The first day of Orioles camp brought several unfortunate injury updates, including a particularly ominous UCL sprain for Kyle Bradish.
Good morning, Camden Chatters.
Ah, spring training has arrived at last! There’s simply nothing like it. It’s a magical time when hope springs eternal, where there’s an electricity in the air, where every Orioles fan is full of excitement and optimism, dreaming of what’s about to…
….aaaaaand it turns out everyone is injured and everything is terrible and the season is ruined.
Well, there’s always 2025.
If you hadn’t heard, the opening of Orioles camp yesterday brought with it a torrent of bad injury news that has already put a damper on the upcoming campaign. Executive vice president Mike Elias revealed, among other things, that starter John Means is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day, having been shut down for an extra month after the 2023 season due to the elbow soreness that made him unavailable for the playoffs. Rookie of the Year Gunnar Henderson, too, is. behind schedule, suffering from oblique soreness that will sideline him for at least two weeks (and hopefully won’t linger beyond that).
But by far the most distressing update concerned Kyle Bradish, reigning Orioles ace and fourth-place finisher in the AL Cy Young vote, who Elias revealed is suffering from a UCL sprain that will land him on the injured list to begin the season. While Elias seemed publicly optimistic that the Orioles can manage Bradish’s injury without surgery and have him return to the mound at some point this year, baseball fans are well aware that UCL injuries for pitchers are often a precursor to Tommy John surgery. For now, Bradish will receive PRP injections and is scheduled to begin a throwing program today, but O’s fans are understandably fearing that the worst-case scenario will ultimately come to pass.
All of a sudden, a starting rotation that was shaping up to be one of the Orioles’ best in decades is now looking like a serious question mark. If Bradish and Means miss significant time, it could have a ripple effect on the whole staff. It’ll likely force Tyler Wells and Cole Irvin into the rotation, a clear downgrade to the Bradish/Means duo. That in turn weakens the bullpen, where Wells was set to serve a significant role and Irvin was the closest thing the O’s had to a long reliever.
Yesterday’s news was really a bummer of a way to start a new season. But hey, it’s a long spring. There’s plenty of time for Henderson, Means, and Bradish to play their way back to full health. (On the other hand, there’s also plenty of time for other players to get injured too, but let’s not think about that right now.)
I’m still excited for baseball to start. But the Orioles’ 2024 season might end up being a little more challenging than we’d hoped.
Links
Orioles count on Burnes, rotation depth with Bradish and Means out – BaltimoreBaseball.com
The Orioles are confident that they can withstand the losses of two starters with their in-house options. Like I said, hope springs eternal this time of year.
Orioles Have Shown Interest In Jesús Luzardo – MLB Trade Rumors
The Orioles’ talks for Luzardo may have pre-dated their Corbin Burnes acquisition, but if ever there were a time to jump back into negotiations…
Commissioner: MLB has sale of Orioles on fast track – The Baltimore Banner
The sale of the team to David Rubenstein could become official soon. But will it be soon enough so he can sign Blake Snell and/or Jordan Montgomery?
Here’s what the Orioles said about the Angelos family agreeing to sell the team to David Rubenstein – Baltimore Sun
Orioles players seem as excited as anyone that the team is being sold. And here I thought they bonded with John Angelos after their beer-bong clubhouse celebration last year.
Players in Orioles camp excited to have Burnes on the club – School of Roch
On the plus side, the Orioles do still have Corbin Burnes, and everyone is fired up about it. But I swear, if we hear his name during Elias’s next injury update, I will flip a table.
2024 Top 100 Prospects | FanGraphs Baseball
FanGraphs’ newly released top prospects list includes four Orioles in the top 24, and of course Jackson Holliday at #1 overall. Not too shabby!
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! And happy 77th birthday to “the Crow,” Terry Crowley, who played with the Orioles for 12 years and coached for nearly 20. Other former O’s born on this day include right-hander Jorge Rondon (36), lefty Tommy Milone (37), and outfielder Eric Byrnes (48).
One year ago on this date, Mike Elias gave his camp-opening update to reporters and revealed that Dillon Tate had a flexor strain injury. Elias estimated at the time that Tate would miss the first month of the season. As it turned out, he missed the entire year. Let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself with Bradish.