extension, to the Philadelphia Phillies for reliever Seranthony Domínguez and outfielder Cristian Pache. Domínguez, who has an $8 million team option for 2025, was the centerpiece of the return. The right-hander is a desperately needed late-inning bullpen option for the Orioles with closing experience and a track record of playoff success.“We’re getting a guy that has an exceptional arm,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “He’s pitched in high-level moments in postseasons and was a big part of their World Series team a couple years ago. We saw earlier this year, it’s an electric fastball and a really good slider. He’s had his up and down moments this season but he’s somebody that we’re hoping can fit in in the back of our bullpen.”

Though Domínguez isn’t an immediate challenger to Craig Kimbrel’s closer role, he throws harder than anyone in the Orioles’ bullpen and has a devastating slider particularly effective against right-handed hitters. He’s struggled against lefties throughout his career and his home run rate has spiked this season, but Domínguez has put together dominant stretches in the past that offer optimism he can be an effective late-inning reliever in Baltimore.

Four hours later, Elias struck again. The Orioles acquired starter Zach Eflin from the Tampa Bay Rays for infielder Mac Horvath, right-hander Jackson Baumeister and outfielder Matthew Etzel, all 2023 draft picks who were at least a year or two away from reaching the majors. Eflin, 30, is a promising addition to an Orioles rotation that has been depleted by injuries this season.

He joins Burnes and Grayson Rodriguez to form a respectable top three of their playoff rotation, offering upside as a player who is only a year removed from finishing sixth in AL Cy Young Award voting. The right-hander has elite command and a full arsenal of pitches that make up for subpar whiff rates by inducing weak contact and keeping the ball on the ground. He also consistently pitches deep into games, an area of concern for the Orioles lately.

Both moves addressed some of the biggest holes on the Orioles’ 2024 and 2025 rosters. They didn’t come cheap, either. Eflin is owed $18 million next season, representing the largest financial commitment the Orioles have made to a player for a single-season salary under Elias. Between his salary and Domínguez’s team option, the Orioles just made a pair of commitments equivalent to nearly 28% of their $92.97 million payroll for their entire 2024 opening day roster.

Hays beat the Orioles in arbitration last winter to make $6.3 million and he would’ve received a raise next year, which offsets a chunk of that total. But Elias hinted before the All-Star break that the Orioles would have more resources with which to improve the team at the deadline this year under new owner David Rubenstein, and so far his actions have backed that up.

“I think that’s what I mean, like entertaining, expanding payroll,” Elias said. “They’re prepared to support our pursuits in that area. It doesn’t mean it’s definitely 100% going to happen, but I view our ownership situation as being a positive. As we’ve seen, they’re a very passionate, very robust group. And they see the talent on the team and they want to support that.”

The Orioles didn’t give up any of their top prospects to make these moves. Hays, like Domínguez and Eflin, was only under contract through next season. They didn’t sacrifice much, if any, of their chances of remaining competitive beyond the next two years. Yet the moves reinforced the front office’s belief in the club’s chances of competing for a World Series, even with its struggles of late in going 12-17 since June 21.

In a vacuum, the trade for Hays might tilt in the Phillies’ favor from a pure value standpoint. If Hays stays healthy through next season, he’s likely to be more valuable than Domínguez, who only pitches an inning at a time. Pache will try to stick with Baltimore but will likely have to improve upon his career .515 OPS to justify a roster spot deep into the season.

The aggression here is clearing the logjam in a crowded outfield, where Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser have made cases for regular playing time with other prospects close behind. Not that players such as Kjerstad, who has waited for two years for an opportunity to stick in the majors, are taking anything for granted.

“I still got to go out there and keep earning my name in the lineup every day and keep contributing to the team and helping us win, stay around here and a consistent player in the lineup,” Kjerstad said. “So, maybe this will give me a little bit more playing time or something like that but nothing’s guaranteed even when something happens.”

But while they’ve increased their payroll commitments, the Orioles’ farm system remains a collection of some of the most coveted talent in the sport. They’re in a position to swing a trade for any of the top names available on the trade market, and they would stand to benefit from adding more pieces to their pitching staff.

The Orioles’ front office has shown it knows how to be aggressive. Now it just has to finish the job.