Orioles deal de Brun to Rays

Outfielder Slater de Brun, who possesses a Canadian passport, has been traded to the Tampa Bay Rays by the Baltimore Orioles. Photo: Baltimore Orioles

December 24, 2025

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

On Friday, the Baltimore Orioles traded outfielder Slater de Brun, who owns a Canadian passport, to the Tampa Bay Rays as part of a package for right-hander Shane Baz.

The Rays also received catcher Caden Bodine, right-hander Michael Forret, outfielder Austin Overn and a Competitive Balance Round A draft pick in the deal.

Coincidentally, de Brun was a Competitive Balance Round A pick (37th overall) of the Orioles in the MLB draft in July. The 18-year-old was selected out of Summit High School in Bend, Ore., and was ranked by Baseball America as the best high school outfielder in the draft.

de Brun reported to the O’s but did not get into any professional games in 2025. He’ll likely make his pro debut in the Rays’ low minors in 2026.

deBrun’s mother, Julie, took film and communications studies at McGill University in Montreal. She eventually emigrated to Canada in 1995 and became a Canadian citizen. She moved to Toronto and worked at TSN, TVO, CBC and the Food Network from the mid-90s to the early 2000s.

Born in Santa Monica, Calif., in 2007, de Brun is a speedy outfielder who makes solid contact, possesses an excellent throwing arm and good defensive instincts in centre field. He’s just 18 but he projects to be a table-setting centre fielder who can hit at the top of a pro lineup.

“de Brun is small in stature but he’s young for the class with a good mix of tools and a high baseball IQ,” wrote Baseball America in their scouting report prior to the 2025 MLB draft. “He added significant strength in 2024, and while he doesn’t have much physical projection and doesn’t look like he will be a big home run threat, he puts the ball in play at a high clip with consistent hard contact from his short, level swing from the left side. He’s a dynamic runner with good defensive instincts in centre field, where he has an above-average arm.”